Sunday Bulletin – 11 August 2024

Reverend Wilfred Lim | Aug 12, 2024

Dear worshipers of the Most High,

God is very clear-cut. Day or night, clean or unclean, wise or foolish, heaven or hell; and the verdict of His judgement is good or evil. There is no in between, no mixture; but either one or the other. Joshua confronted the people for a clear-cut decision, “And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15). The prophet Elijah did the same, “And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word” (1 Kings 18:21). The great commandment demands an undivided heart, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).

David, a man after God’s own heart, longed to be one with God. “Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; unite my heart to fear Your name” (Psalms 86:11). “Unite my heart” is also read as “undivided heart”, “purity of heart,” “singleness of heart,” “whole-heartedly committed,” “complete devotion,” “always keep me faithful” and “make my heart all one with Thine.” May we cry out to God for the same. There is no in between; if there is, it is man-made and will be rejected. “So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth” (Revelations 3:16).

The danger of not asking God to deal with a divided heart is well illustrated in the life of king Solomon. As much as the king loved the Lord, he also loved what he was not supposed to love. Instead of taking heed to the warning, he clung to the foreign women in love (1 Kings 3:3, 1 Kings 11:1-2). He paid the price when these wives turned his heart after other gods (1 Kings 11:4). At last, the supposedly wise king failed “to foresee evil and hide himself,” rather, he now became “the simple one that passed on and are punished” (1 Kings 4:30, Proverbs 27:12). Oh, how a divided heart and life can darken one’s understanding, blind the heart and alienate one from the life of God (Ephesians 4:18).

The church today is also struggling with a divided heart – plagued with vain glory, selfish-ambitions, unrighteous mammon, soulish ties, inordinate passions, cares of the world and besetting sins among many others. It is our responsibility to keep ourselves from idols (1 John 5:21). And the onus is on us to flee from idolatry (1 Corinthians 10:14).

Beloved saints, the night is far spent and the day is at hand. Maranatha!

“And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed” (Romans 13:11).

Shalom,
Rev. Wilfred Lim