Sunday, 8th February 2015
Brother Joshua Poon
As Christians, we all know that reading the Bible is important. But moreover, it’s more important to build a personal relationship with God, because this is what being a Christian is about, and it is what makes us different from our religions. Many people find fulfillment in earthly things, but these things will eventually go away, only God Himself can fulfill the emptiness inside us. In Isaiah 6:1-9, we read about how Isaiah had a special experience as he encountered with God. But what does it mean by “encountering with God”?
There are many ways people encountered with God: through reading the Bible, through prayer, through Holy Spirit’s occasional ‘nudge’, etc. In Isaiah’s case, we noticed that encountering God is (1) Unexpected, (2) Initiated, and (3) Still Happening. On the other hand, we will never know when we are going to encounter with God therefore we should always prepare for it.
Even though it’s not up to us to decide when and how we are going to encounter with God, but there are things we should avoid that hinder us from encountering with God. For example, we tend to fill our head with noises, and we block out God’s voice; or sometimes we become so busy and occupied with our lives that we hardly leave any space for God. Therefore, we need to empty the rubbish inside our head, our heart and our life, so God can come in. Brother Joshua encouraged us to have a receptive attitude, to quiet down ourselves so we can hear God.
So what can we expect when encountering with God?
1. An Overwhelming Awareness of His Presence (Is 6:1)
2. An Awareness of His Holiness (Is 6:3)
3. A Sense of Our Unworthiness (Is 6:5)
4. An Awareness of God’s Gracious Forgiveness (Is 6:6-7)
5. A Call to Action (Is 6:8)
In conclusion, God is always ready to speak in our lives, but the question is, are we ready to listen?