Learn to be a disciple of Jesus

Learn to be a disciple of Jesus.

In the teaching of Jesus, being a Christian can we equate to entering into a period of apprenticeship where we learn to become His disciples. In other words, we are now entering the test period. The life we ​​are living today can be said to be the period test. So how well we can do the test? When entering the exam, those who are in school or college usually focus their attention as if the exam period is the most important for them. And indeed it is a very important period and we must fight the best there. Do we realize that the whole time of our lives is a time of testing? God is studying our lives today to see if we are fit to enter into the kingdom of His heaven and He is assessing what kind of responsibilities He will give us in His kingdom later. This is another principle of Jesus' teaching that we must take note of and make a benchmark in building our way of thinking.

This part is indeed very revolutionary so it is very difficult for us to understand. How to think we have been patterned so that all our planning only to the grave. We make life planning that ends in the grave. For example, we may have made preparations about what things we will do in retirement later. We may plan to buy a house in town if we can afford it, even though the city life now feels very bad with so many criminals and drug trafficking. But do we have planning after death what will we do? If the way we think still stops in the grave alone, then we still have not learned to think as a disciple of Jesus.

For non-Christians, the grave is the end of everything, literally meaning after that there is nothing else. But for Christians, death is only a door to enter into eternity. A Christian lives his life not for this world, not for the present life, but for the life to come. Herein lies the role of faith. We can not deceive God. We may say have faith, but do we really have that faith visible from the way we think and live this life The true disciple of Jesus sees himself as a transiter. He is heading for something much bigger beyond the grave. Can we think like that? It is so difficult, is not that? That is why a disciple of Jesus diverts his property to the other side , that is to heaven. His whole life is deployed to eternity.

Do we believe that we have eternal life? If we say yes, then we should live this life as a person who is only concerned with eternity. Although many Christians claim to have eternal life, the life they live proves another belief. They live this life in the sense of losing everything if it is dead. If we have eternal life, surely we will make good preparation to get in there is not it?

Can we understand the present life as a test period, as a transit? The problem is that so many Christians do not understand it that way. For them, this present life is everything. When the loved one dies, their way of weeping shows how much they feel there is no use in life. For them, eternity is very vague, a term that can not even be translated into tangible phrases, much less to be lived. But our way of life will be changed if our minds are renewed. "Changed by the renewing of your mind" (Romans 12:2). Thus, death would be something to look forward to. Instead of saying, "Well, I can bear it," we instead welcome death with joy. We will be able to understand what Paul is saying when he tells us, "So whichever I choose, I do not know" (Philippians 1:22). Usually we will say, "Want to choose which one? I choose this life now! Not a hard choice! Of course I want to live. I do not want to die. That is, it is good to follow God. There's plenty of time for that; time available throughout eternity to be with God. But I want to enjoy the present time." But Paul said, "No, if you ask me to choose, then I prefer to die." What kind of thinking is this?

You will not be able to understand Paul's mentality if you have not understood the teachings of Jesus. And His teaching is very clear. For a disciple of Christ, this present life is a test period. We live this life for eternity, and how our lives in eternity will depend on the way we live now.

How would you apply them in a practical sense? If you are a student, what would you do? If you apply this teaching, then when you are learning, you learn not based on what you want to do in the present life, but based on what you want to do in eternity. This means your field of learning is a tool for you to do something for eternal life, to produce many talents and mina for God. Everything is based on this purpose. Immutability is a goal that you pursue continuously, tirelessly, with the highest determination.

Have you learned to think as a disciple of Jesus? If so, then you will understand what it means when Paul says, "All I want is to know Him and the power of His resurrection and fellowship in His suffering" (Philippians 3:10). It is clear that Paul wanted to suffer with Christ. If you have not learned to think like this, you might say, "No. I have suffered enough. That is, last week I had a fever, and that's more than I can bear. Then you want to tell me to enter into fellowship in the sufferings of Christ? Are you crazy? Next week I have to face the test. What other misery do you want me to bear?" But Paul says, "I long to suffer with Him." Well, no one seems to understand this way of thinking. As a new Christian, I also had no idea what Paul meant. I read this verse over and over again but do not understand. Why would anyone long to share in the sufferings of Christ, "become like Him in His death," to die in the same way as Him? Paul says, "I want to die like Him." If not a fanatic, he must be a madman! Maybe he was too much of a fantasy.

You will not be able to understand this way of thinking before understanding that this is your only chance in life is to live for eternity, to keep the treasure in eternity. Here is your chance to suffer for Him. Now here is a chance for you to die for Him because after this you will never die again. For then you will go into eternity and never die again. If you go in there, there will be no more chance. Think about it. But that does not mean you should come to the executioner and say, "Kill me. I want to die for Christ." That's not what he meant. The point is that you have to overturn your way of thinking so that when you face the moments in which you have a chance to die for Christ or for the sake of a brother, you immediately take the opportunity because there may not be another chance.

Is your brother in need? Give him what he needs. Maybe you never had a chance to give again. Are your fellow believers hungry? Give him food. Maybe there's no other chance. Is he in prison? Please visit. There is no chance of that in eternity. Every difficulty and suffering is no longer a matter of struggle for you because your eyes are focused on eternity. I am sure that you will come there with ten, twenty or even a thousand talents for God. This will make your Christian life dynamic, is not it?

Thinking like that will strengthen you to overcome difficulties with the help of Jesus. Paul says, "I can bear all things in him who strengthen me" (Philippians 4:13). You can also do it if you have this kind of thinking. Death is no longer the thing you fear; suffering also will not scare you. Because you know that life is a test period. And you will show God how much you love Him because He has already loved you first. And you will also be eager to prove to God your love for the brothers of faith. So at the time of reckoning, God will say to you, "Very good, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful to small things. Now I will entrust great things to you. I will give you confidence in all that belongs to Me."

Is not Christian life interesting? It will be interesting if you have understood this. You will be able to face death and suffering with a smile. Everything will be seen as an opportunity to do for God and His people because eternity is the center of your attention. And all this will be your advantage in eternity. Of course you do not want to sin, because sin will damage your account there. Will make your report cards red. Because you live for eternity, you will not enjoy sin even if the temptation will come forth in your direction for the rest of your life. Satan will of course make sure the temptations will continue to come to you.

There are so many examples in the New Testament about people who are eager to serve, work and do something for God, because they live for eternity. It is difficult to understand why so many Christians today waste their time. Some of them have wasted so much time. I would very much like to warn them, "So much of your best time you've thrown away. Those moments will never come back. Make the time well spent! "I really do not understand. They do not seem to realize that they are not doing anything that is beneficial to Jesus.

As you read the New Testament, and especially Paul's letters, you will be confronted with a myriad of words such as: working, struggling, trying. We can see that Paul's words consistently contain driving motors that will be hard to understand if we do not have a way of thinking like him. Paul says, "I work harder than them. True, they had become apostles before me. But that is not how. I work harder than them. They do work hard, but I work harder" (see 1 Corinthians 5:10). Speaking of Christianity as an arena of races, Paul seems unwilling to be preceded by others. In a race, there is only one winner, and Paul intends to be that person. That is spiritual ambition. Maybe he thought, "You run fast, but I will run faster again. I'll go ahead of you." That's why he said, "Run around in terms of doing good. (Outdo one another in good works)" There is a kind of competition in "holiness and love"- rather difficult to find the right term - where if others have tried hard, then you will fight harder, and as you struggle, I will fight harder. And as a result, we will all move forward rapidly.

The element of prompting in Paul's words is in many of the letters he has written. I will show some of them to you. For example, in 1 Corinthians 4:12 he says, "We do heavy handwork." Inside 2 Thessalonians 3: 8, he says, "We labored and labored day and night." In Galatians 4:11, he speaks of "my labor for you," which labored in preaching the gospel and teaching, building up the church in Galatia faith. In Colossians 1:29, he also speaks of "effort and struggle" and then in 1 Timothy 4:10 he says, "That is why we labor and strive, for we have our hope in the living God." Work hard and fight - that's the language of Paul.

But nowadays we are stuffed with all kinds of doctrines in the church about not working hard, not trying, not working hard for God. What about the church? By teaching us to be easy and not struggling, there is a danger that we will become a group of people with lazy spirituality. No wonder because Satan has infiltrated very far into the church. The Devil's work becomes very easy because of the widespread of this teaching. Every church should be the place where the fighting spirit and hard work born out of sight which is far ahead is very prominent.If there is no foresight, if there is no vision, then there will be no fighting spirit and spiritual movement. What I maskudkan is not just doing this and that or organizing this activity and that in the church. mean far beyond all that. The hard and the struggle is for piety, spirituality, spiritual excellence, and in channeling God's love. It is a struggle deep within, not just doing this and that activity. All that is good, but it is not the struggle as the Bible intended. In 1 Thessalonians 1:3 is mentioned about the effort of love: if any love, there must be effort and a willingness to serve and act.

The choice of words used by Paul is based on Jesus' own teaching. He speaks of Christians as an army that endures suffering for the sake of Jesus Christ, and the Christian life is like a farmer who sows and reaps for the Lord (1 Corinthians 3:9 ). He also uses a picture of the builder in 1 Corinthians 3:12. The portrayal of soldiers, peasants and masons is all drawn from the teachings of Jesus. Nothing new in Paul's teachings. For example, Jesus speaks of the disciples as troops in Luke 14:31-32 and 22:35-36. He speaks of Christians as peasants in the parable of the seed-sowing and the workers in the vineyard. He speaks of disciples as builders in Matthew 7:24-27. So Jesus has used all the phrases which Paul later borrowed when describing things. The description of the sportsman is the only phrase that was never used by Jesus. This is because athletics is a sport of the Greeks. By imagining these activities, sowing and building, that goes on and on, the Christian life is seen by Paul as something very dynamic in the pursuit of the goal lying ahead.

What does your Christian life look like? Do you have a spiritual goal? Is there a vision that burns your spirits? If not, then you still do not understand the teachings given by Jesus. Because that's what He wants from every Christian. There are three important principles that must be remembered in living the Christian life, and between each other are related.First , there is danger of being dumped out for those who are lazy, reckless and have no goals about his future. Secondly, we see that the true disciple of Jesus lives by focusing his attention on eternity. The present life is temporary, everything that happens in life is new has meaning when it is associated with eternity. And thirdly, we see that because of that vision, Jesus teaches us to struggle and seize all opportunities to do things that please Him so that we can be guaranteed a place in the kingdom of His heaven. what we sow, that is what we will reap.

What is Your mission and Me?

What is the mission of the church? This is an important question because you and I are the building blocks of the church, so, what is your mission? What is my mission? Our mission, as Jesus tells us, is to preach the gospel to the poor, wherever they may be. Are you running the task? You do not have to go to a poor country, as a missionary does, but you can start from your environment. I want to read a passage from Matthew 11:2-6 for you:
Now when John heard in prison about the deeds Christ had done, he sent his disciples to ask a question:
“Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”
Jesus answered them, “Go tell John what you hear and see:
The blind see, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news proclaimed to them.
Blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”

When John the Baptist asked the question, "Are you the one sent by God? Are you the Messiah? Should we wait for someone else?" Jesus did not say, "Yes, I am the Messiah. You should know that." When John baptized Jesus, the Holy Spirit came down to Jesus in the form of a dove. John the Baptist should have known about it, but when asking this question he was in prison and his conviction was a bit shaky. He had heard the news conveyed to him, and the news did not seem to match his expectations about the work of the Messiah. Then how did Jesus answer it? Jesus answered by saying, "Tell John what you see and hear. The blind see. The lame man walks." He mentions five things, including about the resurrected dead. They are miracles. Everything is the result of the power of God working in it. And after mentioning the five things, he mentioned one more thing: to the poor the good news is preached. It's interesting. The sixth point is not a miracle. The sixth is the preaching of the good news - not to everyone - but to the poor! In particular he calls the poor. Jesus always cares for the poor.

True Christians are not just people who believe in this and that. What sacrifices are needed to trust some things? There is no. I can trust this and that. You can trust whatever you want. Your beliefs may be true. There are some people who believe in things that are not true. It's better to believe the right thing. However, just believing does not require any sacrifice. It is wonderful to believe that Jesus died for us. Does it require sacrifice from you? No. But it is important to believe that Jesus died for us because it is true. The problem, just trusting and saying, "I have been saved by it," does not require any sacrifice from you.

Jesus affirms his sacrifice. He said, "You can not be my disciple if you do not carry your cross. It's not enough to believe that I died for you. It's not enough to say that I have carried the cross for you. You must take up your cross and follow me. That is, live your life by imitating my nature. I go to the cross, then you also go to the cross. Be an example of my life." Many Christians do not understand that. Until now, they still do not understand.

Do you know what the consequences? The result is that non-Christians will not listen to you. The result is that the church means nothing to the world. You know that. Please talk to your non-Christian friends, are they impressed with the church? The Church has failed to perform its duties. Here's the problem. The church has no mission in the world because non-Christians do not listen to it. You are nobody! You have no message. No messages from you they want to hear.

What did Jesus tell the disciples of John the Baptist? "What do you see? What do you hear? Tell him that! "Then what do they see and hear? The works are amazing. Who is doing the works? People who live their lives by imitating Jesus. We have not witnessed many great works because few people imitate the life of Jesus. Do not think that because you believe in this and that and then you can make a masterpiece. You can not, you know that. That power comes from the way of life in the power of the Holy Spirit that always encourages us to imitate Jesus' example, making him our example.

"All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God," says Paul in Romans 8:14. Who are the children of God? Are they who say, "I believe this and that"? Paul says, "No, but those who are led by the Spirit of God, they are the children of God." Which direction does the Spirit lead us? To Jesus, to follow in his footsteps. In Romans 8:29, Paul says, "For all those whom he chose from the beginning, they also predestined him from before to be like the image of his Son, that he, his Son, be firstborn among many brother. "What does the statement mean? It means to be an example of Jesus' life. That is the work that the Holy Spirit will make - making us similar to Jesus.

But is this message often preached today? No. What is preached is only the business of believing this and that. Such a thing does not require any sacrifice. In theology, this is what we call the term 'cheap grace' or 'easy trust'.

What is a pastor's job? First, he himself must imitate the life of Jesus. Then he should invite all his congregation to follow and make the life of Jesus a model. If you do this, the world will take care of you. The world will say, "There is something different. There is something extraordinary about these people. I do not know what it is, but I see something extraordinary similar to Jesus." So when you talk about Jesus, then they will say, "I know. I've seen it in your life." This is a very important point.

I hope you can understand the heavenly call that has been given us, that our task is to live a life that bears the glorious radiance of Christ. Next go reach people instead of waiting for them to come. We are the ones who go to them.

Is your quality of life test-resistant? If people are watching your life, will they say, "Wow! This guy is different! "Or they just say," Huh! Non-Christians are better than they are. Why did I become a Christian? "The reason why I have so long avoided becoming a Christian was that I saw Christians I knew at the time were below my standard of living that I never wanted to become a Christian. The non-Christians I knew at that time were much better than Christians.

Notice again what Jesus answers to John the Baptist. "Are you an anointed one of God? Are you from God? "Jesus' answer is," To the poor is good news. You see the work of miracles and you also see that I go preaching the good news to the poor. "That is Jesus' answer. Are you a true Christian? Can you give the same answer to Jesus' answer to the John the Baptist's question? "Yes, the power of God manifests in my life, and through myself too. It is the power of God, not mine. And you see what I do? I go to preach the good news to the poor with the grace of God. "Can you say it? That is the sign of true Christians. That is the work that fulfills our mission. Our mission is to bring the good news to the poor. And all miracles simply affirm the preaching. Separately, the miracles have no meaning whatsoever. All that is to confirm that the power of God works in the preaching of the gospel. If you preach the gospel, there will be great things. I know this from my own experience. Can you convey such things based on your experience?

The sign of a Christian is always giving.

The characteristic of God perfectly reflected by Jesus is the nature of the giving God. This is because in essence God is love. Love is inseparable from giving. When you are in difficulties, where are you going to ask for help? You will go to the person who loves you Why do you go to that person? Because you know that he loves you, whether that person is your mother or father, or whoever he is, he will give you what you need.

Jesus said in John 8:12, "I am the light of the world." In Matthew 5:14 he says, "You too are the light of the world." Do you notice what the light does? The light moves out. He gives himself at all times . Here Jesus chooses a picture of something that always gives away. If the light stops giving, then there is no more light. Light is something that emanates, which moves out from its source. This means that Jesus, as the Light of the world will always give: give himself, or light. And it also means that when we become his disciples, then we will become like him, just as he is like our Father in heaven.We will be the light that emanates from within us. Does the Church now function as We see that the Church is not functioning as a light. What is the reason? Because the Church has become an organization that at all times takes it away, not the Church that at all times gives.
The church should be a congregation that collectively shines as the light of the world. But to be able to shine, you must be able to give, and be willing to always give, so the notion of a true Christian is the one who always gives.

Thus, the sign of a true disciple is giving. If you want to know how the Church can function as the light of the world, it is by giving. That is why the early Church shone as the light of the world in the midst of darkness. Wherever they went they give, either to the poor or to those who need help, or to give consolation. They always give, and they shine as light in the Roman empire. I tell you something: if you are a true Christian, then you must always have something for given. If you are not a Christian, then you have nothing to give. Jesus said in John 7:38-39 that whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture says: From within his heart will flow the streams living water. I often tell Christians that if you are a true Christian, then you must have something to give. Life streams will flow through you. But if you do not give anything, it is more likely that you are a black hole that always sucks rather than a star always gives a ray.

Are you unable to encourage others? Can not you even have a smile to give to others? Can not you give encouragement or a smile to others if you do not have money to give? There's always something to be given if You do not have to wait until you have a spring to give. You can even start with a cup of cool water. The problem here is the problem of the attitude of the heart. The person who is willing to give you a cup of water will soon find out that God will give him a bucket of water to share. And if you share a bucket of water from God, you will find that God will give you a pool full of water to share. And if you give that one then you will find that He will give you the fountain for then you will know what it means to be a living water stream. It is wonderful for you to go to the college, the office or to the hospital where you work, wherever it is, and start giving there, giving the light, the warmth, the sweetness, and the fragrance of Christ. Are you not got something to give? What kind of Christians are you? I beg you to remember the biblical teaching that the sign of a true Christian is to give, not to always receive.

Jesus' teachings are very much at odds with the world's way of thinking, do not you? In Luke 12:15, Jesus states this: "Be on guard and beware of all avarice, for though a man abundant his wealth, his life is not dependent on his wealth." Jesus is saying, "Beware of all forms of greed; because a person's life does not depend on his wealth. "What is the meaning of this word 'greed' or 'greed'? This word in the original language means wanting more. There is a desire to get even more. And Jesus said to us, "Beware of the desire to always get more things."

But it has become our natural character to want to get more. We see there are others who have something, and we immediately want to have it too. You see that the person next to you has a good watch, with buttons all around, so full of buttons that it looks like a hedgehorn spine, and when you press one of the buttons, for example, there will be a light on. It's all the things that captivate you, then immediately you say, "I want to have a watch like that." Jesus said, "Beware of the desire to get more." You see others carrying a good camera, stuff the little one, then you say, "Wow! Very good! I want to have it too." Thus, we always want to get more things. Jesus said, "Watch out for this kind of desire." When you see someone boarding a car equipped with sophisticated equipment, you say, "Very good!" Soon your heart wants it. Your eyes start to make you drift, eyelids, carnal desires. The natural human nature is always to have. The natural human nature is like a black hole, sucking and absorbing everything into itself.

How many young men see a beautiful girl who goes by and can say, "Ah beautiful, but nothing to do with me"? They will tend to say, "Ah! If only the girl could be my girlfriend, or maybe even my wife. "We all want to have nice things, fun. When we see a beautiful girl passing by, we can not say, "Blessed be You Lord, You have created something very beautiful! I'm glad to see it, "then we do not want that girl. Can you say, "Lord, may he serve You, may He shine for You"? Greed is a very human thing. We want to have everything ourselves.

Human nature naturally always wants to have more. And Jesus says in Luke 12:15, this life does not depend on the wealth you have. This is contrary to the way the human mind because the whole view of human life is based on the understanding that life depends on how big the wealth you have. Therefore, then you have to work hard so you can have fun things. You can enjoy the color TV, not just a small, but a large, 26 inch. You can have a car that well, maybe even two. In these days, I see there are some homes that have three garages. Two cars alone are not enough, you must have three cars. Then you move from home with one garage to a house that has two, then three garages . And finally, when you have all that, you then have a foundation for the helicopter. Next, you then have a house by the beach or lake, and you have a cruise ship. Who says life does not depend on the wealth we have? And once you have a TV, you want to have two so you can enjoy two events simultaneously, so you do not miss the show. have you so you can show off. You have only one TV? Look at me. I have two! You have a Toyota car? Look at me, I drive a Mercedes! This is our way of thinking.

We find that Jesus' teaching is completely incompatible with the human view: if you give more then you can not buy a Mercedes. You will be driven from the big house to the small house, from the small house to the smaller house again. world view of life.

You must be changed to think: "It is happier to give than to receive."

Thinking like Jesus' way of thinking that, "It is more blessed to give than to receive," it is only possible if you are changed, if your way of thinking has been renewed. The Christian life goes in the opposite direction, when it is related to the way of life of the world. striking is that a true disciple yearns for one thing: in the end, he does not just lose everything, but he also gives his life for God. He continues to give, until his last breath, he continues to give.

As I have said, there are some wonderful disciples in the center of the Church. There are people I know who have given up inheritance, and everything, step by step until they have nothing but life I remembered someone I knew at YWAM, and he had a very big inheritance, but he left his legacy, he left his well-paying job, he ignored his diploma and went evangelizing. God used it extraordinarily.

These people leave everything when others just miss the money. Others are longing for a title, a good income job, but these guys just leave their titles and good jobs. No wonder they're great people in the eyes of the world. People look at them and say, "Wow! This is amazing!" Light emanates from such people and everyone notices them. They are the stars for Jesus, the diamond in the crown that shines the light of God. We thank God for such people. If it were not for these people, the Church would only be a shame all the time!

While I was still living in Batam City, I once knew Christians who were turning away from careers, from their jobs, to going preaching the gospel. They are people who learn to become true disciples. They learn what it means to give and give. The world can not understand people like them, but the world is watching them, and the testimony of these people struck with tremendous power. Such people are the backbones of the Church because they learn about giving and always giving, that the character of a true disciple is to give. And in giving that they become like Christ.

Life depends on how much we give, not what we get.

God helps us not to become black holes but to be a shining star in the middle of this generation, and that we may have Christ's mind within us. In Jesus' life, he does not ask, "What can I get?" But he came to give and to give everything. That is why he became the light of the world. And Jesus wants us to do the same, that we become the light of the world. God helps us to change completely in our way of thinking, that life depends on how much we can give. Thus, we will become the light of this world.

Are You Poor?

Matthew 5:3 
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to them.

Are we poor or rich? It is a great tragedy for the poor, but thinks they are rich. This is often the case among Christians, especially in the present generation.

Many Christians are poor but think they are rich. But because they think they are rich, they have lost the blessing of God. Because you not only have to be poor, but you should also know that you are poor. This is very important. Otherwise you think you are rich and you do not rank yourself among the poor. Revelation 3:17 speaks of the church at Laodicea. Revelation 3:17: "Because thou sayest: I am rich and I have enriched myself (that is what we want to happen to ourselves) and I lack nothing, and because thou knowest not that thou art wretched, and poor, poor , blind and naked."
'Do not know' means they think they are rich and lack nothing; but they do not know their misfortune and poverty.

There is nothing worse than being poor and not knowing that you are poor, like being sick and not knowing that you are sick. The Pharisees at John. 9: 40-41, "Does that mean we are also blind? We are not blind. "Jesus said to them," Because you say you are not blind while in fact you are blind, then keep your sins. "Be blind and not knowing that you are blind; being poor and not knowing that you are poor, this is a self-deception. It is very sad.

Some people think they are healthy while they are sick. Maybe they feel healthy, but right now, inside some people, there may already be deadly cancer seeds, but they feel healthy.

So, do you know whether you are poor or not? You may feel that you are not poor, and because you do not feel yourself poor, then you feel that Jesus' words are not related to you. "Blessed are the poor" and you say, "I'm not poor." So you can just turn away. Who needs to hear that? Who needs to hear the Sermon on the Mount? This is a message for the poor. Given that you're rich, or you feel you're good enough, you do not need it.

Poor, but No Any Disadvantages.

With God as my witness, I want to say that I am nothing short of anything. God bears witness that for many years preaching the gospel, I am not saving a penny. Not a cent! I do not keep a penny from my preaching earnings. God is my witness to that. I have no surplus. I do not have anything I've saved or reserved for the coming year. I never collect wealth from my ministry. But I do not say this so you feel sorry for me. But I would say that although I have preached the Gospel for many years and have spoken in various churches, yet I have not saved a cent from my earnings through the gospel. "Do not gather the treasures of the earth." I did not become rich because I preached the gospel.

I say this because it is important for a preacher to not only speak but through his life he bears witness to what he preaches. I am not preaching just using my brain, and based on theology lessons. If I can not make this life happen, then I do not want to preach about it. Jesus said, "Do not collect for you ...". I say again, with God as my witness, that I am not collecting anything.

We are called to be poor before God. Poverty does not mean you have no food, poverty means only that you have no surplus, or you do not collect or keep a surplus.In the Sermon on the Mount, we are called to believe in God to meet our needs we.

For years I have practiced it, without salary and source of income. When I was a YWAM student, I just looked at God; there is nothing I can hope for except God. And He never disappoints me. "Blessed are the poor because they are the kingdom of heaven."

I am familiar with poverty. For three years in the city of Batam, I know what it means to feel hungry in the stomach. But God never disappoints me. He said, Seek first His Kingdom then it will be added to you too. I promise that if you follow me unconditionally - you seek my kingdom first - then I guarantee that you will not lack anything. I have never lacked anything. God is so good. Although I do not store anything that can be used when necessary, I do not lack anything.

So there is a close relationship between material poverty and spiritual poverty. This point needs to be taken careful. In relation to the rich young man, Jesus does not allow him to be a disciple unless he goes and sells everything. But today the church softens the message; however, most churches are upper middle class. We soften the message. "Oh, it is okay. Do not think about it." Right, do not think about it, but the result is, you are not poor, and therefore you are not poor in spirit either. If so, is the kingdom of heaven yours?

How to become Poor in the sight of God?

The only way that man can become poor in spirit is through repentance and a new creation. The psalmist has described it perfectly in Ps. 51. Salvation has been clearly taught in the Old Testament. If you ask how you can be poor in God's sight, you must start with Ps. 51:1 : "Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; Abolish my transgressions according to Your great mercy! Wash me completely from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin."

That is repentance. You become poor in spirit and acknowledge your poverty before God if you admit that you are a sinner, and you say, "Have mercy on me, O God. according to Your great grace, wipe away my sin." That is repentance. Repentance is well known in the Old Testament and is not a new discovery in the New Testament. The pious people of the Old Testament are also saved with glory. They can teach us a lot about safety.

The next part is to be a new man. "Make my heart clean, O God, and renew my inner spirit with a firm spirit!" [Ps. 51:12] A new creation! Yes, the psalmist has understood it perfectly. You need to repent; and you need to let God make you a new man. I repeat once more: the pious people of the Old Testament, have been saved with glory. They know what it means to be poor in spirit. That is why when you are made new, you become a new human being. So it's not what you believe, not what you do; but who you are by the power of God that makes you a new man. We can not possibly inherit the kingdom of God except by becoming a new man.

This is what is meant by John. 3: 5, the famous verse: "If a man is not born of water and the Spirit, he can not enter into the kingdom of God." This is the same doctrine is only said in different words so we understand what faith means. Faith means 'believe'. Trust in such a way that God can recreate you, that you may be born again of water and the Spirit. It is not your faith that saves you; God who saved you by making you poor before Him. There is nothing magical about faith. God is the Doer of miracles, who created a new man.

In John 3, 'inheriting the kingdom' means to inherit eternal life. "They are the kingdom of heaven", that is, God will give them a kingdom; God will give them eternal life. You do not have that eternal life without receiving the king sent by God. The kingdom is meaningless without a king. When you receive the kingdom, you will not receive a package called 'KINGDOM'. You receive kings and make Christ, Lord of your life. The eternal life is to have the life of the resurrected Christ. Outside of Christ, you will not get it. The only way to gain eternal life is to make Jesus your Master and Lord. He is the king in your life. Eternal life is a consequence of Jesus' sovereignty as king in your life.

The rich do not like to have Jesus as king. Because Jesus might say to you, as he said to a rich young man: "Sell all yours." "Ah, I do not want to hear this! I do not want to hear! I love what the pastor said, 'Just believe in Jesus, and you will have eternal life. There are no conditions. 'However,' Sell all yours'? No, no, no. It only applies to the rich young man. That does not apply to me. One law for a rich young man and another for me. Hallelujah! Hallelujah! How good God is. "Do not cheat yourself. The same principle that applies to the rich young man also applies to all of us. Rich young people do not belong to certain special categories. Do you think that he loves money more than you and me? Let us not cheat ourselves! Absolutely not. There is only one law for everyone. There are no two laws for different people: one law for the rich young man and one law for me. Not so.

It is the poor who accept Jesus as king. By accepting Jesus as king, you have received the kingdom of God. Because Jesus is the Way that leads us to God. The Kingdom means the power and government of the King. By accepting Jesus, you too have received life because God through Jesus has given you that life. "His power shall not fail" (Isaiah 9:6] He brings eternal life into your soul through His Messiah.

Ponder this question again: Are you poor? Are you poor in spirit? Did you know you are poor? Are you open and ready to accept this truth? Do you have faith to believe in God to meet your spiritual and material needs? Do you have faith to believe in God as your advocate when you are persecuted? Do you have faith to believe that God will always help you? Do you accept Jesus who has been sent by God as king?