Hello brothers and sisters, peace be to all. Thank you for staying with us the last four months. This is the last lesson of the series.

Last week, we mentioned that we are a new creation because we are new in Christ and we have a new relationship with God and with man. And how God loves us, so we love ourselves; how God loves others, so we learn how to care for others as well. Therefore, we have been constantly adjusting these relationships so that our lives can constantly be a witness for God, glorifying and manifesting His glory.

Our relationship with sin

After the devil's trick to try to tempt Jesus failed, in Luke 4:13, it says, “he left him until an opportune time.” Obviously, the devil continues to look for chances to tempt people into sin. The consequence of sin is the breakdown of the relationship between man and God. Therefore, as children of God, we must reject sin with great determination. The following are some of the sins that we ought to renounce:

1) Put away lies and choose truth

In Ephesians 4:25, it says, ‘Therefore, putting away lying, “Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbour,” for we are members of one another.’ We must put away lies and choose to speak the truth and words of integrity. Lies are the most common sin in the world. Therefore, as Christians if we could display how we are different from the world in the matter of lying, the witness of the Christian life will be ever so obvious!

Many in the workplace may say, “Well, one must tell lies or else there will be no business and earn no profit.” This saying is in reality a lie and not credible. For instance, if I have a product which is made in China for $30 and the same which is made in Germany for $100, I should tell my customers, “If you want a product with better quality, you should pay $100 for the one that is from Germany.” But if you sell the one that is from China for $100, then that’s a lie; that is dishonesty and God hates it.

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2) Put away the corrupted word and choose words of edification

Ephesians 4:29 reminds us that “Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.” Corrupt words are words that display perverse fancy, elicit lust or vulgarity (or merely lewd words). It also includes some vicious words that corrupt or cause others to stumble. All these should disappear and be renounced in the life of a Christian. Instead, be filled with words of edification that benefit the lives of others such as words of encouragement, comfort and hope.

3) Get rid of all bitterness and forgive each other

Ephesians 4:31-32 says, “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Friends, we must get rid of all bitterness or every form of malice from our lives because if it is hidden within our hearts, it will affect our spiritual life; we will destroy the relationship between us and other people, and disrupt church unity.

Therefore, we must get rid of our heart’s bitterness and malice. Let us be kind and compassionate with one another and forgive each other. In other words, even if we see the weaknesses and faults of others, we must be compassionate to forgive, accept and wait patiently for their repentance. This is important.

4) Get rid of bad conduct, choose to be children of light

Ephesians 5:8 says, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light.” What do we need to get rid of in our own conduct? All bad conduct such as indulgence of the flesh, acting by the flesh and heart’s inclination, we must renounce all of these.

What should we choose to be like? Choose to be like the children of light. We thank God that He is the God of light. We are the children of God so we have to “come out of the darkness and into the wonderful light”. There ought to be a difference in our conduct, when compared to the children of the darkness. To live clearly as children of light in every sphere of our lives. Which is to live a life worthy of the grace received.

Brothers and sisters, we should not just think of the above as a theory, but we must also pray to God, asking Him to forgive our past. Besides, we must also ask God vigorously to strengthen and help us to obey His Word. Therefore, if this resonates with you, let’s pray together.

“Heavenly Father, I confess that I have been deceived by the lies of the devil in the past which deceived myself and caused others to stumble. Lies filled my heart with bitterness and resentment which blocked me from walking in the light. Now, I confess these sins before You and ask for Your forgiveness. I declare that through the blood of Jesus Christ, I am released from the bondage of sin. Please fill my heart with Your great love so that I can manifest Your glory. In the Name of the Lord Jesus, Amen.”

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Our relationship with the devil

Exodus 20:1-5 say, ‘And God spoke all these words: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. “You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.”’

According to the passage, there are two kinds of sin that we must shun.

① Many Chinese with traditional religious beliefs recognise that our God is one of the gods. They even regard Jesus as the first and greatest god among the gods. However, according to the passage found in Exodus, that is wrong and even regarded as a sin.

We must acknowledge that God is the One and only True God - no other gods beside Him. In other words, we are not allowed to worship other gods other than the One True God who created heaven, earth and the universe. Just like your biological father whom you have only one, none other than him you should call “father”. Likewise, we can only worship the One True God.

② Bowing down to and serving idols which represent gods created by human hands. This act of “exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles” as mentioned in Romans 1:23 is an abomination to God. According to Exodus 20:5, if a person worships and serves idols, he/she will incur God’s wrath. The holy God will “punish the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation”.

The sin of idolatry is not pleasing to God and will even lead to curses. Hence, we must cut off all our past relations with any idols and come before God, trusting in His promises, knowing and believing that He will bless all of our generations.

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Some parents offer their children to the gods when the children are infants. However, when these children come before God today, they must cut off the relationships that were made by their parents in the past. If you are one of them, let me read the following prayer once. Then you pray along with me.

“Dear Heavenly Father, One and Only True God, please enlighten me of my past. I might have consciously or unconsciously been involved in religious activities, and thoughts related to Satan. O Lord, I confess to You that I have participated in _____ (as we mention this, you can silently pray to God about the activities you have participated in such as astrology and horoscopes. Confess these sins to God and repent). Now, forgive me in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, I now declare and cut off all relations with Satan. From now on, I belong to the Lord. The Only True God will protect me with His mighty power and love. Satan and all evil spirits have lost their power and influence in my life. Also, I ask the Lord to revoke curses that are brought about by idolatry so that I, my descendants, and future descendants will receive your blessings. In the Holy name of the Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.”

Brothers and sisters, we are indeed new creations in Christ. This is the gospel. The gospel that tells us our past sins have been forgiven. The curses brought by the sins of our ancestors’ idolatry in the past will not come onto us, nor our children and generations to come. Today, I truly believe and the Bible clearly says in Galatians 3:13 that ‘Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.”’ Hence, the curse has been removed from us and this is the gospel - the gospel of freedom.

We hope that you are truly blessed by this series, and you have gained insight into your faith. May the Word of God help us to live a holy life that glorifies God, and live a lifestyle befitting the children of light. Our prayer is that O Lord, continue to bless us and our families, our children and generations to come. Amen!