Discipleship | Pr Ronson

You're listening to a message to go from acts church.

We hope this message will light up your day.

Today's topic is very easy. It's called discipleship. And I'm

going to share from the Book of Timothy.

Right.

So, when you read the epistles of Timothy, First Timothy

and Second Timothy. First Timothy is written most scholars believe

when Paul was not in prison. So First Timothy basically

Paul gave instruction to Timothy on church governance, et cetera.

But when you read Second Timothy, it is at the

time when Paul wrote it in prison. It was also

at the time where Paul knew the end of his

life it's near. They saw you hear from Second Timothy

four seventeen or probably before sixteen, the famous verse for

I the good fight. I've run the race, and I've

kept the faith. Now, when you read the Book of Timothy,

I want you to read from the lens of Timothy.

I want you to read from the lens where you

have a mentor you have a spiritual father who have

gone through a lord, and now towards detail end of

his life, he's giving you a charge. He's writing as

though he will never be able to see you again.

So that's how the Bible will come alive when we

read it.

We don't read it as a third person.

Try to read it as though the epistol is addressing you.

So you will really have to put yourself into this

character and don't read it at a moment where you

read it for the sake of knowledge. Wise you read

it for the sake of you wanting to study it,

which is good. But read it from a leans where

you put yourself in Timothy's shoe, reading the epistle for

the very first time. So in Tewod Timothy chapter one,

we're gonna read from verse one Paul and Apostle of

Jesus Christ, by the will of God, according to the

promise of life which is in Christ Jesus to Timothy

a beloved son. So you can underline that if you

want to to Timothy a beloved son, grace, mercy and

peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.

I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience,

as my forefathers did, as without ceasing, I remember you

in my prayers day and night and day, greatly desiring

to see you, being mindful of your tears that.

I may be filled with joy.

So Paul knew that Timothy needed encouragement, and Timothy was

obviously in an emotional state because Paul was in prison,

hence the word tears, being mindful of your tears not.

The first encouragement that.

Paul gave to Timothy in this second epistle was in

verse five, when I called to remembrance the genuine faith

that is in you, which first dwell first in your

grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice.

And I am persuaded it's in you also.

Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of

God which is in you, true the laying on of

my hands. For God has not given us a spirit

of fear, how many of you would say amen to that,

but of power, and of love and of a sound mind. Therefore,

do not be a shame of the testimony of our Lord,

nor of me his prisoner, But share with me in

the sufferings for the Gospel according to the power of God.

So Paul actually took Intimity to be his spiritual son.

In Acts chapter sixteen, when Paul was going through his

missionary journey in a place called Listra, which is in

modern day Turkey south Central. Paul saw this young man,

God moved his heart to bring him under Paul's mentoring.

Now who is Timothy. Timothy was born of a mixed

parentage like me, Yeah, I'm half Chinese, half Indian, right.

But for Timothy, his mom is a Jew, was a.

Jew, right.

His dad was a Greek, So mixed parentage. So when

Paul encourages Timothy verse five, you will notice that there

was no mention of Timothy's dead right. One can assume

many things. To me, I assume that perhaps Timothy grew

up with an absent father figure, so it's easy for

Paul to come in to feel that void of a

fatherly figure. So Timothy was taken in by Paul. In fact,

when you read in the Book of Acts in chapter sixteen,

when Paul took Timothy in, the first thing that Paul

did was his circumcised Timothy. According to the Jewish law.

Why that is important is because when Timothy followed Paul

to his missionary journey in preaching in the synagogue and all,

there should be no reason to cite that Timothy is uncircumcised,

because if back then you're uncircumcised, the jew will not

respect you. So Paul needed to do that. And we

know that Timothy was a young man, was a very

young man, probably in the late teens or early teens,

that kind of age, and he is known to be faithful.

He had a good reputation and a good spiritual grounding

even before he met Paul. Right, So when Paul entered

into Listra, he already heard about Timothy.

The good reputation that Timothy had.

Verse Fine speaks to me closely also because when he

says that the genuine faith found in your grandmother and

found in your mother was also found in you, speaks

about that it is the responsibility of the family to

raise up godly and steadfast children. The greatest legacy a

parent can give to their child is not wealth inheritance,

though that is practical, but it is a legacy of faith,

whereby one day, if the parent is no longer with

the child, maybe the child goes abroad to study, will

the child still had that personal relationship with Jesus? Will

the child still bear fruits that testify that the child

is a follower of Jesus.

So parents plays.

A crucial role in imparting a solid foundation to their child.

So you must teach your children the ways of the Lord.

You must teach them the law of God. They must

have a personal relationship with Jesus, and they should not

be at the state to say that because my parents

are a Christian, therefore I'm a Christian. A couple of

weeks ago, you would be reminded about what Elder Roles share.

It was also the weekend where her first born was

water baptized, and she shares such a joy to see

her daughter Emma one thing Jesus for himself, sorry for herself,

testifying that I want to follow Jesus. That will be

the greatest joy any parent will receive when their child

one day matures to a place where I want Jesus

for myself. I want to have relationship with Jesus. So,

as parents, we must be reminded that we cannot delegate

the growth of a child's faith just to the church.

The church role is mainly to facilitate that growth, to

teach to impart, but the main responsibility still lies with

a parent. Why because your child will see you more

day to day than they see their pastor they will

see you more day to day than their ex kids teacher.

So how we role model.

Christ's likeness in our family matters because, as clearly we

see it in Timothy's life, the grandmother and the mother

played a pivotal role in shaping the foundation of timi

this faith. So when Paul addresses Timothy in verse two,

to Timothy a beloved son, you notice that Paul did

not say, to Timothy, my beloved disciple, Timothy, my beloved student.

Paul sees Timothy as his son. So who is a

son to me? A son is someone who carries the

heart of the father, is someone who will do exactly

what the father will do. Now, this is not in

terms of career wise. It doesn't mean your father is

a lawyer, you must be a lawyer. It doesn't mean

your father is a cook, you must be a cook.

This is not in career wise, but it is in

the decision making wise. It's in the heart of things.

It's in the spirit of things. That's why one of

the key decided reapership question we always ask our people

that we disciple is just this, right, when you're in

this situation, Let's say it is a tense relationship with

your clique, for example, right, you always ask this question,

what would Jesus do If you can't envision that, Josh,

if you will have to ask what would pastor ons

and do? Because I disciple you right, because First Corinthians eleven,

one imitate me as I imitate Christ. So, while we

are in a year where we want to focus on

making disciples disciples, first, I want to offer to us

another thought that the highest level of discipleship is actually sunship.

That you will.

Carry exactly the heart of God, that you carry the

heart of your spiritual parent. That is exactly what Timothy

has done. That he carries Paul's heart. He represents Paul,

he represents Jesus.

You know, a.

Son stays in the tough times, through tension, through transitions,

through testing. Remember Paul when he wrote this, he was

in prison. In a modern day today, anyone who is

caught and put in prison is easy to be a

shame of them, isn't it. Whether they are put in

for the Okay, let's talk about the right thing. Okay,

maybe they made a stand that was against the law

and because of that they were put in prison. If

one day Pasoronson were put in prison, many it will

be a shame of Usorons. Let's say I stood up

for something that was against the law. The law said

I shouldn't do this, but I would have. God said

I should do so between following the law and following

God's word. And if I really follows God's word, and

because of that, I was will in prison. So it

was easy for Timothy actually to forsake Paul. You must

understand that back then there's no such thing as internet.

There was no such thing as telegram whatsapped. Where today,

if you need encouragement, you just text to your leader Master,

I need encouragement. Can you encourage me? And within a

day you receive an encouragement. But back then, for Paul

to handwrite his epistoles to deliver to Timothy, it will

take some time. It will take some time. So a

son will always stick true half challenging time, the sun

will always be found. So yesterday I celebrated, Actually I

didn't celebrate, but yesterday in a sense, I became twenty

one years old in the Lord.

Tan me.

Twenty one years in the Lord since.

Two h four. Wow.

Then I reflected as well in terms of church, because

X has always been my first church. When I was

safe to now twenty one years in acts.

And can.

In twenty one years, I have seen cycle of transitions.

I've seen cycle of tests. I've seen a cycle of

people coming unpacking and people living and then they get

rooted elsewhere. I must say that for twenty one years,

when I look at X as a whole, we want

to give God glory for all that we have done

in a true acts. But we have also faced challenges

and difficulties. Essay one d last week. One of it

was in twenty ten when the building wasn't given to

us although we had the amount to purchase it, and

a couple of challenges of community, you know, a different

group living a church and all, and these are leaders

as well. But today I stand here testify again and

again that I am the son of the house that

many years ago I have already made that decision that

ACTS will be my first church, and by the grace

of God, Acts will be my last church. Because my

affiliation is not just towards the name of the church.

My affiliation is towards my pastor, who has given his life,

given his time to disciple me. My affiliation is towards

the key leaders who at the point when I was

young in faith, took time to disciple me in the

first week of me being a new believer. You cannot

imagine this, but it was actually past the Jack who

came and the Bible studied with me. If you're seeing

pasta Jack twenty four years ago, sorry, passa Jack. I

know there is recorded a but you would have thought

that he was a drug addict because passive Jack was skinny.

But then he wasn't a pastor. He was skinny of

facial hair, long hair until here, can you not? And

then hear my hungry new believer doing my study reading.

But these are my formative years where I was a

spiritual often often often there's no spiritual authority above me,

so he gave time. From there, I transitioned to al

Kenya and from el Kenya to pass the canev. Today,

you see when people decides to live church after the

X number of years here, okay, I'm talking about five years,

six seventy nine, ten eleven years, and they decided to

unpack elsewhere. I've always take it upon myself to reflect. Right,

if it is God ordained, God will make the way straight.

But if people live because of hurt, if people live

because of frustration, if people live because of disappointment to me,

I think something needs to be corrected because like it

or not, in anywhere we go, the same situation will arise,

the same offense will happen in another setting. The same

pastor appearing in different forms will say something that you

may not agree or you may not like. So I

always tell myself in the most toughest time, I am

to support my family. I am to stand with my family,

trusting my family one hundred percent that whatever they do,

it has been prayerful, it is in line with scripture.

Now we're not asking for blind trust. We don't asking

our people to trust us blindly. We're asking our people

to number one, look at our track record. Number two,

look at our fruit. Number three align any vision and

direction to scriptures. So it's important even for us as

believers to have a personal relationship.

With the Word of God.

You must take that responsibility to learn the word of

God for yourself because that's how you will hear the

voice of God. That's how you will grow into the

likeness with God. So signs and daughters of God will

take one hundred percent ownership of the house. You ask

any parent here, what is the one thing they hope

that children can do at house. Take ownership, block, don't

treat the house as a hotel.

All right.

Parents said it with me before, because sometimes I go

out late and I and come back and sometimes maccan

they were just joking, right, my mom, Why do you

think this is a hotel? I say, no, Mom, it's

not a hotel. I just to take back the trash

bag and clean house and okay, anyway, ah, we one

hundred percent ownership. One hundred percent ownership. So discipleship is

a relational glue that holds people in the House of God.

You say that this is a church you want to

be part of. We got to grow in that relationship

because it's a relationship that keeps people in church. But unfortunately,

it is also a relationship that makes people leave church.

Relationship can be complex, but when rounded in the world

of God, the complexity of relationship can be navigated. So

God and his word must always be at the center

of it. So if I put myself in Timothy's shoe,

I thought about was there a possibility Timothy could have

given up because Paul was not around, and then he

needed to still pastor being a young leader pastor the

churches that Paul has entrusted to Timothy. I believe he

could have given up. I believe the thought of giving

up would have been there. But what really caused Timothy

to persevere truth, I believe, is to think carrying the

heart of God and number two, carrying the heart of

his spiritual Father. You know, in churches today there are

many spiritual oftens. We can be in church, but we

have no spiritual mom. We have no spiritual Father that

we can speak to. And to me, that can be

very dangerous because if there's no spiritual authority voice coming

into your life, it will mean other voices will be

coming in. So we must as a church consistently remind

ourselves that to advance God's kingdom and to see life

being changed, it is not true programs, It is often

true people, and discipleship is the key in ensuring that

we grow into the likeness of Christ. Many of you

you have the potential not just to be a desire,

but to disciple others. The question is when God gives

you the conviction and when God gives you the courage,

would we choose to step up? Because when we talk

about sonship, every son needs a father when we talk

about dactorship, if there's such a word, Every doctor needs

a mom. And the responsibility cannot just lie on the leadership.

It's everyone's responsibility. You don't need to be a leader

to share the way of Godliness. All you need to

do is to love God with all your heart, with

all your strength or your mic and to row model

out your faith. So ex church call is to make disciples.

But you know what discipleship will cost you. It will

cost you, it will so a different ship between disciples

and son is this? Those who grow the most usually

are the sons and daughters. Those who grow the most

because you take whatever has been imparted to you, you

believe it, and you run with it. I disciple quite

a number of people, but there's only a selected few

that can confidently say they are my spiritual sons. Josh

is one of them. You're no, Josh came as a

campus student five six years ago, or more than that,

eight ten years ago. Okay, your spiritual there is getting

very well. Ten years ago as a student. You know,

Last Friday we had our homes homes breakout thing. Thanks

then for hosting. I left work at five o'clock. I

arrived nearly at six forty five, one hour forty five minutes.

For a very long time, I never had the privilege

to endure such traffic because Friday lunchtime I will just

disappear from work and consume my work from home in

Nearli right, because lunchtime travel is usually shot up. But

I was in a moment in the traffic when I

was start from Putrajaya the LDP all the way to

Kneeli and also to put Chong Doll. There, God reminded

me of my formative years in planting Neeli. Many of

you may not know, but at one point I also

was stuck in traffic Fitfully Prayer Service homes one hour,

one and a half hours, I'll be there. So when

Josh was posted in Klang, Josh could have made that

decision to go to ex Claim. Ex Claim was just

less than ten minutes, five minutes away from his house,

and we had that conversation about it, and I believe

I did ask Josh at the end of the day,

what is God saying to you, right, how would you

want to make that decision? And we know that Josh

made that decision to serve with us in Neeli I

don't think I have forced you. I don't think I've

put a gun at your forehead and say you must come.

And he made a decision. I think our homies know

this all right, And I'll doo whenever you see Josh

say hey. Favorite question I asked, Josh, Hey, Josh, how

long it took you to be here?

Something say one hour? Two hours?

You all, I understand the price that people pay. I

understand the price that you have paid. But today, as

you reflect back, you can only testify that God has

been good. I look at Maggie, although she's being discipled

by another leader, Irene.

Daughtorship datorship.

Two years ago, when my car had accident, I don't

have a car, so I decided to follow Maggie to

prayers service. Say Maggie, I'll meet you in the train

station and for the first time I will feel what

you're feeling. So in the evening, say something I believe.

We met in USG seventh station.

We took an.

RRD to KL Central. The moment she touched on care Center,

she just you say faster, faster. The ERL is closing, closing,

because ral is very punctual. And it took us about

one hour plus one and a half hours plus grab

r L to Kotowari's son wait for grab grab to

pray a service only a daughter can do that. You

know only a son can pay the sacrifice because you

have truly catch the heart of the father. So to me,

sonship is another level a both discipleship. And you could

have worked elsewhere. Many of you may not know. She

is your first batch of graduate from salmon Uni together

to Maggie intern with Asia could have continued, but God

gave you the calling to work full time. I will

let you know that although I don't work full time,

but it is commonly known that the salary you're earning

full time cannot compare to corporate jobs outside. There's a

sacrifice that a daughter.

Is paying.

And she could have been in suba surfing suba, but

she chose here. Only a daughter can pay the price.

Helena. Many of you may not know.

A month ago she was posted in the Morlow. The

Moorlow is in Pahang, famous for I can patin Theampoya

where you cook Durian fish and some awesome ingredients together.

But she made the choice over the weekend to still

come back. Many of you will know Angelie Kala's get

this wrong, Billa, Well, look at Susan.

It's the same.

She was. She's actually like me, born in ects save

I've got true Jesus as well. But they made the

choice to be here. And when I say that, sons

who truly caught the heart grows the most. I don't

have to share a lot because when you look at

their life you can see it for yourself. Always remember

it is not about perfection, never, but it is about

the heart to seek God. Where is it that you

want me to be? How can I express your heart?

How can I express the vision that you have given

to me? True sons of the House believed in the

vision and will do what we will do. I think

about Pastor Stephen, who today's lead exe Monier upon graduating

from Semonnier. Many of you may not know for six

years or five to six years, he works in a

job where he has to work six days. The only

day off is a Sunday. Why because he was working

for a construction company who builds the extension of the

Parliament building. So I remember with the days where he'll

reach out to me and we had conversations, but never

once I see passes, Stephen tells me fast. I need

my Sunday off because I worked so hard from a

Monday to.

Saturday.

But today, when I look at past, Stephen, you look back.

God has been good. God has been good. I look

at LEAs risk today where he is at. What I'm

trying to say is that, friends, many of us are spiritual,

often do we actually have that voice of counsel that

we allow in to shape us moreless? Because as Paul

filled in the void for Timothy today, maybe the Holy

Spirit is asking us to reflect do we have this

figure in our life. You say Paul needed to affirm

Timothy because Timothy was a very young leader. He needed

to grapple between fear and insecurity. I was a young leader.

I know how Timothy would have felt. I mean, I'm

still young. But when you're a young leader, you got

mature believers who walk in and sadly.

H us to improve on certain things.

Sometimes, being young, if we are not secure in the Lord,

it affects our confidence. I must understand that back then

there was a lot of false teaching going around as well,

So Timothy in a way needed to also compete with

false teachers who may be more popular. Timothy probably would

have faced leadership pressure as well, because you young fellow

leading a church and we are no. Leading a church

is not easy because you can have one hundred and

one people and one hundred and one people will have

one hundred and one expectation on you.

As a leader.

That's why Paul needed to encourage Timothy in his book,

do not despise your youth. Let me share your storia.

When Pasta Lazarus invited me to his wedding, he also

invited Passa Cannef. But it was during that time when

Buster really wanted to go to Botswana but couldn't just

couldn't because he had an engagement in Singapore and looking

at the flight everything, even he take the next best flight,

he won't be able to reach in time. So as

I say, okay, Rons, since you're going, can you represent

me to speak in their wedding? Can you represent me

to also solemnize their wedding? I was like, hey, passa

no ring here, singer fellow, how to speak you know

in a wedding. Furthermore, it's cross culture. I'm a Malaysian.

When I stand in front of Lazarus's relative and friends.

They're all from the culture. How would they view me passer?

Would they question me like who are you?

Lah?

But Pastor actually encouraged me faster, affirmed me. Who got

called he was annoyed. He was annoying. It doesn't mean

if you're a singer you can't speak in a wedding.

It doesn't mean you're a singer you can't solve nice

a wedding. The Word of God didn't say that, So

Pastor instilled that confidence in me. I can tell you

it was my first time speaking to a ninety nine

crowd from Botswana. Yes, sometimes I can be I can

be uh insecure in a way that I don't allow

insecurity to determine my action. But sometimes, you know, sometimes

we have that thought. So so f you're very insecure, like.

What would I do?

What would I say? All right, I remember.

That morning very well.

The Lord's presence was clearly evident, so much so that

after the wedding a few weeks later, his auntie sent

me an email to say that, oh, it was the

best wedding attend great message, the presence of God was there.

Et cetera.

Okay, remember I enter feeling that I'm not good enough

to do this, and maybe some of us we are

also at a place where we feel that we are

not good enough. But often it is that voice of

affirmation from our spiritual fathers that will boost our confidence

to overcome reading God's word. Yes, it's important. Faith comes

by hearing and hearing the of God, but affirmation from

your spiritual parents is even more important as well.

So Timothy.

Was probably also being underestimated because of his youth, so

Paul needed to affirm him. So three points before we

close that I want to encourage us. Number One, discipleship

identifies potential in the church today. There are many hidden

gemstones in the church today, there are many hidden potential.

Always remember your family. Father has given you talents, the

parable of the five to one talent. God has given

some to be five, some to be two, some to

be one. Nobody can say they don't have talent. To me,

that speaks about potential. Just as how I am being

identified by Elder King as a potential.

To be disciples. I believe the.

Church should consistently sweep across our congregation to identify people

with potential so that God can work in their life,

so that they can step up and fulfill the destiny

that God has given to them. If you ask me

when I was first saved, when I was a six

month old Christian, or even a one year old Christian.

If you ask me, will I plan Xneyli? Will I

be standing here preaching the word of God to you? Say?

I couldn't have imagined. If someone tells me someone, let's say,

created a time machine and go back timer. Let's say

I created a time machine. I wanted to go back

fifteen years ago, and tell don't be foolish. This the

amount of price you need to pay to grow a church.

This is an amount of sacrifice you need to take

to build a church. Don't be stupid, would I.

You know, do it?

But it's the disciple ship that true mentoring with my

church fathers. That they gave me the courage, they gave me,

the insight, they gave me the hope, they gave me

the opportunity. You see, opportunity is often given to people,

and we must take it. Because Paul would have seen

something in Timothy that Timothy himself couldn't see in him.

And often God will place people in your life to

allow that voice to come in so that you can

see the fullness of your potential in God. So we

must allow that voice to come. In second point, discipleship

will instill a sense of purpose in you. It will

be quite said, if we go through life without a purpose,

it'll be quite unfulfilling, if we go through life without

a reason for being. Yes we are all child of God.

Yes we all live to worship God. Yes we all

want to glorify God. But in what way, in what

specific calling that God has given to you. Purpose will

cause you to be more resilient. Purpose will cause you

to bounce back to be persevering. That's why when Paul

said in verse six, therefore I remind you to stir

up the gift of God which is in you through

the laying on of my hands, Paul was reminding Timothy

that there is a gift in him, there is a

purpose in him. So God often used people to reveal

his purpose for you. So in twenty fourteen, some of

you may know this story. I wanted to give up

throwing the towel in k Neeline. Why because I noticed

that for four years of serving in Neelin, there was

a graduating badge that have gone people, that Lazarus was gone.

Everyone was gone, and the more I labor there.

Was no fruit.

I was very discouraged. I say that maybe my time

is up.

Right.

What's the first thing people will say to themselves when

they are discouraged, when they see no results. Maybe it's

time to move on. Maybe it's time to do other things.

I had that thought and I spoke to my pastor.

I said, Pastor, I think this is a year. I

think four years is enough because I've laid the foundation,

and Pastor just told me one thing on me true

to ext church discipleship. DNA pray about it. Come back

and see what God is saying to you. So when

your leaders asked you to pray, what should you do?

You better pray about it. Lie, don't like kay, go

back and watch TV. Never seek God, never read his word,

never even attempt to fast to hear the voice of God.

Because sometimes people use okay, I'll pray about it as

a form of excuse to temporarily delay the conversation, temporarily

delay that decision making process. That's why we will say

we'll pray about it. One week later, asks still praying,

one year later, still praying. There must be a definite

timeline because God does speak to whoever.

Who seeks him wholeheartedly. He does.

So I prayed about it, and God revealed to me

the battle at Zicklag. David coming back with his strong man,

lost everything, and a strong man wanted to stown and

kill David. And the Bible says that David's strengthen himself

in the Lord. That scripture spoke to me because I

sought the Lord and I knew exactly God was speaking

to me. It couldn't have been pastor Pastor Crad told

me this story. You know, certain just like David lost everything,

come on, strengthen yourself. You know, man's word can encourage

us to a certain extent, but when you really hear

from God from his word, his encouragement is way better

than what man can give. Because the words of man

cannot inspire faith. It is only the word of God

that can inspire faith. Romans Tan seventeen. I believe faith

comes by hearing and hearing the word of God. I

could have run from pastor to pastor.

I can say that.

Ok. Let me take a second opinion. Let me go

past a pastor B. Okay, let me check with elder B,

Elder C. I didn't because I choose to trust that

voice at a time where Timothy was battling with a

lot of good teachers around. You mustn't understand that Paul

is not the most eloquent preacher. When you read Corinthians,

you will know this. Paul himself says, I am not

the most eloquent. I come to you in fear, in trembling.

So I want this church to understand this. We must

not be in the place where we are wowed by

the charisma of other people outside of the house, that

we despise the voice that is found in this house.

Let me give you an example that Lord revealed to

me a couple of years ago. It's a common family challenge.

I speak about my journey. Sometimes on holiday from Joe,

we will go to slang Or and we will stay

in our auntie's house, and of course your auntie will

treat you very well. Your auntie will feed you and all.

And when time of holiday is gone, go back and

I begin to make comparison, like, Hey, how come Auntie

is like that?

Mom is like that?

How come Mom cannot be like Auntie? You know, sometimes

in church it can be the same. It can be

the same just because someone may sound smarter, more intellectual,

had more than your pastor. You despise your own pastor

just because someone has probably a lot of collect and

you choose to trust the voice. But you despise the voice,

the very voice that when you were vulnerable in this house,

it was the voice that had shaped you. It was

the voice that was there for you. It was the

voice that has been praying and walking you through.

So Timothy could have just despised Paul.

He could have just say, okay, gone with this old man.

He is in prison. Here are the superstar of the

church today. I will just follow them. A true son

will always stay. A true son will never despise their

spiritual parents, even if the spiritual parent is not perfect.

What is biblical is to steal honor. Remember the story

of Noah ham Sham and one more can't remember the name, Jeffers,

Yes ham Sham and Jeffers. One son saw the father,

drunkard and naked, go and told the brothers in a

way where despises the dead, the other two brothers honored

the dead to a point where they don't even want

to look at the nakedness of the dead. They moved

backwards to cover the dead. I'm trying to say is

that I cannot be your perfect pastor. I cannot be

your perfect spiritual father. But one thing I'm confident is this.

As you look at my track record, if you look

at the track record of my leaders, you will be

able to see that we are trying to express the

heart of God. We are trying to fulfill a mandate

that God has given to us, that is to make disciples.

The last point is discipleship impart gifts. So someone make

this observation that I didn't even realize. At our church aniversary,

some told me, I say, if you look at your heart, though,

actually the pattern is they will become past us. I

didn't realize this. So I look at Lazarus. I look

at Lazarus, who is discipling pass Manuel. I look at

Passa Stephen, I look at Sam Kong today, who is

in Iskanda. I cannot impart into them something that I

don't have.

Cannot.

So when you select, I wouldn't even say select. When

God shows you a spiritual father or a spiritual mom

that you should follow, usually God will draw in something

that you see in the dead and the mom that

you wish you had it for yourself. This is beyond

the accolades. You know, this is beyond it's the spirit,

it's the character, it's the fruit that you're looking for.

And my reason finding in Nela is this right reflection

in NELI. We are a lot of teachers. We have

a lot of people who are in the education field

for some reason. It's because of me. Also, seventeen years

this June will be seventeen years in the education field.

That's something about the placement that God has gathered people

whereby it's not by accident. It's not by accident. Now,

I'm not saying that you know, you should come to

accent because you're a teacher, you're an educator, you're an imen. No,

I'm just saying that that's the gift that God has

given to us, so ex extreme comes up. I would

add by this question that I have for you to reflect.

Number one, who is your paw in your life? Do

you have a paw in your life? For the ladies,

maybe it's Paula all right or paul Yeah, sorry, Pauline.

Do you have a spiritual mom? Do you have a

spiritual death that you can speak to that you know

is a safe space for you to hear the voice

of God. Second, who is your Timothy speaking to people

who are mature here in their faith? Do you have

a Timothy where you can share your life with share

the milestone that God has.

Given you your people.

Now, when I look at Josh, when I look at

the people that I disciple, it takes time.

You know, when we mean, we will mean at least

two hours.

Across the years we have built up that relationship. It

will cost us, because discipleship will cost. And I like

this beautiful picture of Paul and Timothy.

Is this.

It takes two hands to clap. It cannot be one sided.

So anyone who wants to enter into the discipleship, I

will always tell them you need to have this three ingredient.

Number one, are you teachable? Number two are you humble?

These too are the most important ingredient, teachability.

And humility.

So discipleship will cost, but let me tell you it

is also very rewarding. It's rewarding to Mary, Josh to

staff fly on a way to good Chain. South View

were there, Rebecca and Estein were there as well.

That's church. We show up, we turn up for one another.

But it was special for me, special for me also

because of Lazarus witnessing his big day, given the honor

to share his wedding.

For missus Stephen Sam as well. It costs for its.

Church is all about relationship. So whenever people are disengaged

from church, it concerns me because we cannot just say

we're coming to this church for God. Very good answer.

I come here to worship God, very good, very good,

very good, very good. That should be the first answer.

You think about it.

Right, you're here also because of relationship, because the church

doesn't just exist on a Sunday. We exist from a

Monday to Friday. When you go for prayer service, that's church.

When you go for homes that's church. When you go

out for meals, intentional meals where you want to be

an iron sharpening, iron encouraging one another. Best church for you, Amen,

So as you stand will close. My encouragement to ask

Neeli today is that we will continue put on the

posture of one thing to be disciples, be available also

to disciple at this and let the Kingdom of God

be advanced through your life.

Amen.

We hope you've been blessed by this message. For more

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that this week is going to be a good week,

a hit for you. God bless