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Well, like many of you, my family and I have not had the privilege to travel overseas for some time now. But I do remember a trip about two years ago, when we went to Bangkok. Of course, we went to the usual tourist sites, visited the floating markets, went to the malls, swam at the pool and had glorious food.

And one of the highlights for us, one of the fun things we did, together as a family was to go to "Escape Hunt", or "The Escape Room" for the very first time in our lives. This is a kind of role playing game, it's a group challenge, where every participant would work together to search for clues and to solve the puzzles, in order to escape from this imaginary predicament you have placed yourself in.

So in our case, we were kind of in a cell, in a prison, and so the four of us, Winnie, myself [sic:Matthias], Shawn and I, we would have to look for the clues and solve them and break free or to secure prison break. It was not easy! It was challenging because you do need some skills like deductive skills, observational skills, pattern recognition skills. You do need to do some mental calculations and the mathematics there - not easy!

And so when we were able to find all the clues and solve the puzzles and escape from this room, we were absolutely satisfied and joyful and proud of ourselves. We took photos and so on. You know there is some something about discovering, something about solving problems, that gives us a deep sense of pride and joy.
And humanity has done very well in this regard, isn't it? I mean, humankind has discovered a lot of things throughout history.

We can begin with the discovery of fire and the usage of fire. We can talk about how we have discovered food and the various flavors of food and the combination of the flavors of food. We can talk about discovery of the laws of nature, like the law of gravity and how we have utilized them in technology today. Or maybe more advanced, we have discovered electricity and how to use it. Or radio waves, this ... you may think is not very significant, but it actually affects all of our lives because we are so dependent on internet today. Without these discoveries, there'll be no modern conveniences, as we know it today.

But we also have discovered biological data science, like the human genome and DNA. We have discovered a lot of things in outer space and under the sea. Humanity has a lot to be proud of, because we have discovered many things. But there is something, we can never discover on our own, there's a puzzle that we can never solve on our own. And that question is this-How can man be right with God?

This is the puzzle, no one can solve on his own. How can a sinful humanity be right with a Holy God? Get all the smart chaps together, get Einstein, get Newton, get Leonardo da Vinci, get Bill Gates. Get them all together into a room and ask them to figure out a way — how man can get right with God and they will never get the right answer!

And that's why the Bible we read, the Bible we preach from today is so important because the Gospel that is written in the Scriptures, reveal the only way man can get right with God - Jesus and Him crucified, as a payment for our sins is the only way man can be saved.

And so this morning, we're going to look at this subject of "The Wisdom of the Gospel". It's infinitely wise, because as you are going to see in the verses before you, no man could ever figure out this solution, only God can. Only God has prescribed this way! And so, we today are looking at the supremacy of the wisdom of God as found in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

There are three things I'd like us to take note of, it's actually very logical, sequential, as laid out in verses 6 to 16. But I like to point it out in three simple ways.

[1] A Secret Wisdom
Number one, the wisdom of the Gospel is a secret wisdom.

It's something that you would never know, because God has for a period of time at least, hidden it from the public knowledge of people. It's a hidden secret, concealed wisdom.

Now, I need to go back to about two sermons ago, where we read Paul saying that, "The Gospel, Jesus and Him crucified is folly to many people." People think it's a foolish thing. "Aah, why would you say that the Son of God would die such a humiliating and painful death?" "And why would you say that this painful, humiliating death is the only way man can be saved?" So a lot of people in the world consider the Gospel as absolute folly. It's silly! It's absurd! Ridiculous!

But Paul here defends the Gospel, he affirms that the Gospel actually is wisdom. "Yet ..." we do or "Yet among the mature, we do impart wisdom ..." [1 Cor 2:6] "The world considers this foolish, but I think this is absolute wisdom." "Although it is not the wisdom of this age ..." [1 Cor 2:6]

You see, the world doesn't think this is wisdom because they ... they don't accept this. This is not the wisdom this world considers "... Or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away." [1 Cor 2:6] So the smart, capable people who would end up on the top of the food chain, they do not consider the wisdom of God in the Gospel. They think it's foolish.

"But we do impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God..." [1 Cor 2:7] Paul says, "The reason why they don't quite see it, is because this is secret, this is hidden." And he goes on to tell us, "... Which God decreed before the ages."

Now, one of the FAQs, frequently asked questions I get is, "Pastor, why didn't God just kill Satan in the beginning? Why didn't God just stop him from tempting Adam and Eve?" You see, the question comes from ... from many people who probably thought that the way God saves man is an afterthought, it's a reaction. It's almost like God is caught surprised off-guard.

"Aiyah, I didn't know that the angel I created would rebel against Me and lead My supreme creation to rebellion against Me. So now, bopian [having no choice in Hokkien dialect], I got to come up with a plan." But they don't realize that this salvation is all part of God's plan. This wisdom of God in saving men through His Son is decreed before the ages, before the creation of the world. "Jesus is the Lamb of God slain before the foundation of the world."

Oh, this is not an afterthought! But this plan of salvation is ,"Decreed for our glory." [1 Cor 2:7] Wow, this is amazing! Now, we all understand that God does all things for His glory, right? I mean, throughout the Bible, it is said so! I, I don't think I'll pull those verses out for you today, but this is also true. Whilst God does all things for His glory, He is also doing all things for the glory of His people — "for our glory." [1 Cor 2:7]

What is the wisdom of God? The wisdom of God is God devising a plan to secure everlasting glory for His people through the crucifixion of His Son. Why did God allow Satan to tempt Adam and Eve? Let me tell you why. It's ultimately going to result in the glory of His people, so that for all eternity, we will know God for who He is — how gracious, how wise, how powerful He is. And that would not really be possible if not for sin, and if not for Jesus dying for our sins.

Now, this wisdom, therefore is something that is hidden. "The rulers of the world didn't know it ..." [1 Cor 2:8] Because Paul says, "If they had known this wisdom, they would not have crucified the Lord of Glory." [1 Cor 2:8] That's his point! This plan is so beautiful, but they didn't see it, because if they had seen it, they wouldn't have executed or crucified Jesus Christ.

I'd like you to maybe pause and take a contrast here, note the contrast. Crucifixion is the most cruel, humiliating way to kill someone, and yet it's right beside the phrase the, "Lord of Glory". Well, the Glorious Lord Jesus Christ was crucified because they didn't see it. They couldn't see it, it was secret, it was hidden.

So now Paul says, "Aah, but this is simply a fulfillment of what God had prophesied long ago in Isaiah 64, verse 6. It is a ... it is not a surprise that the rulers would crucify Jesus because it is written, "What no eye have seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of men imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him." [1 Cor 2:9]

Now, I know that 1st Corinthians, chapter 2 and verse 9, is a verse many people quote about heaven. They say, "We do not know what heaven is like!" Because, "Eye have not seen, neither ear heard, nor enter into the hearts of men, what God has prepared for those who believe in Him or love Him." So, we like to use this verse to talk about the future glories but I actually suggest to you, it's out of the context. Okay?

It's really not a good verse to talk about the unknowns about heaven, because this is immediately to be applied to the Gospel, "These things God has revealed ..." [1 Cor 2:10] What are these things? The Gospel realities - Jesus and Him crucified. So when you look at this verse, I hope you would see, it's not about future glories in heaven and how we do not know, it's about the present message of the Gospel which we do know.

God has revealed, that's the point, but before He revealed them, it was a secret and hidden wisdom of God. This is not something you can figure out by yourself. You know, when I went to Escape Room, I could ... we could search out the clues, but this is something you could not search out.

Isaiah 64 says, "What no eye have seen, nor ear heard." It's, it's not observable externally, neither is this rationalized internally, "Nor the heart of man imagine." So basically, the way to be right with God is absolutely unknown to the average Joe, to the common people. It was a secret wisdom! The rulers couldn't figure it out, Einstein by himself would not have figured it out, no genius would have figured it out. It was a secret wisdom!

[2] A Spirit-revealed Wisdom
So whilst this wisdom, this Gospel, this way of getting right with God, is not to be gotten by observation or by rationalization, it must be known then by revelation.

So number two, we see, Paul goes on in verses 10 to 13, to tell us that this is a Spirit-revealed wisdom, is a secret wisdom.
Man cannot search it out by himself, but this will be a wisdom that the Holy Spirit reveals. Not by observation, not by rationalization or deduction, but only by revelation — the revealing of the Gospel by the Spirit of God.

"These things [referring to the wisdom of the Gospel] God has revealed to us ..." [1 Cor 2:10] You can't figure it out yourself, but God has revealed to us through the Spirit. "For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God." [1 Cor 2:10] Not to say that the Holy Spirit didn't know these things, this is something we can't quite understand, but certainly, we must not say that the Holy Spirit was ignorant or is ignorant.

But the point is this, the mind of God, the wisdom of God cannot be searched out by humanity, by a lost and sinful man, but only the Spirit can reveal it to us. "For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God, except the Spirit of God." [1 Cor 2:11]

So, Paul uses a very common example known to us. Can you know my thoughts today? Or can I know your thoughts today? I can't! So it is, that the mind of God can only be known by the Spirit of God. Or maybe I'll give you another example, suppose there's a cockroach that just scuttles across here, but he turns and looks at you all. And he looks at all these weirdos sitting there so kwai [obedient in Hokkien dialect], but he ... he is on his mission to look for food. He's wondering, "Why are you sitting there with no food? Why are you so happy? Why are you listening to this chap?" He will never understand why you're sitting here, really!

Now, I may get the cockroach and I may say, "I teach you something okay, I tell you why they're here." I can try to teach the cockroach, but he will never be able to figure out why you're right here and what you're thinking. He can't! He has the spirit of a cockroach, he ... he doesn't have the spirit of man. The gap between a cockroach and the man is too big to span. And I say to you, the gap between man and God is even further.

So there is no way we can figure things, this things out on our own, this wisdom of God, it must be revealed by the Spirit of God. Now I'd like us to then think about this technicality — us. "These things God has revealed to 'us'." [1 Cor 2:10] Who is the 'us'? Goes on to say, "Now, 'we' have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given to us by God."[1 Cor 2:12]

Who is the 'we'? They are the same people, the 'us' and 'we' are the same people. Now, there are two options here. One is that this 'us' or 'we' refers to every single Christian, we the believers, the Christians, the children of God have received the Spirit who is from God. You can take it that way. The second option is that this is more specific, and this is referring particularly to the apostles.

Now, I suggest to you, I think I've read enough to suggest to you that most commentators, pastors, preachers would probably lean towards the latter option, which is the apostles. The reason is because verse 13, Paul goes on to say, "And we impart this in words." So Paul is saying, "We have been given the revelation of the wisdom that has been secret and hidden and now, we impart this to you."

In other words, this is the flow of the plan, or the wisdom or the genius of God, in how men can be saved through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It is conceptualized before the ages, then God created the world. The Spirit of God searches the depths of God, He understands the minds ... the mind of God. And then through the Spirit, He, God then reveals these glorious realities, the wisdom.

I really hope you see the Gospel not as ... you know the Gospel is simple, Christ died for our sins, but I hope you will not see it as simplistic, it is profound, it is deep. And it has to be revealed by the Spirit to the apostles, so that through the apostles, he ... they will then impart these to Christians. Now, today we ... we receive the impartation of these realities from the apostles via their writings, the Scriptures - Romans Corinthians, Peter, James. These are the impartations from the apostles, as they are given revelation by the Spirit of God.

Alright, time check, 9:42, and a lot has gone on. I know it's a ... these are not average things that the average person would consider, but I think these are very important things. So let me just kind of summarize all that we have learned in one statement. I think the Gospel ... now, I, I have a definition of the Gospel, but this is not a definition. This is a ... this is a gleanings from what we have looked at so far in 1st Corinthians 2.

I think the Gospel is the crystallization of God's wisdom, decreeing that sinful man be made right with Him for their glory, [and I put there and His glory, it's God works for our glory. I think it's so beautiful here in 1st Corinthians 2, but also for His glory, let's never forget that.] through Jesus and Him crucified. I think that's what we are looking at so far, a message that is generally hidden and undiscoverable unless it be revealed by His Spirit.

Now, you don't have to memorize this at all, it is just an accumulation of the facts and truths that Paul has been talking about thus far. Alright, nothing controversial, straightforward, but I think profound and deep at the same time.

So summary, we have looked at this wisdom, the only way man can be made right with God, it is generally secret and hidden, it is not known to humanity because we could not have discovered it by ourselves, but God has decided and plan that His Spirit will reveal this wisdom to His servants, to the apostles, who would then teach it, preach it and write it, so that we all could understand it.

[3] A Spiritually-discerned Wisdom
Then finally, we see Paul moving on from verse 13 to verse 16, to tell us that this wisdom revealed by the Spirit, given through the apostles, can only be appreciated, can only be understood, can only be discerned by those who are spiritual. So, this wisdom must be a spiritually-discerned wisdom.

In other words, it's not a function of your IQ, alright? So, you will realize that there are many, many, many, many smart people in this world, but they do not understand the Gospel. They do not appreciate it! It is not a matter of IQ, it's a matter of SQ - spiritual quotient! You must be spiritual to be able to figure this out.

So again we see, "We impart this in words ..."[1 Cor 2:13] So Paul says, "We teach this, we communicate this, in words not taught by human wisdom, but taught by the Spirit. This must be a work of the Holy Spirit in interpreting the spiritual truths to those who are spiritual." The recipients, the only ones who can really grasp this are those who are spiritual.

Now, I want you to know that the 'spiritual' here does not refer to the super, super, super, super, super godly people, alright! Because this is to be contrasted later on with the natural person. The natural person here is someone who does not have the Holy Spirit. He is not touched by grace, he is not someone who has been worked on by the Spirit.

So, the 'spiritual person' here refers to someone who has the work of the Holy Spirit in his life, and the natural person is someone who does not have the work of the Holy Spirit in his life. "And the natural person does not accept, does not receive, does not take up the things of the Spirit of God." He can't!

I think, I hope this illustration helps. I'm not trying to denigrate or demean the work of the Holy Spirit in any way, so please take it in the right light. Now, all of you today, I think virtually all of you would have your hand phone, right? But we all know that when we buy our handphones, whether it's from Samsung or I ... or from Apple or some other Android phones. When you buy your phone, it will not be functional, it will not ... it will not enable you to call and to receive calls unless you have the ...? Simi [what is it in Hokkien dialect] aah? Unless you have the SIM card, right?

I always wonder why it's so big, oh, actually it's just take a little bit of it aah, not the whole card lah! Take that little SIM card and insert into the phone, because if you do not have the SIM card, you cannot make calls, you cannot receive calls.

Now, you can still use your phone to do a lot of things, maybe play games and do some calculation. Your phone allows you to do that, but you cannot make calls and receive calls. And that is the most important thing for the phone, isn't it? Now, I think for many people now, not making calls, it's taking photos, But actually your phone is supposed to be the, the device for you to make calls.

And I think of it this way, God made you, but you cannot receive calls from God, and you cannot really make calls to God, until you have the SIM card, until you have the Holy Spirit working in your life. Without the SIM card, yes, I can play computer games, I can take photos, I can do a lot of peripheries, humanity ... we can, we can earn our living, we can play sports, we can talk to people but the most important thing you are made for, can't be done, without the SIM card!

And so, the natural person who does not have the Holy Spirit in him cannot understand the things of God. He has no SIM card! Because the things of God, the things of the Spirit are spiritually discerned. It must ... these spiritual truths, must be spiritually discerned, not just intellectually discerned.
No wonder to many of them, "These things are folly to him." [1 Cor 2:14]

Now, I want to suggest to you, Paul is not saying that, "If you do not have the Holy Spirit in you, you cannot understand the facts of the Gospel." Because the facts of the Gospel are easy, right? Jesus, God's Son died and rose again to pay for your sins, so that you are now no more seen as a sinner, but you can be reconciled with God. I mean, the facts are so easy, I can explain it in one or two sentences. So this is not about understanding the Gospel, but I think this is about valuing the Gospel.

A man who does not have the Holy Spirit in him, can understand the facts of the Gospel, but he treats it like rubbish, he does not value it. To him, this is worthless, this is useless! And so, that explains why there are people who come to church week after week, but they fall asleep every week. "So boring! This is dry as dust! Pastor, can you speak faster? Just get to it, finish it, I just want to say, "Hallelujah, Amen." I want to, I want to pay my dues to God this Sunday and I can live the way I want from Monday to Saturday then."'

That's the mindset of a lot of people! "The Bible is so boring!" But when God works in their lives and the lights come on, they get saved, the Holy Spirit comes and live in them and work in their mind, suddenly, the Bible is the most exciting book in life! Why? Because the Holy Spirit, the SIM card is inserted.
"Now, I can call my friends. Now, I can talk to people, it's so exciting! Now, I can finally understand!"

So, a natural man can understand the Gospel but he will not value the Gospel, like water off a duck's back, truth preached does not enter into the heart. He can't! He has no SIM card.

So, the spiritual person, Paul goes on to say, "Judges all things." [1 Cor 2:15] He can understand a lot of things. He can understand things that other people cannot understand, "But is himself to be judged by no one." [1 Cor 2:15] Now, this is not a kind of a prideful statement that, "Oh, Christians are smart alecks! They are the smartest people, cannot be criticized." We must understand this in the context.

Paul is saying that, "The spiritual man understands things that the natural man can't because the spiritual mind ... the man has the mind of Christ." So, the unsaved people cannot really be a good critic of Christians, because they cannot appreciate spiritual things, you see!

Let me give you another example. Let me show you some pieces of art, alright? And you tell me how much do you think this is worth? I'm so glad we are all here, I don't have to ask the camera, because they can't respond. But how much do you think this is worth? $500? Wow, you're very generous! I ... I draw for you ah, hah, hah! How ... how ... any other bids? $500? $20,000! Wah, eh remember aah, I'll draw for you aah! I'll copy this one, you'll give me 20,000 also ah! Any other takers? $1? I don't draw already. How much? $30 million? Who said that? I want to ... er, alright, 30 million. Any other takers?

Let me tell you how much it's worth. This is a work by Mark Rothko. It's called Violet, Green and Red. I'm serious, it's called Violet, Green and Red and it is supposedly worth US dollars, alright, $186 million. Wah! So, I see a lot of people who are not very artistic like me lah! It's amazing! I do not know how to appreciate it but probably people in the art world, they can.

Let me ask you about another piece. How much do you think this is worth? (Laughter) $20? $5? Sorry ...? Recycle Bin. Any other takers? Any other bids? How come you all so smart aah? Well, this, this is made by my son when he was about three, four years old, alright! I thought I would trick you, but I couldn't trick you ah, aiyah!

Alright, let me show you another one. $1? $100? Wah, this one, this piece of work is called 17A. Don't ask me why, but it's by a famous artist called Jackson Pollock, and it is worth $200 million. The last piece I'll show you is by Willem de Kooning. Maybe you have heard of that name, this is called Interchange. I have no idea why! I don't know how they ... but at least the first one I understand, Violet, Green and Red. This one, I don't understand why is Interchange. Come on, this is like Superman's cape or what, but it's worth 300 million US dollars.

Now, the point is this, if you're not artistically minded, you're not in that world, you don't quite understand these things. And I think, we therefore find it very hard to criticize an artist, right? So it is ... it is difficult for a carnal man or for a natural man to really appraise a Christian, a spiritual man who has the Spirit of God.

Now, what is the sum of what we have to say? This is the question nobody can solve, left to ourselves. Man can discover fire, man can discover electricity, man can discover radio waves, but no man can discover the solution of — how we can be made right with God?

This is only something that God Himself can formulate, and that's why the Gospel though simple, is infinitely wise. This is a wisdom that has been hidden that was secret, that was concealed. That no eye, no ear could observe, no heart could imagine, but this is a wisdom that is revealed by the Spirit through the apostles in their preaching, in their teaching, in their writings, so that we now may be imparted this truth.

But even as we preach these truths, in our day and age, it is not something everyone would value, it is not something everyone would deem as precious, because it is only to those who are spiritual, will they be able to appreciate. And so the sum of it all is, Paul saying, "The fact that you can understand and value the Gospel is because God is the One working at you from the beginning, to the end."

You see that? From the formulation of the plan, to the delivery of this wisdom, to the reception of this wisdom, it is not something we can do ourselves at all! From A to Z, it is the supreme work of God. So the purpose of Paul writing this right here, is so that man may be humbled before God and praise alone be to Him, not to man.

See, the church at Corinth was a divided church because they were a proud church. They were saying, "Aih, I follow Paul. Oh no, I follow Apollos, he's better." "No, no, Cephas is the natural, the ... the original one. We are belonging to the better group or better sect." Paul says, "Why are you glorifying in these things? Glory in the Gospel. It's not about man, it's about God and God is the One who has given us understanding and salvation from the beginning to the end."'

You know, I ... I like to boast about my Escape Room and Escape Hunt accomplishments. When we talk about it in our family, "I was the one who figured out the code there. I was the one who used that thing, huh, huh, huh, to ... to hook the key." You were ... and we criticize one another and we boast in ourselves. Why? Because I discovered it, because I solved it.

But you know the Gospel, no one can boast! No one could say, "I got out of the Escape Room because I was smarter. I saw better! I thought more deeply!" No, it's God! So no one can boast, and it is a death blow to human wisdom, but this exalts and extols the wisdom of God.

I think, when we understand the wisdom of the Gospel, the effect it should have is that it humbles all of us. If any man boasts, let us boast in God alone and His Gospel.

I think the second implication or application for this text is that we should pray. Because you can be the best preacher in the world, you may be the most eloquent speaker, but if God doesn't give the Spirit's work in a man's heart, he cannot understand.
I hope you will be praying for your children.

Many of you, pray for their PSLE. Now, I ... I ... I think I say something rather drastic or extreme, but I don't pray for my sons' exams or PSLE's results or things like that, that I don't find a biblical basis for me to do so. I pray that he will learn good ethics, I pray that they will learn good diligence. I think I want values but I don't pray, "God, please give him 290, because he's the pastor's son and cannot be lau kwee." [embarrassing in Hokkien dialect] I ... I can't pray these things!

But one thing I regularly pray for — wisdom. That they will have, and not wisdom to know ho to cho nang [Hokkien dialect] you know, or wisdom how to handle the affairs of one. I pray that they will have spiritual wisdom, that they will value and appreciate the things of God. I pray that God's Spirit will work in their hearts, because I know if not for that, there is no way they can be saved.

So, pray for your kids, preach to them, teach them the Gospel, but you've got to pray for them. Pray for the unsaved people around you. I mean, this passage should really help us understand, evangelism is never possible, true Gospel witness is not possible, unless the Spirit works in their hearts, conversion is not possible unless the Spirit works in their heart.

Someone, a ... a preacher named Charles Simeon, he gives an illustration of the seal and the wax. He says that, "When the wax is hardened, imagine this wax is hardened, no matter what you do with the seal it cannot impose the imprint on it, isn't it? You can only fragment it, break it up, spoil it, but if this wax is melted with heat and softened, then the seal coming upon it would leave a permanent imprint."

The hardened heart of men cannot receive the Gospel. He can understand it, but he will not appreciate it, unless the Holy Spirit warms his heart as it were, melts away human pride, so that the message would leave a permanent imprint. We need to pray for the Spirit to work in hearts. You have loved ones ... throughout this period, I've heard of you wanting to share the Gospel with your loved ones. And you find it so hard to do so and I say, yes it's hard, because unless God works, there's no way he or she can see and value and understand. So more than anything else, we pray.

And then finally, whilst we pray, we must not forget we must preach. Because how can men be right with God is a precious commodity in this world, or the answer to this question is a super precious commodity in this world, because this is not something you can discover by yourself.

People today try to discover oil and gold, they try, try, try, try, try, but the Gospel is something that even if you try your whole life you will not find out. It must be revealed by God, and it is already revealed by God in the Scriptures. And God's people must go and preach the Gospel, because otherwise no man will be saved.

I mean, isn't that the rhetoric or isn't that the logic of Paul in Romans, chapter 10? "How can they believe if they have not heard? How can they hear if no one preaches, and how can anyone preach if they are not sent?" That's the logic! So, Paul says, "How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the Good News."

We need to preach the Good News. Oh yes, the Holy Spirit needs to work in hearts, but if God's people are not carrying the message of the Gospel to them, they will not be saved! So I say to you, this is a premium ministry in this world. And that's why men and women throughout the ages have given their lives, for example to translation work.

They ... they pour their whole lives, even up till today. We have met people who have come to our church, who say they work in translation ministry, their whole life is spent translating the Bible into some obscure language we do not know of. But they say, "We must translate, because if they do not translate the Bible, these people will not read the Bible and they will not discover, they will not know how can men be right with God?"

There are people who smuggled Bibles, now, maybe more so in time past, communism age and so on, behind the Iron curtains, Bibles are not allowed. But there have been people who smuggle Bibles, they risked their lives to bring books. Today, with internet no need already, but last time, no internet, you've got ... you got to bring books, you've got to bring the Bible! And they will risk their lives because they say, "Otherwise how can they know how they can be right with God?"

Today, everyone is searching for the answer to COVID-19. What's the vaccine that will work for all variants? Alpha, Beta, Delta, Omicron, whatever you have. What is that vaccine? What is that medicine? Wow, everybody is searching for that answer! Maybe after COVID is over, there'll be disease X and they will be searching for another answer. But the answer or the question that is the most important, the disease that is most deadly must be this — how can we be saved from our sins?

I gave up ... I didn't give up but I decided to be in the Gospel ministry early in my life, pursuing medicine was just a means to an end. People always ask me, "Wah, so hard for you to give up medicine?" It's not hard because I've ... I've decided I will give my life for the Gospel ministry and I entered medicine for that purpose."

And the reason is very simple, if I could cure you of appendicitis, I could do a surgery for you, I will save you for another 80, 90 years max. I could help you in your body but not your soul. I could help you in a sickness but not your sin, but if I am in the Gospel ministry, perhaps one man could be saved for all eternity. And I think that's worth it, because I ... I think by the grace of God, He has helped me see the value of spiritual things.

Oh, yes, I have no doubt some of my friends will be thinking, "You, siow leow [crazy in Hokkien dialect] lah! Kee tau hong [Hokkien dialect]. They say, "You ... you ... you're crazy! Why would you do that?" And whilst they appear to be very kind, they say, "Ah, good, good that you are doing something you like, good, good, good, you are doing something you enjoy, ah, very good, very good, give your life for such a holy thing or noble thing." I know deep in their hearts, you say, "You stupid lah, you ... I can ... you can have a good life but you don't want to! You're stupid, lah!"

Well, I don't blame them, but at the same time, I don't think they can really judge me. I'm not saying, I'm bitter at all, alright, but I'm saying, they cannot really understand because they don't have the mind of Christ, which many of us here have been so blessed to receive.

I pray today you would be wise. I'm not saying, all of you should quit your jobs and be in ... in a pastoral ministry, but I hope, I certainly hope that God has given you His understanding and that you have a proper appraisal system in your life. That you will not follow the world in chasing the fame and the glory and the stuff of this world, but you give yourself for this precious commodity.

Oh, there are people today who trade in stocks, who trade in gold, trade in silver — very precious commodity. I tell you what's more precious than all of that - the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let that be a priority! I pray you will be a missionary right where you are, Punggol, IBM, Starbucks, Grab, live out your Gospel there, give out the Gospel there.

Maybe there are missional calls in your life, there are peoples and countries around the world, and maybe God is working in your heart today in sending you on a mission. Would you value these things and be willing to give your life for it?

Let's bow for a word of prayer together.

I pray this morning that if you're here today and you do not know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, and you ... you kind of understand what has been going on, what has been preached, but you don't quite see it in its full splendor but you want to. Can I ask you right here, right now, that you would humble yourself and ... and pray and ask God, "Lord, I don't quite understand these things, but I know there's something to it. Please grant me understanding, please help me see. I pray Your Holy Spirit will work in my heart."

Nothing wrong to pray that. I think it's proper for you to pray that God would open your eyes. And as a church, let's pray for those on-site, online, that they would have open eyes. Not just to understand the facts of the Gospel, but to value the Gospel, to see it as wisdom and not folly. And that they will soon repent and believe in Jesus and Him crucified, that they might be right with God.

And for all my brothers and sisters, these two years COVID has made things difficult maybe for you spiritually, but this morning, maybe it's a reset, it's a recall, it's a reminder from God, that really our lives are to be spent for the sake of the Gospel. Would you respond to God? Maybe God is calling you to something more, maybe God is calling you to a missional field, God is calling you to give your life for the sake of the Gospel. Would you do that? Would you respond? Would you humble yourself and obey Him?

Father, this morning thank You for Your Word, bless Your people. We pray that souls would see, Christians encouraged and may Your Church reinvigorated to go forward with this precious commodity-the Gospel of Jesus Christ. May Gospel Light be a Gospel Light indeed! We thank You in Jesus' Name. Amen.
 

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