Whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him” (Colossians 3:17). This is an immensely concise divine precept that applies to every word and action of a Christian. It is a succinct, yet comprehensive rule for a victorious Christian life. In any circumstance of life, it will serve as a golden rule for a God-honouring life. All of life’s scope is addressed with the words “whatever you do” and “in word or deed”.
Though the principle specifically mentions every word and deed, it also concerns our thought and motive. It presents to us the purest motive for every word and action – “do all in the name of the Lord Jesus”. If this motive would govern every speech and action, our life will be holy and acceptable to God. Only when we do all things in our Lord Jesus Christ’s name can we dispel selfishness and ungodliness from our conversations and activities.
The “name of the Lord Jesus” provides us with the blessed assurance that all matters of our relationship with God (i.e. worship and prayer) and all matters of our daily activities, are acceptable and pleasing to God. Living our lives in Christ’s name will grant us the confidence that the Lord is pleased with us, and that our ways will redound to His glory.
Let us also take note that “the name of the Lord Jesus” concerns His authority, His character, His truth, His will, His purposes, His pleasure and His glory. So living in accord with His name means to live in harmony with His revealed will, in subjection to His authority, and in dependence on His power. In other words, we are most concerned about His repute and glory. We will thus do nothing apart from His approval and blessing.
Let us also take note that “the name of the Lord Jesus” concerns His authority, His character, His truth, His will, His purposes, His pleasure and His glory. So living in accord with His name means to live in harmony with His revealed will, in subjection to His authority, and in dependence on His power. In other words, we are most concerned about His repute and glory. We will thus do nothing apart from His approval and blessing.
All praise and thanks be to God for this camp. Like a few other youth participants had shared in this camp, I also noted myself having grown lukewarm in my faith, and thus have been most refreshed by sitting at Christ’s feet and continuously feeding on God’s Word during the 4 days.
During the icebreakers, in the midst of my excessive excitement, I banged hard against my brother’s elbow and for the following 2 days, my nose was very painful. This minor hit was a striking reminder to conduct myself in a self-controlled and gentle manner, especially during the games.
I’m particularly grateful to be exhorted to seek constant spiritual growth; yes, it will assure myself of my salvation, but more importantly and wondrously, it will glorify my Heavenly Father
Through the second theme message, God has taught me that there are many areas of my spiritual life which I need to seriously take heed of; I must beware of relying on my personal strength to overcome tripping obstacles and reach greater heights. Praise the Lord for His exceedingly, amazingly and bountifully plentiful ocean of grace, from which He provides for my growth. I pray that I will launch out into the deep and be “lost” in the depths of His infinite grace.
All glory to God.
In Christ,
Dorcas Koshy
As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby” (1 Peter 2:2).
Through the message ‘Need for Spiritual Growth’, I learnt that if one is truly saved, spiritual growth must be present. I have not been walking close with the Lord and spiritual growth has been absent from my life. By God’s grace, through this youth camp, He has allowed me to see my depraved state. I felt so “tormented” at my malnourished spiritual state; yet thank God that through the very same grace, He reached out to me and I repented in my heart.
During the second message, Pastor asked us for words to describe God’s grace. “Marvellous”, “amazing” and “incredible” came up. But the one word that rang out to me was “undeserving”! Jeremiah 17:9 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” Despite how wretched I was, God never forsook me and always called me back to Him. As fallen creatures, we really do not deserve His grace, mercy and love. And yet He continues to care for us and to teach us as we walk with Him.
I’ve also learnt that I should put aside all childish things and be spiritually mature, not to be like the seeds that fell by the wayside, on the stony ground or the thorny ground but rather, to be like the seeds sown on fertile land. As I continue to walk close with Him, I hope that I would keep growing like a blooming lotus flower, for His glory.
Love in Christ,
Abigail Tan
Praise God for a really blessed GYF camp. Thank God for all those who had laboured to make this camp a fruitful time of studying God’s Word concerning spiritual growth and hindrances.
I have learnt a lot of lessons, which helped to clear the uncertainties that I have regarding my spiritual walk with God. The verse that pricked me most, is 1 John 2:13 – ‘I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.’ I discovered I was still a “little child”, because I haven’t overcome the wicked one yet. This struck me because I thought that being in a Christian family, I knew a lot about the Bible.
Last year, I had some heart-searching struggles which unfortunately drew me away from God and good Christian fellowship. I thank God for the close fellowship all of us had during the camp, in games, singing of hymns, meals, etc. Oh, how wrong I was in thinking that if I avoided fellowship, then no one would know about my struggles and I could still continue projecting a good testimony. In fact, fellowship is the best medicine against spiritual dejection as we gather with true Christians and feast on God’s Word together!
Through this camp, the Lord slowly drew me back to Him and I pray that 2015 will be a year where I lean upon Him, no matter what happens along the way. I pray that I will be like a lotus, blooming brightly for Christ after pushing up through the dark waters. ‘But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen’ (2 Peter 3:18).
All glory be to our gracious Father in Heaven!
Duaine Kabingue