gereja kemah tabernakel

About Suffering

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Suffering has become some kind of a thing that we will face. For some it may be once a week, once a month, but for more than a few it can be something that he/she/they should face every day. So, has God left us and let us suffer? Definitely no. God has given us an example, that He, the greatest of all the kings, has to face a suffering as well.

Matthew 16:21

From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests and teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.

He said it Himself that He has to be sacrificed, He has to face the suffering, only to win against death and be raised to life again on the third day.

Matthew 16:22-23

22 Peter took him aside and begain to rebuke him: “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you1″ 23 Jesus turned and said to Peter,” Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.”

After He predicted His death, Peter, who in this verse ‘acted as a Satan’ being told by God that he doesn’t have the mind of God, he doesn’t know what will happen and what is to come. The suffering will only last for a while and what will come after that is far more than the suffering itself.

John 16:21

A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come, but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world.

This verse really pictured what is being told before. We will face suffering, we will suffer – even in God – why? Because what will come after that, the happiness – the rewards will make facing the suffering worth it and we will smile in the end, thanking God. Just like a woman who is pregnant for 7,8,9 or even 10 months, the suffering is incredible but when she saw the face of her own flesh, she will be smiling and became happy exactly from that moment on.

John 9:1-3

1 As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth 2 His disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” 3 “Neither this man nor his parents sinned,” said Jesus,” but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.”

Sometimes we think that we are suffering every day because we have sinned, we did some things that we aren’t proud of, we acted against God’s will. Yes, maybe we have did that, but don’t put every suffering in one big box of an aftermath of your sin. Like this verse, it’s neither the blind man or his parents’ sin that he suffered through the blindness. It’s because God will work and make a miracle in his life. (And yes He did as the blind man was healed with just a mud that being put in his eyes by God – John 9:6-7)

Hebrews 2:18

Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted

Experience always help, and if we have beaten the suffering over and over again, we can always be strong for others who are suffering. We can make changes in people’s life, not necessarily healing people’s pain but through our testimony, through our experience. Be blessed, and always, be thankful!

This is a summary from Handoyo Santoso service from Gereja Kemah Tabernakel – 29th January 2012

Jesus’ Witness

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Have you witnessed Jesus’ miracle? Have you became one of Jesus’ witnesses? Have you give a testimonial witnessing Jesus’ miracle in your life?

1 Peter 2:9

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

In this verse, it’s clearly shown that we as the chosen ones, the holy nation, the people that belong to God, may declare, may give a testimony – a truth – a fact of how God has picked us out of the misery and into His blessing. We all are in the darkness before we say that God is our savior, we did all the sins without thinking, we are still imperfect humans but now that we’re in God, we won’t fear anything.

John 4:7-9

7 When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her,”Will you give me a drink?” 8 (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him,”You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with the Samaritans)

Then the Samaritan woman are blessed by God in the following verse because she believed in Him. The Samaritan woman has five husbands and was living with a man who is not her husband, so in short, she has been seen as a (pardon me) prostitute who live in a wrong way of life. But let’s see what happens after she has sought God and receive God as her saviour.

John 4:28-30

28 Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and said to the people, 29 “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” 30 They came out of the town and made their way toward Him

John 4:39-41

39 Many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the womans’s testimony, “He told me everything I ever did.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to Him, they urged Him to stay with them, and he stayed for two days 41 And because of his words many more became believers.

A woman who is living in lust and saved by God is able to then gave testimony to her fellow Samaritans. And you know what? A lot of people believed in God because of her and they are saved because of her. Imagine what we can do, if we testify and the testimonials got spread around. Because, a testimonial can’t be hold and will always spread around.

Matthew 9:27-29

27 As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, calling out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” 28 When he had gone indoors, the blind men came to him, and he asked them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” “Yes Lord”, they repleid. 29 Then he touched their eyes and said,” According to yout faith will it be done to you”;

Psalm 4:8-9

8 Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him. 9 Fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing

We need to taste and see for ourselves that our LORD is good that HE is GREAT. If we believe and have faith in him, we won’t fear anything, we will be able to do everything and lack nothing. Have a blessed day!

This is a summary from Handoyo Santoso service from Gereja Kemah Tabernakel – 8th January 2012

New Year Service

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New Year is a new start for all of us. We start a fresh, new page, a blank sheet of paper. So what’s in it for us, how will God help us getting through this year?

2 Kings 13:20-21

20. Elisha died and was buried. Now Moabite raiders used to enter the country every spring. 21. Once while some Israelites were burying a man, suddenly they saw a band of raiders; so they threw the man’s body into Elisha’s tomb. When the body touched Elisha’s bones, the man came to life and stood up on his feet.

Spring is the season that tells us it’s the new year already, yet the ‘Moabite’ or translated as ‘trouble’/’evil’ are always there to haunt/disturb us. We, humans, are never left without trouble/problems, even if we’re in Him, we will always have problems to face. The difference are because we are in Him, we will not be afraid of it, and because we are in Him, we are going to win everytime!

The meaning of Elisha name is God is my salvation, and if we are in Him and He is in us and we are bonded together then as we read the 2 Kings 13:21 verse, the man STOOD UP, he came back to life and he beaten the death. If death can be beaten, why we can’t beat world’s problems?

John 11:25-26

25 Jesus said to her, “I am the ressurection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies. 26 and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?

Do you believe this? This question will be the reminder for us for the rest of the year. If you believe in Him, we will live and never die. It doesn’t mean we will live forever, but we have been redeemed by God himself. He has beaten the death and we will too. 2012 problems will not be bigger than Him and we will win in 2012, always and always will be as long we are in Him!

This is a summary of Handoyo Santoso service from Gereja Kemah Tabernakel on 1st January 2012