Doctrine A Bit Salah?

Saturday, 23rd January 2010

Last week, we had a cell meeting at my (dad's) place.  One of my cell members happened to be sharing when she suddenly talked about Ps Prince and looked at me when she did so :-)

She then said something that is a widely-held view by many fellow Christians -- that his doctrine is a bit salah (which means erroneous in Malay) -- but then went on to say that it was good to emphasise God's grace because in the final analysis, that is why the Creator would want anything to do with His creation.

While the me of several years ago would have taken that opportunity to argue with her, the me of today has realised an intellectual discussion would be futile; it takes the revelation from the Holy Spirit to catch the grace gospel.

I remember with fondness my own spiritual journey.  I was steep in Methodism and the last thing I thought would happen to me was to change my point of view.  It was in August 2005 that my then-colleague mentioned that he attended this church located at Suntec City and that his pastor was a Indian-Chinese named Pastor Prince.  I pictured him to be some cult leader in flowing white robes, and was thus surprised to see him dressed in a suit and tie on the cover of the CD sermons that was this guy left for us to borrow to listen to.

The first sermon I took back to listen to (out of curiosity) in the car caused me to weep like a baby.  I went back for more and would remain in the car even after reaching my destination because the messages were so uplifting and refreshing.  I agreed 100% with the stand that Jesus' work was finished -- that He had purchased for us our salvation, prosperity, peace of mind, health and wholeness by His perfect work on the cross.

What I struggled with were the sermons he preached about the Law becoming obsolete, that the Ten Commandments were no longer relevant for the New Covenant believer.  Worse yet, he even preached that these sacred laws have become weapons that the devil uses against us!!!.

But then, like the Berean Christians who did not just take Paul's words at face value but went back to search the Scriptures, I would meditate on the following verses and passages, which were very obviously talking about the Ten Commandments (which were written by the hand of God, the other laws were dictated to Moses) and that the devil indeed is using these very laws of God against us:

Col 2:14
Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

1 Cor 15:56
The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.

Rom 7:8-11
8 But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of covetous desire. For apart from law, sin is dead.
9Once I was alive apart from law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died.
10I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death.
11For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death.

And so gradually I began to realise it was actually *my* own docrtine that was a bit salah, and not his :-)
 
Anyway, my prayer is that God will raise even more preachers like Ps Joseph Prnce in these last days so that fellow believers, such as this cell member, will also discover for themselves the gospel of grace and what the finished work of Jesus has accomplished for then.  And hence the upcoming "UF Giveway".  Amen?