Peter Tan-Chi - Unstoppable God, Our Greatest Hope
Praise God for His amazing faithfulness, love, and grace. God has done wonderful work in CCF church over the past 36 years. May the glory be given to God. Let us all praise Him and thank Him for all He has done. 36 years ago, we started with a small group, just 3 families to be exact. But that's when God impressed upon my heart: focus on discipleship. Don't just share the gospel, teach them how to make disciples, but first, help them become disciples of Jesus, and that was 36 years ago. They were trained. They invited their friends, and their friends were disciples. Their friends invited their friends, and the rest is history. For all that God has done, all I can say is, Glory to God!
Every time we celebrate an anniversary, I always tell our leaders to be careful. Because when you celebrate an anniversary, you have a positive side and a negative side. I mean, for example, let's start with the positive. You will think of all that God has done and all that He will continue to do, and you will give God the glory. What's the negative? We become people-centered. We begin to be proud of human achievements. So, there is always danger. But I want to remind everyone, as we celebrate our 36th anniversary, let's focus on being God-centered. This is His mission. This is His work. Let us be reminded of why God called CCF into existence.
Why is this important? Because reality, many times, we forget our mission. On anniversaries, we must always remember why we exist. My prayer is that the leadership of CCF is not just for this generation, but that future generations will never forget the reason why God called CCF to exist. What is that? Can you recite it to me? Do you remember the CCF mission statement based on Matthew 28? Let me recite it for you. "To the glory of God, who raises up committed followers of Christ, He will enable Him to raise up dedicated followers of Christ". This is based on the Great Commission. What is the Great Commission? What is so great about it, how unstoppable it is, and what is our greatest hope?
Let me explain. What is the Great Commission? Jesus came to them and said to them: All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. The Great Commission is about who Jesus is? He said, all authority. So, Jesus is telling us that He is more than just an ordinary person. It is all authority in heaven and on earth. This is something that you and I cannot fully understand. "All authority" means that there is no one higher than Jesus. He has all authority, all authority in heaven and on earth. There is no such person on earth. We have a powerful president, but he is only the president of the Philippines. You have the president of China, he is very powerful, but he only has power in China.
Here you see all the authority Jesus spoke about in heaven and on earth. The same cannot be said. Jesus demonstrated this to us while He was on Earth. Authority over disease. He gives sight to the blind. He makes the deaf hear. He made the lame man walk. Most importantly, He raised the dead. This is the authority of Jesus. The most powerful being in the entire universe. Matthew 28 reminds us, it reminds me of who Jesus is, Jesus the Lord. I have some thoughts on this scripture. What is faith in the Great Commission? When I say faith, the difference between faith and belief, is very simple: Faith is intellectual agreement, it is head knowledge. Faith is not just what your head believes, it's what you believe in your heart, and you have to embrace that. Faith is something you are willing to be passionate about.
Not only is it true in your mind, it's true in your heart as well. The first is the sovereignty of Jesus. It talks about; Jesus came and said to them: All authority has been given to me. The Lordship of Jesus. You have to realize that the Great Commission is founded on who Jesus is. This is the mission given to us. You know why? Because the truth is, sometimes the mission isn't easy. You will get discouraged. You will get tired. But Jesus said, "All authority has been given to me, and I will support you". So what is our mission? This is global. So go and make disciples of all nations. We have a global God. Our mission is global. What do we do?
Look at this verse: Make disciples of all nations. Now, in English, Matthew 28:18-20, you have a different verb description. I want to ask you a question. What are the different verbs? First, you have the English translation of the word "to go". You have "make disciples," the next one is "baptize," and the last verb is "teach". Now let me ask you. If you are a CCF member or you are our guest, what is the main verb? The main verb in Matthew 28 is "make disciples" Why is making disciples so important? Before I explain "make disciples" notice the other verbs, they are called verb participle. They support the main verb. For example: How do you make disciples? You go, and as you go, you make disciples.
How do you make disciples? You baptize them. How do you make disciples? You teach them. But the main verb is "make disciples". Let me tell you why it's important to know this. A lot of people don't understand this. They think our mission is just to spread the gospel and talk about Jesus. No, no, it's not just about talking about Jesus, it's about taking the time to help others, not only know Jesus, but become followers of Jesus. Disciple means "student, learner, follower". It's one thing to know Jesus, it's another thing to be a loyal follower. We are commanded to travel around the world and be loyal followers. This is so critical, so important. Let me tell you why. Making a disciple means that you help someone, not just to know Jesus, you help that person become a Christ-like person.
So, his character, his lifestyle will bring glory to God because he's learning to become more and more like Jesus in love, in compassion, in humility. Why? Making disciples means that you draw people to Jesus, and the result is: you start to be like Jesus, you start to share the gospel, you start to help others, and the result is spiritual multiplication. One of my big beliefs about Matthew 28 is making disciples. This is our mission statement. Let me ask you a question. Why is discipleship so important? Let me tell you why. Because this is to ensure that followers of Jesus are not deceived into thinking that Christianity is like any religion: spiritual upliftment, but no conversion of the heart. Why discipleship is so important.
Let me share with you Matthew 7:22-23 Jesus warned us, In that day many will say to me: Lord, Lord, we do not preach in your name and cast out demons in your name; Does your name work many miracles? I told them plainly, "I never knew you. Depart from me, you workers of evil"! You see, when Christianity became a religion, people were not What is the result of discipleship? Jesus said: You will know them by their fruit. Discipleship is crucial because discipleship involves the transformation of hearts through the power of the Living Savior. And discipleship will lead to a correct attitude toward the Lordship of Jesus. What do I mean, an attitude toward the sovereignty of Jesus?
What makes the Great Commission unstoppable is that we come to understand that it is given to us by our supreme leader, and we acknowledge His position. We begin to trust Him. You start following Him. Your attitude will also change. Someone shared this with us a few years ago: If missions and instructions given by earthly kings are viewed as honors, how come missions given by heavenly kings are viewed as sacrifices? You know what He's saying What? If all of us who follow Jesus realize that Jesus is the King of kings, if all of us who follow Jesus realize that Jesus is the King of kings, He gives us a mission, you won't see it Serving Him is a responsibility, and you will consider it an honor and a privilege to serve Him.
You see, your attitude will change. In the Great Commission, I pray that you will understand what discipleship means. Sovereignty, and Making Disciples Only disciples will acknowledge the Lordship of Jesus: How can we, how can you and I make disciples of others if we are not disciples ourselves? This is key to my understanding of Matthew 28. Some ideas. Jesus is Lord and He wants us to make disciples so that they will recognize His Lordship. By making disciples, the result is multiplication. What do I mean by multiplication? If I want to reach the entire Philippines, or even the entire world, for Jesus. The whole world is for Jesus. There is no choice but to make disciples.
What do I mean? If I give you a math test, say Bill Gates gives you 1 million pesos a day, he will give you 1 million pesos a day. Peso for 30 days. Or he gives you 1 peso for 30 days. What do you like? Think about it, 1 million pesos for 30 days. How much money do I have after 30 days? 30 million pesos per day, doubling for 30 days, you will choose the power of doubling, 1 million per day, for 30 days. 31 days, 31 million. One peso a day, multiplied by 31 days, and you multiply that. You have a billion, 73. Do you see the power of making disciples? Imagine, one soul, a million souls, you have every year. Bring Jesus a million souls. 30 years later, 30 million, 31 million, you disciple one soul the next year, two disciples. But notice, 30 years later, you have more disciples, rather than simple addition.
And my friend, most Christians don't understand the genius of Jesus when He tells us: Make disciples. That's what I believe in. The Great Commission comes from the King of Kings. Honor. The Great Commission is about discipleship, it's about multiplication. But more than that, the Great Commission deals with the greatest problem of humanity. People are lost apart from Jesus. What does the Great Commission mean? Realizing inwardly that the fundamental problem of humanity, that we are lost, is Jesus' point in Luke 19: The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. In Jesus' view, the reason He came to sacrifice His life for us, is because we are lost. What does it mean that we are lost? The word "lost" comes from "Apollumi" Apollumi has the idea of separation. Separation from God, alienation from God.
When you die physically, you are separated. Your soul is separated from your body. But the Bible talks about a different kind of death. Spiritual death is the separation of your soul from God forever. That's why our problem is so serious. What do I mean? The whole world is on pause because of Covid-19. Why? Because it is highly contagious. Why? Because many people died. According to statistics, we have 23 million people infected and more than 800,000 people dead. Statistically, in the Philippines, you have the same problem. More than 200,000 people were infected and 3,137 people died. That's why we take this seriously. But I can tell you, they describe Covid-19 as an invisible war. The whole world is taking it seriously.
But there is another invisible war. It's called "sin". What happened to sin? I call sin "the deadliest virus". Do you know why? Because sin is the root of all human suffering. Someone once said: "Sin keeps us from God and life. Sin is in the face of every battered woman, sin is in the cry of every neglected child, sin is in the despair of every addict, sin is in every scene The death of every victim in senseless war and killing. "The fundamental problem of human nature is sin. The Bible is clear: all have sinned. Notice this infection rate. hundred percent. What is the mortality rate? The mortality rate is 100%. The wages of sin is death. This is what people don't realize, why the Great Commission is so important.
To me, this is very important because it touches on fundamental issues of humanity. What is the fundamental problem? Sin, the consequences of sin, spiritual death. Jesus explained this earlier in Luke 16:19. Jesus spoke of the second death when He said: There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. And there was a beggar named Ra. Salus was covered in sores and was left at the rich man's door to satisfy his hunger with the scraps that fell from the rich man's table. The dogs came to lick his sores. I believe this story is more than just a fable. Why? Because you have the name of the beggar, and his name is Lazarus. Lazarus was sick. Lazarus was poor. You have a rich man, and then the Bible tells us that the beggar died.
Lazarus died first, and finally the rich man died. If the Bible stopped here, you wouldn't know the depth of our loss and problem. But Jesus makes sure you understand the seriousness of the human condition. How serious. Jesus said that life continues after you die and there are only two places after death. What are these two places? Either the presence of God or the absence of God's presence. This is what Jesus said. Luke 16:22: The rich man also died and was buried. While he was in torment in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his arms. Then he cried out, Father Abraham, have mercy on me! Send Lazarus and dip the tip of his finger in water, cool my tongue; for I am in agony in this flame.
Abraham said: Son, remember that in your lifetime you enjoyed blessings, and Lazarus also suffered; now he is comforted here, but you have suffered. Not only that, but between you and me, there is an abyss qualifier. I want you to underline the word "abyss". And between you and me, there is an abyss qualifier. Notice, one abyss, one abyss qualifier. So much so that it is impossible for people to cross from here to your side, and it is also impossible for people to cross from there to our side. What Jesus taught us is that after you die, your fate is basically determined. You can no longer move from one place to another. It's too serious. The matter was so serious that the rich man made the following request: My father, since this is the case, please send Lazarus to my father's house, for I have five other brothers who can bear witness to them, lest they also Come to this painful place.
Abraham said: They had the words of Moses and the prophets to obey. What did you notice about the rich man? If you read the story, this is what struck me. He only asked for two things; first, he wanted water, for relief. Second, he no longer asked for water, he asked for someone to go to his family and warn them. Why? His perspective changed. Then his priorities changed. When he discovers the reality of life after death, reality is only two places, reality is this is something eternal. He became passionate about sharing the Bible and sharing the gospel with his family. In the past, he didn't care about God's word. He didn't care about God or life after death. What changed him?
My friend, this is called faith. When you realize the truth, and I've seen a lot of believers, you and I, we need to take this Great Commission seriously, because it's not just the King of kings saying that Jesus is Lord, but it relates to our human condition. We need God. You noticed, he didn't ask for a retrial, he didn't ask for reconsideration. He accepted the judgment of God. He accepted the punishment. Why? I believe that on Judgment Day we will all realize how just God is. He never appealed the case. Friends, God is just, so He wants you and me to warn everyone about you, do you have that passion, do you have that compassion? My wife always reminds me, we are worried about Covid-19, we are Worrying about people dying physically, my wife always reminds me: "What about our spiritual death"?
Have you ever thought about where people go when they die? Every time my wife and I hear that a friend of ours or a friend of a friend dies, We had a question: "Do they know God"? This morning, my wife and I had the privilege of sharing Christ, and along with many people, we handed out gospel tracts. I remember being in the clinic when I went for a blood test, and we shared the gospel because. My wife and I believe, we have this strong belief that people need Jesus. I read somewhere that the Russians discovered a Covid vaccine. They made an announcement, and I started researching them. Why are Covid-19 vaccines being released publicly? Because they are attacked by newspapers, media, and the Russian article explains: "If you discover a cure or a vaccine, it would be unethical not to announce it to the world".
Notice, let me repeat that. What they say is: "If you have a treatment, it would be unethical not to announce it to the world. The article says this: 'We are making it available, but we are not forcing anyone to use it.' In short, if There is a solution and we need to announce it to the world. You know what this reminds me of? Jesus tells us there is a cure, there is a solution, but we don't take it to heart. The Great Commission is to go around the world evangelizing and making disciples. According to Acts 4:12: Unless you believe that Jesus is the cure for human disease. Our problems, our sins, have a cure.
Let's read chapter 4 verse 12 There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. Do you notice how emphatic, how direct the Bible is? There is no salvation except Him. There is no other salvation except where? For there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. Only through Jesus. Why? Because Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty for your and my sins. The Bible is clear. The Great Commission is about Jesus. How He loves us and how He died for us. In Colossians 1:13-14, let me read it for you: He has delivered us from the power of darkness and translated us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
I want you to notice two words; in Jesus we are redeemed and we are forgiven. This is humanity's greatest need. I need forgiveness, I need redemption. You see, if what mankind needs most is money, and if the biggest problem is poverty, then all the rich countries in the world should have no problem. For example, you look at Singapore, you look at South Korea, you look at Europe, you look at the United States, and look at their divorce rates, broken marriages, dysfunctional families, addiction, depression. You see the problem is not poverty. Poverty is a by-product of deeper problems. I believe in helping the poor, but the fundamental problem lies in the heart. People think of it as educational.
What I submit to you, looking at history, was that one of the most educated populations during World War II was Germany. They have more PhDs. They allowed more people to get a college education. But what happened to Germany? They came up with the craziest idea to kill 6 million Jews. How can someone with such an education have the heart to basically wipe out an entire group of people because they are different. There is something wrong with our hearts. Friends, Our fundamental problem is the heart. Nothing will change until your heart changes. I praise God that Jesus is the answer. I want you to hear the testimony of our dear member brother, Mr. Henry C, Jr.
What did you notice about his testimony? Life changed and so did his passion. Look at his desire. He wanted his friends and family to know Jesus. The truth is this, until you experience the forgiveness of God, the love of God, the transforming power of Jesus until you become a disciple of Jesus you will not have the burden to share this with others I repeat you can't share what you don't have how can you Share with others what you have not experienced?
So, my encouragement to everyone today is: those of you who are listening, have you experienced the salvation given by Jesus Christ? Have you personally experienced Jesus Christ? Not as a religion, but as your Savior and your Master. Friends, because the Great Commission is for all of us, it is for all believers. We must accept the call of the King of Kings to go around the world and make disciples. If we don't take this seriously, we cannot fulfill God's plan, but God's plan and mission are unstoppable. He either goes through us or through someone else. But God says this is my mission for all of us. You know what? Until you develop faith deep down in your heart, Jesus isn't the only one who heals. You must believe that God loves us and He promises to be with us forever.
Why did He make such an amazing promise? Look at Matthew 28: I want you to notice that at the end of Matthew 28, God made this promise: And I am with you always, until At the end of the world, look at what Matthew chapter 28 says: You have the preface and all authority has been given to me over the lordship of Jesus and the mission of the church; to make disciples. Look at this promise, the promise is: I will always be with you. Notice this word: I will be with you always, to the end of the world. Ask yourself why Jesus made this promise: I will be with you always. Why do you like to be with someone? You only like to be with that person because you love that person. When you love someone, you enjoy being with that person. I want you to believe that God loves you, He loves you very much, He loves me, and He wants to be with us forever.
God's presence is our greatest security. God's presence is our greatest comfort. The Promise of His Presence It's because God loves you and He loves me. This is so true and I want to share with you why this is so important. One of our pastors, Albit Rodriguez, shared with us the story of what happened to his wife. Albit Rodriguez and his wife, Gina, are close friends and have known each other for more than 30 years. Albit and his wife came to our Bible study. At that time, they were not followers of Jesus, but God did an amazing thing. God, through His grace, allowed Albit to come to know Him. Albit and Gina both became disciples of Jesus. I want you to hear Albit's story about his wife who recently passed away.
What did you notice about Albit's story? Albit shared with us how Gina prepared herself, Gina was not afraid of death. Albit shared a very touching story this morning with a group of men, Gina loved Jesus so much that she would wake up and say, "Why am I not in heaven yet"? She wanted to go to heaven. Albit told us, "I'm telling you, I'm no longer afraid of death, because Jesus is real, His presence is real, and when I see how my wife has faced death over the past few weeks, I have assurance, peace, I am no longer afraid of death"
My question to you all is: Can you guarantee that you will be with Jesus when you die? My friends, this is why the Great Commission is so important. I firmly believe that God loves us, He wants to be with us, and this offer is for everyone. I want to encourage you, for those of you who know Jesus, will you accept Jesus' call to make disciples? I'm asking us to commit to the mission of Jesus, and I'm asking you to commit to the Great Commission because it's not just a command, it is your and my privilege to serve the King of kings. Will you take this Great Commission seriously? Will you be involved in making disciples throughout the world and throughout your sphere of influence? I encourage you to participate in our discipleship training. I encourage you to join Go Viral, and we're going to teach you how to do that and reach out to the world.
Next week, we're going to start a new series called "Inspiring". We're going to teach people how to train others. Eight principles about training others, starting with Start with your loved ones, the people you love and your friends, your colleagues. How are you lovingly impacting them? I encourage you to join us starting next Sunday. Say to those who are brutally honest: "You know what? I'm not sure, I'm scared to death, I don't have peace, I don't have the assurance that Gina had, I'm afraid I don't have the assurance of Pastor Albit Rodriguez".
I want to give you an opportunity to surrender your life and accept the opportunity Jesus offers you as your Lord and Savior. You see the Great Commission, the message of the Great Commission is Jesus. Will you accept Him as your Lord and Savior? If you are, let us pray together.
[quote]Lord Jesus, I have no peace, I'm afraid of death, I'm religious, but I don't have that relationship with Jesus. I pray now, open my eyes and give me a humble heart. Lord Jesus, I accept you today. I accept you now as my Lord and my Savior. I ask you to forgive me for all my sins. I accept your gift of eternal life. Change my heart. Make me a true disciple so that I can serve you. I pray in the name of the Lord Jesus, Amen.
Those of you who know the Lord, but you have never given your life to make disciples so that they can make disciples. You have been attending church on Sundays. You have been studying the Bible. But you have failed to obey the Great Commission. Why don't I pray for you. Pray with me. Because only God can change our hearts. I hope all CCF members will commit, but I can't force you, only you can decide. So, I want you to pray to Jesus. If you are willing to say:
[quote]Lord, you love me so much that I want to follow you and I want to make disciples, Lord Jesus, I humbly pray that you would change my heart. Please give me the desire and opportunity to make disciples. Lord, I commit today to the Great Commission. Go to the whole world, preach the gospel, and train disciples. Help me start by sharing the gospel with my family and friends. Lord Jesus, you want to help me. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.[/quote]