Pastoral Letter 05 Jun 2022

My dear readers,


Are You Walking Uprightly?

Proverbs 10:9: “He that walketh uprightly walketh surely: but he that perverteth his ways shall be known.”

Thank God that He has shown sinful man the way to walk uprightly on earth. If He did not reveal this upright way to man, all of us would continue to walk in sin and spiritual darkness. Everyone will die in sin and be justly cast into hell by God Most High! But from the very beginning of time, God has never left man without a holy witness in the form of His holy, perfect and precious Word of Life. From this Book of books called the Bible, God shows man how he can walk uprightly. This upright walk is guaranteed to be acceptable to God on the day of His omniscient judgment, for He declares that it is a sure walk, i.e. a walk in safety. It is a safety from God’s wrath. The literal translation is: “He who walks in innocence walks safely, but he who distorts his way shall be known.”

The beginning of this upright walk is salvation in Christ Jesus. Without this beginning, man is doomed to walk in sin all his life. The one who doomed us was Adam our first parent. When Adam sinned against God by eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, Adam plunged all humanity into sin as he was the representative Man. He represented all mankind by God’s creation where all humanity will come from Adam as our first parent. Therefore, by his one act of sinful disobedience, man is born in sin as evidenced by his life of sin from cradle to the grave! Romans 5:12: “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” Without God’s intervention to save man from sin, man will helplessly march headlong toward fiery hell!

Thank God that He intervened by sending the Lord Jesus Christ, God's only begotten Son, to suffer and die on the cross for our sins. God raised Him from the dead for our justification. All who confess with their mouths and believe in their hearts that Jesus Christ died for them will be saved. Romans 10:9-11: “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.” This is the beginning of the sure walk that God promises every sinner if they believe!

Once he believes, he will walk uprightly. The Holy Spirit who now dwells in him will help him walk uprightly. He no longer walks alone. The strength and conviction to walk uprightly comes from heaven above. Therefore, every believer is able to walk uprightly as this is the work and enabling of the Holy Spirit. This is one of the clearest evidence of a person who is truly born-again in Christ. To walk uprightly means to live his life according to God's Holy Word. With the mind of Christ given to him as the Holy Spirit dwells in him, he understands the Word of God correctly. As a child of God, he has the ability to understand the Bible which is a spiritual Book. His mind begins to be filled with the knowledge of God as he studies. The more he studies, the faster he thinks like his Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. His mind, heart, words and life will all be transformed from inside out. This is the work of the Holy Spirit, and not by the will of man. That is why it is a sure walk.

It is a safe walk that guarantees God’s acceptance. Unbelievers will despise and hate him because of his holy walk, just as when light shines darkness disappears. Darkness hates the light. Man who loves sin hates righteousness. The upright walk will be fraught with many challenges, one of which is persecution. Loved ones and friends might try their best (in their own sincerity) to threaten or to even hurt him for being holy in Christ. Obeying the LORD against such a tide of persecution where the heart is forced to choose Christ or not is most difficult. Another danger is the temptations of the world to seduce the child of God into carnality.

Following the way of uprightness versus the way of unrighteousness will be a lifelong struggle for every child of God without exception. The closer he is to the finishing line and completing the race in victory, the more he needs to be careful. At the late stage of his life, he may tend to relax in his walk, having succeeded and done well thus far, so he may think that he can afford to lower his guard. This is the time when he is most vulnerable. This is when he must be most righteous in his walk and not compromise, not even in the slightest; otherwise, the holy witness that he had built for Christ up to that point can easily tumble down. This is seen in many of the good OT kings, and also sadly in the lives of Christians throughout the church period. The struggles will only end at death.

The alternative is the way of perverseness. He distorts his way as if he is living the right way! This is the way of false Christs. False Christs are professing Christians who live in sin and evil, thus presenting a Christ who sins and is evil. If the professing Christian bows down to idols, he is telling the world that Jesus Christ is no different from idols. If the professing Christian believes that Christ died for his sins so that he can be healthy and wealthy, he is telling the world that Christ is carnal and promotes the lusts of the flesh and of the eyes which is the exact opposite of what Christ came from heaven to do! Christ came from heaven to deliver us from the bondage to the lusts of the flesh and of the eyes; whereas these false Christians who pursue health and wealth have Christianised these lusts into “truths” that are acceptable to God.

Anyone who does not live a life of holiness is walking in the way of perverseness. However, when a professing Christian walks in the way of perverseness, he sins a greater sin against Christ by blaspheming His holy Name. This way of perverseness is known to God and to all who are born again in Christ. The ones who do not know are either unbelievers or are the sinners themselves who are so steeped and deep in sin that they cannot see their own sin. Believers can see by evaluating such lives in light of God’s Truth. Psalm 119:105: “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”

But more importantly we need to evaluate our own lives. If we do not delight in the study or the hearing of God's Word, it is a reflection of the spiritual sickness or bankruptcy of our soul. The Bible is the milk and meat to every born-again believer’s soul. If we do not pray without ceasing as commanded by God, it reflects a soul that is self-sufficient and carnal and is fighting the good fight of faith by his own carnal strength. He will surely fall into sin. Above all else, it is known to the all-knowing God. It is foolish to hide anything from Him, for His omniscient eyes can see into our soul and He examines every motive of the heart behind every word spoken and action done.

Since God knows our present spiritual state, it is incumbent upon us to cry to Him and plead with Him to search our hearts and minds to see if there is any wicked way in us. If there is, let us come before Him in true, sincere repentance; and cry to Him for forgiveness and the cleansing blood of Christ to wash us of all our sins; and live afresh in holiness and righteousness according to Holy Scriptures. Amen.



Yours faithfully in the Saviour’s Service,
Rev Dr Quek Suan Yew
Advisory Pastor


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