This Excellent Church - TEC

Brother Seye begins this teaching series by setting forth what genuine love for God means in its proper light—not the outburst of soppy, sentimental emotions during worship, but the readiness of a heart to do the will of God even, and especially, when the tank of feelings is running red.

He explains that feelings can fuel our love for God, but we must not forget how fickle and undependable they can be. Going primarily by the influence of our feelings is a surefire way to find ourselves walking in carnality and rebellion.

Love moves far beyond what comes easy in the euphoria of emotions and goes to the exercising of the will in submission to God’s own will when everything we feel tells us to do the opposite. Obedience, especially when it is hard, is the proof of true love.

He also justifies why scripture’s command to love God is perfectly reasonable. He explains that the command to love God is not a call to manufacture/conjure emotions for God, but to behold Him and see how He has first greatly loved us, and then to respond to that. In such a way that we, in actuality, give out of what we have already been abundantly given.

You will be greatly blessed as you listen.

Brother Seye continues the teaching series on the book of Hebrews as he takes us into Hebrews 5.

Here. The writer of Hebrews addresses the Son's superiority over the Levitical priesthood.

Brother Seye exegetes on the Son learning obedience, referring to His submission to the cross to pay for our sins.

Finally, Brother Seye again highlights that the Son's incarnation and consequent suffering give us hope to come to the throne of grace to obtain mercy for our weaknesses.

In this part of the series on Christian Ethics, Brother Sam underscores the kernel of every act of goodness we extend towards our fellow men: God Himself.

We [can] love people because we, firstly, love God. We are loyal to people because we are loyal to God. The condition of our affection towards the Lord enables and shapes our affections towards our fellow image-bearers. It is the wellspring from which the gushes of our morality, honor and compassion towards others come.

This, consequently, means that our exercise of these virtues cannot be in such a manner that betrays the heart of the One who is the Source of all that is good in us. We cannot love people into hell, or be loyal to friends who unrepentantly choose to ride the wheels of rebellion. That is neither love nor loyalty.

Brother Sam also gives more biblical and practical wisdom for handling our human relationships:

1. Do not take money from tight-fisted people.

2. Do not commit trust to people who have proven to not be worthy of it.

3. When people struggle with character flaws, do not endorse their mischief by giving them more responsibilities, rather rehabilitate them.

4. Be careful of those who fawn and flatter.

5. In choosing friends and life partners, prioritize peace over plenty.

You will find much to reflect on, in this sermon. Be blessed.

Brother Seye continues the series by using the imagery of Israel’s captivity and slavery, their sojourning through the wilderness on their way to Canaan; to explain the deceitfulness of sin and its consequent hardening in the Hebrew Christians and to us in the modern church.

The deceitfulness of sin makes us consider the slavery and bondage we were delivered from as better than the abundance of God's grace we have freely received in salvation

Just as the Israelites considered Egypt and cursed God in their hearts and did not enter into God's physical rest (Canaan), so also the believer who looks back at his sins favourably will be carried away by it and lose the ultimate rest of God in Christ Jesus.

“Whoever is righteous has regard for the life of his beast, but the mercy of the wicked is cruel. “ ~ Proverbs‬ ‭12‬:‭10‬ ‭

Brother Sam, building on the previously established maxim that “true wisdom is applied sanctification”, shows in this fourth part of the series, how this sanctification is demonstrated not just in our relationship with our fellow image-bearers, but even with animals.

He explains how virtues such as discernment, kindness and loyalty are fundamental constituents of the Christian ethic, and why the Christian is charged with exemplifying these virtues.

“Relationships are slices of heaven in this broken world”.

In this sermon, you will find encouragement to be introspective and intentional with your relationships—whatever kind they may be—and understand how righteousness evidences itself through an honourable attitude towards man and beast.

In this third part of the midweek series on the book of Hebrews, Brother Maj’ continues on the theme of the Superior Son.

In Hebrews 3, the anchor text shows that Jesus is superior to the man Moses because Jesus is very God, and has much more glory than His servant Moses. For Moses was faithful in God's house, but the builder of the house, Jesus, is worthy of much more glory.

We remain God's house (built by the Son) as long as we hold fast to our confidence.

But then the writer of Hebrews follows up this theme and contrasts the hardness of the heart of the children of Israel with the Hebrew Christian’s potential unbelief by showing us what destroys our confident hope in God

Unrepentant sin is the enemy of our confidence. The compounded effects of sin wane our confidence in God and harden our hearts like the children of Israel who did not enter God's rest because of unbelief.

Please listen and share

In the third part of this series on Christian wisdom and ethics, Brother Sam explains how Christians must conduct themselves in their secular and material affairs, to please and glorify God even in such things.

He highlights the necessity of conscientiousness in handling our things—jobs, businesses, education, and other earthly responsibilities—firstly because these things have been generously given to us by a King to whom we will give account for how we stewarded them.

If God entrusts us with an assignment/responsibility, exerting ourselves with discipline and diligence to faithfully carry out that assignment/responsibility is evidence that we fear God. And whatever is the product of reverential fear for God is true wisdom.

Brother Seye continues his exposition on the book of Hebrews as he addresses chapters 1 through 2 to show us that the Son is superior and more excellent than angels.

The imagery of angelic manifestation to the fathers by the prophets will not have been lost on the Hebrew Christians, thereby being a means to aid their rejection of Jesus and return to Judaism

But if the word spoken through angels was binding such that every transgression received a just recompense, HOW SHALL WE ESCAPE IF WE NEGLECT SO GREAT A SALVATION, which the LORD JESUS first announced?

This is the heart cry of the writer of Hebrews

In the second part of this series, Brother Sam emphasizes wisdom as being distinct from intelligence. Much of what the world commemorates as ‘wisdom’ is no wisdom at all, but a high Intelligence/Emotional Quotient at best. The world’s system rewards a cunning, scheming, manipulative person for being “wise”, but the Bible calls such wisdom earthly, unspiritual and demonic (James 3:13-18). True, biblical wisdom is to be an infant in evil.

True wisdom substantiates itself in this way:

~ Discerning between good and evil

~ Doing the will of God

~ Applying righteousness in every area of your life

Brother Seye begins a teaching series for the midweek services on the book of Hebrews.

He starts with a background to the book, making a case for its canonicity, orthodoxy, and necessity for the church of God in the 21st century. This puts to rest any aspersions cast on its authorship as the basis for rejecting it as authoritative.

He handles 2 key points. Who wrote the book and who was it addressed to.

He then goes into the first bone of contention in Hebrews 1; the Son is superior. He shows that the prophets' writings and prophecies had found their fulfilment in the Superior One.  The Son!