The First In Our Lives | Stephen Kong

You're listening to a message to go from at church. We hope this message

will light up your day. I'm going to bring us on a series uh

that talks about the first okay, the first in our lives okay uh.

And if you look to scripture, you will find there are many instances whereby

the word first appears. Right. Let me give you some examples in order

that like there is today I think skin read from the scripture, you know,

to offer unto the Lord our first fruits. Right, that's one example.

There's more to come, like first commandment. You know there is first

love. Uh. There there's a lot of you know, first the kingdom

of a heaven. So the many first f I R S t Okay of

course with the s many first first in the Bible that you and I need

to remember and be minded and then we can apply in our lives. Amen.

And so if you have been with us for some time now, you

will know that the team of our church this year is heaven rules. Okay.

And and I asked myself a question, you know, what does heaven

rules look like in our life? In our everyday life? Okay? And

and the question will be if Heaven rules, then what are the rules that

we need to live by so that we can experience heaven here on earth today?

Amen? So I ask myself that simple question, uh, and and

and that's how I was reminded by this many first F I R. S.

T. The first in the Bible that you and I need to be

reminded with. And and so how we have you know that today in our

in our lives today, the Kingdom of God is already here. Do you

believe it? Amen? The King of God is already here? Because sometimes

we ask ourselves the question, is the King of God here in the present

or is it in the future. Have you asked a question, is the

Kingdom of God here in the present or in the future? And let me

give you a quick answer to that. The Kingdom of God has already come.

The King of God is also here today in the present, and the

King of God will continue to come in the future. Amen. And the

Lord's prayer teaches us to pray, no, let your let your kingdom come.

Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. So how

many of you know that we actually can't experience heaven here on earth, or

at least a dreams of it. Here on earth. Don't wait till you

get to heaven to experience heaven. We can actually experience a dreams of heaven

here on earth because every single time you pray the Lord's prayer, you say,

let your Kingdom come, your will be done here on earth as it

is in heaven. It's like saying that you want to bring a church to

people. And how many of you know that actual church, you know,

expanded and planted many churches across Malaysia and of course beyond Malaysia around the world

globally. I wouldn't name the countries for you advist. We won't finish ten

ten countries, ten nations, okay, in in ten countries around the world.

Uh, you know, and and you know you know we we are

called to bring church to people, not just bring people to church. Right.

So it's the same day saying, you know, let your kingdom come,

your way be done on earth as a reason heaven right, bringing heaven

here on earth so that we two can live in in you know, in

the glory and and and in all that God has called us to be to

live in, you know, in in abundance, I should say, in

abundance, Amen. So God's kingdom is here, Amen is here in the

present. So the question for us, for you and I will be if

Heaven rules in our lives, what would it look like? Okay? And

today I'm just gonna bring to you too principles that are found in the Bible,

the first principle F I R S T. First principle that are found

in the Bible. Okay. But before you go there, uh, I

just tooked up the Oxford Dictionary just to look at what is the meaning of

first? Okay? And it's very very simple. The meaning is as simple

as this before anyone or anything else, as simple as that. Right.

Another meaning for it is foremost in position, rank or importance. It's as

simple as this. Right. If you have a list, you will always

put the most important at the top. Right. For example, if you

have an exam to study, I shouldn't say an exam, if you have

a few exam modules to study, for right, you would if you were

to rank the importance of which subject you want to study, you would either

rank it with the exam it's coming first, or an exam that you want

to score, or an exam that you are exam model that you are very

poor at correct, you put something that has importance first, right, So

it's as simple as that. Right, that's what first means. Right.

But how many of you are familiar every time we used to say this right

when we eat, right, how many of you when you eat, you

will eat the yok right, the egg yo? Right? You eat the

white around it first. How many of you are that you ate the white?

You ate the white yo? Yeah? You hands you know you eat

the egg right. Some of us we eat the the white part of the

egg around it first, and then you leave the yolk right, and your

friend next to you not say you don't want I want, I want it,

and like, no, I'm leaving that for the best the last.

Right, you live the best for the last, you know. But friends,

when it comes to God, please don't say you leave the best for

the last, because God must come first. Amen, he must come first.

So I say, sometimes we do when we you know, you eat

your fight chicken, you will take out the skin. Some of us,

we don't eat it because it's fattening, right, or it's unhealthy, right.

But for most of us, you will eat the skin the last because

that's the best part. My friends, don't leave your best or your last

to God, God deserves our first. Amen. So he must be our

first. He must be our number one. Okay. So I'm gonna bring

you the first principle, and it's found in Mark chapter twelve, worse,

verse twenty nine to thirty one. Okay, I'm gonna turn my bible.

So if you have your bibles with you, I pray that you will also

turned with me. Mark comes after Matthew. Okay, in the four Gospels

in the New Testament, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. So Mark

is the second Gospel in the New Testament. Okay, I hope you can

find where it is. Where it is, okay, Mark chapter twelve.

Okay. And the first point is this, This is the first and great

commandment. Oh. I like to put it as greatest commandment. Okay,

first and great commandment, Mark chapter twelve, verse twenty Are you there?

If you're there, say yeah, Okay. If you're still looking for the

scripture, it's found on page eight hundred and ninety two on my bible,

might be different on yours. Okay, Well, here we go, Mark

chapter twelve, verse twenty nine. So Jesus answered him. The first of

all the commandments is here, oh Israel, the Lord our God. The

Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your

heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all

your strength. This is the first commandment, and the second like it is

this, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment

greater than this. The Lord blessed the reading of his word. Amen.

So let me give you the context of this scripture. Jesus was I think

he was in the temple or with the people. I can't remember where he

was, but he was with the people, and there were three groups of

people who came up to him to question Jesus. Right. And if you

look at the whole portion of scripture, you will realize that the sequences.

The Pharisees first came to him and ask him about is it lawful to pay

the Texas? Okay, So the first girl of people, the Pharisees,

came and ask him, and then the second girl of people were called the

said diucees. Right, and they asked him about the resurrection, you know,

because they don't really believe in the resurrection, right, or should they

do? I think I can't remember that, Okay, But Okay. Anyway,

it's a second girl of people, the saiducees who asked Jesus some question.

Right, They were either questioning him or trying to test him, or

looking for a way to swap Jesus right in the words that he said,

or even in his actions. Right. And the third group of people that

came to him was the scribes. Okay. And the scribes question was which

is the greatest commandment of all? It's as simple as that, that's the

question, right in verse twenty eight. Yeah, At the end of verse

twenty eight, it says, so, then one of the scribes came,

and, having heard them reasoning together, perceived that he had an answer that

he answered them, well, ask him, ask Jesus, are which is

the first commandment of all? Okay? And that is how we come to

this porture of scripture, whereby Jesus replies to them, you shall love the

Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all

your mind, and with all your strength the words in rad. Okay,

if your bible has the words in Rade, that means that is said by

Jesus himself. Okay, when he was physically here enough. Okay, so

your love, your Lord your God, with all your heart, with all

your mind, with all your soul, with all your soul soul, mind,

and with all your strength. So what what what does that mean to

us as as believers? You know? It means that we ought to love

God with our entire being, with every part of us. And I think

I share this before we stene you when when we're talking about missions, right,

you know, and you can you see, you can give without loving,

right, but you can't. You cannot love without giving because when you

love, when you first love, giving becomes natural to God. Right,

So when you start, the Bible says you shall love the Lord, you

shall love. The key word is love, right, because when we can

first love him with our all, we would then begin to give him our

all. So that makes sense. So he starts with love. Right.

If you can first love him with you all, we would then be able

to give him our or because you cannot love without giving, it's natural,

it will come automatically, right, and and we won't hope like anything for

him if we love him with our all. And it's about devoting ourselves completely

to him, you know, and asking that his will will be done with

us here right again back to the Lord's prayer. The Lord's payers say,

our father, who is in heaven, Hello, be your name right,

your kingdom, Come, Your will be done here on earth as it is

in heaven. Right. And what else he goes on to say, give

us his day, our daily bit, No, forgive us our debts,

even as we forgive our debtors, right, leaders, not the temptation,

and deliver us from the evil one. Okay. And if you read another

version and says for yours is the kingdom, power and glory forever and ever.

Amen. Right. That's a lot's prayer, you know, And it's

about us devoting ourselves completely to him. That's your will be done with me

in my life right. And for a lot of us we also have our

own will. Right. You want to do things your way, right,

and sometimes your parents will tell you that's not good or they could be a

better way, you know. But as human as we are, we always

have to try things our way, you know. When when we're going up

as a young kid, we're always very curious. Right. You want to

know what a hot kettle feels like, even though your parents already told you

that don't touch the kettle. Maybe they maybe they didn't tell you why,

And we were like, when your parents are not around, let me try

and see how what it feels like, and then you won't try it again.

Right, But there's always a better way, and and and we can

live according to God's way. It's always better. Can I hear a good?

Amen? So the question is how does it look like to love God

with our all? Right? We love God with our soul and now all

by living a life of faithfulness to all that the Lord has required of us

to do. Amen? So cash is there are four parts about loving God

without all? Right, loving God with our heart, soul, mind and

strength. Everybody say its heart, soul, mind, and strength. Okay,

And these four parts that is, loving God without all involves this.

Our heart involves our emotions. Loving God with our heart involves our emotions.

Loving God with our soul involves our devotion to him. Loving God with our

mind involves our perception, what we think, our thoughts, right, and

loving God with our strength involves our action. So four parts our heart,

our soul, our mind, and our strength involves our emotions, our devotion,

our perception, and our actions. Because how many of you know actions

always speaks louder than words. You can say how much you love someone,

you know, our parents, maybe our siblings, maybe even a close friend,

a best friend, right uh, you know, maybe even for spousers,

for those who are married, you know, or for those who are

in a courtship relationship working towards marriage. You know. Really, action will

always peak louder than words, right uh. And and and we we love

really to our actions even And here's the thing. When we love God without

all, it means that we will have no other gods before him. You

know. The Bible is very clear. Let me phrase it this way.

If there's one thing that can draw us away from God, or if there's

one thing that comes as close as possible to equal with God, anybody can

guess what what is that? What is one thing that will come closest equal

to God? Having shows this money, have you ever thought about it before?

You know? Why? Let's turn Matthew chapter six, verse twenty four.

Come on, turn your bibles to it. Matthew chapter six, verse

twenty fi. I'm going to show you to you. This is not my

words, right, this is Jesus's own words are and he said it.

He says, no one can serve two masters for either he will hate the

one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one

and despise the other. And catch he says, you cannot serve God and

memon. Okay, memon just means wealth okay, or in sympathoms money if

you don't read the nalty version, he says you cannot serve God and be

enslaved to money. So Catch, she is out of everything Jesus could have

chose to put next to God, out of everything. Didn't say fame,

didn't say glory, didn't say your husband and your wife, didn't say your

family, didn't say your riches. She reaches, yes, yes, weches,

you know of all the things. Right, he said money because think

about it. If you were, you know, given a choice to choose,

you know, let's say, if you can choose your family, right

and presented before you, you have you know, a family that is two

sides to use the extreme, okay, just as an example. Right,

maybe one side of the family is very loving but could be poor, and

maybe the other side of the family could be not as loving but has a

lot of money. Frankly, if you are placed in that position and you

had a chance to choose right. How many are words we choose to want

that has money? Think about it? Think about it? Of all things,

are Jesus actually put two things together. You cannot serve too much?

Ask us? And he was money and God. So God or Jesus clearly

knows right that you and I as human frankly, we all need money.

Do you agree we need money? God knows that right. But there's a

difference when money becomes your God and God no longer is is your lord.

There's a difference in it. You know, money is a means to an

end, is something, it's a it's a tool or instrument we use.

In fact, when we do church, when you do missions, and you

do ministry, everything needs money, right, nothing falls from the sky.

You know, even if he falls from the sky, God gives us right

or he bless us our pockets. Today we can bless the church if we

turn amen, and and and so be very very careful because money can lead

us astray. And we are called to love God with our all. And

if you're gonna love God without all, be careful whether your heart is for

money or for God. Bible is very very very clear. Does that mean

that it's bad? To be rich. No, you see, there's nothing

wrong with money. Actually, but the Bible says the root of all evil

is the love for money, not the money yourself. The money is just

a tool. He's an insuman. The problem is with the love for money.

You see where it starts from. Starts from the love the love of

money. So, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that you should

be poor by the streets and have no money. We all need money right

to survive. But there's a difference when you love money more than God.

I hope you're catching this, okay, don't get me wrong. Don't go

in and say, like you know, we should be poor. No,

okay. And God doesn't want us to live in poverty a man. He

wants us to live in abundance of His grace and all that he has given

to us. Amen. So when the Bible says all, it literally means

all and catches that all just means there can be no exceptions. And this

is dangerous. My friends, church, brothers and sisters, this is ageous.

Watch out for the exceptions in our life because we can do everything right,

but have one accept are you can shaking this? You can do everything

right except for one thing. And if that one thing is the most important,

then we will be in a lot of trouble. Let me give you

an example in Second Kings, or you don't have to return three because I'm

just gonna give us some way. King, King Jehosh right, these Kings

of Judah, right, Kings after kings, right when they took over.

You know, the kings, one king after another. You can read the

entire book of the kings, right, first King, Second Kings. Right,

you will know that the Kings of Judah, one after another, they

continue to serve the Lord. But there's one thing they didn't do. They

did not remove the high places. The high places were in the mountains,

the places of worship to other gods. Right, And if you read it

from Second Kings, you know that King Jehoesh right, serve the Lord.

He loved the Lord. But the Bible says, but the Bible uses the

word but, but he did not remove the high places. One king to

another. You read again Second Kings fourteen, King Amasia, same thing,

love the Lord, serve the Lord. However he did not remove the high

places. And I'm going to show you right now, Second King, chapter

fifteen worse. Three. So after King Amasiah came King as the Rier.

What their names are so hot? They rhyme. Okay, King as As

the Rier. Okay. The Bible says that he did many great things.

Okay, Second Kings fifteen, let's go Second King, Chapter fifteen, verse

three. I'm going to show it to you, the Bible says, And

he did what was right in the sight of the Lord. Somebody say,

amen, oh, is any good to do? What is right in the

side of the Lord, according to all that his father and Messiah had done.

And listen to this word, except that the high places were not removed.

The people still sacrifice and burn incense on the high places. So I

just gave you three words. The first time I said it was a butt,

serve the Lord. But second time, serve the Lord, however,

gona read it is there, okay. And the third time did what was

right in the side of the Lord. Accept that he did not remove the

high places. So watch out with the accepts in our lives church, because

you can get everything right. But I was so clear, No, got

everything right. You know, Serve the Lord was right in the side of

the Lord. Accept, except they did not remove the high places, or

basically, they still had idols in their life, other gods before them,

and finally came to this king called Josiah. Second King's twenty Verse one,

I w wasn't really because he's twenty four verses. So kings, King Josiah's

love for God was with his all, and this King Josiah was the one

who removed all the high places. Okay, So I'm just gonna give you

a quick summary if you're following me, Second King, Chapter twenty three,

I'm just gonna tell you all the things that King Josiah did. Verse four.

He burned the temper articles of verse four, verse two, I mean,

what's five? He removed the idolatys priests. Verse six, He burned

the wooden images. Verse seven. He tore down ritual booths. Verse eight.

He brought all the priests and broke down the high places. Verse eleven.

He removed horses and chariots dedicated to the sun. Verse two of he

broke down the authors on the roof. Verse fourteen. He broke down the

sacred pillace verse fifteen. He broke down the authors at battle. Verse twenty.

He executed the priest in the high places, and verse twenty four.

He put away the mediums and spirit us, the household gods and idols,

and all the abominations. I just did. I just show you eleven things

that King Josiah did. And what did the Bible say about King Josiah verse

twenty five. Let's look at that. Here's the summaray Second King twenty three

twenty five. Now before him, there was no king like him who turned

to the Lord with Come on all everybody, say, all turned to the

Lord with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his might,

according to the law of Moses. Nor after him did any advice like

him. Because King Josiah did not only love God on the inside. Friends,

it was portrayed in the actions it took. I don't know how many

kings. I didn't have time to county can go and counted how many kings

before King Josiah came and we moved all the high places. And it's as

simple as this. He removed the accepts in our life. The accept because

we cannot have exceptions in our life. You've got to be gray very careful.

It is church because we can say we are in church serving the Lord.

You know, we are believers but friends, if we are dating a

people believer, by what's very clear about it, right, just couldn't read

a scripture, right, You and I cannot have excepts in our life.

God has to be all or not at all. Come on, the Lord

has to be all or not the Lord, he has to be a lot

overall or not at all. You got to believe that. Amen, we

need we need to get rid of the exceptions in our life. If heaven't

rules in our hearts, there can be no exception and imagined in the times

of past. Right, when a king is a ruler, right, whatever

the king says goes. You know that like every other person under his rule

has no say no. The kings say. If the king say I wanted

their way, it's done. You know. If they if they dare to

go against the king's order, it's as simple as they will be Yeah,

they will be headed. Right, It's as simple as that. You know.

There's there's no exception when it comes to the king. Whatever the king

says goes, it happens, it's done. So there's so much honor for

the king, you know, and I pray you and I today will also

have even more honor and love without all to our one two and living King

Jesus Christ. Even Exodus chapter twenty verse one to six. Exodus chapter twenty

verse one says, and God spoke all these things, but these words,

saying, I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the

land of Egypt, out of all the houses of out the house of Bondage.

You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for

yourself a carved image any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or

that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the

earth. You shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I,

the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of

the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate

me, by showing mercy to thousands to those who love me and keep my

commandments. Friends, you know, God is such a mercyful God. You

know, look at this scripture. Right, God shows mercy and grace to

a thousand generations. So for many of us we may be seated here and

we are enjoying the grace and the mercy of the Lord. Because of the

fruit and the labor of the generations before you, legacy of your parents,

your grandparents, your great great great grandparents, and so off, so on

and so forth, the generations that came before you. By words very clear.

No, God's mercy is to the thousands of the generations, but you

know He's wroth only last to the third and fourth generations. Think about that,

How amazing, how great is God's mercy and grace towards us. But

even though the iniquity of the Father's extends to the third and fourth generation,

the Bible still says, to those who hate me, that means those who

actually love the Lord, even though they can sit in this third and fourth

generation of the Father's inequities, they still can break the curse of their father's

iniquities and continue to extend the grace and mercy for thousands of generations to come

after that. So remember, when you and I see that here with our

faith to the Lord, Remember it didn't start with you, started with someone

before us who left a legacy of faith so that you and I can receive

it and believe in God. Amen. So that's what it is like living

the Lord without all. You know, you have no other gods before him,

and he needs to be Lord over all our lives. Imen. That's

my first point. My second point today is First Love. First Love,

Revelation chapter two, Verse one to seven. I want to read this whole

part. Okay, seven verses Revelation chapter two. Okay, let's all turn

to it. Revelation chapter two. If you have a Bible with you,

and the title of this passage in my Bible actually says the Loveless Church out

the Loveless Church. Okay, And if you're a familiar with this story,

you know it's to the Ephesian Church Ephesus. Okay. So verse one says

to the Angel of the Church of Ephesus, right these things, says he

who holds seven stars in his right hand, who works in the midst of

the seven golden lamp stands. I know your works, your labor, your

patience, and that you cannot bear those who are evil. And you have

tested those who say they are apostles and are not, and have found them

liars. And you have preserved and have patience, and have labored for my

name's sake, and have not become weary. Nevertheless, come on, nevertheless,

I have this against you that you have left your first love. Remember,

therefore, from where you have fallen, repent and do the first works,

or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from his

place unless you repent. But this you have that you hate the deeds of

the nickel relations, which I also hate. He who has an ear,

let him hear what the spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes,

I will give to eat from the tree, from the tree of life,

which is in the midst of the paradise of God. So we can

see how dangerous it is when we lose our first love to God. In

fact, I shouldn't say we lose our first love. You know what the

skipture, she says, the Bible did. The scipture here didn't say that

the church and in eversus right lost their first love. Really carefully, what

do you say? What do you say? Come on left, read it

right? You know you know why I say that. There's a huge difference

between losing something and leaving something, because you can lose something by accident,

right, but you can't. You can't do it. Will leave something or

leave a place by accident? Can you say I accidentally left and went out

because for you to walk and move to a place, you actually had to

make a conscious decision. Right. Does that make sense? But can you

say I lost my water bottle? It happens to me a lot of times,

right, somehow I go into an event, I'm carrying water watter,

and after I go home like I have something missing from my hand. Does

that happened to you? Right? You can lose something, right, Right,

You can lose something by accident, but you theoretically you can't leave it

by accident. If you if you left your water water behind, right,

it would have been a conscious decision. For example, if you brought a

plastic water bottle and you say, this plastic water bottle is not going to

be abuse to me, I don't want it anymore, and some people will

leave. I shouldn't say some people. And if it happens, you know,

maybe somewhere else, you say this is what this plastic water water is

of no use to me, and you leave it behind. Right, that

was a conscious decision. It's a choice. Right. And so the church

in Ephesus theoretically didn't lose their first love. Let me get it right,

Even though sometimes I may interchangeably say lose their first love. It's more common

to say you lose your first love, right, But the Bible is very

clear, No, they left their first love. There's a huge difference between

that left their first love. It was it was a clear decision they knew

and friends. This is a serious problem when we either lose our first love

or leave our first love for God. Because even you and I recognize that

as we love one on one another in bodily love, in sisterly love,

for those who are married, you know, in your to your spouse,

for those if you're ship, to your girlfriend or to your boyfriend, for

all of us who have families, to our parents. Right, And you

can't exactly say that you lost your love. Right. It's a conscious decision.

Even though yes, the Bible does say that the enemy, the devil

comes, still can't destroy and the enemy can steal the joy. You can

destroy the joy of loving, right, But still it comes in a conscious

decision. And love is very powerful. Now, without love, everything that

we do will be in vain. Did you know that without love, everything

that we do will be in vain? First Convenience Chapter thirteen, And this

is a very famous scripture. I'm going to show you to you the importance

of love. For those of you're gonna get married soon, this is probably

the scripture that you need to know first convintence. Chapter thirteen. Okay,

I'm gonna read the whole chapter. Agave you don't mind thirteen verses? Okay,

And it says the greatest gift. The title of the passage in my

Bible says, the greatest gift. Wow. Though I speak with tongues of

men and of angels, but have not loved, I have become something worse

and a clanging symbol. And though I have the gift of prophecy and understood

all mysteries and all knowledge, And though I have all faith so that I

could remove mountains, but have not love, Come on, cashies, I

am nothing. Wow, you have all the faith. I can move mountains,

you know, but I have not loved. I am nothing, the

Bible says. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor,

and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love,

it forfeits me nothing. Love suffers long and is kind. Love does not

envy, Love does not pervade itself, is not puffed up, does not

behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoke. Think no

evil, does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth, bears

all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails. But whether they are purpesies, they will fail. Whether

there are tongues, they will cease. Whether there is knowledge, it will

vanish away. But for we know in part, and we prophesy in part.

But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in

part will be done away. When I was a child, I spoke as

a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child.

But when I became a man, I put away childish things. For now

we see in the mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I

know in part, But then I shall know, just as I also am

known. And now by faith hope love these three. But the greatest of

this is love. So, friends, that is the power of love,

and that is the importance of love. So back to my point, our

first love to God. We need to watch that very carefully. And I'm

going to say this very boldly and courages to us here extrach friends, we

must never ever lose our first love to Him, because Every single thing that

we do, whether in the in the church walls or outside the walls of

the church, has got to do with His love. Because the Bible is

very clear, without love, nothing will matter. I am nothing. You

know, the Cuture says, nothing matter in everything that we do in church,

whether you are serving, and sure that you are serving it because of

your love for Him, Amen that they're sinking your hearts. We need to

all remember the purpose and understand the why we do what we do as a

church. This very important church. Listen to this very important. Everything we

do in acts is because we love God, not because of how great we

are. More importantly, because God first loved us. He gave his only

son, Jesus Christ, to dine across to take our place of sin,

so that you and I can be reconciled back with him. Because God first

loved us, and that is why we also love him in return. If

God first didn't love us, we won't have the ability to love him.

It's because God first loved us. And that's really about the story of revel

right. If you're here yesterday, you will know in a witnessing. I

think Steven, who were sharing you know that you say no, when people

ask you, why are you so kind or so nice to me? Right,

what do you say? Because God, God loves you, and therefore

I love you? Right? I thought it was a treat part. Today

I always say okay, okay, because I think what the story was.

Uh. At recess time, the students will pick up rubbish, you know,

doing research time, and and the principle why this guys getting funished it?

You know, but he will asked the students what are you doing?

And and and and they answered, you know, you know, I think

it was because God loves the school, you know, and God loves school.

God loves you, and therefore I also love you, right, uh,

you know, and and and so the principle just like praise these students

in front of the assembly, you know, uh, and and and and

I was as he was saying it, you know, in my mind,

I was like, hmm, okay, friends, don't take that out of

context, because context very important. If you only say the last thing,

the last one, and you say the first two, your sound quite fishy.

Don't just say because I love you, right, say because God loves

you, therefore I love you. That sounds about right. So the context

very important time, when I read the scripture to you, I always give

you the context. Sometimes I publically read the whole passage for you, just

so that we understand the context of which the scripture is talking about, right,

so that we don't code it our scripture, you know. And and

it's just something funny that I thought about it now. Yeah, So remember

to say, when your winners for God, it is because God loves you,

and therefore I love you also with the love of God. Amen.

And so this if you go back to this, you know, church and

Ephisus, right, you should know that the I believe or I think that

the Church Epistus also lost their love for people, because when a church,

I should put it this way, this because when we first love God,

we will also love the people that God loves. Okay uh. And when

I didn't be able to study, right, it's probably happening to the Church

of Epistas, whereby the people had left their first love to God and likewise

also stop loving people around them. It probably happened. And why did it

happen because they forgot the Bible actually says that was the church in Epistus.

To remember, remember, friends, there is power in remembrance. Because when

we forget the love of God or how much God has loved us, or

how much She has done for us, then that is how we will lose

our first love, or that's how we will leave our first love when we

have forgotten. So we must remember of what God has done for us,

and we must remember of the purpose in everything that we do in church,

and even for those who who are yet to know Him. Amen. And

when the church has lost its way, let me say this, when a

church has lost its way, the best way is to just go back to

basics. Go back to the basics again, go back to the heart of

everything in why we do what we do, the reason why we do what

we do, and who are we doing it for? For Jesus Amen.

And And as I was just preparing this part of the message, I was

reminded by the song of you know a heart of worship. How many of

you are familiar with this song? Heard of worship? Familia? Do you

know how the song was written? I think it was written by mad men?

What met fit men? Men? Men? Men? Okay, I

can't pronounce his name, okay uh. And in his church right at that

time, I read a story of how this song was written. Right.

Sometimes churches, and I say, sometimes can be so caught up with doing

things you know, uh, you know, the nice way, or trying

to give up our best and nothing giving your best. We have called to

give you our best. Amen. You're called to give of our excellence.

Right. But sometimes just sometimes we can lose our weight, uh, And

we can focus so much on the excellence, or so much on the big

things and the good things, that we forget the true meaning and purpose behind

it. Right. And so I think the story goes like this. The

church was I think getting big in there in the stage in there, I

think it was a sound. You know, their their lights. You know,

there were many people, and and and and and this pastor, I

don't know it's a pastor or not, but this songwriter felt that there's a

need to come back to basics, right, and he wrote this song heart

of worship, you sage, I'm coming back to the heart of worship when

it's all about you. Jesus is all about you, right. And I

think if I remember right at the time when by when they sang this song,

I think they shipped down the band completely. I don't know whether they

had one guitar or something like. I don't know the full story behind.

You can go and read about it. But I remember they shipped down the

entire band, right, I think it was one guitar or a coupella or

something that I think I remember, right. And and all this writer or

this pastor was trying to do was to get the church back to friends and

be lose away. Just go back to the basics. And what is the

basic? Remember your first love to God because it always starts with the love,

right, go back to basics. So my question was, even if

you had one guitar in front, playing with three stings and three cards,

can we still worship God the same way? Come on, you gotta check

our hearts. You know, I'm not saying you should come to church being

three things, but if you only had three swings, can you still worship

God with your best? That's the question asked ourselves. Because I've heard of

homes. Some of the homes run have no musician, right, Uh,

you know, someone us to play a backing track, right, someone us

to do a capella? You know? Friends? I heard from Passenger this

one time she ran her home side. She was the projectionists. She was

the word person sharing the word. She was the worship. You know how

she let worship nor no musician, nor musician, no backing track, a

cappella. She let worship like this. You know why she was passing the

slide was Sanjo. I know of our senior minister, Paskenna's wife. Some

of you would have seen her or at least met her yesterday. So kellib

I look at her. I said, pastor, are you kidding me?

How can our senior minister be doing this? She told me, no kidding

is that she has. She is kneeding, halfway pressing the slide and worship

eating a cappella. But God's presidence was there. So remember your first love.

Go back to the basics. Right, even if you had no musician,

no no, no sound, no lights, can you still worship got

the same way? You know. I've watched some videos of you know,

people who are in I don't know which countries, who have very little,

you know, and I see them worshiping God with like almost nothing. I

used to work almost because even if they're nothing, even the voice that they

had for something. So I cannot say nothing but almost nothing right, and

they can worsh it God with so much gladness. You know, I saw

them make instruments out of thinkens and yeah and and basic wood, or you

know, they will use basic strings and come up with the three three strings

guitar. And you know it doesn't sound great, but when I hear it

men the joy and the happiness in them, then they can praise God.

I'm amazed, you know. And sometimes I look at our churches that we

have so much, so we have so much that we can forget the true

meaning and purpose in what they we do. So friends, don't get distracted.

Don't get distracted. We will continue to give up our best and our

excellence, but we must never forget to fix our eyes on Him, never

forget that. You know, I've heard of so many stories of my colleagues

and friends. And my colleagues are my ex clique in my favous company.

Maybe of age, maybe they're about forty is already somebody their fifties right,

And they will tell me like they look at me serving in church right so

actively then there to me, it'st even you know, last time I used

to be like you soo okay, why last time? Now no more?

Then they'll tell me now can I'm already so you know, I don't go

to church today. I'm like, man, he used to be so active

in ministry in church, he told me. He used to look campus ministry

as well. They're asking what happened? Wait? What went wrong? Why

did you lose your love or why did you leave your your your love for

God? You know? How do your love grow cold? You know?

And and and I was reminder, I look at my leadership, are all

young, so young, right, I prayed it, you will continue to

go until thirty forty, fifty, sixty seventy, until the Lord calls us

home. Amen, until the Lord calls us home. And that to me,

I also looked at lot ask God, Lord help us, because sometimes

we can be we can be running a screen race, you know, sometimes

you know whereby we are. Like I was just involved in revel Eli last

week and then rail so maney yesterday, back to back. Right. The

week was packed for me, right, so packed that I have to delate

all my distruction. I did it Instagram, I did it, Uh,

Facebook, I delay YouTube, I did it x exe Twitter by the way,

formality x I did it everything or ex titter no, no, sorry

not ex acts. Hey, thanks texting and not acts ex wo dangerous,

dilate ex Twitter. Okay, I had to remove all my distraction because I

have none. I had had no time for it. Come back home,

either prepare for something or shower and sleep. That's it. Waste no time,

right. But really that's why we come back to basics, because all

of these are just additional you know, don't let them distract you. So

our life really is a marathon. It's not a sprain. It's not how

much you can do at your age now, It's not how many things you

can do. It's never about that. It's how far you can run and

how far you can continue to run and continue to do it. And then

don't let the enemy rob you of your joy of serving the Lord and the

meaning and purpose behind everything that you do. Love is powerful, my friends,

it's powerful. In fact, the Bible reminds us that love covers a

multitude of scenes. And let's not forget that we are also called love one

another. John thirteen thirty five says, by this all will know that you

are disciples. How do they know? How they know? Friends? If

you love one another? If you love one another? So let me show

you right now the importance of remembering our first love to God. In First

Kings eleven, chapter one to four, let me show you the danger of

it when we lose our first love to God. But King Solomon loved many

foreign women as well as well as the daughter of fellow women of the Morbiites,

Emmonites, Edolmit Sidonians. While and he dies Kip, going from the

nations of whom the Lord had said to the children Israel, you shall not

intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your

hearts after their gods. Solomon clung to these in love, keep going.

And he had seven hundred wives. Somebody said, wow, kidding me,

how can you have seven hundred wives, not just that are princesses and three

hundred conqu And listen to this. His wives turn away his heart? Is

that one of us? Yeah? For it was so when Solomon was old,

that his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was

not loyal to the Lord his God, as was the heart of his father

David. So there's the danger, you know. And of course, none

of a worship of hundred seven hundred wives praise a lot, Hallelujah. One

one enough, okay, seven hundred that's why I messed up, you know,

seven hundred wives and three hundred others, you know, concubines. Right,

turn Solomon's heart away from God. He lost or I should say he

left his first love because of all these other gods that were in the way,

and they took his focus away. So we must always come back to

our first love. That's why very important friends, remember your first life to

God, and the first love is all the exciting one. Why not,

you know, when you first point in love? Hey, why not when

your first point in love the most exciting? Right? But as years go

by, usually love will get a little bit colder, a little bit older,

a little bit older, a little bit older maybe I actually use the

word a little bit more matured, right, But never forget your first love.

Never forget the excitement when you first starts, you know. But I

would be really really cautionous even as I bring this point to a close.

Be careful also that we do not fall into the trap of idolatry. And

I tell you right, the trap of idolatry oftentimes or sometimes does not mean

that it's something better. Sometimes the idolatry for things could be on something that

is good. Let me explain it. For example, we can idealize,

or we can put money above God. Money is not bad, right,

can let me give it other examples. Sometimes we can idolar We can idolize,

okay, idolize our spousers, you know. Sometimes we can idolize our

father or mother. Right. Sometimes we can idolize, uh, just leader,

just leader, maybe I don't know, or your boss at work.

Or maybe it could be a great singer, I don't know, it could

be a performer, somebody you waln't love, you know, and not necessarily

is bad. Right? Uh? You know that that singer, You know

that that that praises God not necessarily is bad. But the act of idology

yourself is bad. So case she's. Sometimes we can idealize things that could

be good, but because it's idolatry, that itself becomes bad or becomes wrong.

Right, So be greay, were careful. We can tend to idolize

our studies, our work, our spousers, and the least goes on.

So let me get this straight. God must ultimately be our first love.

You cannot love anyone or anything else greater than God, And I dare even

say, we are called to love God even more than our own families and

our spousers themselves. Also Amen. We must love God with our all and

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

information on our church, please visit as church org. We are also active

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good week ahead for you. God bless