BELIEVERS IN CHRIST must be grounded in the Word. They must love unselfishly and ensure that the foundation of their Christian walk is rooted in love.
Preaching this message recently at the Garden Church of God, Reverend Benson Hull also reminded his audience that God is longing for us to be anchored in His love.
He spoke of “love which had its perfect expression among men in the Lord Jesus Christ”.
“This love is the basis of our faith in God and fellowship with each other,” he added. “Whether exercised towards the brethren or men in general, it is not an impulse from feelings. It does not always run with the natural inclinations, nor is it spent only on those whom we favour. Rather, it seeks the welfare of all.”
According to Hull, without this foundation and roots in God’s love, “our lives will fall into ruin, just as the man who built his house on sand”.
He told the congregation: “In order for us to grow spiritually and into the future, we must first grow down – be planted . . . The deeper our roots, the taller and stronger we can grow.”
This preacher said that being rooted in God’s love and in the past expresses itself in three ways: by obeying the Word of God; by offering worship – reverence and respect to God; and by opening up ourselves before God in prayer.
“In Hosea 6:6, God said, ‘I don’t want your sacrifices. I want your love. I don’t want your offerings. I want you to know me’. God is saying, ‘What I really care about is that you know me and you love me’. These are the primary goals in life – to know and love God,” Hull emphasised.
He said God’s Word was sure and alive and that worship, which he described as more than music or church attendance, also included offering our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.
Hull quoted author Rick Warren as saying: “Worship is a lifestyle of pleasing God. It is not one area in your life. It is your life. It is the process of surrendering our entire life into God’s hands. Everything we do can and should be an act of worship.”
He said that four ingredients of genuine worship were to have a meaningful relationship with God; yield to the Holy Spirit; have an undivided heart; and continue to trust God when we cannot trace or feel Him.
He told his congregation that in the area of prayer men ought always to pray and not faint or lose heart.
He contended, “Our worship and our walk as Christians go hand in hand because it is important that we practice what we preach, being examples – setting the pace for the world, rather than the world setting the pace for us as Christians.
He closed his sermon by asking his listeners the following questions:
“Are you who you want to be? Are you who God created you to be? How is your root system? How deep are your roots in Christ? What are you going to do to grow in Christ?”
During the service, parliamentarian Rawle Eastmond was specially recognised as he celebrated his birthday.
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