410. To Be Transformed by the Word - Pastor Chai
I’ve heard many members sharing they were blessed by Pastor Chai’s message during the revival. I would like to share one of his blog posts that will finalize the blessing :)
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The reason why some people, despite having lived a long church life, do not experience a change in their lives is often because they fail to receive grace from the sermon. The reason they don’t receive grace is that they approach the sermon passively. They make no effort themselves and instead expect the preacher to move and transform them. Though it’s not entirely impossible for such a person to experience grace through the powerful working of the Holy Spirit, it is rare. To receive grace from the sermon every Sunday, one must actively engage with it.
To actively engage, one should approach the sermon expecting that God will speak to them through the preacher that day. No matter how flawed the preacher’s character may be, when he stands at the pulpit delivering the sermon, he is God’s spokesperson. Just as in the Old Testament era, when God had something to say to the people of Israel, He spoke through prophets, in the New Testament era, when God has something to say to His saints, He speaks through preachers. The preacher is God’s speaker. Depending on the quality of the speaker, the sound may come out clear or distorted, but the One who gives the message is God. One must approach the sermon with this belief. If you confuse the preacher’s character with his message, you will not receive grace from the sermon.
If you desire to hear the voice that the Lord is giving you through the preacher, you must repeatedly ask yourself these questions every time the sermon’s points shift: “Is this the word God is giving me today?” “Is this a message meant for me?” You should listen to the sermon while continually asking these questions until you hear His voice.
If, by the end of the sermon, you feel you haven’t discovered the voice God has given you, don’t just sit idly with your eyes closed during the quiet prayer time that follows. Instead, mentally review the sermon’s outline and ask God, “Lord, if You were to pick one message that would help me, what would it be?” If, despite this prayer, you still don’t receive a specific word, choose one thing from the message yourself that you can apply to your life. Then, try applying it to your life at least once during the week.
If you consistently draw out one word meant for you from the sermon each Sunday in this way, your life cannot help but change.
