Encounters with God are the turning points in our lives. Basing his message on Moses and the burning bush (Exo 3), Bobby Chaw teaches how a Christian can have an encounter with God. At the prime of his life, Moses thought he would lead God’s people into the Promised Land, but he took matters into his own hands and became a fugitive. When he was 80, God met him and his destiny was fulfilled. Pastor Bobby lists two key things: one, encountering God begins with a desire. When he saw the burning bush, Moses took time to note that the bush was not being burned down, and when he approached it, the Angel of the Lord spoke to him. If you have a desire for God, you will find Him. Two, encountering God is about experiencing His love. As Song of Songs 8:6 says, love is as strong as death, its flames are flames of fire. God wants us to remember His love for us and to abide in that love; He is not ashamed to be called our God (Heb 11:16). Listen to this sermon and stay hungry for God’s love.

Guest speaker Peter Paauwe, founder of Doorbrekkers Church in the Netherlands, delivers a powerful reminder that believers need to have faith and expectation. There are three things Christians need in order to develop unshakeable faith. First, we must hear the voice of the Father. A father draws close and speaks to His child when trouble is near. Be aware that Father God is not far—we are always moving and breathing in Him. Second, we must hear the voice of our Shepherd. John 10:2 assures us that Jesus knows every single one of His sheep. Besides staying close to the Shepherd, a sheep is safest when it is in the flock—even when you face challenges, as part of the flock you will move in the right direction with Jesus. Third, we must hear the truth from the Holy Spirit, and distinguish facts from faith. The promises of God are facts that cannot be argued against. The Holy Spirit will tell you the facts, and you need to stand on them and resist the devil daily.

In this sermon, Kong Hee explains why it is crucial for every believer to have faith, because without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb 11:6). What does it mean to have faith? Faith means focus—to keep one’s focus on God’s love, His word and His promises; to not be distracted from God, despite what one sees or feels. Pastor Kong teaches there are three levels of faith: little faith (Matt 8:23) is when you struggle to believe, when you are distracted by what’s going on around you and cannot focus on God. Great faith is strong and unwavering faith in the face of circumstances, such as the  faith of the centurion in Matt 8:5-10 and the Canaanite woman (Matt 15:22-28). The highest level of faith is perfect faith, which is trusting obedience regardless of outcome. Perfect faith is when we can obey God whether or not we are healed or blessed, just like Jesus. Be encouraged by this message to grow in your faith in God!

2000 years ago, Jesus was resurrected and He is alive today! In this Easter message, Kong Hee shares three things the empty tomb means for those who believe in Jesus: it means freedom from the pain of the past — Jesus died to free you from all the abuse, pain, resentment freedom that haunt you. The empty tomb means freedom from the pressures of today — the power that raised Jesus from the dead can empower you to overcome your problems. The empty tomb means freedom from the pessimism of tomorrow — Jesus is your hope of glory, God has plans to give you hope and a future. Hear this message and be assured that empty tomb is the guarantee: Jesus will set you free!

On the Cross, Jesus provided for our every need with His one, complete, perfect sacrifice, once for all. In this message, Kong Hee shares eight things that Jesus has replaced in our lives through the Great Exchange. Jesus was wounded so that we might be forgiven and healed; He was made sin so that we might be righteous; He became a curse so that we might be blessed; He became poor so that we might have abundance; He endured our shame so that we might share his glory; He endured our rejection so that we might have acceptance; and Jesus tasted death so that we might share His life. Be reminded that you are reconciled with God through Jesus’ perfect work on the Cross.

Dr Younghoon Lee, Senior Pastor of Yoido Full Gospel Church likens City Harvest Church to the Antioch Church in the book of Acts. The Antioch Church was the first church for Gentiles, and the most influential church in the Roman Empire. Dr Lee preached on four qualities of the Antioch Church: one, it has a Christ-centred faith. The church must have a clear goal to worship the Lord and to dedicate itself to Him. As “Christians” we are called to think, speak, act and live like Jesus. Two, the Antioch Church has Holy Spirit-centred faith: the baptism of the Holy Spirit is the turning point in a Christian’s life. Three, the Antioch Church has prayer-centred faith: nothing happens until we pray. Prayer is the “secret” to revival and church growth; it produces blessings and miracles in the church in the church. Four, the Antioch Church has mission-centred faith. Every Christian is called to win souls, to preach the gospel to the ends of the earth. Listen to this sermon and be revived in your calling to worship the Lord, be filled with the Holy Spirit, pray unceasingly and reach out to the lost.

In this message, Dr Younghoon Lee, Senior Pastor of Yoido Full Gospel Church reminds the church that God always works with and through great men and women of faith, such as his spiritual father and mentor, the late Dr Yonggi Cho. Using powerful testimonies of faith at work, Dr Lee shares three things a Christian must have: one, believers must have great dreams and visions in Jesus Christ. It was through such dreams and visions that Dr Lee built a church in five years, debt-free and he and his wife conceived their child after 17 years of marriage. Two, believers must have a word of God-centred faith; they must meditate on God’s word day and night and listen carefully and obey the word of God immediately. Three, Jesus Christ is the centre of the believer’s faith, so believe in Jesus and trust in Him. The starting point of the Christian faith is the cross where Jesus conquered death. Let faith arise as you listen to this sermon!

While the four stages of the Christian journey—awakening, purgation, illumination and union—lead us to the great joy of theosis, this is not easily achieved. Kong Hee teaches in this message the ultimate experience for the rare Christian: having the full measure of Christlikeness will not be possible without the dark night of the senses and of the soul. The dark nights are periods of detachment caused or allowed by God to wean us away from the things of this world. During such times He may even withdraw His blessings and hide His face. Pastor Kong explains that God wants to bring us to the point where we need nothing and no-one but Him, the point where even if He withdraws Himself we can still continue to love and long for Him just as Jesus did. Let this sermon encourage you to be unafraid of suffering and to be willing to let go of anything that stands in the way of Your love for God and His will.

To have cravings, desires and aspirations is not wrong. What is important is the kind of food—natural, mental, spiritual—that one consumes. In this thought-provoking message, Aries Zulkarnain likens the appetite one has for food to one’s spiritual appetite for God. Just as one can spoil one’s appetite by eating junk food, making nutritious food undesirable, one can also ruin one’s desire for God by feasting on carnal content. Pastor Aries urges the listener to desire for Jesus’ food, which is to do the will of Father God (John 4:34). He presents the way to do this in a “three-course meal”: self-denial, that is, living a lifestyle of making small sacrifices daily that will prepare you for big challenges; to do all things unto the Lord, that is to please God rather than to be popular; and to be faithful to the gospel, to keep preaching the Good News.

In this sermon, Kong Hee continues his message on the three things that happen in silence and solitude, the first two being meditation and contemplation. The third and most precious of these is union with God. Meditation is applying one’s mind to the word of God. Contemplation is loving God without words or agenda. Union is becoming one with God in love and likeness. Pastor Kong explains that this is God’s desire, that we come into a loving union with Him. In fact, it is the end goal of salvation: Jesus went to the cross so that we can experience divine union—theosis—with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is only when we increasingly unite with the Godhead that we are more and perfected in love, and more like Jesus. Let this message draw you into a time of silence and solitude, and into union with God.