as time goes by
Everyone will be growing and getting old physically
no one has exemption
You Know when I was young I was really handsome like movie star But now I am getting old
My hair is getting white and my stomach is getting bigger like a pregnant woman
Now your pastor Kris Bestoca is guapo like Ding Dong Dante
But sooner or later he will be like me Time is so fast
there is no choice Whether you like it or not We all will be growing and change physically someday
but our spirituality is different
Not everybody will grow spiritually as time goes by
Meaning someone will grow or matured in their spirituality but someone is not
Spiritual maturity is a choice
Then how to grow in our spirituality?
The answer is going together with God
Evangelist John Gilmore said “Going together with God is greater than salvation”
and this is true
if i live for God only one week maybe i will do it almost perfect
if i live for God i month still i can do very well
but it is not only one month it is not only 1 year, in our whole life, going together with god is mahirap
but thank you God he is faithful to us
even we sleep down sometimes, God is still with us and love us praise the lord
somebody who wants to walk with God say amen
Today I’d like to share the word of God entitled let's walk with God
Based on the Bible Genesis 5; 21~24
So if you have bible shall we open with me Genesis 5; 21~24
# When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah.
# And after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters.
# Altogether, Enoch lived 365 years.
# Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.
let us pray~~
Father we thank you for adding another wonderful day in our lives. Thank you this morning that we gathered here in your name and we worship you and praise you
Father, as we start to listen to your word I pray in the name of Jesus you anoint this service
Help us to have a service in our best
And refresh us and empower us through your word
In Jesus name
This morning I would like say 4 points to consider for the “walk with God”
1st when we can walk with God
2nd what is the meaning of walking with God
3rd how to continue to walk together with God
4th what is the result of walking with God
In our Christian life There are two important things we need
1st, confidence of salvation
2nd, become a mature Christian
But sad to say, Many Christians are going to church without confidence of salvation
That is why they do not grow in their spirituality,
Even they come to church every Sunday,
They do not mature day by day
Those Christian, we call them nominal Christian,(name only Christian)
They could not testify for God
why? Because they have no experience to meet God
therefore, They do not have confidence of Salvation
Consequently, they could not grow in their Christian life
because they do not walk with God
how could they walk with God without meeting God
like in courtship, we must meet first, we have to encounter first , so we can have date
Maybe you know mother Teresa
one time she traveled somewhere in India by train
many people were there, some were drunk
some were begging and there were many vendors
Noisy and smelly, the train is like a pubic market
but Mother Teresa took a sit on the train and she prayed
At that time she heard a small voice of God
"if you go 5 miles from here 500,000 homeless are living and dying in the street
so you go there and care for them, live with them
while they are living, you give them sleeping place
and they die, you give them the grave."
after she heard the voice of God in the train
she left England and went where God told her
when she leave, she wrote like this in her diary
"Lord I don't know where to sleep tonight but I will leave now
Lord I have nothing to eat tomorrow but I will leave now
because you told me so and from now on, you answer for my life "
and then she went to India, established and devoted for "the Missionaries of charity" whose primary task was to love and care for those persons nobody was prepared to look after
in the train she met God
and from that time she was starting to walk with God
it means for Mother Teresa
the train was her turning point to walk with God
as you know apostle Paul met God in Damascus
after that, he was starting to walk together with God
it means, Damascus is Paul’s turning point to walk with God
Moses met God in the mount Horeb
so for the Moses, mount Horeb is his turning point to walk with God
Brothers and sisters
Where is your momentum of walking with God?
When did you start walking with God?
Today's passage there is Methuselah
And Methuselah is the grandfather of Noah
and Methuselah's father is Enoch
You may know that Methuselah is said to be the oldest person that ever lived. Methuselah is said to have lived 969 years
Let us see Today’s scripture chapter 5 verse22
"after he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked with God"
Enoch walk with God after his son Methuselah was born
Enoch walk with God after he had a son
here we have to consider the word "after"
you know some theologian said
he was not walking with God before he had Methuselah
but after he had Methuselah, from that time he started to walk with God
Methuselah was the warning to Enoch.
Enoch was shown the danger of walking without God.
It was the birth of His son used to prophecy his need for God.
Maybe it is like this, when his wife became pregnant
God called Enoch and he said
“Enoch the earth was corrupt and full of violence
so I am going to destroy it
Enoch you will have a son and you shall call him name Methuselah
and when your son die, I will judge in this world with flood
from that time, he may awaken from his disobedience
God will Judge this world because people do not obey
Oh I have to tell this every body
After that, every time he met people he said
Gising "the judgment will come, God will destroy it all"
Look at In the Bible Jude chapter 1 verse 14 it says
“Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men: "See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone"
He prophesied about God's judgment
so all the people were scared
they ask to Enoch when will God judge this world?
And he said, after my son Methuselah Die
Oh really? Yes God told me
So if Methuselah was sick
all the neighbor said oh Methuselah do not die
they were afraid of Judgment but they were not awaken from their disobedience
they still walk without God
Do you know what is the meaning of Methuselah ?
The name Methuselah means, "his death shall bring Judgment
so every time Enoch calls his son Methuselah (X2).
he remembered that judgment will come
that is why he walk with God all the time
and exactly, after Methuselah died the great flood came
brothers and sisters my point is this one
for Enoch, his turning point to walk with God is his son
his momentum is Methuselah
how about you brothers and sisters
I believe that you have already a turning point in your life to meet God that is why you are here
but if you do not have a turning point
you should make today as your turning point to walk with God
2nd Meaning of walking together
when we are going together
when we walk hand in hand
we should go to the same place
if their goal is not the same, they can not go together
For example, I want to go to Burnham park and you want to go to camp john hay then we can not go together
I want to watch Spider man and you want to watch Bat man
Then we can not go together in one cinema. We have to separate
Bible says in Amos 3:3 "do two walk together unless they have agree to do so"
So if we want to walk together with God,
we should agree what God wants us to do
We should follow God's way, and do not insist on our way
Actually God will not adjust his way for us
so the only way is we should adjust our way to God
We should deny our way and follow His way.
then we could walk together with God till finish line
and we will fulfill God’s work through our life amen
We have to know this one
The essence of going together with God is obedience.(X2)
As Jesus said Matthew 26:39
"my father if it is possible may this cup be taken from me Yet not as I will but as your will."
you know it is really hard to carry cross for others
but Jesus did it, he followed Father’s will
brothers and sisters
We should walk together with God through obedience. amen
remember this verse Jesus says
"For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. "
So again we should follow God's will and finish his will
3rd the way of walking together
how to walk with God together
what do we need in order to walk together with God
a) we need faith
without faith, we can not walk together with somebody
for example, when you marry with someone, you must trust him because you are going together with your husband or wife the rest of your life
how could you walk together if you do not trust him or her?
it is the same with God , trust God who is almighty amen
Hebrew chapter 11;5 it says Enoch walk together with God by Faith
How he walk together with God? By faith
so we should have faith like Enoch amen?
Even the road is rough. Even the situation is difficult
as long as we have faith we could walk together with God
b) we need communication
in korea Kyeongsang province People specially the lalake
they are not talkative, I mean, they talk shortly
when they come home from their work
They use to say only 3 words
1st Mangan 2nd Patay na ilaw
3rd tulog na And no more comunication
that is why the wife who married with Kyeongangdo people
they use to say “I feel like I live with tree or stones”
Brothers and sisters
for going together we need communication
as we know the king David
the Lord says “he is a man after mine own heart”,(acts 13;22)
why God says to him as so? even he have a lot of fault
he tried to communicate with God all the time
if you see Samuel chapter 23
he inquired of the LORD, and The LORD answered him,
and again David inquired of the LORD, and the LORD answered him
every time he do something, before he do something
he ask God first and God answered him
brothers and sisters
when we walk together with God
we need communication with God
and I want all of you to communicate with God constantly every day by prayer and with Bible reading Amen
4) result of walking together
Today’s passage verse 24
Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away
what is the result of walking with God
of course we will arrive at the same goal with God
then, where is the goal
that is everlasting kingdom amen
brother and sisters
death is not our terminal station
the terminus of our life is everlasting kingdom
I still remember when I was young, a Sunday school teacher said in the morning God always come to Enoch’s house and they went out to play and in the evening God bring Enoch back to his house, sometimes they go to picnic in mountains, some times they go to river for fishing and other days they go to beach to swim they meet every day for 300 years
and one day Enoch said to God , “ You always come to my house everyday but I never go to your house.”
And God replied, “ Ok, you can come to my house but you can not come back to this world.”
And so Enoch went with God and never came back.
That is why only Enoch didn’t die and went heaven direct Dao
you know
Genesis chapter 5 is the genealogy of Adam through Noah
if you read Genesis chapter 5
someone lived some years and died someone live and die
everybody will die
but in Enoch's case there is no words "and then he died"
it says God took him away
then where did God take him ?
That is everlasting kingdom amen.
brothers and sisters I will close this sermon
we may die all someday and our death is different
some will die of old age some will die by disease or accident
some will die in Baguio some will die in Manila
but we have to believe this one
death is not our terminal station
death is not our finish line
God will take us away
wherever we die, however we die,
as Christian, we have something in common,
that is God will take us away
and that is everlasting kingdom. amen.
Let us pray
Father we thank you once again this afternoon
we thank you for what you have done in our lifes
And father I pray that you continue to shower your blessing unto us in our life. Father you bless each every one of us
Help us to walk with you all the time
Help us to continue fellowship with you communicate with you
And help us to follow your will and finish your will
So that we could have a victory for your Glory oh Lord
Father this time I pray for this church
father you bless this church
you bless all the pastor, elder and all the church members
strengthen them in mind strengthen them in body
and strengthen their soul and spirit
and bless their ministry and bless their life
give them abundant and fruitful life
make them channel and source of your blessing oh Lord
Thank you father that you empower us today
May we honor you all the days of our lives.
In Jesus Name, amen
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