Can You Keep A Secret?—by Jacques Genis
July 3, 2023
Sermon summary:
Matthew 6:1-8, 16-18 Secrets to keep are our secret world of righteousness (giving, fasting, praying). Our motivation must be pure and give glory to God, not ourselves.
Ask yourself: Who will be glorified by what I'm doing?
Secrets not to keep include temptation and sin--A secret world of concealment of sin. Psalm 32: 1-5 Don't care more about your repuration than righteousness. Read Psalm 51 together with Psalm 32. Wrestle to keep your keart soft, be honest, vulnerable and radically open with your life.
God sees everything done in secret.
Watch the service in full
here (the sermon starts at 41 mins).
The Holy Spirit gives guidance and direction in our missionary work. Are we doing the work the Spirit has set aside for each one of us to do? He knows the time, place and person to reach out to. Are we listening and obeying when he nudges us? The Holy Spirit forms Christ in all of us and it's a lifetime journey. Seek to be filled. Listen to his voice. Step out boldly.
Giving is an act of trust. It is also not an obligation but an act of worship. Give from the heart, not as a duty, but as a way to express gratitude. Giving is about unity in the church, it is motivated by grace, not guilt, and a spiritual act of joyful worship. Jesus demonstrated sacrificial giving through his actions, leaving us an example to follow.
To embrace Jesus's mission, I must first clothe myself with Jesus and have his character formed in me. He must become greater, I must become less. Then I"ll be able to do as Jesus did.
God's grace is with me. We need each other. Grace is a gift.