Hymn #1: Mari Datanglah (O Worship the King) by Robert Grant
Hymn #2: Tuhan Pusakaku (Close to Thee) by Fanny J. Crosby
Yohanes 12:20-24
Hymn #3: Di bawah Salib Yesus (Beneath The Cross of Jesus) by Elizabeth C. Clephane
4 sources of Christian enemies: 1. Political realm, 2. Intellectual Realm, 3. Fake Christians, 4. False prophets/doctrines.
The first love gradually dissipated. Taking it for granted without realizing.
If not realize sin, how to repent? This is very risky.
My Take: Look at Job's perfectionist behavior in Job 1, many would think it's too much what he did in "fear" with all sacrifices, etc. On the contrary, if you don't care about it, how can you truly repent?
If you care only about moral, the tree of knowledge of good and evil, then you are like the other religions, except without salvation. But the tree of life.
3 Main functions of a Church: Worship (vertical relationship), Fellowship (horizontal), and Witness (external).
Chinese Version:
Both services are short due to them watching a martyrdom movie later (I think it's Quo Vadis).
What sin is not realized:
- In Grace, we took things for granted
- In Blessings, not being grateful
- In Pride, not aware
- In Jealousy, we think it's natural
Christ's rebuke on Ephesian Church, though they struggle well in suffering, yet they took the grace for granted. This is a serious rebuke. If it is not a fault, it cannot be a rebuke.
When we fell due to laziness, we often think we could make it up by offerings, donations. This doesn't work. Self deception. Those we are lazy to preach the Gospel, they give money to the preachers to make it up, dreaming!
You get up from where you fell.
Nicolaitans are from Nicolas, one of the seven deacons in Acts, Tong used this version of interpretation. The Nicolaitans led dissention from the church.
Another fault, church members only talk to those aligned with their interests.
以弗所教会：没有爱上帝所爱的，但是有恨上帝所恨的。还不错。
After the service, Tong gave a prelude summary of the movie summary, Quo Vadis. This reminds me of the time I went to RCCC (Rutger's biggest Chinese Church). It was only my one and only time there. The sermon was a summary of the biography of a gay convert. Very disappointing. No teaching of the word of God at all. Whoever that preacher was, he should have given true Biblical sermon and then do this biography thing after the service, like Tong. This left me a bad first impression of RCCC - that their staffs/pastors only care about their own status and $$$ as I've heard reports of their pastors moving around the states to find new pastures during that service.