創 12:1 耶和華對亞伯蘭說：“你要離開本地、本族、父家，往我所要指示你的地去。

當上帝告訴亞伯拉罕去他要指示他的地方時，上帝沒有告訴他任何關於地址或方向或國家名稱或土地名稱的信息。 然而，亞伯拉罕應該服從。 因為神應許他要使他成為大名，大國，並蒙福，成為地上萬族的福。

然而，我想提出創世記第 12 章第 1 節中“去往我要指示你的地”這一方面。 你知道上帝要我們去的地方是我們的應許之地。 當上帝對亞伯拉罕說要去那地時，他會告訴他，上帝的意思是那是亞伯拉罕和他後代的應許之地。

本質上，上帝在呼召我們去我們的應許之地。 現在這比我們所看到和聽到的任何事情都要大得多。

現在應許之地是什麼？ 應許之地是上帝要我們興旺發達、養家糊口、享受上帝平安的土地。 現在，Shalom 不僅體現在物質、物理術語上，而且真正首先體現在精神上的繁榮生活中。 因為我們在這個世界上，但不屬於這個世界，所以我們進入的土地必須是我們可以進入安息的土地。 就像在希伯來書中一樣。 我們進入我們的安息日。

現在，當我們說應許之地是我們在這個世界上的時候，這意味著我們正在進入塵世之城和上帝之城之間的緊張之地。 這就是為什麼我們在世界上，這是世界之城。 然而，我們在世界上，但不屬於世界，如果我們不屬於世界，那麼我們屬於誰，或者我們屬於哪裡？ 答案是我們屬於上帝之城。 正如奧古斯丁有力地寫到這一點。 上帝之城，我們可以看到。

奧古斯丁在上帝之城和懺悔錄中帶出的最大的東西就是“愛”這個詞。 當上帝說“我會告訴你。，去我會告訴你的土地”。 他裝備我們、改變我們、塑造我們，使我們愛他和他的國度，真正擁有應許之地。 上帝要我們進入的土地。這是一塊充滿對上帝充滿愛的人的土地。 就像亞伯拉罕一樣。 在這個世界上，當他還活著的時候，他從未見過樂土。 他們只是憑信心從遠處看見。 他們從未放棄。 他們在信仰中堅守上帝的應許。 這就是上帝對我們的呼召，即使我們可能看不到今生應許的實現。 我們將在來世看到上帝呼召我們的應許之地。 真的是一種心境，一種精神狀態。

因為上帝希望我們在這個世界上真正追求上帝之城。 神的城充滿了神的榮耀、公義和愛。 以及神和他子民之間的愛的關係。 我永遠不會說上帝之城是一座充滿法律和秩序、懲罰和正義等等的城市，這可能是真的。 然而，最重要的畫面是與我們在基督耶穌裡的創造者上帝的關係和親密關係。 這就是上帝呼召我們展示的東西。 在我們的行走、與上帝、我們彼此的關係、我們的談話、我們的著作、我們的閱讀、我們的工作和我們的事業以及這個詞的每一個意義上的一切中，展示與上帝的親密關係。 神之國。

神要給我們看見的地，就是神所應許的地。 這是上帝之城。 我們是寄居者，外星人。 我們在這個世界上是陌生人。 應許之地是新天新地，現在我們正在朝著那個目標前進。 我們將在這個新天堂和新地球上。 現在我們必須建造那片土地。 這片土地顯示了上帝的榮耀和上帝的愛。 神在我們生命中的大能。 上帝正在呼召我們到這片土地，那片土地將展示上帝之城，在那裡每個人都願意進入上帝之城。 否則他們會因為基督而憎恨上帝之城。 中間不會有。 這個世界上不會有城市。 影響。 這是一個艱難的決定。 這就是為什麼我們需要上帝的聲音呼喚我們。 上帝在呼喚。 你準備好了嗎？ 你願意嗎？

事實上，這個問題更像是：“跳進去。 當你準備好時，它會變得如此非凡”。 我們每個人都需要有一個夢想。 要有遠見。 要有希望。 進入應許之地的希望讓我們每天都在努力前進。 阿門。

My wife and I attained a Sunday preaching service in a local church in New York today, it was one with a lot of verses. Generally it’s exhortation from the Bible however there was the repetitive nature of some of the obvious points. The high amount of Bible references scripture brought into the sermon makes it impossible to expound them sufficiently and neither do people have the energy to keep tag of them. It therefore can get a feel of “touch and go” kind of a sermon without the deep exposition people are looking for. This is problematic because it’s sort of giving you a mixture of all kinds of spiritual feeding without a direction of in-depth exposition from the text passage.

 

I think preaching requires substantial time of meditation and reflection on the scripture to bring out the depth of the word of God as per the revelation of the Holy Spirit. And that revelation and the reflection you got will have to sync with the needs and the fallen conditions of the modern contemporary society that we live in. Without all these things we will be finding ourselves doing a technical theological discourse without feeling and connection to the modern time.

 

Also exposition will require us to exegete the text from which we preach based on the context and the culture and the historical background of the passage when it was written. Without knowing the background of such it will be not accurate exegesis. Once we execute the context the real meaning of the passage at that point of time, we are able to move forward to project that to the modern community today and saying what it means. That kind of exegesis will really require a good commentary to help you to bring out the original meaning original historical context.

 

I don’t think you will need highly technical commentary to achieve that purpose. Or else you’ll find yourselves being too  immersed into the technical highly  theological thinking which is not suitable for the congregation.

 

In conclusion after learning from preaching lab one in my MDiv hybrid class preaching lab 1 in RTS Orlando, I discovered that I myself have a tendency in bringing a lot of verses to expound on the message but insufficiently in depth. Although mine is deeper exposition with the side verses. Actually my problem is expounding the sidekick versus too deep that overwhelms the main passage. This is this is actually the exact words or almost exact words of my professor.

Case in point I was preaching from the text of genesis 12 about Abraham’s obedience at one point, and I quoted Hebrews on Jesus struggling and with loud cries of tears in prayers to God the Father to save him, and Jesus learned obedience through suffering. That exposition impacted my professor more than the actual passage of Genesis 12. I learned a big lesson. I think I need to go back to Martin Lloyd Jones book preaching and preachers. Lloyd Jones is such an expert in exposition message preaching. Thank God for his servant like Martin Lloyd Jones and others like Tim Keller etc.

Al Ngu, Orlando, January 11, 2023

When Abraham was called by God to go to a new land he would show him, God promised he will bless him make his name great, make him to a great nation and all the families of the earth shall be blessed through him. The tricky part of it is that when God called Abraham God didn’t tell him where he was going, he just told him go and I will show you. Is a bit like us today a lot of times God doesn’t give us a details by God.

He stirs in our hearts to go somewhere and/or to do something for the Lord based on his calling but you don’t have the exact idea itself what to do or where to go. Very much like Abraham. Though there is a huge difference though because God appeared personally to Abraham and God spoke audibly to Abraham to call him and give him instructions and give him all the promises for him and make him so sure that it is God. In a sense this call is so emphatically important and significant because this will impact the entire humanity because Abraham’s call is to be a blessing to all the families of the earth. The blessings does not just rest on Abraham but on the entire humanity in the entire whole world, and it’s not just through Abraham but also through the offspring of Abraham.

That offspring is a is a singular noun not offsprings. It only one person that is included in that and that is that is Jesus Christ the son of David the son of Abraham God who will bless the entire world. And that blessings come through the promise of God to Abraham and all the way down to all believers. It was fulfilled 2000 years ago in the son of God who became a human himself. And through him and through his death and resurrection as a redemption substitute for our condemnation and our sins when he conquered death. He defeated the devil and death.

God has called all of us because we are children and offspring of Abraham by faith in Christ also similarly to be a blessing to the entire generation entire world. We are all called, we are all In it. The call is clear we have no doubt, however some of us may be called specifically to be pastors or engineers doctors or deacons elders or musicians or worship leaders or Sunday school teachers or whatever vocation.

It doesn’t have to be some vocations in the House of God but they can be in the community we live in. But the overall goal remains the same – to be a blessing to all the families of the earth period now between the call and the fulfillment.

How does God empower us God’s sake to Abraham leave your country leave your homeland leave your tribe and families and go to the land I will show you. The four words “I will show you” is the empowerment of God. Similarly God promised us he will show us. He’s not gonna leave us groping in the dark fumbling on the way. But at the time of calling he’s not telling us. And you know why? Because that’s the way to build faith in us; that’s a way for us to completely thrust ourselves to trust him and put our faith in him to make a better you in this conversation in this story. So God will show us:  I myself personally am transitioning my ministry from pastoral to nothing, I’m awaiting for God to show me. And based on that I know in my spirit God will show me. You know why because this is important to him because the calling is to fulfill the Great Commission to make disciples of all nations and teach them to obey everything I’ve taught you. And because it is so important so significant he would definitely tell you tell me tell us. So that is so important period : the guidance of the Lord, the leadership of the Lord, the direction of the Lord and they are all in the book of psalms, “ lead me or Lord, direct my path of God, command me the way I should go I should walk.” I rejoice in the fact that we have a God who promised to show me the way.

I hope you’re going to continue to put your trust and your faith in him as he leads you into the next chapter of your life Your ministry.

Or you may be seeking for a soul mate marriage partner in your life and you know that God has called you to live a life that is pleasing to him, glorifying his name in other words to be equally yoked with a spouse they’ll raise a godly family pleasing to him glorifying to his name. But as you looked around your environment you may find that there’s a lot of eligible women in the House of God but very few eligible young eligible men as is the case usually as there are more brothers than sisters in the house. There are more sisters than brothers in the House of God. Then as a woman who loves the Lord seeking a soul mate life partner what do you do? All I can say as God has called you, he will show you. And he must keep his words and he will as he’s a God of integrity ,of immutability, of the God of covenant with us. Nothing will change his mind and he will never break his word.

Or you were in the middle of difficult decisions as going through business or going through marriage or going through children’s lives struggles etc, you cry to the Lord and you asked Lord “show me your way”. I will not say the words he’s duty bound to show you the way but I will say his love is bound to show you the way.

However sometimes it may seem that we are not getting much direction, and it seems to be so quiet. Never doubt because he’s in the process of making things happen preparing you for greater things, shaping and molding you. Just like the way he matured Joseph who was thrown into the pit with 1001 questions with anger boiling on his mind and his anxiety and fear in his spirit. He was sold to the Egyptian army captain. And incredibly God was with him even in the pit and through the pit process. Its amazing how the entire journey through the pit, through the slavery, through the slavery as Egypt’s captain’s house, he eventually rose to become the Prime Minister of Egypt miraculously with God’s providence clearly. This all happened in the midst of apparent failure of his life and the silence of God. That is so powerful.

That is indeed as God says “I will show you.”

Al Ngu.      January 8, 2023.      New York

Acts 8 describes a phenomenally interesting and strange event that took place in Samaria after Philip had gone there to preach the gospel. Philip did great signs and wonders the many were amazed and believed in Christ and they were baptized in the water by Philip. And the news got to Jerusalem headquarter the eldership the apostles ship the supreme council, they heard that people and Samara had received the word and being baptized in water.

Acts 8: ¹⁴ Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent to them Peter and John, ¹⁵ who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit, ¹⁶ for he had not yet fallen on any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ¹⁷ Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. ¹⁸ Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money,

They said something very intriguing and very revealing. The Apostles said the believers in Samaria had received the word of God, they have not received the Holy Spirit for the Holy Spirit had not fallen on them but they had only been baptized in the name of Jesus. So they decided to send Peter and John to Samaria to lay hands on them so that they may receive the Holy Spirit. Now this is becoming even more intriguing now: this is precisely what the charismatics and Pentecostals are doing, laying on hands on the folks for them to receive the Holy Spirit. Note the words “to receive the Holy Spirit” is highly confusing because theologically and in all other instances in the Bible a believer received the Holy Spirit the moment he believes in Christ Jesus. And this is also recorded for a number of cases in the Bible too.

Now what is the difference is the fact that it is clear on the two baptisms, the baptism in the water and the baptism of the Spirit. The fact that the apostles said, “ the Holy Spirit had not fallen upon them but they just received the baptism in water so let’s send John and Peter down there to lay hands on them so that they may receive the Holy Spirit.” What is that telling you? That is saying baptism in water does not make you receive the Holy Spirit in itself.

Well you have to believe in Christ Jesus first so you can be baptized in water, and yet not received the Holy Spirit, that is so contradictory in theology of the gospel. Now the only way I can interpret that is they have received the Holy Spirit however they have not received the Holy Spirit in terms of baptism of the Spirit. Almost in all cases, baptism of the Spirit is manifested as speaking in tongues as recorded numerous times in the book of Acts. The book of Acts gives us a blueprint on a lot of things for the church life for the doctrines of the church and of God, and the receiving the Holy Spirit and the baptism of the Spirit, the filling in of the Holy Spirit is clearly demonstrated in this book. So I interpret that when the apostle’s council in Jerusalem decided to send top apostles Peter and John to Samaria to help Philip to to get them being filled with the Holy Spirit in order to receive the Holy Spirit in terms of baptism or Spirit, I wish there were instances after that they all started speaking in tongues but it was silent. But this is sufficiently clear to me that receiving of the Holy Spirit refers to this second experience that baptism of the Spirit. To say this is a not not the normative pattern in the book of Acts because it is a book that records the formation of the church and advancement of the church as I read from Carson and ESV commentary is hard to substantiate. Carson writes, “The period of Acts is a time of transition, and the book’s purpose is to show the gospel’s relentless advance, not to establish normative patterns for church life and polity.”^[1]

There is also the argument saying that because Samaria is hostile to Jerusalem and now some folks in Samaria believed in Christ so they sent apostles from Jerusalem to them so that they receive the Holy Spirit so that they feel that it is really one church not two churches that united in  Christ.[2] But what they said in the apostlilic council does not reflect that. The apostle’s council is as clear as it is you can read into it, but what is clear is that they are concluding they’ve received Christ they have been baptized in the water they need another one for receiving the Holy Spirit . Not that they don’t have the Holy Spirit, they do. However the need for the baptism in the Spirit because Apostles were actually using the words they had only been baptized in the water, what does that tell you?

And if you synchronize & harmonize that with a number of scriptures other places there are talks about baptism of the Spirit like the Lord Jesus himself said you shall be baptized in the Holy Spirit when he was saying that the folks already been baptized in the water in his name. Bcause he has not ascended to heaven yet the Holy Spirit was not give, was not poured out yet and that’s why he said you will be baptized. Now now guess what? In the book of Acts chapter two of the day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit came down, the Spirit of God came down in tongues of fire and rested upon upon them and they were all being filled and being baptized with the Holy Spirit and they all spoke in tongues. Immediately that tongue at that time are known language of other tribes but not known to the speakers themselves which also amazed a lot of Jews that came from other countries. They were amazed to find there Jewish brothers and sisters in Jerusalem praising God in their languages which is not known by the Jewish people in nearby cities.

But proceeding from the first Corinthian 11 onwards the gift of the Spirit you can see clearly Paul said, “ I wish that you all speak in tongues even more I wish that you all prophecy.” What is he saying?  Paul has never for one second downplay tongues or prophecy as the gift of the Spirit. Paul said “earnestly desire the spiritual gift”.  Earnestly means don’t be a lame duck arguing the mind theologically and given up the the spiritual gift simply because doctrinally a lot of denominations have written off tongues and baptism in the Spirit etc. And that’s so sad that is actually going against what Paul says earnestly desire the spiritual gift. And then he said when you speak in tongues in church you should have an interpreter. And if you prophecy in church take turn. The gift of the prophecy reveals the secrets of the hearts of the man and woman who come to church and they will be convicted by the Holy Spirit as they hear the Lord speaking. That is prophecy. I know this is a hard spiritual gift to really operate well but the bigger question is and the bigger problem is most churches have given up on that or dropped that because of the constant battling about the theology of baptism of the spirit and the gift of tongues and the gift of prophecy and the gift of healing by the doctrine of cessation of gift. It’s a matter of interest, doctor Martin Lloyd Jones, a renowned reformed Baptist preacher in London who held such great pulpit and influenced millions and millions of Christians and thousands and thousands of pastors in the reformed world in particular, he believed in the distinct second experience of baptism. He believed in baptism the water and baptism of the spirit. John piper believes in speaking tongues and is asked the Lord for it I recall listening to one of his videos. All right bottom line the apostles the the council say so about the baptism of the spirit receiving the Holy Spirit, churches today should not drag their feet. We must move on to earnestly desire the spiritual gift and lay hands on the people to receive the Baptist and the Holy Spirit Amen.

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^[1] Carson, D. A. (2018). The Gospels and Acts. In D. A. Carson (Ed.), NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible (p. 1968). Zondervan.

[2] Ibid