Paradigms of City Harvest Church

This message is a summary of what Rev Dr Kong Hee has preached over several weeks concerning the DNA of City Harvest Church (CHC). For the full audio-visual message with Scripture verses and all, please check it out at The Ink Room. I am sure that this series of messages on the distinctives of CHC will spur you on in your walk with Christ Jesus regardless of which church you are residential.

What is a paradigm? A paradigm is a distinct way of thinking or viewing life in an entire community or generation.

Paradigms of City Harvest Church (Photo credit: William Choy)

In essence, the paradigms of CHC are as follows:

1. The Pursuit Of God Is The Whole Purpose of Life.

2. The Word Of God Is The Means To Abiding In Christ.

3. Love Is The Essence Of God.

4. Faith Obtains What Grace Has Provided.

5. Prayer Is The Key To Revival & Miracles.

6. The Primary Purpose Of Christ Is Soul-winning.

7. The Church Is God's Greatest Gift To Serve Humanity.

8. Discipleship Challenges Our Values, Fine-tunes Our Attitudes And Forms Christ's Character In Us.

9. The Great Commandment Is Our Motivation, The Great Commission Is The Goal And The Cultural Mandate Is The Strategy.

10. The Cultural Mandate Is Only Completed When The Character And Presence Of God Is Ushered In.

11. Strong Faith Allows For Christian Liberty.

12. Marriage Must Be Nurtured By Passion, Intimacy And Commitment.

13. Manhood & Christlikeness Are Synonymous.

14. Youths Are The Catalysts Of Revival.

15. Devotion Delights In Sacrifices To God.

Based on my sketchy notes with adaptation, I would just like to highlight a few selected paradigms:

Paradigm 1: The Pursuit of God Is The Whole Purpose Of Life.

The pursuit of God is an expression of love and never ending; it is from everlasting to everlasting. Consider Jacob who struggled with God overnight and would not let Him go. (Genesis 32:26)

God was impressed and honoured Jacob's audacity to ask for His blessing. It was to be a defining moment for Jacob as God pronounced to him his new name, Israel, which means "Prince with God"! Israel, in turn, was visibly moved and called that place of encounter, Peniel, which means "Face of God" for he had seen God face to face, and his life is preserved. (Genesis 32:30; NKJV)

How hungry are we for God, our Living Water and Living Bread? Isn't He more than enough for us in all the world, above and beyond all which have been created by Him and through Him and for Him?

"As the deer pants [longingly] for the water brooks,

So my soul pants [longingly] for You, O God." (Psalm 42:1; AMP)

"In the night my soul longs for You [O Lord],

Indeed, my spirit within me seeks You diligently;

For [only] when Your judgments are experienced on the earth

Will the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness." (Isaiah 26:9; AMP)

Paradigm 2: The Word of God Is The Means Of Abiding In Christ.

God regards His Word above His own name. So should we, His followers and pre-believers -- by hearing, reading, studying, meditating and memorizing the Word of God, and followed through with trust-and-obey.

"I will worship toward Your holy temple,

And praise Your name

For Your lovingkindness and Your truth;

For You have magnified Your word above all Your name." (Psalm 138:2; NKJV)

As God Himself has revealed in His infallible Word, His Word is truly the avenue to abiding in Christ:

"Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him." (John 14:23; NKJV)

"If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you." (John 15:7; NKJV)

Paradigm 6: The Primary Purpose Of Christ Is Soul-winning.

As with Christ, soul-winning must be the primary purpose of Christians and the Church. We are not just a company of do-gooders in a social club. We are called to be fisher of mankind by making disciples, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe the Word of God.

By a personal revelation given by Christ Jesus to Ps Kong Hee in a hotel room overlooking Waikiki Beach years ago based on the Great Commandment found in Matthew 22:36 - 38, CHC has adopted imperatives such as "Loving God Whole-heartedly & Loving People Fervently", "To Find A Hurt And Heal It. To Look For A Need And Meet It." and "The Caring System" all for the purpose of winning souls for Christ's kingdom.

Paradigm 9: The Great Commandment is the Motivation, the Great Commission is to the Goal, and the Cultural Mandate is the Strategy.

A mandate is the authority to act in a certain way and the cultural mandate stems from God's mandate given in Genesis 2:15.

"So the Lord God took the man [He had made] and settled him in the Garden of Eden to cultivate and keep it." (Genesis 2:15; AMP)

In Latin, the word for "cultivate" is "cultura" and it means "culture", "cultivate the ground". Work releases our potential and we become proficient through practice, practice and more practice.

"Cultura" also means worship. Work is worship. Stay engage in your culture, as Jesus did, without compromising the Character and Presence of God in all your good works.

We can engage our culture in two arenas:

1. The Marketplace of Business, Education, Entertainment, Mass Media and Government.

2. Pop (popular) culture. (Yes, I have heard gospel raps and seen Christian leaders with undercuts without compromising the character and presence of God in all that they do.)

Pop culture gives people in our fallen world a global platform to tap into hope and love. And, Christians can start owning this platform more and more as the light of the world and salt of the earth.

Besides learning from the best in the business, Christians have the advantage of tapping into the creativity of God through the in-filling of the Holy Spirit.

Did you know that John Newton's renowned "Amazing Grace" hymn was actually a pub song redeemed for the glory of God?! I didn't. But, now I know, thanks to the Cultural Mandate, and to Pastor Kong for sharing this insight.

"For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross." Colossians 1:19,20 (NKJV)

In the face of pop culture, we could respond by Cocooning (withdrawing and isolating), Combating (fighting and resisting; self-righteous mindset) or Conforming (compromising, no repentance, no taking up the cross; Gospelite rather than Light of the world). Or, we could be agents of God's redemption in all its fullness by entering this global platform.

If you are interested, please look up The Ink Room to lay hold of this series on Paradigms of CHC to gain new insights and revelations for your spiritual edification and strengthening of your faith.

True Bread of Life

But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’” " Matthew 4:4 (NKJV)

There is bread and there is the true Bread of Life. There is a way that seems right to us but leads to destruction, and a Way of life that leads to eternity. Man-made bread will sustain our physical body, but it is the Word of God which sustains our spirit man.

The Eternal Word is Jesus Christ: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it." John 1:1-5 (NKJV)   

Jesus is the true Bread of Life and we really do need to partake of His words with a believing heart. 

"Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” 

Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”

Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.”

And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst."" John 6:29-35(NKJV)

What eating is to the body, believing is to the soul

In his book "And HE Dwelt Among Us" (pages 201 and 202), A.W. Tozer observed that: 

"Many people believe texts, but the text never got inside them. Is Jesus Christ, the Bread of Life, actually inside you? Have you been initiated into that other world, that spiritual world, the kingdom of God? Are you in that kingdom? You can be, because what eating is to the body believing is to the soul. 

It will fix your gaze on Him who is the Bread of Life and keep you saying and believing, "LORD, I do believe; I trust Thee; I am now trusting Thee." That which is external will become internal. That which is in the text will get into your heart. That which is in the Bible will get into your soul. You can get up and say, "I know for myself that I know."

When we receive the Word of God with a believing heart as seeds that fall on good ground, His words will bear fruit and produce a plentiful harvest of God's character, Presence and Power in us for the good works which He has pre-ordained for us to do.

"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." 2 Timothy 3:16,17 (NKJV)

"For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." Ephesians 2:10(NKJV)

Let us allow the Bread of Life free reign in our heart so that we can truly know and live out our destiny with His full blessing; no matter where He leads us, we will follow.