Add correct line breaks, correct capitalisation, correct punctuation, correct Australian English spelling, and correct KJV Bible verse quotations and references to my paragraphs where applicable. But do NOT — I repeat — do NOT alter or change ANY words from my paragraphs under ALL circumstances.
I greet you all in the blessed name of our Lord and our Saviour Jesus Christ. I wonder whether have you all been introduced [to the design on the booklet]?
I think it's a very nice picture. Very nice. Now, I ask because it relates to Christian stewardship, and that's what we are going to consider in all our seven messages and also three workshops. You all have to look at this [at the camp booklet]. You... yeah, even if you did not listen to what I said, you look at this, you know all the messages already. Of course, we need to turn to God's Word. But maybe I let the one who drew this maybe explain. Maybe later. Maybe later. Maybe you thought your thoughts, and maybe... yeah. I think it's interesting because a lot of hard work was put into it. Yeah. So I think it's good to learn Christian stewardship.
Well, we thank God for the opportunity that we can come. My family and I... the last time we came was 15 years ago, in 2011. Okay, maybe some of you were not even born yet. But my son was here at the time. That was 15 years ago. He's now 21, although he was very small then. So thank God for the opportunity to come again to Melbourne to minister to you.
Okay, let us begin with a word of prayer. Let us pray.
Almighty God, our loving heavenly Father, we thank thee for salvation through our Lord and our Saviour Jesus Christ. And Lord, indeed it is by thy grace, mercy, and love to us that thou hast sent thy only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, 2,000 years ago to die on the cross for our sin, and was buried, and on the third day rose again to be our living Saviour.
And Lord, we thank thee for how thou hast been so merciful to open our eyes to see our own sin and how we need the Lord Jesus to cleanse us of all our sins by his precious blood. And Lord, even as we come together in this youth camp to learn of thy Word on the topic of Christian stewardship, Lord, we pray that thou wilt open our understanding and help us to be doers of thy Word, and not hearers only.
And also we pray, for in our midst there may be those who are seeking the truth, to know what the Christian faith is all about. And Lord, we pray that even through this camp thy Spirit will open the hearts of those who are seeking, that they may come to the saving knowledge of our Lord and our Saviour Jesus Christ.
And Lord, we commit the whole camp unto thy loving hand. For every message, workshop, that all will be done to the glory of thy name, and even for the morning devotion and for all the other activities that will enhance our spiritual life. And Lord, we pray that thou wilt bless our fellowship together. We commit all this unto thy loving hand. Cleanse us of all our sins. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
This is the first message on Christian stewardship. Well, it is by God's providence. I just recently taught a course on biblical stewardship, not Christian stewardship, but biblical stewardship. But it's similar, okay, although it's a different name. So a total of 13 lessons I taught in my church at the adult Sunday school. Thank God for the opportunity to minister to you.
So the adult Sunday school is for adults, so adults will have different applications, but the principles are the same. Okay. So the application will have to now be designed in such a way that it will be applicable to you. Okay. But of course I can share with you about the adults because, in time to come, you will become adults.
But I think it's more relevant for you as Christian stewards of God. Okay. How you, as Christian stewards of God, are to know how to live your life from that perspective, from God's Word. That will build you in your life to be good stewards.
Okay. So in this first message we are going to look at who we are. Okay, who we are. And with this understanding of who we are, then we will be able to begin on the right platform. So who are we now? We are nobody. Okay, we are nobody.
We may think that we possess something. We have time. Maybe you are thinking ahead. Well, I have plenty of time ahead of me. Now I'm just... who's the youngest? Eleven, twelve, or even younger? Even younger. Ten? Or this age? Okay. Okay. So some others are maybe above ten, maybe twelve, maybe fifteen. I'm not sure whether my son is the oldest. No, he's not the oldest. Twenty-one. Thank you for acknowledging that you're not the oldest.
But we all possess something, isn't it? But as you grow older, you will possess more and more things. Of course, as you are younger, you receive a lot of presents, a lot of gifts. Something that you may think, "It is mine. This jacket is mine. Nobody will ever wear my jacket because my parents are the ones who gave it to me. So it belongs to me. My shoes, my clothing, the things in my own room, everything inside all belongs to me."
These are the things that you can see. And things that you cannot see, like time. "Oh, I have a lot of time. I control my own time. I decide what time to eat. Although my mother calls me, I tell her, 'Wait. My time.'" Okay. As long as you say, "Wait," it's your time.
So all these things we think we possess them. But then, when we have a grasp of who we are, we realise that we are just stewards. All these things are just put under our care for the time being. For the time being. And so, with this, for a while, for the time being, how are we taking care of these things, including time? That is very important.
Okay. So in this first message, which is the foundation of our Christian stewardship, what is this foundation? Because we are not owners of all these things that we possess. But who is the owner? The title will tell us. What is the title? God is the owner.
Okay, God is the owner. And who is the owner? The owner is one who owns, who possesses. It can be living or it can be non-living. It can be things that you can see, things that you cannot see. And God is the only one who is worthy to be the owner because he is the one who gave us all these things.
Yeah, you may say, "My parents are the ones who gave me all these things." But in the first place, God gave your parents the wisdom, the strength to work, and then they are able to earn the money. And then, after they earn the money, because you need food, you need to be in school, you need the tuition fees, you need clothing, you need to be taken care of, you need food. All this does not come from thin air. That's not, "Pluck, pluck, pluck," then, "Oh, I have all these things." No. Though we must know the source. God is the owner. Okay. God is the owner.
Now, when we have this at the back of our mind, the way we live will be different. We will not waste food. We will not waste time. We will not take things for granted anymore. Isn't that true? Because you know that all this clothing... of course this is not mine. Yeah, but it has been provided for me. So if it's provided for me, it is not mine. I have to take care of it, right? I have to take care because I have to return this at the end of the camp, or at the end of my stay in Melbourne. I have to return this jacket.
If I don't take care of it, well, it reflects what kind of a steward I am. Maybe I got it stained with some sauces on this jacket, but I don't care. And then I leave it on the ground, on the floor. I don't care. Does that reflect well for me as a steward? Do you like it? Let's say I wear your jacket. Then after that you find it lying at the field there, where all the... I don't know whether there are animals, maybe dogs or cattle. We saw some cattle along the way. Do you like it if I wear your jacket because I feel cold, so you are kind enough to lend me your jacket, but then I didn't take care of the jacket? I left it. Do you like it?
So it reflects what kind of a steward we are, isn't it? Even for things that do not belong to us. Okay. How much more the things that belong to us. Of course we know that it is only placed in our care temporarily because God is the owner. Okay. God is the owner.
So this fundamental truth that God is owner will always stand whether you like it or not. Whether you admit it or not, whether you embrace it and believe it or not, it remains true. Okay? You can ignore what I say. Okay? Your life will still be the same as before. But does it make a difference? If you know it, it makes a lot of difference because the way you live will be different now. Okay. You will live in light of the great truth that God is owner.
Okay. It is the one who gave you life. It is the one who decided that you would be born into this family. He gave you your parents. He gave you your siblings. He put you in this school. He put you in Melbourne. Hey, not anywhere else, but Melbourne. God controls. God is the owner.
Well, in Psalm 24:1, the Bible tells us very plainly and simply. Okay, let us all read together Psalm 24:1. Okay, maybe I... Okay, let's turn to Psalm 24:1. Okay. A Psalm of David. Okay, let us all read together. Psalm 24:1. Ready? Go. "The earth is the LORD'S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein" (Psalm 24:1).
May God bless the reading of his holy and precious Word. So the truth is therefore everything, okay, everything that is of this earth all belongs to the Lord. So what we have is God's property. It belongs to him. Our bags, our jackets, our things that we brought here all belong to God. Okay? And we do not earn it. We do not deserve it. God entrusted it into our hand.
So at the end of the camp, well, hopefully there will be no missing items. A lot of times it is, "Oh, there's a corner, lost and found." Very common. Even at our church camp there's a lost and found. Some people will lose their water bottles. They lose their jackets, lose their spectacles, lose their wallets. Something is lost. Why? Because they misplaced them, or they put them somewhere but they forgot where they put them. Lost. Okay. God entrusted it into our hand. So we must take care. Okay. We must take care. Very simple principle. Okay. Very simple because God is the owner. We are merely stewards. Okay. We are merely stewards.
So are we able to accept this simple truth? So this message will cover what it really means that God is owner and how this fundamental truth will shape our identity as stewards of God, and how it will transform every area of our lives for Jesus' sake.
So how is God the owner? How is God the owner? So first, he is the Creator. He owns whatever he has created. Okay. So this is the first reason. Okay. First reason that God is the owner. He created everything. Okay.
The very first verse of the Bible, Genesis 1:1, declares, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" (Genesis 1:1). So before anything that was made, even time, God was already there. He's the beginning of no beginning. He is from eternity past, when time did not even exist.
Okay, for us, we are all measured by time because we have a beginning. We were born. That is our beginning. Okay. And as we grow bigger and bigger, we have more and more beginnings. Beginning to talk, beginning to walk, beginning to do many things. That's our beginning. What about God? There's no beginning. Beginning of no beginning because he is not bound by time.
So it's difficult for us to imagine. The reason is because, for us, we are measured by time. What time should we come to this camp? What time do we start dinner? What time do we start our message? We are all thinking about time. There is the timetable. There is a camp timetable that we have to follow. If we don't follow, there will be chaos. There will be no... there will be no camp in the end.
But because there is time, we are all bound by time. A time to sleep, a time to wake up, a time for... If we don't have a time for preparing breakfast, lunch, and dinner, we will not be able to make sure that the food is ready because there is no time. That would be chaotic, isn't it? But that is us. We are all bound by time.
But God is not. God is the Creator of time. God is the one who brings something from nothing into existence. And so therefore, all these things that he has created, he has authority over them.
We look at Psalm 50 verses 10 to 12. Let us turn to it. Very close to us as we travel here to this campsite. Psalm 50 verses 10 to 12. Psalm 50:10.
"For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I will not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof" (Psalm 50:10–12).
Now God does not just claim ownership in some part of it. He is the owner of all of it. He's the owner of all.
So when you see maybe an animal, a cow or a goat or even a chicken, right? You see maybe it run around. Will you use a stone and throw at an animal? Sometimes we are quite naughty. We are mischievous. We want to do something funny. But then if we look at these verses, what does this verse say? Verse 10. "For every beast of the forest is mine."
Before you throw the stone, remember this, because the stone will hit. Let's say you're very accurate. You hit the animal. The animal will be hurt. But before you throw that, think of this word. The animal belongs to God. That makes you responsible as a steward because God is the owner.
So you see, it affects our thinking. It affects every area of our life. Yeah. No doubt sometimes we want to be mischievous. We want to be funny. But if we know all this, it will help us control ourselves. There's nothing wrong being funny. There's nothing wrong being mischievous at times, but we know that there must be a limit. We don't go overboard. We don't go beyond the limit whereby it transgresses the law of God, especially when we know that we are stewards, that it affects us very much. Know our testimony for the Lord.
Okay. So everything belongs to him. Everything he sees. Now there is a stamp of his name in all the creation that God has made because God is the one who designed it. Imagine, the Lord is the one who designed the look, the colour, the shape, everything. They make a cow look like a cow. They make a chicken look like a chicken.
Now, can you imagine the cow doesn't look like a cow? We disasters... disastrous, isn't it? But everything is beautiful. We can admire all this creation wonderfully.
Now the stars, look at the stars. Maybe in Singapore it is too bright. We hardly see any stars. But over here, wow. Maybe you can even see... I'm not sure whether we can see any planets out in the galaxy, or the Milky Way. Of course, with bare eyes maybe hardly can see, but sometimes through some devices we can see. We can see very, very clearly.
But all these are God's creation, the blueprint, the fingerprint of God in his creation. Okay. So because he is the one who made it, he controls.
Now let us see the angle from big to small. Okay. First, the universe, and then after that we narrow down to the earth, and then finally to humanity, to us. Okay. Let us look at the universe. How God owns the whole universe.
So every galaxy, every star, every atom exists because God willed it into existence. Of course, this is not a science subject or science course. But science supports our Christian faith. Okay? Because you can't escape. No, almost all the studies, there's a hand of God in it. If we have a mind very sensitive to what God is doing in our studies, you will be able to see with the eyes of faith.
So truly God exists. He is the owner. We are just small men. So the vastness of creation is seen in the whole universe, reminding us that God's ownership is not symbolic; it is absolute.
So in other words, there is no creation without him. So don't live your life without God. Because if you live your life without God, when he is there, you are disregarding him. His wrath will be burning against you because you belong to him and you do not care about him. You do not even think about him. How will you feel?
Let's say you have a puppy dog. Maybe some of you like pets, but the pet doesn't care about you. Although you feed the pet, you care for the pet, you bathe the pet, I mean you bathe your dog, but then after that the dog has no affection for you. How will you feel? You feel hurt. You will feel hurt.
But we know even for animals, they have affection. If you care for the animal, they can sense your great care. Know that you're very genuine. You're not one who always bullies the dog or the cat. But the dog will always come to you. It will always wag its tail to show that the dog is happy, and then you will feel happy as well, isn't it?
The dog comes to you. The dog keeps clinging to you. What about God? We don't care about him. Will we feel hurt? Surely God wants us to draw close to him because he wants us to know him. He wants us to be intimate with him. He wants us to seek him. And he has provided the way for us to know him beyond the creation.
You know, for us from Singapore, when we come to places like Australia, there are so much nature, know that we can enjoy. But we enjoy all this nature because there is a creator behind this creation that makes the world of different, know. When they enjoy the rock formation, know, the vast ocean, know, the landscape, they enjoy it just the beauty of it without God. What a waste, isn't it? What a great waste.
Because how many time will you pass by all these things? No. As you as you maybe go along the road, you see the same thing again. Well, you maybe by then you lost all interest. It's no longer fresh. I'm sure maybe I'm not sure along the way. Were you are you fascinated? Wow. with the mountain, with this ocean. I do. But then after a while, it's all the same as you go. It’s no longer fresh because you see the same thing. But it makes a difference when you know that God is the one who made them. You thank God for them. You thank God for all these creation that you can embrace.
Now, what a great difference between us and those who do not know the law, who do not know the creator. And today we have the help of technology. We can go even as far as to space without being present in it. From the from the internet or even from your studies, you can get a glimpse of what the galaxy is like, what the universe look like. Man saw as if there is no boundary out there in the space.
And for godless men, they refuse to believe there is a god. So they will mock when I when I see up there in the space, we see no one. So in the heart, there is no god. They are just there because there is a big bang, a big bang. Somehow there's a big bang, and then out come the world, out come things, and then after that some evolution happen over time. Here we are, man. Here we are, the thing that we are seeing. So that's why it remain a theory, a theory of evolution.
So from monkey to man is still a theory, and and it can be proven. It's still a theory because if man come from apes, huh? Why are there still ape today? You mean the apes failed to evolve? There will be no apes today, isn't it, if we really come from apes. But there are still apes. Apes will remain as ape whether tail or no tail. They remain as it is. After each kind, it will always remain in its kind. That's why it's a theory of evolution. It can it can never be the the truth.
Okay? But in the world, they have they will they they cannot accept that there is a God. In fact, they conclude there is no God. Okay? They conclude there is no God. But they will have to answer to God one day for their unbelief.
But thank be to God that he has revealed himself to us. So we can enjoy the creation and behind it is the creator. Okay. So this must overwhelm us. It's not something that we take for granted. Okay. It must overwhelm us because we are surrounded by people who are atheists, who doesn't believe in God, who doesn't believe there is a God who is almighty, who is the creator.
Okay. So in fact the talist right likely say so in Psalm 14 verse 1, the fool has said in his heart, "There is no God." So he remain as a fool. He thought that what he said is something wow, I know it is my discovery. But it is the fool that said in his own heart there is no god. So the fool remain as a fool when his life has no place for god.
Okay. So God is owner. It must affect us because our life must have God in it. Okay. That is the foundation. Okay. That is the foundation.
In fact, many of these fools, we we when we talk about fools, don't think about those not educated, those uh know did badly in schools. No, do not think that way. Okay? Because the fools can be professors, can be highly qualified, academic qual qualified. Some of them are well respected by the world. They they were given uh a name. I I don't know what name maybe professor, a name which is remembered for generation, maybe for what they have created. Well, I can't have any name now, you know, right? You know some of these people who doesn't believe in God, but they have a very reputable name. People remember them. But what's the use? What's you? They remain as fools.
They have no God. So who will we believe? Will you believe God or will you believe man? Will you believe these fools? Some of these fools have the have have an impact. No doubt about that. Their achievement, their their know their so-called accomplishment. Maybe they have a part in building, for example, a very good mind to to build a structure. But without God, without God. Although God is the one who give them this mind, but they live their life in him because they refuse to acknowledge that God is the owner, that he is the creator. Okay.
So from the universe and then now to earth of all the planets out in the universe. Okay. We zero into the earth. We we stay on this earth. Okay. We stay on this earth. The land, the ocean, the resources, the ecosystem all belong to God. We don't own it. We just take care of it. And we just take care of it. You are entrusted with it.
So the first man, Adam, received this important task God gave. And the first woman, the wife of Adam, what's her name to wake you up? Some starting to uh maybe too tired. Maybe it has been a long day since uh morning service and then our journey here. So what who what is the name of uh the wife of Adam? We call it Mrs. Adam. Oh, she has a name. She has a name. What what name is that? Anyone? Huh? Eve. Eve. Maybe for the benefit of our the Chinese. My Chinese not very good. Is it is it correct? Correct. I'm not very sure.
Yeah. The first man, first woman, the of course the first woman was tough to be the help me to Adam to take care of the whole garden, the garden of Eden. So we see the things on this planet earth. Okay? God want man to take care of it. Okay. So that is the first responsibility that God has given to man. So from Adam and Eve how they have to take care of of the earth. Okay. Of the earth. Okay.
So from universe to earth and the nature reflects the work of our creator. So we have the privilege, isn't it, because how can there be no God? So from the things that we see we know there is a God but how can we know this God? So that is the next step.
So from the universe to the earth and then to man, okay, to man. Of course I I I I make it very fast. Uh, the earth is we have already said much about the earth. There are plenty of evidences okay that we know uh God truly is the creator. But from this creation we cannot know him personally. We know he exists now without excuse. We know he exist because of all this creation.
So we have to go to humanity. Okay. From universe to earth to humanity. God pays attention to to man. Why? Because man is made in the image of God. For this plain reason. Okay? For this plain reason.
So you and I have been made in the image of God. Always remember this. That's why we can reason. That's why we can we can think. Of course, animal can think. The way animals reason, maybe they make some noise, but they remain as it is. There is no progression.
When we look at animals, they are very happy with their furs. Huh? For those uh animals that have fur, but it is men who make them wear socks. Have you seen dogs wearing socks? Wow. Some I feel very pitiful for the animal because I can see the dogs are very uncomfortable. Keep shaking. Don't know here. Don't know what I never own a pet before. And then make them wear the clothes look cute. But do do we really think the animal feel comfortable? God has already made them very nice with their furh with their skin. But they were made to wear clothes on their own. They won't wear clothes. Correct.
That's your anyone has pet at home? Anyone? Dogs or cats or birds? Okay. Maybe some of you do they wear clothes? Oh, time to sleep. Chin in the pyjamas. Anyone? Then early in the morning, uh, time to brush my teeth. Take a brush and then you see the dot. No, he won't.
So they were they were made just as it is very nice but it is men. Men who try to make them like men because we wear clothes we also want them to wear clothes. We we want to be clean. We also want them to be as clean as us. They know how to clean up themselves in their way. Yeah, of course not the best sting. Yeah, because uh some some area cannot be reached like we do. So, uh, even places where they need maybe helping hand. You can see some cats they like to go to some area where they can stretch because they their don't know their hand or their their legs cannot reach. So, they will stretch some they will go somewhere and stretch but they’re fine. Huh?
But it is us who want to help them. We we we want to care for them. But God made them perfectly. Okay. God made them perfectly.
We are wonderfully made by God because we are made in his image which we must not deny. So stewardship begin with our personal acknowledgement. I am not my own. It is God who owns me. All that I am, all that I have belong to him and him alone.
But who is he? He is God. Let us not confine or conform God into an image. Very dangerous. A lot of time we watch on YouTube or on TV someone want to give you a very vivid picture of God. So they they have a image of God. No don't have all this image because God is invisible. God can God is a spirit to let us not imagine him to be in some form of an image.
Not even the picture of Jesus that how do we know the Lord Jesus look like look like the one? Do you know that when you go to Africa Jesus is black? When you go to China Jesus is a Chinese you go to anywhere Jesus is so many form. So who is right? Of course, the most common one they they picture him after, oh, he look like a the ang with long hair. That's how they picture uh Jesus.
Well, thank God that time in the time of the Lord, there is no camera, there's no nothing that can capture his image. I think that is the whole purpose. If not everyone will be woriing images today already don't have now they are forming all these images and it is very seducing very convincing isn't it why because we are people who we are visual learners uh it captivate what we see and then it stays in the mind for a long time.
We must be careful what we see especially now uh with uh mobile devices all the social platforms YouTube, Facebook, all these are easily available. Although the moment you you you show on something that is that is not edifying but you have seen it already. It remain in your mind. Although you scroll it very far but somehow we are able to capture the capture the image and you remain and then the more you see the more you become no big deal no big deal then you become you you are entertained and then before you know it you engrossed into the kind of images and of course today's images is like a movie it's like uh with the action-packed type of show.
Although the small clip were captivating we are we are like this we are we are engrossed into all these things that's how the devil works. Let us remember remember that God is the one who own me. God is the owner. One day we have to account to him. But it's not like no accountability. There is accountability whether we like it or not.
So do not wait until then. Don't wait until when you meet God face to face. All of us will have to meet God face to face in judgment. But it's the outcome of the judgment. Do you belong to him? If you do not belong to him, where will you go? You will not go to where he is for eternity. You will go to where he is not because you will. Of course, God is omnipresent. But where does God want you to be? Up or down? Up, what is up? Heaven, what is down? We call it hell. Of course, ultimately is the lake of fire.
We have never been to hell. We have never been to heaven. So what makes us think where we want to go? But we have enough knowledge to know that we want to go to heaven because heaven is a place of blessedness. Heaven is a wonderful place. I'm sure you sing that song before. Heaven is a wonderful place filled with glory and grace. I want to see my saviour face. Heaven is a wonderful place.
What about hell? Direct opposite. Hell is fire burning, torture, pain. Not a place that we would like to imagine.
When we share the gospel with those who are about to die, what kind of a message will you tell the person? Will you talk about how nice your car is, how nice your house is? That person is dying. Oh, I have a beautiful soft toy. I cuddle it when I'm sad. No, I pass it to you. Will it bring comfort to the one who is dying? No, he doesn't.
The person is dying. What is the message that the person need to know, need to hear? Where will he go after he dies? That's the message. And if you are not a believer, you will not know. Or even if you are a believer and you have no sense of urgency you're not well sensitive to to the truth that God is the owner God is the creator you have nothing to share.
You have nothing to share. But if you are sensitive, you know, you are, you know, you know that God is the owner. God is the creator. God is the one who gave us salvation. God can save us. That will be the message that he will tell this dying man. Only Jesus said. As simple as that.
And of course, if the man has more time, you can tell him more. You can tell him what you know about the Lord Jesus, what he has done for you. How he suffered and died on the cross for our sin. How he shed his precious blood. How he was buried. He truly died, not fainted. He truly died and buried in the grave. And then on the third day rose again from the dead to be our living saviour. So our saviour is not dead. It is not in the grave. The grave is empty. The cross is empty. The grave is empty. And where is he? It is risen, seated at the right hand of God, and it is in heaven preparing a place for those who believe in him.
If you tell this to the dying man, wow, he will ask, if I believe in Jesus, will all my sins be forgiven? Then you can say yes. And if all my sins are forgiven, will God accept me into heaven? You can tell him yes. And where will I be after I die? You can tell him. You will be in heaven. Isn't that wonderful?
We all have no power to save a dying man. But God has the power. For God want to use you and me to share for this important message of salvation. The only message that people need to hear, not the way to get rich, not the way to be healthy, not the way to have a happy life on earth, but to simply share that only Jesus.
People need the Lord for this reason. Not to get rich, not to be healthy physically. We are surrounded by social gospel. Many churches are no longer preach the true gospel. More or less, they are engaged in some community works. So much so that they want to give the impression, oh, you come to Jesus, you will be fat. You will have food, you will have clothing, you will be well taken care of, you will have a good life.
In other words, of course, there are those who go to the extreme or you will have great wealth and you have great health too, but you don't have to go to the extreme to believe in the wrong gospel. All it takes is just a social gospel. You just involve yourself in good works. I want to help humanity. I want to do charitable works. I want to be good to men. I want to help the poor, help the needy. Yeah, you by all means help them, but with a purpose to share the gospel with them.
Because what the point if you help them, feed them, give a shelter over their head, clothes on their back, put food on their table, but they are still going to hell because you have not spoken a word for Jesus. You don't talk about sin. You don't talk about hell. You don't talk about anything that pertaining to their soul.
Did not Jesus say, "What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, but lose his own soul?" (Mark 8:36)
But what if he is fat? He will die one day. Thought if we get well, he will still die one day.
If they die without the gospel and we did not share the gospel, we are to be blamed because we know that God is the owner. We know that God is the creator. We know that God is the one who gave us all these things. How can we not know him? How can we not believe in him? How can we not account to him? Well, by faith we believe, by faith we know, by faith we trusted in this creator.
Now, not only God create all these things, he sustained them. Now, God did not create the world and then after that go on a holiday. That is the heresy of the, know it's a belief that know God created all these things and then left the world to run on his own.
Now, if you ever get to own a car one day, if you ever, I'm sure in Australia is not a difficult thing when you get to drive a car. Of course, if the car is in good condition, no problem. But the car is not super car, will never break down. The car will one day break down. Correct? Have you ever heard of any car that will never break down? Tell me, I want to buy the car. It will never happen.
I told after you buy the car, the salesman will tell you this is the after-sales service. So this is a lot of the maintenance, the services provided. Okay. You can go to this workshop, you can. Why? Because the car need to be maintained.
Likewise, for the earth, the earth need to be maintained. But who will maintain? You trust to ask to maintain it will only go from bad to worse. God will maintain it. And God has maintained it until now.
We see how God is so patient. Even though man has been so sinful, from turning from bad to worse, but God is still maintaining this earth. But one day, of course, he will destroy this earth when the time is up. But God has been sustaining this earth even till now because he, he's the one who made it and he is sustaining it.
Well, can you imagine if God did not sustain what the whole world will be in deep trouble? Just talk about the sun alone. Sun, we know the sun and we take for granted the sun will rise tomorrow morning. But what if to our shock the sun didn't rise? We are still in darkness. Ah, no big deal, we have in the fridge, people will still come. But you wait long enough, there will be no more animals. The no more greens. All this will die without the sun.
Of course, men trying to be smart create vegetable without the sun. They use the artificial solar system. But how long will they sustain this? Not for long, isn't it? The sun is perpetual. God has created something that we have no excuse that he does not exist. And from this we know he is still sustaining. He is still sustaining.
No sun, time to come there will be no moon because the moon need the sunlight for reflection. The moon need the sunlight. I hope you know this better than me. The moon has no light of its own. The moon draw the light from the sun. That's how we see the moon. So with no sun in time to come there's no moon. And then in the end there will be no life. Cannot even imagine, and there will be no providence. Nothing will be able to sustain life and there will be no special revelation.
God create the world. Man sin up to him. You go on a holiday. He went away. Man sin. Nobody cared. No salvation. Now, can you imagine that if God did not sustain, not just the world but man, there will be no salvation. There will be no saviour.
And so we thank God we have a God and we come to know this God who made and sustain life. So every breath we take is the gift from God. Let us acknowledge him. So each day, each new day is a gift that God has given to you.
But thank God we can have this camp so that the next morning, God willing, when we come together, we can praise him for a new day ahead, a new life that he has given.
So God is owner. Also tells us in 1 Corinthians chapter 6. This will be the last passage that we are going to see before we end. Let us turn to 1 Corinthians chapter 6 verse 19 and 20. Okay, let us read together. 1 Corinthians chapter 6 19 and 20. Ready? Go.
"What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." (1 Corinthians 6:19–20)
So we are created by God and we are redeemed by him. Now we are bought with a price. The price of the blood of the Son of God.
Imagine someone who died for you. Now, of course, when we, we do not know, we do not know this. No, until we come to this passage because we are not our own. We are bought with a price. We are redeemed.
We are supposed to be lost. We are supposed to be hating towards damnation. Not because of sin, we are already damned. Condemn. The word condemned. How can this condemnation be lifted up? Only by the blood of Christ.
So God is the creator. He is the sustainer. He is the redeemer because he loved you and me to send his only begotten Son not to save you so that you may know him, to have a personal relationship with him that makes our life meaningful.
I know some of you like gaming. At the end of the day, when after gaming what do you gain? Maybe you are better because you have gone to the next level.
Maybe you reach the highest level. Then what? Very meaningless, isn't it? Because there's no, there's no end. I would say there's no end because the one who create want to draw you to keep on playing. There, there's always a higher, higher level.
But so what if you get the highest level? Wow, I achieve it. But so what? It's empty, isn't it? Maybe you want to boast with your friends. Oh, I achieved this level. What is your level? You better be like me. We, we want to boast about these things. But it's meaningless, isn't it?
God made us to know him because God made us in his image. And when he opened our eyes to understand his word, thank be to God because it is not open to everybody. If you have understood who you are, knowing that God is the owner, that God is the creator, he is the sustainer, and he is your redeemer, wow. I think your life will not be the same anymore.
You will want to live your life, even at a young age that you have. I remember many years ago there was a teen, you know, just a teen. He was touched by the Lord's love. He wanted to give his life for the Lord to serve. No, he of course he had to go to Bible college to be trained. But do you know, when he gave such a testimony, a lot of people laugh at him.
Why? Because their mindset is, how can young people be so serious about God? So I ask you, can you be serious about God? Can? If you say cannot, that mean the people are right. How can young people not be ever serious about God? Why waste their time in youth camp? Need to be out in the world enjoying their lives.
Maybe not youth camp, but maybe change the youth camp into, no, instead of seven messages, just one message enough. Then all the other, we have a party. Think we are parent not around, maybe don't make the pastor stay here, then we have all to ourself, isn't it better? But that's the world. That's the world.
But sometime we go think like the world. That's why we behave like the world. So is it possible for young people to be serious with God, serious with your Christian faith? It is possible.
Just like this young man, although everybody laugh at him, but he knows. He knows God has caught him. And today he's a minister. Today he's a pastor. Thank God for that.
Can you imagine if he were to believe, "Oh yeah, I'm still young. I think, I think I'm not serious. I think maybe I enjoy the world better." But no, he's serious. Serious with his faith and, of course, with God's help.
Rean toe always with the founder of the BP movement, Reverend Timothy, he always encourage the student with so many wonderful truth. One of them will be self-help with God's help is the best help. Wow, you have to help yourself with God's help. God's sovereignty plus human responsibility is the way to go.
So when we help ourself with God's help, we can do it. Although it's a struggle because all my friends around me are all, no, not into God, not into the Christian faith. Why am I the odd one?
Anyway, we are living in a Christian country. So, let us not take it so seriously. Is this your thinking as well? So thank God that you are in this youth camp for you to reflect, for you to think through the holy presence of God in your life.
You can do better. You can give your commitment to him. You can dedicate your life to be a good Christian to them wherever the Lord has put you. Even at home, you can be the best Christian son and daughters to your parents.
All because you know God is the owner. He is a creator. He's a sustainer and he is your redeemer.
So may the Lord help us continue to know him because there's so much for us to learn from his word. Now, if only the Bible is only John 3:16, wow, my life will be so easy. John 3:16 is just one verse. From Genesis to Revelation, it takes us a whole lifetime just to study.
The aim is not to complete the study. The aim is to know what does God want me to do? What is God's will for me? And that is also Christian stewardship.
When you know what God has given to you, your resources, your time, whatever, and then you use it according to his will, God will be glorified.