The ways of the World...or the Ways of God.

Colossians 2:8 [Warning against False Teachers]

See to it that no one captivate you with an empty, seductive philosophy according to human tradition, according to the elemental powers of the world and not accroding to Christ.

Colossians 2:20 [Practices Contrary to Faith]

If you have died with Christ to the elemental powers of the world, why do you submit to regulations as if you were still living in the world?..

It is easy to be misguided by the so-called "teachers", seduced by any of the examples given:

1. Pre-marital sex (your friends had sex before, so you follow them, your friends smoke, ALL OF THEM SMOKE, and you give in to temptation,

2. Divorce (Divorce rate very high...those stupid media always reporting about it..Nothing good but most of the time bad...Must you believe marriage is a dead trap?? NEVER get married??!!)

3. Masturbation (friends do it, so it NORMAL to do it? Well i never know it until friends told me...i dunno about guys lah.. >:P)

4. Extra-marital affairs (so dramatic and sensationalised by drama serials...~ mindless man and woman..not being faithful...not knowing how to handle problems together...)

5. Unnecessary indulgences, trapped in the money-oriented world,climbing the ranks of the coperate World, Fame, etc...

These are simply, The ways of the World.

*That's why i hate the media...the way they sensationalised things, makes people FOCUS on the wrong things..more sex, more violence, it is NO DOUBT pple move towards these ways of the World...why aren't there more advertisements and serials on moral educations?

It is emphasized, in the 2 passages above, to not give in to the ways of the world.

Learn to discern, with not just your minds, but your heart as well, Who is the Right teacher for you?

These can be exemplifed by the concrete signs of Love.

Someone in a concrete place, having experienced alot in life (that satisfies my heart). If my heart does not find the soulmate, then, temptations will find their way into my heart instead.

Once we have the Centre, everything else falls in place.

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So, what is the ways of God?

It is easy to say JESUS, but do you KNOW Jesus?

If we want to know more about Jesus, we must understand ourselves first.....

Mark 10: 17-22 [The Rich Young Man]

17 As he (Jesus) was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, "Good teacher, what must i do to inherit eternal life?"

18 Jesus answered him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.

19 You know the commandments: ' You shall not kill; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; honour your father and mother.'"

20 He replied and said to him,"Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth."

21 Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, "You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven: then come, follow me."

22 At that statement, his face fell, and he went away sad, for he has many possessions.

The words "Follow me" signifies giving up, letting go, of the Worldly things in life, and follow your teacher. I am not saying that you desert all your possessions, and become a nun or priest. I am just saying that, you can have it, and when you don't have it, its alright, and you don't have to run after it.

This is like my life philosophy, which i've been mentioning...

"Happiness and Contentment consists not of great wealth, but few needs."

And i've found a true, good teacher, someone who i can trust on and who will never perish.(Alrighty!! I love that! And it is blind faith that i have...since billions have believed in him over 2000 centuries..)

And the ways he taught, is of Love.

He's like a soulmate to me now, and everything else falls in place..

No matter what happens, may i never lose my God, ever again.

Amen.

What do sufferings signify about God?

A few weeks in Alpha group..I asked Uncle Andrew.. "Where will my parents go to, if they were to pass away?" They are non-Christians, they do not know about Jesus, and they have bad impression of Church because of uneducated evangelizers ..Basically, they do not know about God, but they know how to pray for our whole family's wellbeing.

Uncle Andrew told me, "If they are good people, they will go to heaven. It is as simple as that. God is kind. "

Another day, another friend, whose friend's dad passed away a few days ago, talked to me about salvation. She mentioned..."He is not with Lord. He did not receive salvation.." Does she mind he's not a good person??

This statement left me very troubled and disturbed. For the next few days, I was confused...

Aren’t kind people deserved to be blessed and go to heaven?

I wondered what on earth did I learn about God...

When I went to RCIA session last week, the lesson was with Fr Bruno. Coincidentally, he talked about this topic on ..." Did God make us suffer?"
There are several Theologies ('Theo'=God, 'logy'=logic), which means different interpretations of the Bible...(now I’m starting to understand why Christian fight amongst themselves...)

1) Did God bring us sufferings? Did God send sufferings to punish us?
From what we read in the Bible, it is how people interpret about God back few thousands years ago.

For example, the Noah’s Ark, in Genesis 6 - 9. This is the Retribution Theology.
Men do evil things. Men sin against God. That’s why God send the great flood to punish the people. The people back a few thousand years ago, interpreted the great flood as God’s sign of punishment.

However, if we see in Exodus 20:13, it says “You shall not kill”. This is the first of the 10 Commandments. Will God set a bad example to us, by killing people?

This leads to the next question..
2) Did God allow killing for better good?

How can God demonstrate killing for the greater good? Every human life is scared. How can God kill thousands of people in the great tsunami in year 2004? This concerns the Theology of the all powerful God, the controlling God. If God is powerful and almighty, how can Jesus die?


God did not send Jesus, his only begotten son to die for us.
God sent Jesus to claim us, to redeem us. And He knows that by sending Jesus down to earth, he will die, because the earth is full of evil people. Nonetheless, God still did it, because he loves us so much...

James 1: 13 “No one experiencing temptation should say, “ I am being tempted by God”; for God is not subject to temptation to evil, and he himself tempts no one.”

Hebrew 12:16 “For whom the Lord loves, he disciplines; he scourges every son he acknowledges.”

Don’t the 2 verses contradict themselves?
In the Letter of James, God will not set himself as a bad example to his people. He will not do what he doesn't want his people to do. Whereas in the Letter to the Hebrews, God will discipline and punish his people.

HOW TO READ THE BIBLE LIKE THAT????
The Bible is written by people inspired by God, but it really made me confused for a while…

Fr Bruno then told me….perhaps we can consider the next Theology…
3) God limits his power for our freedom.

Because when God made us, he gave us free will.

In Luke 15:11-32 (The parable of the Lost Son) this is also my favorite parable!!!!!
“Then he said, “A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’ So the father divided the property between them….” So after a long story, the son repented and returned to his father and was forgiven.

In the historical Greek bible, the word used for estate was “ousia” which means being. The word for property was “bios” which means life. The whole sentence means, “Father, give me the share of your being that should come to me. And the Father divided his life between them.”

God limits himself/ his life for our lives.

Bible interpretation can be risky, therefore it is important to read the Bible as a community. The life of Jesus is an important criterion to Bible interpretation. E.g. How Jesus loved his people, how he gave up his life to redeem us sinners. With reference to Jesus' life, even though some of the 6 billion people may not know God, I choose to believe that good people will also be saved by God.

Jesus’ the answer to sufferings. That’s what God send him down for.
We are invited to God and Jesus’ relationship, and also, to be answers to sufferings. The more we pray, the more we are attuned to God and Jesus. Prayers signify the going back to God.

Humans always go for the easy way out…to blame God for all sufferings..
What makes people in the olden days to think that only God can bring sufferings? All the more we should fight back against all evils and pray for God’s assistance.

“God’s greatness is not outside our limits, but in the decision to come inside our limits, in order to enlarge them.” (J. Moingt)

God’s greatness comes not in external: Control, but from the internal: Love.

In conclusion, what I have simply read about God these short few weeks, no matter what retarded theology are thrown to my face, I have choose to know God as, not the Almighty God as I have always perceived him to be, but One who has the greatest love of all. He does not control, he gives free will to all.
Such is the Greatness of Love, the Power of Love.

Amen.

The Prodigal Son

The Prodigal Son, also known as the Lost Son, is one of the best known parables of Jesus. It appears only in the Gospel of Luke, in the New Testament of the Bible. By tradition, it is usually read on the third Sunday of Lent. It is the third and final member of a trilogy, following the Parable of the Lost Sheep and the Parable of the Lost Coin.

Dedication to all lost child...

Luke 15 - The Parable of the Lost Son

11 Jesus continued: "There was a man who had two sons.

12 The younger one said to his father, 'Father, give me my share of the estate.' So he divided his property between them.

13 "Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living.

14 After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need.

15 So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs.

16 He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

17 "When he came to his senses, he said, 'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving to death!

18 I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.

19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.'

20 So he got up and went to his father. "But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

21 "The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.'

22 "But the father said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.

23 Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let's have a feast and celebrate.

24 For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate.

25 "Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing.

26 So he called one of the servants and asked him what was going on.

27 'Your brother has come,' he replied, 'and your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.'

28 "The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him.

29 But he answered his father, 'Look! All these years I've been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends.

30 But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!'31 " 'My son,' the father said, 'you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.

32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' "

How Mary lived FAITH...Part 1

A sharing by Bro Emmanuel..

1) Faith, Hope and Charity, as lived by Mary our Mother and Model, and
2) How through these she succeeded to reveal Christ to the World.

"Mary, as the Model of True Discipleship: She walked by Faith and Not by Sight. She lived in hope and Knew no despair. She lived constantly in Love, never knowing Hatred.

Today, i just want to show how Mary in her own simple way, lived FAITH. The rest Hope and Love ensue from this.

The theme of this topic is Living Faith:
The Best way to treat with it is to Take Mary as our Model.

If we want to be a true disciple of Jesus, we must IMITATE the most perfect model of discipleship: Mary, the Mother of our Lord.

Jesus' own life was ruled by 2 principles:
a) total dedication to the Father, and
b) total dedication to his mission.

Mary's life was ruled by the same principles:
a) "Let it be done onto me according to your word."
b) She lived totally for the mission for her Son.

If we look at the gospels, we discover a progressive interest in Mary. Mark and Matthew have not much to say about her, but Luke and John have her playing a more decisive role in the life of Jesus and the Church. Not only is she present when the Messiah entered the World, but also when the Church is born at Pentecost.

The image of Mary needs alot of changes in our imagination. If we take the Incarnation seriously and if Jesus was the greatest religious leader ever born, his mother must have been a remarkable woman and not the sweet little girl that disappeared into the background. The more we take the humanity of Christ for real, the more his mother moves into the foreground as an extraordinary woman who not only bore such a man, but who also raised him. It seems that the woman who was so fasinated with Jesus spontaneously realise what kind of mother he must have had when she exclaimed, "Blessed the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked." (Luke 11:27)

Luke's gospel, written around the year 80 A.D., i.e., one generation after Mary's death, reveals a remarkable devotion to Mary, already present in the community for which and in which he wrote his gospel. Around that time, we already find a developed devotion to her among some communities.

John, who always sees Mary in connection with the Church, put her at the openining and closing of Jesus' Ministry: At Cana and Under the Cross (John 2:1-11; 19:25-27)

I would like to present to you, the main biblical texts that refer to Mary and to show through these texts, what discipleship really implies: To walk by Faith and not by sight

To be continue....

Discernment of Spirits

2nd session with Bro Emmanuel…The Gift Discernment

"WHAT IS DISCERNING OF SPIRIT? This gift is the power that is given to use by God to distinguish one spirit from another. It is the supernatural ability, which God gives to certain of His people to discern the motivation behind any unusual event or manifestation. There are 3 sources of motivation underlying human events and activities. One flows from the Holy Spirit, another from the human spirit, and yet another from Satan himself. This gift enables a believer to pinpoint the exact source of any statement or manifestation, thus protecting the Church from counterfeits of Satan.

His Holiness Pope Paul VI said that the greatest gift of the Holy Spirit is the Gift of DISCERNMENT. Too often we are blinded by what happens in our life and we are misguided. Every Catholic must strive at discovering the WILL OF GOD in his life. For this he has to fight against three great enemies:-The World, the Flesh and Wrong Doing.

Without proper DISCERNMENT one can easily make the wrong choice. We have two choices in life. We can either CHOOSE GOD or SATAN. God wants to draw all of us to Himself. Satan swore to take all of us away from God. We have to make our Choice. This Growth in Spirit Experience can and will help us to be on the side of God now and forever.

Jesus throughout his Life on earth taught us how to distinguish the Spirit of His Father as against all kinds of other spirits. We are thought that there are three great enemies in the world and they are the World, the Flesh and Wrongdoing. In these three instances, we are putting into exercise our FREEDOM to choose what is right and to avoid what is evil. We have to choose between GOD and DEVIL. Our happiness will depend on the right choice. LET us pray that this right choice will always be GOD and His Holy Will.

OUR task is to be able to detect and become more and more aware of the PRESENCE and INFLUENCE of the EVIL SPIRIT in our life and around us. Sometimes he is so subtle that we do not even notice him, and his effects on our life.

The purpose of this talk is to enable you to understand how SATAN works and to detect his presence and activity. ALL these to help you to resist SATAN by wearing the armor of God.

THE PROBLEM: SATAN and EVIL SPIRITS

Satan is real. Man is a psychological, social and a cultural animal AND also and above all a spiritual creature. Because of this he must confront SATAN and EVIL SPIRITS.

The MODERN WORLD dismisses the notion of a personal evil force as a fantasy devised by superstitious and ignorant men looking for a scapegoat. Many Christians who acknowledge Jesus’ Lordship dismiss Satan as a superstition. The tendency today is that people do not believe in any kind of spiritual powers be they from God or from the Devil.

Yet, Scripture, tradition and personal experience all testify to the presence of a personal evil force opposing God and his plan. Scripture speaks of Satan as an angel and asserts that he has other angels, called evil spirits. Satan and the Evil spirits are real and we must deal with them in the Christian life.

SATAN not only exists, but he wields tremendous power. Satan is a fallen angel. He still possesses some of the power his angelic nature. Man and the affairs of man are helpless before this mighty spiritual force. Man trembles in the presence of SATAN. But SATAN trembles even more in the presence of God. Satan trembles with fear in the presence of God and of His Son, Jesus. If we are on the side of God and of Jesus, we need not fear. The power of God brings freedom from Satan’s control.

SPIRITUAL WARFARE
Satan opposes God everywhere and fights him with all the weapons he can find. He often uses even things, which are good in them to fight God. Scriptures warns us that Satan comes to us disguised as an angel of light. SATAN is determined to destroy the Kingdom of God. Scripture calls Satan “prince of this world”. Satan is implicated in so many things viz. Political events, international crisis, in the cause of human sufferings: war, racism, famine, crime, poverty, and disease… You name it, Satan is in it. Satan aims at disrupting social order through people who appear to be good and who are greatly influential. He even affects the body of Christ, causing division and spreading weakness within the Church. Of course, GOD IS ALSO AT WORK in the WORLD but SATAN claims to be the ruler of this world; he has gained the office through the popular election of mankind.

SATAN also works in the live of individuals. He subjects men to emotional, physical, mental and spiritual harassment and bondage. SATAN is able to twist and deceive men so that their lives no longer reflect the harmony and goodness of God. In spite of Satan’s great efforts to destroy the world, and mankind, CHRIST’S reign will come to this World with greater impact than ever before.

OBVIOUS AREAS OF SATAN’S WORK -

SATAN unceasingly attacks men in every area of his life to take him away from the loving embraces of God. And these areas are:

1) THE OCCULT – that is Satanism, witchcraft, spiritualism and other forms of divination. People who attempt to gain spiritual knowledge of power from sources other than God run the risk of entering into spiritual communication with evil spirits. CHRISTIANS should renounce OCCULT influences, deny it and destroy anything that leads to it. The occult is a focus of satanic activity. We do not food around with the OCCULT.

2) The BIZZARE = The ECCENTRIC – those uncanny and inexplicable happenings which involve changes in our normal sensory perception. It includes an eerie sense of the presence of someone or something or an unusual perception change in sight, sound, or smell… such a person will feel a hallucination-like experience. Drugs, alcohol, fatigue and illness can induce such changes. When these are not the cause, bizarre happenings may be the work of evil spirits.

3) IRRATIONAL FEELINGS – Satan lies at the root of many crippling, persistent, neurotic fears which have no rational basis: fears of people, high places, dogs, death, among others. Satan frequently causes sudden irrational impulses: to drive a car off the road, to leap from a 20-story window, or to commit some homicidal or suicidal act… some of these things may be the result of some psychological disorders but more often than none they are caused by evil spirits working to place us in bondage and to cause our downfall.

HIDDEN AREAS OF SATAN’S WORK –

4) TEMPTATIONS – Satan frequently causes daily difficulties with thoughts and emotions. Temptations come from many places, but one source is certainly Satan and evil spirits. Satan is called the “father of lies” and “the accuser of our brethren”. He is often behind unfounded guilt feelings, self-condemnation, and false or evil thoughts about God, oneself, or others.

5) ADDICTION – is a bondage to beings that by nature are no gods? Such spirits are often strongly implicated in addictions to alcohol, narcotics, compulsive eating, homosexuality, masturbation, gambling and other compulsive activity. Addictions are complicated phenomena, and we must consider many natural and psychological factors when searching for their sources. Nevertheless, Satan is often the jailer behind the bars of addiction.

EMOTIONAL PROBLEMS – ILLNESS – Spiritual Problems –

6) FEAR of God’s work etc… is other areas Satan explores to take us away, far away from GOD. Christians should never feel that their spiritual lives are immune from satanic attacks.

WARNING – CAUTION

Christians should not over-simplify or over-spiritualize the causes of their personal problems by attributing every difficulty to Satan. Many forces – not all of them satanic – operate to cause us trouble. To attribute To attribute everything to Satan can itself be a deception of Satan. However, Christians must be aware of spiritual realities. One of theses realities is that Satan and evil spirits do exist, that they operate in our personal lives, and that we must reckon with them when we deal with our difficulties.

THE SOLUTION: THE ARMOUR OF GOD

DISCERNMENT – To win freedom from a personal problem, it is usually necessary to detect its source. A doctor cannot prescribe a remedy until he diagnoses the disease. If wrongdoing has caused a problem, the remedy until he diagnoses the disease. If wrongdoing has caused a problem, the remedy is repentance and reconciliation. It will be fruitless and perhaps dangerous to deal with a problem of wrongdoing as though evil spirits were the cause. Similarly, repentance will bring no relief if Satan is at the root of a problem; a special prayer may be required. Nevertheless a Christian who is uncertain about the source of a difficulty should not fear. God loves his people and he will provide both a diagnosis and a remedy for their ills.

THE ARMOUR OF GOD – once we know that the evil spirits are implicated in a problem, we must use the right weapons to combat them. “Put on the whole armor of God that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil”.

1) TRUTH – the first essential piece of armor is the truth. Jesus calls Satan “a liar and the father of lies.” Satan is the great DECEIVER… Many of his tricks and deceptive acts go like these: “God does not love you… How could he love a person as weak and foolish as you? … God who is he? … You certainly are an incompetent and worthless human being…. No one loves you, and no one will ever love you…
WE CAN COUNTER such deceits by knowing the truth fully and clearly, and addressing it both to Satan and to the tempted mind. “God created me and loves me. He is my father. Jesus has died for me and won forgiveness for me etc.”

2) RIGHTEOUSNESS – it is the breastplate of God’s armor. We live righteously when we submit to the commandments of God. SATAN invites us (temptation) and he comes into us only if we open the door of our hearts to him.

3) FAITH – The shield of faith reminds us of the source of the Christian’s authority over Satan – the power of God. A Christian must trust, have faith, in the power of God. He must be assured that God can always handle SATAN and puts him in his place. WE can conquer with the help of GOD at all times.

4) GOD’S WORD – The sword of the Christian’s armor is the word of God. We should use the word of God to resist Satan. One must learn to command Satan out of his life, his project. WE must pray the prayer of DELIVERANCE. But this prayer must be used cautiously and with the permission of the Bishop.

5) CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY – Community is another powerful source to combat SATAN. The body of Christ is a fortress against the onslaughts of Satan. Christian community provides DISCERNMENT and also SPIRITUAL PROTECTION.

6) CERTAIN VICTORY – “I saw Satan fall like lightning from Heaven.” Satan is real. The power of God is far greater than the power of a fallen angel."

By Bro Emmanuel, St Anthony Church (Woodlands)

Every Wednesday, 8pm at St Thomas Room.

How to walk in the Spirit

1st session with Brother Emmanuel... "How to walk in the Spirit"

"One must realize that in the Plans of God, the Third Person of the Holy Trinity, the Holy Spirit Himself is at work in the world today and He will be so until the ends of time. Jesus as you will recall made it very clear what the role of the Holy Spirit is:-

The role of the Holy Spirit is to SANCTIFY us. Sanctify us means to help us become holy and be ready for Eternal Life.

Yes, the role of the Holy Spirit is also to Reveal Jesus completely to ourselves during our life time - And also to empower us to do even greater things than Jesus himself has done during His life time.

As members of the Catholic Church and as Catholics, if we are ready for a more intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit that exceeds anything we have ever thought possible, put on this evening you seat belts and listen attentively to what I have to reveal to you...

My brothers and sisters in Christ, I am neither a world wide evangelist nor an official pastor of our church. But like you, I do not want to lead a dry, boring and dull Christian life. I want to walk closer to God, to hear His voice, and to have an exciting and wonderful journey with Him. Join me in that journey.

In the world today, millions and millions of Christians are satisfied to settle for the dry shadow of Christianity that knows about the Word of God, and not the God of the Word. Are we of that category?

"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you..." is an incredible invitation from the Creator of the universe. God does not desire us to worship Him with our lips and rituals only every Sunday in service. But to enter into a genuine relationship, so close and loving, where He knows our heart, and we know His heart.

I do not know about you, but I used to feel that God is distant. But the bible says that the cause of this is not God, but I! My desires and focus on material possessions, entertainment and religious worship created a wall between God and me.

Good news! If we are willing to humble ourselves and open up our hearts to receive Him, He will fill our body with His Holy Spirit and reveal to us the truth about Himself,

Prayers will no longer be like chanting a wish list to God that doesn't seem to be paying any attention, but will be like a fulfilling chat or heart to heart conversation between best friends where each shares the deepest secrets of their hearts. Are we ready to have a heart to heart chat with God? With Jesus?

This is only possible when we know the Spirit of God, purchased by the blood of Jesus when He died for our sins 2000 years ago. I know that I know that I know when you begin to know the Holy Spirit more and more, you will have a passion for God that burns like a fire in your heart!

Keep on Walking by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit suppresses in us the evil impulses of nature as we trust Him to do so. As we cooperate with Him in the work of sanctification He enables us to be victorious in the Christian life.

It is our responsibility to submit our life to the control of the Holy Spirit.

In the context of a church biting, devouring and destroying Christian fellowship, the apostle Paul admonished Christians to "walk by the spirit". Conduct yourself under the power and influence of the Holy Spirit. Let the inward impulses of the Holy Spirit continue to control your behavior. Today in the context of a materialistic, atheist and fun-power-selfish filled world, the same reminder from St Paul can, and is being admonished unto us.

The Spirit is the source of all good and gracious impulses in our life. He works within us, enabling us with sanctifying power. The Spirit gives us wisdom and direction and by His help and power, we live and overcome the inevitable temptations, sorrows and joys in life.

The present tense of the verb "to walk" indicates a continuing condition or need. Paul is encouraging us to keep on doing what they have been doing, i.e., "Keep on walking by the Spirit." Keep in step; don't fall out now.

It is our responsibility to make the Holy Spirit the rule of our life. We must live continually in and by the power of the Holy Spirit. Let the Spirit always continue to direct our life, and when He is guiding our life, "we will not carry out the desire of the flesh."

How does the Christian fulfill the "righteousness of the law" without becoming legalists? Romans 8:4 tells us "walk after the Spirit." "So that the requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit" (Romans 8:4)

Instead of biting, devouring, and consuming one another, which is the result of fulfilling the desire of the flesh, let the Holy Spirit produce His kind of righteousness in our life.

As a believer, let us "keep on walking" through life depending on the indwelling of the Holy Spirit of God for His guidance and power.

The emphasis the apostle Paul is making is, this submission to the Holy Spirit is the responsibility of the individual. The Holy Spirit does not operate automatically in each one of us... We do not become robots when we believe in Christ. However, as we Catholics do yield to the Spirit's control, the promise is that we emphatically will not carry out the desires of the flesh. Paul uses a strong double negative to reinforce this great truth. The Holy Spirit wants us to be obedient and when we do obey Him, we overcome these evil desires (vv. 19-21). Let us therefore this evening, commit ourselves anew to the Holy Spirit and ask Him to lead us, mould us, and help us to walk with Him all the days of our life.

This great Biblical truth frees us from going to the extremes of liberty as license and lordship as legalism. True Christianity is neither license nor legalism. We have been set free to live Christ. "It was for freedom that Christ set us free. Therefore, keep standing firm and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery" (5:1). The Holy Spirit frees us to live in that spiritual freedom. He frees us from the penalty and power of sin and will one day free us from the presence of sin. The Bible teaches us that the human body is not sinful; it is neutral. However, when the Holy Spirit is in control of the body, we live in a manner that pleases God. It is when the Holy Spirit is not in control that we live in a way that fulfills the desires of the flesh-- the old nature with its sinful behavior. We cannot win the spiritual victory by our own personal strength or will power. Once we let the Holy Spirit guide us, "then we will never satisfy the passions of the flesh." The promise is realized in those who continually walk or live by the Spirit. Those who walk by the Spirit will definitely not fulfill the desires of the flesh. This is the only assurance that we will not yield to the power within us that leads to sinful behavior. We will always know who or what is in control by the work (vv. 19-21), or the fruit (v.22-25).

Is this not an encouraging teaching showing us what the HOLY SPIRIT can do to each and everyone of us who surrender fully to Him and let Him guide us and lead us to Jesus who finally will lead us to the Father?"

- From Bro. Emmanuel (adopted from an article)
Every Wednesday, 8pm @ Church of Saint Anthony of Padua, St Thomas Room (Singapore, Woodlands)