Sword of the Spirit

Bible Study (July 31) - Genesis 2

2010-08-04T00:06:00.000-07:00

Genesis Chapter 2

Verses 8-14 (NLT) – The Garden of Eden

8 Then the Lord God planted a garden in Eden in the east, and there he placed the man he had made. 9 The Lord God made all sorts of trees grow up from the ground—trees that were beautiful and that produced delicious fruit. In the middle of the garden he placed the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
10 A river flowed from the land of Eden, watering the garden and then dividing into four branches. 11 The first branch, called the Pishon, flowed around the entire land of Havilah, where gold is found. 12 The gold of that land is exceptionally pure; aromatic resin and onyx stone are also found there. 13 The second branch, called the Gihon, flowed around the entire land of Cush. 14 The third branch, called the Tigris, flowed east of the land of Asshur. The fourth branch is called the Euphrates.

Thoughts:

We saw that the Lord especially created man and put him in a garden – a “delightful and pleasurable” place to stay. We have parks where we can have rest and recreation, and definitely parks are good places to hang around. We can have a hint that the garden was somewhere in modern day Iraq due to the presence of the two known rivers in the text – Tigris and Euphrates which we know still exist today. History also indicates that the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar built the so-called “hanging gardens” in Babylon (now Iraq) around 600 B.C. which was considered as one of the original Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Therefore, it is possible to have lush tropical areas such as lovely gardens because of the rivers that can provide irrigation through the land.

Now, if you are an explorer and treasure hunter, you may possibly want to find where the land of Havilah is, where the river Pishon runs through because high grade gold and other precious stones are there (vv. 11-12). One of the richest men in America, John D. Rockefeller was believed to have hinted from the Bible where oil in the Middle East was located such as the presence of tar pits (Gen 14:10) – which made him an oil magnate.

Verses 15-20 (NLT) – Adam was commissioned

15 The Lord God placed the man in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it. 16 But the Lord God warned him, “You may freely eat the fruit of every tree in the garden—17 except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. If you eat its fruit, you are sure to die.”
18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.” 19 So the Lord God formed from the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the sky. He brought them to the man[c] to see what he would call them, and the man chose a name for each one. 20 He gave names to all the livestock, all the birds of the sky, and all the wild animals. But still there was no helper just right for him.

Thoughts:

Adam was commissioned by the Lord as the “manager” of His creation. Adam was given the authority and responsibility to rule and name other creatures. There are about 2 million “identified” species on earth according to statistics and as many as 100 million are believed to be unknown. Naming those species alone can be mind boggling, but according to the Bible, Adam named them according on how he wanted to. This is an enormous authority and task to tag something as they would be.

The Lord said in every day of His creation as “good”, and “very good” for the creation of man. But this is the time the Lord said something that “It is not good ….. “, but of course referring to Adam being alone and without partner, for he was not able to find someone from among the creation to be his partner. The Lord made him realize that he needs somebody – as a “helper”, somebody the same as him and fit for him. All other creation seems to have partners – mr. and mrs. elephant, mr. and mrs. chimpanzee, etc. – but he has none!

Verses 15-20 (NLT) – The first garden wedding

21 So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep. While the man slept, the Lord God took out one of the man’s ribs[d] and closed up the opening. 22 Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib, and he brought her to the man.
23 “At last!” the man exclaimed.
“This one is bone from my bone, and flesh from my flesh! She will be called ‘woman,’ because she was taken from ‘man.’”
24 This explains why a man leaves his father and mother and is joined to his wife, and the two are united into one.
25 Now the man and his wife were both naked, but they felt no shame.

Thoughts:

Many people look for love and partner in many wrong places – internet dating, romance websites, etc, but they end up being scammed. Here, Adam was simply gone to deep sleep, entrusted to the Lord whom he would have as partner, and “Alas!” or as the term said “At last!” – here comes the bride! The first perfect marriage since no past boyfriends to talk about, and no mother in-law to compare how good they cook. And the first perfect garden wedding, initiated by the Lord Himself. As usual, Adam had the authority to name his partner, as he did with all other creature. And he called her – wo-man. From the womb of a man. For out of his side and rib came out the woman, his very bride!

Also, the last Adam - who is Jesus had gone to “deep sleep”, literally died in another garden - the garden of Golgotha. And from His side a spear was stuck, and there came out water and blood – the things that come out during birthing period. And from His side, the Church was born. The Church who is the bride of the last Adam (Jesus) forever!

Another important principle is the “leaving”, “cleaving”, and “uniting” between the husband and wife. Although Adam and Eve were the first couple (with no in-laws), the Lord God established the principle ahead of time for Adam and Eve to implement through their siblings. Many times, the first step of “leaving” is very hard to obey for many young couples, but it is the most important step in married life – to leave all other relationships. The Lord God also requires from us leaving all other gods and relationships, when we want to have relationship and be united with the Lord.

Many Bible teachers believe that the last verse (v.25) implies healthy sexual relations between the first couple, since the relationship is pure and unblemished. That is what supposed to be for married couples – relationships not adulterated by any other.

Thank you for reading and studying with us. We will dash through Genesis Chapter 3 next Saturday, or even Friday if people will come.

Laugh for a joke (courtesy of Pastor Joven):
Question: What is the difference between in-laws and out-laws?
Think ..... Think ..... Think ..... Think ..... Think .....
Answer: Out-laws are "Wanted", while in-laws are "Not wanted"

Bible Study (July 24) - Genesis 1 and 2

2010-08-04T00:02:00.000-07:00

Review on Genesis chapter 1

Some thoughts shared regarding the days of creation:
The Lord separated – the light from darkness, the waters below and above the sky, the seas from the land, and the day from the night.
Also, the Lord filled those whom He separated with creation such as - the seas with fishes, the air with birds, and land with plants and animals, and finally the human being.

Spiritual application: the Lord is in the business of sanctification (separating something for special use) even at the beginning of creation. When we trusted on the Lord for our salvation, God started to set us aside for His special purpose, filled us with His Spirit, and uses us to bring Him back the glory and to tell others of His love and salvation.

Genesis 1:20-23 Fifth Day of Creation

1. God created the living creatures in the water – the sea monsters or beasts like whales, and things that creeps and swarms the waters. So all the creeps were created by God too, just kidding J.

2. God created the living creatures in the air - like birds that fly, particularly. There was no particular mention of flying insects though. But take note that insects like butterflies came from creeping creatures like caterpillars, mosquitoes from water germs, etc.

However creepy some things were, they were good according to the Lord. Everything was created by God for a purpose. God blessed them all to multiply and to fill the seas and the earth.

Genesis 1:24-31 Sixth Day of Creation

1. God created the living creatures in the land – the livestock to wild animals, and small animals that scurry along the ground.

2. God created human beings – in his own image: a triune creature – body, soul, and spirit (1 Thes. 5:13). Everything else has body and soul (thoughts and feelings) like the animals, but they have no spirit.

God gave the authority to man to manage the whole earth and creation. God gave human beings too the ability to pro-create, to multiply, and to subdue the earth.

Some believe that this was to counteract the presence of Satan – whom when thrown out from heaven to earth, turned the “first” earth into chaos (Gen. 1:2) and still rule as the prince of the power of the air (Eph. 2:2), until now. Bible numbers somehow designate the number 6 to the number of man, whereby man was created on the sixth day.

Genesis Chapter 2

Genesis 2:1-4 Seventh Day of Creation

God “rested” after creating everything – blessed them as “good”, and “very good” for the creation of man. But on the seventh day, the Lord declared it as “holy”. We have holy-days or holidays, but it would be different from the seventh day because it should be dedicated for the Lord who is holy.

The Lord did not rest because He was worn out or tired, but to exemplify to His creation that there is a period of rest – filled with worshiping and fellowshipping with the Creator. Setting aside a day of rest is worship in itself, because we are obeying what God had instituted and trusting that He can provide for what we need. We may be able to “advance ahead” with our finances, and from our co-workers when we don’t rest for a day, but it wouldn’t take long and we must deal with “pay back time”. We can get worn out and sick and pay more with hospital bills, we can have worn out car, we can have broken relationships, we can get cold in our spiritual life. We can be caught up with money matters and become greedy, become discontented and wanting for more, and we can end up rationalizing not attending fellowships and church. Worse is to end up not trusting in the Lord, and the Lord crystallizing our disbelief and finally we turn away from the faith – which is a heavy warning on the last days (Matt 24:10, 2 Tim 3:1-9).

Genesis 2:5-9 Details of Creation

Genesis chapter 1 somehow gave us a “wide angle view” of the creation process. And now in chapter 2, it slowly “zooms in” to the details of creation. Here we read that the Lord created the “largest sprinkler system in the world” to water all the land and the plants.

We also read how God created the man – whom we will know as Adam. Adam means man. Root meaning of man is earth – from dust, where man was made.

Psalm 103:13-14: As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.

Take note that it did not become a human being, not until the Lord breathed the “breath of life” into the man’s nostrils. So, we know that a man without the Spirit of God is basically dead - spiritually. We became alive in Christ, when the Holy Spirit took dwelling in our life.

The Lord planted the Garden of Eden and put the man there. Also the Lord placed in the middle of the garden, the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The tree to test the obedience of Adam to the Lord. If he will obey and not eat, then that is “good” because he will enjoy God’s providence and fellowship forever. If he will disobey and will eat of the fruit, then that is “evil” – because disobedience is the character of the Devil.

Bible Study (July 16) - Genesis 1

2010-08-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

Genesis 1:9-13 Third Day of Creation

verses 9-10 Land and seas were separated. And God saw that it was good.
verses 11-13 Trees and vegetations were created - seeds reproduce according to their kind.

Is it not interesting to know that God authored the cycle of reproduction? And take note, it is according to its own kind. Also, take note that seeds bring new life. The plant grows, it gives out fruits, and from the fruits come out seeds. The plant dies then the seed will be planted and come out as new plant again.

There is another Seed mentioned in the Bible. In Galatians 3:16 it said, “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say "and to seeds," meaning many people, but "and to your seed," meaning one person, who is Christ”. Also in Galatians 3:29 it said, “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

Christ is the Seed who died, and on the third day, rose again to give life to many people like you and me. God promised Abraham to be father of many nations (Genesis 17:4). We now that we too belong to Abraham, being believers in Christ. Romans 4:17 said, “As it is written: "I have made you a father of many nations." He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed — the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.”

Is it not interesting to know that on the third day of creation, God started to create life (at least plant life), and life that reproduce? Christ resurrected on the third day to give new life to all who will trust and believe in His atoning work for mankind. Unfortunately, people started to mess up with what God had originally designed. We now produce crops that are seedless (i.e. grapes, tomatoes, melons, etc). Who want to eat seeds anyway, right? Wrong, those seeds need to reproduce their own kind. Christians too need to reproduce and we need to sow the original Seed - who is Christ, in the hearts of people.

Genesis 1:14-19 Fourth Day of Creation

verses 14-15: Creation of sun, moon, and stars is described in general terms.

verse 16: The term lights mean "luminaries". The word can designate the sun, which emits light, or the moon, which reflects light. And the stars, "also" which emit lights.

God set the sun, moon, and stars for the "signs and seasons" that determine our days, months, and years; and it also became the earliest form of navigation in the old days. Depending on the phases of the moon, and the position of the stars, a skilled sailor can navigate through the oceans. We had the likes of Columbus, Magellan, and other sailor-discoverers who traversed and braved the seas and oceans using the sun, moon, and stars for navigation. Now, they popularized the GPS system we are using J, only this time using man-made “stars” such as satellites – we have Magellan GPS for example. But then, when everything else fails and our moral compass are broken, God is still there guiding us – with His Spirit, even with His sun, moon, and stars reminding us of His greatness and holiness.

Now in the ancient days, people worshiped, deified, and mystified the stars. Other religions either worship the sun, moon, the stars, or all of them. Pagan Arabs worshiped them all, and many believed that Islam religion extracted one of the moon gods called "Hubal" and eventually worshiping that god as Allah or Al-ilah. And therefore, the Islam religion has a crescent moon as a symbology in many landscapes and also the flags of Muslim countries. In 1950's, a statue of the moon god was excavated in the Middle East, with the crescent moon embossed on its chest.

But not to single out the Islam religion, other eastern religions as far as China, India, and other African countries have moon gods too but different names. Yet, we know that even in Muslim countries, and Buddhist countries, God is working and many people are turning to Christ for salvation - many of them claimed they were disoriented by their religions, and don't fill in that God-shaped vacuum in the hearts of people. Many of the persecuted Muslim-Christians who seek asylum to the U.S. are now preaching Christ back to their countries.

Bible Study (July 9) - Genesis 1

2010-08-03T23:46:00.000-07:00

Here are the highlights on Genesis 1:1-8 (NKJV):

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Comments:

We need to acknowledge that GOD exists, even before we were created. He is from eternity to eternity, and He is timeless. Next, GOD is the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and all the things we see and feel. Nothing happened by accident, but designed by an Intelligent Designer - GOD Himself. Huge explosion do not create, but it destroys. GOD in this text is a compound unity (Elohim - plural form) - it expresses the grandeur of GOD. With reference to John 1, it may imply the Trinitarian nature of GOD - One GOD in three distinct Persons. The mystery of the Trinity cannot be explained by our limited knowledge of GOD. And we dare not compare and explain with simple things such as egg, water (forms of gas, liquid, and solid), office positions, and others.

Important thought:

If Christians fail to defend the fact that GOD exists, and GOD created all things, then we are giving the atheists and evolutionist the upper hand to disprove the Christian faith. And everything about the rest of the Bible is simply not true, and our faith are just in vain.

2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

Comments: Verses 1 and 2 have time lapsed in a sense. God cannot create something and it is still void and without form. Verse 1 seems to be the summary of all succeeding verses describing the process of creation.

3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. 4 And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day.

Comments:

A day in Hebrew "yom" - is a sequence of darkness and light, or day and night. And we prefer a 24-hour period as verses 3-5 exactly refers to, day and night. Evolutionists imply that "yom" is longer from several days to even billion years, simply adjustable so that it can support the forming of one thing to another (i.e. monkey to human), while they're buying time - and we know it will never happen.

6 Then God said, “Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.” 7 Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. So the evening and the morning were the second day.

Comments:

Many teachers believe that God created a canopy of water above the sky, and water down below which we know as the seas and oceans. The waters above served as filter and temperature control to provide human beings a good or even perfect environment to live on earth (somewhat same function as the ozone layer). Making it possible for human to live hundreds of years - like Methuselah who lived 969 years. During the great flood - God opened up the heavens and released the floodgates of heaven (Gen 7:11). Many teachers believe that the layer of protection was removed, thus fulfilling what God said that life span will only last 120 years (Gen 6:3).

Spiritual Application (verses 2-5):

We all know that we were once in the darkness, under the dominion and control of Satan. We were "wild and wasted" or without form and void. But at some point in time, the Lord created us into a wonderful creation. When God's Spirit was hovering over the emptiness of mankind, the Lord found us and made us into new beings - people that reflect His beauty and majesty. We became new creation in Jesus Christ, when we responded to His love and grace (2 Cor 5:17). Do you want to be renewed and find new meaning in life? Ask God to make you new a new being, a new creation by inviting Him into your heart - and to make you a new person. As He promised, He will.

God Is Good

2010-04-24T08:17:00.000-07:00

And the man did as Joseph bade; and the man brought the men into Joseph’s house. And the men were afraid, because they were brought into Joseph’s house; and they said, Because of the money that was returned in our sacks at the first time are we brought in; that he may seek occasion against us, and fall upon us, and take us for bondmen.
Genesis 43:17–18

After selling him into slavery, no wonder Joseph’s brothers were afraid when he called for them. “Oh, no!” they said. “He’s calling us to his table because he wants to send us away as prisoners.”

People still have this view of the greater than Joseph, Jesus Christ. People still say, “I’ve blown it so badly; I’ve erred so greatly; I know the Lord will yell at me and imprison me if I even come near His house.”

Not true! Even though these guys had sinned greatly, they will discover incredible grace and unbelievable mercy because Joseph is a picture of Jesus. And where sin abounds, His grace abounds much more (Romans 5:20). When you are aware of your failings, your weaknesses, your inconsistencies, your stubbornness, rebellion, and sin, there’s a tendency to say, “I can’t go to church because I know Jesus is mad at me. If I go, I’ll be bound with rules and regulations; I’ll be sent away to the prison of condemnation.”

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. - Isaiah 55:8–9

Through Isaiah, God says, “When someone offends you, is mean or nasty to you, I know that your ways and your thoughts center on one thing: revenge. But I don’t think like you do. Therefore, I don’t work like you do.”

We need to realize how much different the Lord is from how we are in our fallen condition, in our depraved nature. “God is good,” declares the psalmist (Psalm 73:1). He’s just flat out, plain old good. He looks for ways not to blast, but to bless.

(Borrowed from Pastor Jon Courson)

Adam and Eve

2010-04-11T22:00:00.000-07:00

Just found this joke, and I think it's worth laughing for :) .... Enjoy!

Adam was walking around the Garden of Eden feeling very lonely, and he heard a loud voice ask him, "What is wrong with you?" Adam said he didn't have anyone to talk to. Then the loud voice said he was going to give him a companion and it would be a woman.

He said "this person will cook for you and wash your clothes, she will always agree with every decision you make. She will bear your children and never ask you to get up in the middle of the night to take care of them. She will not nag you, and will always be the first to admit she was wrong when you've had a disagreement. She will never have a headache, and will freely give you love and compassion whenever needed."

Adam asked "What would a woman like this cost me??"

The answer was "an arm and a leg."

Adam then asked "What can I get for just a rib???"

The rest is history.

Be Sanctified

2010-03-15T23:59:00.000-07:00

1 Thessalonians 4:8

Therefore, anyone who refuses to live by these rules is not disobeying human teaching but is rejecting God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.

Text: 1 Thessalonians 4:3-8

From time to time, it is good to be reminded that there are warnings from the Word of God regarding things that we need to avoid as Christians. We notice in the passage that the problems the Thessalonian Christians had were not uncommon, but had been going on until now with even greater intensity. And so, the Apostle Paul stressed out that we should be holy - even as God is holy. It just doesn’t work that God is holy and we are not – otherwise, we are in fact practicing what the Devil is doing.

The Devil never changed tactics in snaring people to sin since he tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden. The lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. Satan offers you something anytime anywhere with these three categories. Something you desire and want to covet, something you want to experience and feed your appetite, and something that will boast your ego and make you feel great! In our text today, the warnings involved are in second category. Whatever age bracket, whatever status of life you are in, whatever maturity level of Christianity you have, these tactics of the Devil work just as fine … whatever (as many people say today).

But take note, there is much emphasis on this warning about sexual immorality for it is a sin with a different sting – we even sin against our own body! (1 Cor 6:18), and our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Many people hate corrections and are not willing to submit to a sound advice – Christians included! The Lord works in different ways and uses different avenues just to put warning signs along our path. Yet, if we neglect God’s loving hand, then we are approaching God’s hand of justice. Verse 6 says that the "Lord will avenge for such sins", more so if we keep doing them. Have you ever thought of such incurable diseases brought about by this sin? Just thinking.

We as believers are going through the sanctification process (or I may say cleansing process). Jesus Christ freed us from the "penalty of sin", He is currently protecting us from the "power of sin", and He will take us out from the "presence of sin". If we don’t tap on God’s protection and make ourselves vulnerable from the power of sin, then we have to take the consequences. We are not disobeying those whom God had sent to talk and warn us, rather we are disobeying God. “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” says Hebrews 10:31. The best thing yet is for us to ponder on verse 7: “God has called us to live holy lives, not impure lives.”

Are We Bearing Fruit?

2010-03-01T23:20:00.000-08:00

Galatians 5:22-23

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are expected to bear fruit as we walk in the Spirit of God. We need to have the “fruit” of the Spirit which is LOVE. With such fruit come the other elements of joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Although the meaning of love had been so much distorted by the Devil in our culture today, believers know love in much different way – that is, the love of God we had experienced when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. It wasn’t based on emotions or feelings, but based on faith on the finished work of Jesus Christ at the cross.

How then can we have the buds of love in our life and make them bloom? As Jesus commanded, we need to love the LORD our GOD with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind and love our neighbors as we love ourselves (Luke 10:27). We need to love other people without conditions. We may find it very hard because we are used to protecting ourselves and fighting back. But as the people were spitting, slapping, hitting, and cursing the Lord Jesus Christ while carrying the cross – He wasn’t thinking of getting back His Godly powers and struck them with bolts of lighting. Rather, He had compassion and saw the people as potential believers in Him – for they do not know what they were doing. I think that’s how we need to love other people too, we may find them very harsh, rude, mean, and indifferent – but they are potential believers and winners in Christ. Every person living and still breathing air is a potential believer in Christ – no matter how good or bad.

Loving other believers are hard as well, and still maybe harder because they already know the Lord and yet maybe behaving like unbelievers. Acts 20:28 says that we need to shepherd other believers, for they were bought by the blood of Jesus too and they are precious! Unfortunately, we are likened more often to a sheep, probably one of the dumbest animals, that when left on its own cannot survive. If we start lashing them out with our staff, then we are in fact lashing on the Lord Jesus Christ for they are in Him. We need to shepherd one another. Whatever we do to the least of our brothers, then we are in fact doing it to the Lord Jesus Christ.

If we really like to do something that is not bound by any law or regulation, which we always long for, then that is loving God and loving other people – as the Lord loved us. We need to reproduce the fruit of the Spirit.

Judging Others?

2010-01-29T15:17:00.000-08:00

Romans 2: 1-3

Therefore you are inexcusable, O man, whoever you are who judge, for in whatever you judge another you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things. But we know that the judgment of God is according to truth against those who practice such things. And do you think this, O man, you who judge those practicing such things, and doing the same, that you will escape the judgment of God?

In this culture of relativism, and no moral absolutes, it seems so easy to come down on people with “I’m better than you” mentality and point fingers so easily. Just check out the magazines when you are paying at the grocery store. One time people are being praised for their good things, the next day they are on tabloids being trampled down like total failures.

Yet, as Christians, we too often fall into this practice of letting others down as if we are at the pinnacle of holiness looking down on those who were trapped in unfortunate circumstances, or on brothers who fell down because of trials or even in sin. In our passage, Paul is reminding Jewish believers who were coming down on the Gentiles drowned in sin (chapter 1), not to be so self-righteous. For in doing so, they were assuming to themselves God’s duty of judging people unto condemnation. They have misunderstood why God is not punishing the Gentile sinners right on, because God is totally good, forbearing, and longsuffering! The goodness of God will lead people into repentance (verse 4). If God had waited for 120 years in the time of Noah before opening the “dams” of heaven to flood the earth, then God can wait even more to give chance for sinners to repent. For He does not take pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather for them to come to repentance (Ezekiel 19:23).

“He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” (Matthew 5:45). Yes, God is totally just and righteous when He judges, and when that time comes – no one can complain “unfair”! For God judges “according to truth” (verse 2). When the Lord replays the tape of our life, then we will be dumbfounded and speechless.

Now, we dare not judge others into “condemnation” for we too are often guilty of such things (verse 1). We were commanded to love others – that includes rebuking, correcting, and restoring others - and not to judge them to condemnation, but to help bring them to repentance in Christ.

God Revealed in Creation

2010-01-22T19:57:00.000-08:00

Romans 1:20 (NKJV)

"For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse"

"For the scientist who has lived by his faith in the power of reason, the story ends like a bad dream. He has scaled the mountains of ignorance; he is about to conquer the highest peak; as he pulls himself over the final rock, he is greeted by a band of theologians who have been sitting there for centuries." - Robert Jastrow, director of NASA'S Goddard Institute for Space Studies

Obey authorities, obey God

2010-01-21T23:38:00.000-08:00

Romans 13:2 (NIV)

Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.

Why did God established authorities? In every country, every state, every government, every institution, to the basic institution of family, God had established authorities - whether it be good or bad. This may include police officers, teachers, lawyers, government officials, company officials, and parents (most especially – I think). Verse 1 states that "there is no authority except that which God has established". God is the author of justice, peace, and order. Because of sin, people are basically unlawful, disobedient, rebellious, and unruly.

Therefore, there is a need to counteract and put a balance in our society so that we can have a peaceful and orderly living. God knows best what is needed in our society. Those guys appointed to implement and maintain peace are actually there for our own good! (verse 4). Otherwise, we will be living in fear and lawless environment where anyone can do harm to others, much worse rampant killing and destruction. Even long before, Satan was campaigning for anarchy in societies and governments – which is contrary and opposed to God’s idea of law and order.

Authorities are God’s agents and “bearers of the sword” to execute judgment and punishment for wrongdoers and disobedient individuals (verse 4). In turn, they bear the burden of being responsible before God – who is the highest authority - whether they abused their positions or not. We are all bound to obey and respect authorities, both good or bad. We may not want the people in authorities, yet we give respect to their positions because the Lord had placed them there. More importantly, obedience must start in the home where kids need to obey and respect their parents, for when they grow old, they need to abide by other authorities above them and that will save them a lot of trouble. Also, it is tax season and we need to do our obligations before the government.

Inventors of Evil Things

2010-01-12T23:30:00.000-08:00

Romans 1:28-32 (NKJV)

28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are whisperers, 30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

From time to time I come across Romans 1 with the extensive list of sins committed by many people, and always wondered of that one sin mentioned in verse 30 “inventors of evil things” or in other translations “they invent new ways of sinning or doing evil”. That’s one hellish invention!

I believe the most common example of that sin – in massive scale – in our society today happens in most financial institutions such as in banking and investment institutions, insurance companies, public utility and service providers, and many other industries where massive financial transactions and decisions are made. A single tweak in one of the financial parameters can result into massive increase in profit. Fine prints in multiple-page agreements can contain traps and loopholes that can result in the eventual lose of money in unsuspecting investors or clients.

Many investment, financial, and service providers invent hooks and traps that can capture large number of clients and bound them with terms and conditions that can cost them hundreds of dollars if they want to leave or get away from contracts. Or, if they stay, they will eventually be in the losing end for unwanted modifications in contracts or hikes in fees – but always favoring the “big” companies.

And yet, people who do such things never have contentment even after amassing huge wealth, eventually resulting in creating even more divisive ways to rip-off and punish many people financially. Lately, financial and accounting scandals yielded Bernie Madoff’s ponzi (or pyramid) scheme, AIG investments, Enron scandal, Allen Stanford’s ponzi scheme, Satyam computers, and many other greedy scandals. I wonder what those guys are made of.

As Christians, we can always fall into such schemes and eventually get ripped-off or may had been ripped-off already, and even multiple times with multiple companies and providers. But take courage because we know we have a righteous and just God watching over us who does not sleep nor slumber (Psalm 121:3). The Lord knows everything and all evil things will eventually be punished. As of now, we can pray for wisdom so that we can be “wise as serpents, and harmless as doves” (Matthew 10:16), and not be another victim of people who invent ways of doing evil.

God Is In Control

2010-01-05T22:20:00.000-08:00

But when Jesus heard about it he said, “Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this.” So although Jesus loved Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, he stayed where he was for the next two days. Finally, he said to his disciples, “Let’s go back to Judea.” (John 11:4-7 NLT)

Often times, our faith is challenged by unexpected circumstances that come along our way, especially the ones we call “unfortunate circumstances” like sickness, death of a loved one, bankruptcy, job loss, accidents, wayward kids, and many more. Unbelievers consider them as misfortunes, or in Tagalog “ka-malas-an”. But in the life of a Christian, there is nothing such as “malas”, for everything that happens in the life of the believer is governed by the Lord – who saved us, bought us with His blood, and called us His own.

We see in the passage that Lazarus, Martha, and Mary – who are beloved friends of Jesus, were not exempted in having sickness and even death (physical). We too are not exempted from trials, testing, and temptations no matter how mature we are in the Lord - for they are God’s instruments for molding us into the image of our Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord is preparing us for fellowship with Him for the next billion and gazillion years and into eternity. And He wants to take down all pride that hangs in our life, purifies us to be white as snow for He is holy, and shapes us into beings fit for heaven.

Things will come to pass, and God has the right timing for everything - which could be two days, two months, or two years. And if we abide despite all the trials, the Lord will lift us up and restore us back into joyous fellowship with Him, as He did with Lazarus. Lazarus may had been enjoying heaven for four days, but called back by the Lord to earth again! Nevertheless, it made no difference with Lazarus for he is in the presence of God all along.

All these (trials, testing, and temptations) must happen in the life of a believer – all for the glory of God.

We're Closer To Eternity

2009-12-16T23:34:00.000-08:00

Personally, I feel that my generation is closer to eternity than ever. With all the things said 2000 years ago and beyond - in the Bible - coming into fruition everyday, it is hard to ignore that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is coming back very soon. Nobody knows when, for the Lord comes like a thief in the night when no one is expecting.

The only best thing that "real" Christians do is to propagate the Word so that many people will have the chance to come to the saving knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For the Lord does not delight in the death of the wicked, but that they may come to repentance and have everlasting life in heaven. Christians need to abide in the commands of Jesus by loving the Lord God above all things, and to love other people as God has loved us and gave Himself for us.

Christians should not be caught up with the things and worries of the world, but be ready all the time to be caught up to eternity! One thing I fear is that, many people who expect to be in heaven may not be there - that includes friends, relatives, and people close to me. For even if we find time to share the things of God, they may seem to listen but really not have the understanding and attention. I always think about the event in the Bible when people will call Lord, Lord, but Jesus (who is the Righful Judge and King) will tell them He does not know them. How sad would that be, that even now people prefer to be Christian-like but really are not. They are wolves in sheeps clothing.

For the most part, it is a personal choice. We cannot tell who is who, but only the Lord Jesus Christ who reads the minds and hearts of every person on earth. Every second of our time, we are getting at the edge of eternity, and what have we done for Jesus? Only one life will soon be past, only what's done for Christ will last. Are we doing something for the sake of Jesus Christ now? Loving God, loving people, feeding the poor, helping the sick, leading others to Christ, being good steward, and many other things Jesus wanted us to do for Him? Or, are we caught up in our own small selfish world simply feeding our lust, our desires, our own pleasures, ripping others off, being puffed up in pride, and other stuff of the Devil?

Wake up now Christian, let us redeem the time! For the Lord is nigh, ready to take us up with Him in heaven - and when all things were said and done, no more regretting, no more sorrow and pain, but everlasting feast and fellowship with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! To God be the glory now and forever - in heaven and on the earth!

Heavenly Minded

2009-11-23T23:11:00.000-08:00

Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. (Colossians 3:2 NLT)

Everything on earth has an expiration date. Your brand new car can be out modeled in few months, your computer is good as junk in few years, your cell phone is a shameful piece of electronics in a year or two that you feel pitiful when you use it in public, your no-wrinkle ironed-out jeans becomes out of style when these worn out, lot-of-holes jeans became the fashion – and so much more. All because of the marketing tricks and convincing sales pitches that you wanted to be up-to-date and become crazy about so many things in life, even when it is not necessary.

We are so caught up with material things, even as Christians, that we give much priority on them. There are so many things in life that takes a large chunk of our time, effort, and energy – that we feel left out in the woods if we do not have them. And many times even draw us away from our fellowship with God. In this passage, Paul – who was in prison in Rome, was writing to the Christians in Colosse to consider their new life in Christ, and not to live as carnal believers – that is, not going back to their old lifestyle.

We as modern Christians ought to live as new persons in Christ. We need to leave behind our past life which is hell-bound, and more forward with our heaven-bound life in Christ. We need to “set” our hearts and minds on heavenly matters, and not on earthly matters which last only for a while. The love of money, worship of worldly things, desire for illicit relationships, impurity, lust, evil desires, greediness, anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, lying, and dirty language - need to be taken out of our system. They have no part in our new life in Christ.

We need to replace them with love, peace, patience, hope, long suffering, gentleness, humility, hospitality, kindness, and compassion. Our life is just a mist (James 4:14) and we need to spend our energy and time on heavenly things. Let us not endanger our eternal rewards in heaven, and possibly even lose our fellowship with God by living in our past.

A People For God

2009-11-11T00:21:00.000-08:00

Read first: Genesis 28:10-15

Jacob was fleeing for his life for deceiving his brother Esau. He tricked Esau by selling his birth right for a bowl of stew. In the Middle East, patriarchal importance is highly valued. The first born normally acquires most of the rights in the family. Yet, we saw that Esau did not give much importance in his position being the firstborn. Although, this must happen to fulfill what God had said in Gen 25:23, “that the older shall serve the younger”.

Now Jacob was asked by his mom and dad (Zak and Becky) to flee to his Uncle Laban some five hundred miles away to Haran (a place in modern day Turkey), for they do not want him to marry a girl not belonging to the family line. On the way, Jacob took a stone pillow and set asleep for the night. In a dream, he saw a ladder from earth to heaven and angels of God ascending and descending through it. And the Lord appeared to him and reminded him that his descendants will be countless as dust and spreads through all the earth. And in his seed, all the families of the earth shall be blessed. The same promise given to Abraham and Isaac, was passed on to Jacob.

The Seed is the Lord Jesus Christ, who came to earth to save and bless all the families of the earth. Through Jesus Christ, any one who believes and trusts in Him will be gathered together as people for God. Those who reject Jesus Christ will belong to the Devil and his angels. God does not want to send anyone to hell, for He does not take pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 18:23). Because of His love for all people, He made a way for us to get back to that lost relationship with God when Adam infected every person with the deadly sin. We also know that the Ladder whom the angels ascend and descend through is the Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:50-51). He bridges between heaven and earth so that everyone who dares to go through Him might pass through and escape the gulf of hell. Jesus also said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

All people who used to have no hope and no inheritance of the promise of heaven, are now welcome to apply for citizenship in heaven. The promised Seed of old, had now come and living among us. Many people are being rejected for application, entrance, residency, or citizenship in the United States, but heaven is far more greater than any other place – for it is the place where God reigns and living with His people. The best thing is, it is open for any one who acknowledges and trusts in the Seed and Ladder, who is the Lord Jesus Christ. We just need the passport of faith, and the desire to live for Him and make Jesus the Lord of our life.

The Fall Of Humanity

2009-11-03T20:19:00.000-08:00

Read first: Genesis 3:1-19

The shrewdest animal (verse 1) – Eve had no encounter with other humans except Adam and the animals. Here, we see that Satan used the shrewdest animal God had created, the serpent – a cunning, tricky, and sharp animal – to deceive the woman. Satan still uses such kind of material to trick and deceive many people today, including Christians. In fact, that is one of the characteristics of the anti-Christ when he comes to deceive and mislead many people. The guy who has the cunning ability to persuade and convince people, very smart, very sharp, but tricky.

The lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh, and pride of life (verses 2-6) – The Devil often uses the same technique that works every time – lusts and pride – to trap people into sinning. He also started by planting doubt into the woman’s mind by asking “Did God really say…?” which is also his way of taking out the warning signs in our lives. Even advertising and marketing companies apply similar techniques to sell products. Appealing to the eyes, it will make you look good and feel good, it will make you proud and known by others, only to find out it is not even close to the truth.

The guilt of sinning (verses 7-13) – Guilt always comes last. When we succumb into temptation and had transpired into sin, we will know it’s too late and guilt comes creeping in. Sin suddenly detaches our fellowship with God, and we start focusing on ourselves. Only to find out we are naked before God like Adam and Eve, and we try to hide from God. We also see here the love and gentleness of God towards Adam and Eve. Instead of opening up the ground to swallow them, God came as Father seeking His hiding and ashamed kids. Although God knows everything that had transpired between the Devil, Adam, and Eve – God came out calling in gentle loving voice “Where are you?” Even now, we know that the Lord is calling us out and the lost ones to bring back the fellowship with Him – only when we acknowledge our sin and fault and confess our sin before Him. God is so good!

The penalty of sin (verses 14-19) – What God had warned, God will do. So, when we violate the warning signs God had given, we will “surely” suffer. In this case, Adam and Eve will “surely” die when they will disobey the command not to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:16-17). I also believe the game of “passing the buck” among politicians originated here J. Adam did not want to take the responsibility and passed it over to Eve, Eve likewise passed it to the serpent, the serpent had no one to blame. The poor serpent was the first to get the penalty, then Eve, then Adam.

Many people today thought that they are getting away even when they commit sin continually. The truth is, sin works for its wages – death! (Romans 6:23). No one is capable of paying for the wages of his or her sin. Our blood money is not just enough. But we thank God for providing the complete payment – He sent Jesus Christ to die on the cross, shed His blood, and washed away the death penalty with all its fine prints. And God is offering it as the gift (Ephesians 2:8). If we believe that God did it so for us and are willing to accept His gift of eternal life – then we are in fact changing family status from the devil (John 8:44) to getting adopted into God’s family (Romans 8:15), and changing our eternal address from hell to heaven.

The Poor and Needy

2009-10-28T21:11:00.000-07:00

“The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.” (Mark 14:7 NIV)

“Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.” (Hebrews 13:2 NIV)

"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'” (Matthew 25:40 NIV)

I was always puzzled why we have poor people especially in third world countries, and even in rich and developed countries like the USA, EU, Japan, or even in oil rich countries like KSA. As I connect some of the verses I have read, it made more sense why we need poor and needy people. Of course, many poor people are poor because of their own doing or just simply being lazy. But there are poor people who are victims of injustices or results of unfortunate circumstances like calamities and similar situations.

Even then, Jesus Himself had told us to have poor people with us. For whatever reason, I believe they are instruments for the testing of our faith, compassion, love, and care for other people – even as Jesus had compassion on all people. Jesus wants us to practice and experience what He is like, for this brings us also humility of heart and greater love for other people. People who have no capacity to pay us back or to love us back – for by then, it is a way that we can have inheritance and rewards in heaven (Matt 25:34).

For the hungry, we give food and the Bread of Life. For the thirsty, we give drink and the Water of Life. For the stranger, we provide shelter and bring them to the House of the Lord. For the clothe less, we provide clothing. For the sick and prisoners, we have to visit them and comfort them with the Word of God. We are so much blessed by God that we need to bless other people, and to become channels of blessings. Who knows, angels are sent as poor in our doorsteps to test our love and compassion – be willing to help and accommodate. And don’t worry, surely God will give you a hint in your heart whether the poor is real or not.

As we see so many calamities and needy people in many places, may we learn to practice generosity and compassion, as the Lord continue to shower us blessings and the capacity to give. Bless and be blessed.

Staying connected ….

2009-10-25T22:38:00.000-07:00

22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. (Hebrews 10:22-25 NKJV)

There is nothing much more important – next to having a God - than being connected to a community of people, if you are a person created to live on this wild and lonely earth. People used to send enveloped mails and post cards, call by telephone, meet in one place and get together – fulfilling some needs of the human desire being connected to each other. Until the electronic age came where meetings and gatherings are slowly being replaced by impersonal emails, online conferences, social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Friendster, MySpace, and many others. People sit more often in front of the computer screen, than spending time with other people personally. Yet still, this only shows that getting connected is another important missing piece in the life of an individual.

In the life of a Christian, it is a command to gather together as body of believers in Christ … as we see the Day approaching, referring to Christ’s eminent return. Not only because we wanted to see each other, but more importantly to help and encourage each other in the Word, after all, the power of encouragement comes from the Word of God. We notice that there are three collective phrases from verses 22 to 24, “let us ...” which include you and other believers getting together. I personally tried to get alone myself and study and meditate on God’s Word. Somehow it worked for few weeks, until I still have that longing to be in a body of believers. It could be that the Holy Spirit is putting that desire in my heart to fellowship with other believers whenever I go into the Word. If that’s what it is, then God’s Word is worth believing that staying connected is a must. Verse 25 says, not to forsake assembling of ourselves together. It’s not just getting together but assembling together – which means everyone has a function to perform in the body of believers, like assembling a piece of puzzle, assembling an engine block, or whatever thing that needs to work together in unity to fulfill a purpose. Everyone has a purpose whether we do highlights or lowest job in the body – God is the one who rewards and elevates everyone in the body, so we still need to get together and do what God wanted us to perform in the body.

In our daily walk as Christians, we need to remember the “let us” commands. I would like to share this paraphrased version in The Message: “So let's do it—full of belief, confident that we're presentable inside and out. Let's keep a firm grip on the promises that keep us going. He always keeps his word. Let's see how inventive we can be in encouraging love and helping out, not avoiding worshiping together as some do but spurring each other on, especially as we see the big Day approaching.”

Let’s get connected to God and with other believers more often. Either by going to church regularly or attending Christian fellowships where the Bible is preached and Christ is glorified and magnified.

Live Right Side Up in Upside Down World

2009-09-10T23:26:00.000-07:00

Ever since the "world's title deed" given by God to Adam to rule over the earth - was handed over to Satan by deception, our world had become upside down. Life became shortened, morality became corrupted every day, what's right is now considered wrong, what's wrong is now right, what's cool is hot, what's hot is cool, what's bad is good or nice, what's good or nice is bad, and so on ... as you hear words you haven't thought before and become confused everyday.

But as Christians, we thank God that we have the Instruction Manual of Life - the Bible. Where we base all thoughts, all doctrines, all teachings, and everything under the sun on the light of the Word of God. And we see that many of the main stream teachings and thoughts are exactly opposite or contrary to the Bible. Why is that? You may ask. Well, the world and it's powers are governed by the one who rules this world - the Devil. Of course, everything the Devil does is within the bounds of God's permission (remember Job's story?), because God is still the One on the Highest Throne. The Devil's throne is only in this world.

The world promotes pride, the Bible promotes humility. The world says, amass wealth and live happy, the Bible says give what you have and be more blessed. The world says, climb up the ranks at any cost and be popular and known, the Bible says be servant of all and you'll be lifted up. So, why all these lowliness and meekness (power under control) in the Bible while the world is enjoying in pride? The Father knows best, it is the way to more fulfilling life - now and eternal. Pride puffs you up for short period, then you're all alone facing vanity. Learn from the king who had it all, King Solomon of old; learn from one of the world's richest guy Howard Hughes - who ended up miserably, and many more who pursued wealth, pride, and happiness only to find it empty - it's all vanity! If you could be better than King Solomon, Howard Hughes, or even Bill Gates - and say it's not vanity, then I will say the Bible is wrong and never to be read or believed in. Yet, since it is God's Word and tested for all generations - then let's stand for what it teaches. "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:" (2 Timothy 3:16 KJV)

God's Love and Ours

2009-08-28T07:53:00.000-07:00

1 John 4:7-12

7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 11 Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

Why do we need to love God?

It is the most appropriate thing for a Christian to do - because we are born of God and we know God. It is our best expression of worship before the Lord - for God is love. Not doing it could mean we are of the Devil. God first loved us, even when we don't deserve it, by sending Jesus Christ to die and pay for the penalty of our sins. Wouldn't we be grateful by loving the Lord back?

Why do we need to love others - including those who hate us?

That's how we make God's love complete in us - by loving others unconditionally. We need to reflect God's love for us towards other people. God loves those people in our surrounding, and it's just right that we love them too. In heaven, you may be seeing them FOREVER anyways - just think about that if you hate them here on earth. How difficult it could have been for Stephen if he hated Saul (Paul) for persecuting him, now that they are both in heaven forever!

That's why we need to practice loving God, and other Christians, and other people .... it's just the godly and heavenly thing to do.

Pre-screening of Christ's Mission

2009-07-30T21:34:00.000-07:00

John 13

verse 1 - ..... Jesus loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.

Even if Jesus knows that His disciples are quarreling who's the greatest (Luke 22:24) and did not care to wash their dirty, smelly, stinking feet after walking several miles before eating (which was a cultural practice in Middle East), even if he knows that Judas will betray Him few hours from that time, even if Peter will deny Him later on, and even if His disciples will desert Him for a time ..... Jesus showed them what LOVE really is, and He gave them an example (verse 15). Instead of giving a sermon on cleaning dirty feet and 10-steps how to become a servant, He himself stood up and showed them how to serve each other with humility.

verse 2 - And supper being ended (this means supper has just begun and on-going)
verse 4 – Jesus rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took towel and girded Himself.

Imagine everybody is eating and busy arguing, Jesus interrupted on His meal and took the attitude of a servant – by taking off His outer garment and girding a towel around His waist, because no one dared to do the task of a servant. While His disciples were busy conversing, thinking about themselves, thinking what's the next opportunity to brag themselves and ride on Jesus' popularity, Jesus was preparing to show them how to be a servant, how to be humble, and how to love people despite of their failures and weaknesses.

Verse 5 - ..... He poured out water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet

It is interesting to know that Jesus prepared everything and made sure there is water for washing and cleansing His disciples feet. In Luke 22:7-13, He ordered His disciples to look for an upper room for Passover celebration, where a man was “carrying a pitcher of water”.

This is just an ultimate example of loving others and how Jesus loved the world (John 3:16), by humbling Himself even if He is the Master, even if He is God. Love is what the disciples need to continue on Jesus’ ministry. Otherwise, they will all be “clanging cymbals” (1 Cor 13:1), and without Jesus’ character in them, for God is Love.

Jesus involved Himself in the dirt of His disciples’ feet, without saying a thing. That’s how we should love other people – getting involved, not much word, but just doing it.

Verse 8 – Peter said to Him, "You shall never wash my feet!"

If we refuse to be washed – constant spiritual cleansing (1 John 1:9), we will not enjoy our fellowship with Christ. Even if we were cleansed by bath (verse 10) – which is being washed and saved in the blood of Jesus, we need constant cleansing because our feet gets dirty, we always sin.

Verse 10 – .... therefore He said, “You are not all clean”

This is a dangerous situation for many people who profess to be in Christ. When in fact, they really are not, like Judas. Same way, many Christians claim to be so, but they are not really in Christ. Meaning, they always look like Christians, speak like Christians, walk like Christians, but not really Christians.

Despite all these, Jesus loved everybody …. Showing that we must love even our enemies. For who knows, they can always come to the saving knowledge of Jesus, like Saul (Paul). Unfortunately, Judas took the wrong decision and missed the work of Christ.

Verse 16 – Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him.

Even if Jesus had brought down Himself through humility, He is still the Lord – He is still the God. Yet He came down and be like us that we can call Him friend (John 15:15).

Summary:

He took out His kingship outer garment, and wrapped himself in humanity’s linen towel, taking the form of a servant – but He is still God, to wash us and cleanse us from our sins (our dirty feet). He did this to give us example of servanthood, humility, and love - to God and to others, even our enemies (even our Judas’!). To wash their feet (forgive them), and make it dry (to love them without condition). Verse 12, “So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments, and sat down again”. After coming to wash our sins, He rose again from the dead, He took back His kingship garment and sat down at the right hand of God – waiting for us to eat with Him again and have fellowship with Him. Meanwhile, we do communion here on earth to remember and prepare ourselves for that bigger and better feast with Jesus in heaven.

What does it say?

• About God’s Love for us (verse 1) – remember that Jesus is few hours from death (during passover feast, which is illegal according to Jewish law) and He wants to leave an important message and thought to His disciples.

What does it mean?

• God loved us that He came to become a servant, took out His garment of heavenly kingship, wrapped Himself in the towel of humanity, offered Himself for us that we might become clean (righteous before God), even while we were yet sinners (proud, bragging, unwilling to serve like His disciples).

What does it teach?

• That we should love one another too, and by that, people would know that we are His disciples. We too should take the form of servant and wash others (forgive them) and love them (make them dry and comfortable) – verse 5.

What does it require?

• Willingness to be cleaned – we cannot enjoy fellowship with the Lord if we have dirty feet (sin in our heart). Don’t be the attitude of Peter (during that time).
• Humility – we should be humble and available to be a servant of Christ. Not like Peter who had the arrogance, and even want to take advantage the goodness of the Lord. We are not to abuse and take advantage of the goodness of others too. Yet, we know Peter had matured through the years and followed Christ faithfully even to his death being crucified upside down - thinking he's not worthy being crucified like Christ.
• Constant communion with Christ and with fellow believers. Sit back and dine with Jesus at the bread of His Word regularly.
• Know that Jesus is still our God and Master, even if He called us friends.

Why Do We Need To Worship God?

2009-07-29T21:40:00.000-07:00

This is a question many people are asking themselves and others. Why do we need to worship God? Is God some kind of low esteem that He requires worship from people? Is God on some cosmic egoistic trip that He gets mad if we don’t worship Him? The answer is NO. God is totally fine trillions and gazillions of years even before He created the earth and the whole universe, and every living thing including you and me. In fact, God doesn’t need us – He is complete in Himself. He can exist even without humanity, from eternity to eternity. God had already set-up His worship teams of angels long before we were created. A third of them rebelled because of pride and became fallen angels – the primary worship leader then became Lucifer or Satan (Isaiah 14:12).

“God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” (Gen 1:31). When God created the earth and everything in it, it was perfect. And in itself, it reflects the marvelous wonder of God’s power and majesty. The creation itself brings praise and glory to God. Not a single person on earth who could have seen the beauty of creation would not have marveled nor have been filled with awe. Jesus said in Luke 19:40 that if people would be silent and not worship, the stones and rocks could not just wait to burst out in praise and adoration to its Creator! Never mind the trees, the flowers, the birds, the wind, and the seasons, the moon, and the stars – they are worshiping God everyday, and you could not just ignore them.

Now, the Lord created man and woman in His own image (Gen 1:27). “For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” says Paul in Ephesians 2:9. We too are God’s creation, in fact the most important of all God’s creation, and we must reflect God’s glory in our lives and bound to do good works. But we cannot do it because sin separated us from God – and all have sinned without exception (Rom 3:23). Yet because of God’s love for us, He sent His Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins and pay all our sin at full price. And that is the greatest gift we can have from God – only if we believe to be so and accept it by faith (Eph 2:8).

Having that gift of salvation alone is the most important reason why we should give thanks and worship to God the Father, who reconciled us back to Him through the Lord Jesus Christ. Expressing our worship and adoration to the God of our salvation here on earth is the best practice we can do. It is a glimpse of what’s going on now in heaven where the angels and saints are worshiping God at all times. If the king of rock, king of pop, king of jazz, and whatever king of music have died and did not waver to sing and entertain people and audiences and themselves – so much more the saints and angels of the Lord God Almighty will not waver to sing praise and worship to the King of kings and Lord of lords! It wouldn’t be boring as you think.

Are You Persecuting Christ?

2009-07-17T00:23:00.000-07:00

Acts 9: 1 and 4-5

Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples ….
"Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"
"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.
"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied.

Are You Persecuting Christ?

Many times we are unaware that we Christians are persecuting our own Savior Jesus Christ. When we throw accusations to our fellow believers, when we talk against their back, when we hate them, when we wish they will fall, when we wish they will not succeed, when we pray the Lord won’t bless them, and the list goes on and on and on. It is sad but it is happening among the believers in Christ. Christians biting at each other.

It is what Saul (now Paul) had been doing before his conversion. He taught he was doing service to the Lord by letting the Christians persecuted, and remaining blameless by not doing the stoning himself but approving the stoning of Stephen. Yet later on, he wanted to do it hands-on by himself grabbing and throwing Christians into jail, thinking he became more zealous in his service to God doing that way.

Christians are no less than Saul in persecuting Christians and Christ when they are eager to put down those who don’t agree with their belief system and practices. When Christians practice “holier than thou” attitude and judge those who fall into temptation and sin instead of helping them up to recover. The principle of Matthew 25:40 still applies from the time of Jesus, to Paul, and until today – whatever we do to the least of our brothers (young or old, rich or poor, known or unknown) we do it to the Lord. And likewise, whatever we did not do to the least of our brothers – we did not do it to the Lord (v.45).

Jesus Christ shed His blood for everyone who believed and became Christians. He bought their eternal salvation with the price of His life, and stored their souls in heaven as trophies. And so, if we look down into other Christians for whom Christ died with intention of putting them down, or destroying them, or hurting them, or to be stumbling block for them – we are in fact trying to destroy or annul the very work of Christ at the cross. We are in fact persecuting Christ himself. Now in the afterlife, when we will be seeing each in heaven for eternity - could we bear them forever, if in this world we don’t love them?

What The Hell?

2009-07-17T00:20:00.000-07:00

Luke 16:22-24

"The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.'

Read Luke 16:19-31

What The Hell?

Yes, you may say that ten times or hundred times, but there really is a hell. The very place people don’t want to think about, and trying to ease up in their conscience what the hell will be like by making an expression out of it. Jesus himself mentioned about hell to warn us how not to go there. Because of God’s love for us – He sent Jesus Christ to die at the cross to become the Bridge between us and God. For sin has separated us from God the Father. Hell was created for the Devil and his angels, and God sends no one there. It is a person’s decision and attitude that drives him or her to hell.

First, hell is a place of torment and agony (vv.23-24). If you don’t know what agony is, try hitting your fingernail with hammer and have a small glimpse of agony. There’s no such thing as partying in hell where friends are waiting – nope, torture is waiting. It is a solitary place where a person is being torn down but never consumed. The place where the worm eats up the body but never dies and the fire is never quenched (Mark 9:48). In our passage, the rich man was in desert of fire, choking in thirst, his saliva dried up, and no water.

Second, in hell, people have remembrance of their past lives (v. 25). The rich man wished that he should have not driven himself in that place of torment, but it’s too late. A person can live a good life, not hurting anyone, not ripping off other people, but still can go to hell. Our own righteousness and good works cannot rescue us from hell. By default, we are condemned already if we don’t believe in the finished work of Jesus (John 3:18). We need to satisfy God’s requirement to avoid hell - and only Jesus have satisfied that. There’s no other solution or way except Jesus.

Third, hell is an ultimate destination – there’s no temporary place holder and no transferring (v. 26-27). After appointment with death, the judgment follows whether a person goes to heaven or hell (Hebrews 9:27). There is no more appealing, no more pardoning – it is final. So, if a person is being convicted in his or her heart by the Holy Spirit to give his or her life to Jesus Christ – and decided to delay, it may be too late when death strikes at any moment.

Thoughts from God’s Word

2009-06-28T19:24:00.000-07:00

Meditations on the Book of Job

Chapter 1

Job:
• he is blamess and upright
• he feared God and shunned evil
• had 10 offsprings – 7 sons and 3 daughters
• had 7000 sheeps and 3000 camels
• had 500 yoke of oxen and 500 female donkeys
• he is the greatest of all people of the East (in today's economy, he was Bill Gates in richness!)
• did daily burnt offerings for each son and daughter for sanctification (just imagine the amount of animal blood flowing everyday!)

- God and Satan was aware of Job. God and Satan can be aware of us too!
- God and Satan talks about people, especially God’s people
- Satan skims through the earth and checks what’s going on (he is not all knowing, not all powerful, and not all present - only God is!)
- God puts a hedge of protection on Job’s life. 3-layers: around him, around his household, and around all on every side (God protects Christians too, under His wings, by His angels, with His mighty shield)
- Satan challenges God and asks permission to take out the first 2-layers (a true Christian could not be possibly demon possessed, God is in control of Christian lives)
- Satan does not waste a second once permission is given to touch God’s people (Satan is more than happy to destroy you, and he does not take a day-off until he makes you fall down)
- In all this Job did not sin nor charge God with wrong (v.22) - that's the true mark of God's people. Life here is temporary, we're not home yet, our destination is heaven!

Man-made Marks in Heaven

2009-06-28T17:18:00.000-07:00

The only man-made thing in heaven are the scars and wound marks in Jesus' body.

Our Father in Heaven

2009-06-18T23:01:00.000-07:00

Jesus commanded us to pray when He said "... therefore, pray", even when God already knows what we "needed". The Father God also wants to hear what we "wanted" for we are His children and He delights in our prayers.

Matthew 6: 9-13
… For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. In this manner, therefore, pray:

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.

Our Father, Creator of the heavens and the earth, we worship and glorify Your Holy Name. Even as the angels proclaim You as Holy, holy, holy! help us to do the same. For You alone are the Most High God, You alone are worthy of praise, You are the Alpha and the Omega, You are the Sovereign and Everlasting God, and there is none like You. Your Name is lifted up on high in the praise of Your people. We honor You Lord.

Give us this day our daily bread.

We thank you Lord for the daily provisions You are giving us – the food, the shelter, our families. Thank you for Your mercy and grace – they are new every morning. We come and refresh ourselves in You. Thank You for the new life You’ve given us, thank You for the salvation we have in Jesus, thank You for the new day. Thank You for the air we breathe, thank You for Your creation, the trees, the flowers, the birds, the things that we normally see around us but don’t appreciate. Thank You for our finances, the job we have, the health, the strength, the wisdom, and the ability to work. Thank You for keeping us safe in our travels and troubles. Thank You for the trials that make us strong and dependent on You. Thank You for the joy and peace You give us. Thank You for the Word that guides us and the Holy Spirit that convicts us. Thank You for Your faithfulness and loving kindness. Thank You that we have a Great God and we need nothing else.

And forgive us our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.

Make us a better person and not bitter. Give us Lord the ability to love, to forgive, and to extend our patience. In the world full of hatred and anger, help us to forgive – when we wake up in the morning, on the road, at work, at school, at home, and even when we ponder alone. Help us to remember the forgiveness You are giving us each day – it’s just overwhelming when we think how gracious and merciful You are. Help us to extend that forgiveness to others – and by loving them instead.

And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.

Temptation is all around us, help us Lord to withstand and to keep a pure mind and a pure heart. Make us strong to resist and run away from temptation in every way we can. Deliver us Lord according to Your grace when the devil tempts us.

For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.

For the rest of the day, help us to honor You Lord by the way we live – to glorify You for You alone are God, now and forever. Amen.

What Makes You Sin?

2009-05-25T16:46:00.000-07:00

Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God. (1 Corinthians 6:9-11)

The Corinthian Christians had a distorted view of the grace of God. They assume that they can tolerate Christian brothers who continually sin, and let the grace of God cover their every sin. After all, God’s grace is sufficient to cover multitude of sins. While it is true that God is super gracious, it is not an excuse to commit more sins. Not only the Corinthian Christians have these kinds of problem, but even more with Christians today.

In these verses, Paul stresses the need for constant sanctification of Christians from worldliness. Jesus came and died on the cross to wash, sanctify, and justify those who acknowledge His work of love, and accept Him as Lord and Savior. And if you are a person who did just that, then you have the righteousness of Jesus to stand before the Almighty God in the Day of Judgment. Getting our fire insurance through Jesus Christ is just one part, the other part is for Christians to fulfill the rest of the contract – of living righteous and blameless life like Jesus did, and be effective witnesses of God’s goodness and holiness so that the world may believe.

Are you a Christian who constantly sins? Don’t be deceived, Paul said, have your mind, soul, and spirit cleansed constantly - or you’re endangering your inheritance in God’s kingdom if you continue practicing those things listed above. Jesus said, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.” (John 15:5-6). You may not lose your salvation, but you may lose your fellowship (cast out), vitality (withered), and rewards (burned).

Pure Greed and Selfishness

2009-03-15T16:42:00.000-07:00

Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had determined from the wise men. (Matthew 2:16)

If we study the Word of God again and again, much if not all the killing of innocent lives such as babies are the results of pure greed and selfishness of the mighty and powerful. Starting from the time of Pharaoh, until the time of Herod, and even mostly these days! Why? Simply because people want to enjoy their lives, their power, their influence, and stay alive as long as they can! It is greed and selfishness – pure and simple.

In America, many people are now celebrating for the signing of the stem cell research program which was banned by the previous administration for around eight years. Although, this is a very sensitive issue, the Word of God is still the best place to check what’s going on. Everything is all about morality, not science. God created life, and now scientists wanted to play gods. They can now decide who should live and who must die. Evidently, he who has the money and power can live, and the innocent blood will be sacrificed. We have our modern Herods these days.

Life is in the blood, and the only thing that can cry out to God for justice is our blood. Abel’s blood cried out to God, and Cain was brought to judgment even without the CSI’s. Modern CSI’s rely on the unique DNA structure of our blood to catch murderers and perpetuators. Most importantly, the blood of Jesus is so powerful to save a person from death to life everlasting.

So, are human embryos just another stage of mutation and adaptation into a different stage of life, which some may say a fish stage? The Word of God said He knows us even before we were born (Eph. 1:4), He assigned us a life, name, and identity. And finally, God also sets our expiration date (Heb. 9:27).

Where Your Heart Is

2009-03-15T16:38:00.000-07:00

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:19-21)

A twenty-dollar bill and a one-dollar bill were sitting inside the bolt in a bank. Getting bored, they started to chat with each other. The twenty-dollar proudly said, “Know what, I got a very exciting experience! I went to Las Vegas, to Reno, to Atlantic City, to Macau, to Hawaii, to the beautiful resorts and casinos you can think of. It was a lot of fun!”. “What about you?”, he asked the one-dollar. The one-dollar bill said, “Well, I had been to many churches. To Baptist churches, to Catholic churches, to Presbyterian churches, and many more churches! That’s where I had been.”

Many times we are guilty of not truly worshipping the Lord in our tithes and offerings. We really did not get when Jesus said we had to prioritize on heavenly things instead of our earthly matters. Of course, the Lord does not need our money – because He is able to rain down money from heaven if He wants to. He created the heavens and the earth, and more importantly created human beings in His own image. But the Lord wants His people to practice love and generosity in the real sense, and to be more like Jesus, who sacrificed for us at the cross without expecting any in return.

In the first place, our tithes and offerings do not benefit the Lord – we ourselves are the beneficiaries. He gave us the gift of giving, that we may learn to give, that others may be blessed, that they will learn to give, that more people will be blessed, that He will bless our hearts, that we may glorify God, and God keeps giving us more desire to give (2 Cor 6:9-15). O, what a world we live in if people just keeps getting generous and loving all the time. Sadly, the enemy is successful in doing the reverse and so we are living in a corrupted world.

Jesus gave the alternative in these passages for those who cannot afford and to those who are wealthy. He leveled the playing ground, such that no person has advantage over the other. He offered heavenly accounts, for anyone who wants to invest. It is an investment of the heart, where your love is – if you love material things, or you love the heavenly things. That will be determined where your heart really is.

2nd Commandment - Love Others As Yourself

2009-03-15T16:36:00.000-07:00

… Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. (Luke 6:27-28)

Read: Luke chapter 6

Loving other people who loves you is easy, and even sinners do the same – Jesus said. If you are a person who dedicated your life to following Jesus Christ, it will not deposit any credit to your heavenly account if you do that. But repaying evil with good is the ultimate test – it will really show the character of God the Father in your life, and that what counts! Verse 35 even says …. He is kind to the unthankful and evil.

This story cracks me up: Somewhere in Minnesota, an elderly woman who has no job, no source of income, and virtually having nothing always opens up the door every morning and thanking God for the day and His provisions. An irate atheist neighbor planned to test the faith of the woman. He bought bags of groceries, put it on the woman’s door before dawn, and waited at the back of the bush to see what the woman would say that morning. Some minutes passed by and the old woman opened her door and began thanking God for the bags of groceries. Even before she finished thanking the Lord, the atheist man sprung up from the bush and told the woman in somewhat ridiculing voice he put the things there. The woman again prayed, “Thank you Lord, for even using the devil to deliver me the goods!”.

Well, it may not totally reflect the thought for the day … but one thing is for sure, we should be always thankful no matter what. And love God and other people without any condition, even if it hurts. After all, God saved us from the fires of hell through the blood of Jesus Christ without any cost for us. All we need to do is to have faith and believe that Jesus did, when He cried … “It is finished.”

On Abortion

2009-03-15T16:31:00.000-07:00

So Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, "Every son who is born you shall cast into the river, and every daughter you shall save alive." (Exodus 1:22)

Sometimes we need to look back into history. Abortion and killing of innocent babies had been there since the beginning. And the purpose is always the same: convenience and selfish ambitions. Here, the Egyptian Pharaoh wanted to kill all Hebrew male babies to lessen the threat of future uprising. Herod in Matthew 2, wanted to kill all boys below two years old to eliminate the threat to his throne. Today, abortion of innocent lives is in much wider scale. It includes male and female babies alike, all for the convenience of the mother or parents, and the government.

It only did not cover the Pharaoic or Herodic style of execution, but also of Hitler’s style where the weak and sickly were eliminated. Roe v. Wade law made all these possible, and hardly promoted by Planned Parenthood. All for the convenience of the mothers, but mostly of the government. And even now, it is planned to be promoted in less fortunate countries to be funded by American tax payers.

On the contrary, Jesus promoted the better alternative. To care and love the children, for God’s kingdom is made up for the innocence like those of the children – pure and unadulterated (Matthew 19). He is the Giver of Life, and everyone He gave breath to is worth to be loved and cared. Jesus did not favor the strong and mighty, but gave grace to the weak, poor, and lowly. For those who cannot defend themselves, but only rely on the protection and guidance of the Lord God Almighty.

When it comes to the issue of abortion, people are divided. But here, we see two midwives (Shiphrah and Puah) standing on their beliefs, defying the Pharaoh, and eventually God honored them and blessed them for they spared the children.

Faith Check - Am I Really A Christian?

2009-02-18T17:27:00.000-08:00

2 Corinthians 13:5-6 (NKJV)
Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified. But I trust that you will know that we are not disqualified.

It is an alarming statistics in many communities today that many people claim themselves to be Christians, while in reality - they are not. Many who professed to be Christians do not actually read the Bible, they do not attend church and Bible studies, and have nothing to do in obeying and following the teachings and commandments of the Lord Jesus Christ.

On the contrary, they have their form of religiosity – something they have control of, something they can put aside, do their own thing, and go back and do the rituals again. They have some form of godliness, but denying its power (2 Tim. 3:5). As the Apostle Paul commanded the Corinthian believers to examine themselves to really know whether they belong to the house of faith or not, we also must examine ourselves today whether we comply with the character of a real Christian or not.

If we fail the test, we are endangering ourselves from being rejected when we stand before the Lord Jesus Christ. "Many will say to me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?' Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!' " (Matt. 7:22-23).

Yes, on that day, when God will separate the grains from the chaffs, the sheep from the goats, and the plants from the weeds. Few have chosen the road less traveled – the narrow path to salvation, while many followed the broadways to destruction which leads to death.

Times Of Trials

2009-01-20T01:13:00.000-08:00

I guess these are the times of trials for most of us, whether you are a Christian or not - I am saying in a "wider scale". The times when major economies are down, when many people lost their homes, their jobs, and consequently lost some part of their lives - like loved ones, friends, and many more. The time when people expect the unexpected, people just don't see it coming their way, people were unprepared. Are these the times of the "end times"? I think partly it is, the time when the Lord is giving us wake up call before something else more important happens.

But for a Christian, these kind of times are to be expected - it would surely come in our lives. I want to read from the Scriptures (James 1:2-7):

2 My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

This instance will separate the boys from men, it separates the grains from the chaffs. I like how the term "various" was described. It was like the coat that Jacob made for his son Joseph, the coat with various colors. The trials will come in different forms, different colors, different intensities, and different pressures. It is always fitted into our situation, and God always makes sure it is just enough for our bearing - not overweight, not overload, but just enough. Good enough that we will be able to get through it if we remain under its pressure.

When we go through these kind of times, let us count it all joy! Joy is the supernatural in-filling of God in our hearts, not merely an external happiness but an inward experience of God's supply of grace even in the midst of physical and emotional hardships. Paul and Silas can praise God even at the point of being chained in a prison dungeon. We just need to know that God is in control, God is on the throne, and He knows what's going on in our lives. That is called wisdom! Only Christians have this wisdom that is supplied by God and it is for the asking. The only condition is that, it must be asked "in faith". A person who asks God for leading and guidance but keeps on doubting will never receive wisdom. And when trial comes, he just keeps solving it his way instead of relying on God who gives liberally and generously.

Trust God in times of trials, for each of us must go through purification process before joining Him in His holy place called heaven, for all eternity.

Missing Christmas

2008-12-27T22:28:00.000-08:00

Verses for Today:

Matthew 2:3-6 (NLT)

3 King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem. 4 He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, “Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?” 5 “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they said, “for this is what the prophet wrote: 6 ‘And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.

Thoughts:

Christmas day just past by and you feel very empty and depressed? Well, think again, were you celebrating Christmas or remembering the essence of Christmas – which is remembering the birth of Jesus Christ? Many people missed the very essence of Christmas miles away. Simply because they were focused on budgeting about gifts and celebrations, hurrying on early bird offers, and a lot more – and not minding on the celebrant who is Jesus Christ.

It happened too on the first Christmas. Many people missed Christmas thousand miles! They knew about the birth of the Messiah – who is Jesus Christ, but they missed the very essence of it! King Herod, his priests, and the religious teachers knew about the birth of the Messiah and yet they had no single thought about it. The innkeeper was very busy going about his business and had no room for a preggy Mary who was about to give birth! Would that define you? Many people today know about Christianity and about Jesus Christ, but the sad thing is, they have no attachment or relationship with Christ or whatsoever.

Don’t be one of those persons, when the time comes for Jesus Christ to rule the heavens and the earth once again, will say “Lord, Lord” (Matthew 7:21) but the Lord would not knew them, because they have no personal relationship with Him. Remember now, that 2000 plus years ago Jesus came to be born as baby on a manger, to come and save the world. Although many movies today tried to hijack that idea, Jesus Christ was the original. Have relationship with Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior and enjoy Christmas from this time onwards. Invite Him into your life by confessing your sins to Him, and giving Him the steering wheel of your life. For sure you will not regret it for He knows your life better than you do.

In God’s Hand

2008-11-13T23:30:00.000-08:00

Proverbs 21:1 (NKJV)

The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD,
Like the rivers of water;
He turns it wherever He wishes.

The presidential election is over and many are celebrating the sweetness of victory, while at the other side people are tasting the bitterness of defeat. In God’s economy, it does not matter who wins, after all it is according to His own liking. He can put on nice and good leaders and presidents, and also He puts on wicked and tyrant presidents. In this regard, everything is according to God’s plan and will – which we can understand only when we walk close to the Lord.

His people wanted a king to be like other nations around them – because they do not like being under God’s rule, and He gave them Saul who later on became a tyrant king (1 Sam 8:19). His people was looking for idols instead of seeking God, and so God let them be taken as captive to Idol Central Babylon (modern day Iraq) for 70 years. He let King Nebuchadnezzar conquer and rule over Israel to give hard lesson to His people (2 Kings 17:7). Afterwards, He let King Cyrus, a Persian king to take over Babylon and way beyond the massive Persian Empire (modern day Iran). Cyrus is even called God’s anointed (Isaiah 45:1) – he is the Lord’s man to accomplish His purpose and to free His people back to Israel and rebuild their destroyed city.

The point is, who ever the leaders are, they are God’s appointed – the Lord turns their hearts wherever He wishes, and the Bible warns us to respect them (1 Peter 2:13-17). We may wonder why our choices are not God’s choices, but at the end of the day – we must be worshiping God at any circumstance, whether God’s answer to our prayers is a “yes”,“no”, or “wait”. King David’s fervent prayer to preserve the life of his first son with Bathsheba had a “no” answer, so King David rose up, cleaned himself, ate his meal, and worshiped God – soon the Lord gave him a great son, King Solomon. Every circumstance in our life is governed and directed by God – all we need to do is trust and rely upon God, even after we prayed and fasted. He knows already knows the story, and we don’t.

1 Peter 2:13-17 (NIV)
Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God's will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men. Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king.

The Great I AM

2008-11-09T22:05:00.000-08:00

Exodus 3:14 (NKJV)

And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”

Moses was eighty years old, when one time he happened to step up to Mount Horeb. He had been tending sheep for forty years at the back side of the desert after fleeing from Egypt for killing an Egyptian. His Israelite brothers and sisters who were left in Egypt were suffering from maltreatment for the past four hundred years, as God informed Abram long before in Genesis 15:13. And God showed Himself to Moses through a burning bush at Mount Horeb, and appointed him for a rescue task. This is Moses’ ministry under the bush administration.

We see in the story that, all along God was in control. Whatever our current or future situation will be – God is in control. The Name which God claimed – I AM WHO I AM, is an indication that God is sovereign. I AM is the God who is eternal, uncaused, and independent. We maybe suffering from many things – economic collapse and financial hardships, cost of health insurance is sky high, or pain and sorrow is at its peak. But God is still on His throne, He knows everything going on in our lives, and no one can tell Him what to do. God acts according to His will, timing, and character. All we have to do is to know God’s will in our lives, trust God, and wait for His actions.

It maybe hard to understand and reconcile a suffering world to a loving, just, and merciful God – but it is what it is. God knows best and it could be understood through faith, not through human intelligence and logic. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in God's sight. (1 Cor. 3:19). In their time of hardship, the Israelites prayed and God answered their prayers by sending rescue team in the person of Moses. In our time of hardship and trouble, we can call upon the Lord – the Great I AM – and He can rescue us, only when we trust and have faith in Him.

God-fearing Women

2008-11-03T20:11:00.000-08:00

Exodus 1:17 (NKJV)

But the midwives feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but saved the male children alive.

As I started on Exodus, I cannot get out my attention on the character of the two Hebrew midwives – Shiphrah and Puah. They were the early representations of the three young Hebrew guys - Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego who defied King Nebuchadnezzar’s order to worship the Babylonian golden image he had setup (Daniel 3). Shiphrah and Puah did not follow the Pharaoh’s order to kill male babies born of Hebrew women – because they feared God. They basically risked their lives disobeying the Pharaoh who can order summary execution for their quick death. They would rather do the right things for the Lord, than do things right for Pharaoh.

How many people today are willing to sacrifice their lives, much less their career, or reputation because of the fear of God? The fear of God is a holy fear knowing that He alone can let us or deny us into His heaven, therefore as much as we can, we obey God and follow His commandments. Jesus said to His disciples, “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28).

Sadly in our culture today, the fear of God is watered down. Even the use of God’s Name had become part of habitual curses and thoughtless expressions. In fact, it seems there is no fear of God anymore, we rather fear people who can sue us, or isolate us, or get mad at us when we tell about God and Jesus Christ in public. Cornelius, a really tough guy, a commander of one-hundred powerful soldiers called the Italian Regiment, stared in fear – probably motionless – when he saw an angel of God and spoke to him (Acts 10:4). It is just hard to imagine how really tough we are, when we come face to face with God or just an angel. Fear God now, it is your fountain of life. (Prov. 14:27).

In Memory of Her

2008-10-26T20:21:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Mark 14:9 (NIV)

I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.

Read: Mark 14:1-10

Thoughts

Think about yourself being commended by a king because of an extraordinary thing that you did. How would it feel? In our story, we read that Jesus commended a woman who anointed Him with expensive perfume few days before His death. It must have been the greatest commendation of all for it came from the King of kings and Lord of lords – Jesus Christ. That woman was no other than Mary Magdalene. Mary was believed to be a prostitute, with seven demons whom Jesus casted out (Mark 16:9). She was from Bethany, and she was the sister of Martha and Lazarus – the guy whom Jesus raised from the dead. Apparently, Lazarus was the only guy who experienced physical death twice! Nonetheless, Lazarus never complained coming back to life even when he was stinking dead for four days (John 11:39) and was already enjoying heaven. Jesus explicitly called out his name, “Lazarus, come out” (John 11:43), otherwise all of the dead came out and it would have been the first Halloween.

There is nothing more important than giving our best to Jesus Christ, like Mary did. She broke the alabaster jar and poured out the very costly spikenard oil on the head of Jesus – as expression of anointing. The oil perfume was priced around three hundred dinarii or more than a year’s wage. More likely, it must have been her earnings being a prostitute. And she did not regret throwing it away for she had been freed from the bondage of sin and Satan – and anything about her past have been surrendered to Jesus. She cannot just express her gratefulness enough when Jesus delivered her from the seven demons, and gave her a fresh new start. Now she committed her very life to following Jesus all the way to the cross and beyond. So much so, that Jesus appeared first to Mary Magdalene on the resurrection day before anyone else (John 20:14).

True enough, every time the gospel is preached, the story of Mary Magdalene is also being told. To show us that no matter how broken and unacceptable we are, whatever our past was, Jesus died for all our sin and freed us from the bondage of Satan. All we need to do is give Him back our praise and worship, and tell the whole world about our freedom and new life in Jesus Christ. What have you been doing for Jesus lately? Was it worth commending?

Prayer

Lord God Heavenly Father, thank You for the example of Mary Magdalene, who lived a life that was totally committed to serving You. Oh Lord, bring us back to fellowship with You for we have been burdened and overwhelmed by the cares and problems on this earth. Help us to lay them all at the feet of Jesus – for You care about us. Thank You Lord Jesus. Amen.

Glory in the Lord

2008-10-22T21:16:00.000-07:00

Jeremiah 9:23 (NKJV)

Thus says the Lord:
"Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,
Let not the mighty man glory in his might,
Nor let the rich man glory in his riches;

In this world we live in, people learn how to be wise, to be mighty and most importantly to be rich. From the beginning of civilization until now, these things have been the goal of men. People wanted to be independent, to be self-reliant, and self-sustaining. So much so that we started to keep glory in ourselves and forget about the Author of life and the Giver of our strength, ability, and might to accomplish the things we do.

In our economy, we elevate and promote people who are good and capable, and we admire them. Yet many times, it is not always the case, people who really are not good enough for the position are promoted and elevated. The lousy guys take the break! Simply because of relationship, friendship, or mere acquaintances. I had hard time accepting that kind of fact happening right before me. But when I turned on the Bible, it should be the case! In God’s economy, it is all about relationship and fellowship. No matter how lousy we are, God accepts and promotes us. And God hates people who rely and glory in themselves, and forget about God.

The Lord said that if we have to glory, we glory in knowing and understanding who God is – that He exercises lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth (v. 24). Why? Because people are just the opposite – we normally hate each other, we don’t apply and practice justice, and we are crooks who hate doing the right things. And without God, everything becomes chaotic. Find a nation or place where God is not acknowledged and honored, a place of atheists and anarchists, and see what is in there. If you find peace, harmony, and development, then forget about God.

The Peril of Guilt

2008-10-22T21:14:00.000-07:00

Genesis 50:15 (NKJV)

When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “Perhaps Joseph will hate us, and may actually repay us for all the evil which we did to him.

Joseph’s brothers have been harboring guilt in themselves for the past thirty-nine years! They did their sin against Joseph when he was seventeen, Joseph is now fifty six and being the prime minister of Egypt. Joseph sleeps, wakes up, and works peacefully in God’s presence without any thought of hate while his brothers are thinking the unthinkable!

Many times we too are victims of our own guilt. We still think about our pasts even when we know that Jesus Christ has forgiven us with all our sin when we accepted Him as our Savior and Lord. He made us new, and we become new creation in Christ, the old has gone – the new has come! (2 Cor 5:17). Yet our guilt still haunts us, we cannot forgive ourselves as much as Joseph’s brothers cannot forgive themselves on what they did. Much more, they are facing the one whom they sinned to.

The good news for us is, when Jesus forgave us, He called us his friends (John 15:15), we are co-heirs with Him in heaven. We will see Him face to face and have fellowship with Him. He will be our bridegroom and we are His bride, which speaks of uniting with Him in the future.

If you are a new creation in Christ, put out all the past guilt, Jesus has washed your sins away with His blood. Put out all your burden of unforgiveness that drags you down so heavy, for when you cannot forgive your fellow men or even yourself, how can the Father forgive you? You cannot pray, “Forgive us, as we forgive those who sinned against us”. Don’t be a fool like Joseph’s brothers, take out your guilt, forgive others, and live in peace with God and other people.

Prayer of Hope

2008-10-11T23:10:00.000-07:00

Lord God Heavenly Father,
Creator of the heavens and the earth,
How long will we keep sinning against You?
How long will we drop down our guards
and enjoy the pleasures of this world?

We know that it is just for a moment but with
eternal consequences, yet we do it.
Forgive us Lord and cleanse us by the
blood of Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior
Thank You that You have promised us with
Your grace like fountain of fresh water that never runs out.

Help us to obey You according to Your Word
Help us not to grieve the Holy Spirit of promise
Who sealed us until the Day of Redemption
Help us to be more like Jesus Christ that we may appear
with Him like as He is when that time comes.

Oh Lord, we are so unworthy even after being saved though Jesus Christ
Yet, we thank You that You don't see us as we are
But You see the perfect holiness of Jesus Christ covering us
We praise You for Your faithfulness
You are the God who never changes
There is no shifting shadow in You Lord
You are the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Who is like You, Oh Lord?
There is none, no one can fathom Your thoughts
They are always higher than our thoughts
Your ways are higher than our ways
You are the Sovereign Lord
And no one dictates what You do.

Even if we go through economic crisis and turmoil
You are always with us, for You promised
You will never leave us nor forsake us
Help us not to focus on problems surrounding us
But to focus on what You have in store for us in the heavens.

We cannot wait to see Your presence and glory
But help us to do Your will here on earth
This is not our residency, our residency is with You forever
Thank You for adopting us as Your sons and daughters
Only through the blood of Jesus alone.

Right now, help us to practice doing the things we'll do in heaven
Glorifying and worshipping Your Holy Name
For when we see those who never trusted You in the lake of fire
We cannot imagine how grateful we are that we are with You forever
Hallelujah to Your Name, Oh Jesus.

The Sin Of Doing Nothing

2008-10-06T22:42:00.000-07:00

Numbers 32:23 (NKJV)

But if you do not do so, then take note, you have sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will find you out.

More often, Christians sin against the Lord by “omit-ment”. Doing nothing about the salvation Jesus Christ paid for us with His own blood on the wooden cross. Paul urged the Philippians to “work out your salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil. 2:12), and those same words are for us Christians of today. Much like taking care of your baby, or your pet, or whatever you value so much that you don’t want them to die or fade away. We must value our salvation knowing that it cost the blood of Jesus to pay for it.

Beware that we might be doing what the Reubenites, Gadites, and half of Manassehites planned to do when they were about to enter the Promised Land. They would rather want to stay and settle at the east side of Jordan river. God commanded them to cross over to the west side of the river and occupy the land of Canaan. They were in fact disobeying the Lord! Fortunately, our hero – Moses gave them some heavy sermon, and they decided to send their men to join the Canaan invasion, only then they can go back to their families on the east side of the Jordan river.

Yet it did not stop there, we know later that those who stayed behind on the east side – the 2 ½ tribes – who did not get into the Promised Land became indulged into all sorts of idolatry with the Gentiles. Raised hogs for business which is against the Jewish practice, and Jesus at one time sent the demons from the possessed guy to those hogs down the river.

What are you doing with the salvation you have in Jesus? Are you staying behind? Are you joining the invasion to take the world for Christ? Take heed Christian, doing nothing is the same sin as the 2 ½ tribes of old, and their sin have found them out. Don’t wait till Jesus will send your hogs down the river.

What The Devil Does Not Want You To Do

2008-10-03T22:19:00.000-07:00

As I observed day by day my life on this earth, trying to live a life for Christ, there are few things that seemed to become patterns and I consider some of them as the Enemy's work trying to trip us off in moments we are most prone and off guard.

So, I call this blog - "What the Devil does not want you to do".

1. The Devil does not want you to sing, praise, or glorify the Name of Jesus. Your praise and worship in Jesus, is painful to his ears. He will do anything to distract you, or put you in a situation to turn your joy into sadness, worry, or even anger. He can ring your phone while you're praying, create commotion or any emergency while you're reading your Bible, and anything he can manipulate to wade you off from your fellowship with Jesus. And then your response will be, to stop singing for Jesus, stop praying, stop going to fellowships, or even stop going to church!

2. The Devil does not want you to trust God. He will keep you busy watching and reading all the bad news on the TV, on the newspapers, and other things - such that you will be filled with worry and anxiety. Instead of you, talking to God, thanking Him that He has given you yet another day to live, given you new mercies and grace every morning, given you health, given you air to breath, given you food and sustained you. Your response will be now to start scampering around trying to find solutions to secure yourself, your family, and your future. You will forget that God is the One who should be in control of your life.

3. The Devil does not want you to mature and grow in your Christian life. He will deceive you, that once you get your life and hell-fire insurance from Jesus, you can go back and live your stinking, old lifestyle. Instead of keeping yourself near to the watering hole of the Word of God, the Devil will keep you dry and lifeless, without nourishment, and never growing. He can also let you go to church, but still keeping your old, bad attitudes with you to stumble other Christians, instead of building them up and encouraging other believers.

4. The Devil does not want you to realize that Christian life is active, fun, and exciting. He will present you seemingly much more interesting things of the world. He will give you the notion that being a Christian is boring and lifeless, when in fact just the opposite of what he is offering you. He will get you deep down into the pit of worldly entertainment, get you addicted, get you stoned that it would be very heavy for you to lift and get out. Then, when you're hooked into it, he will take it out and find yourself in desperation, emptiness, and disillusioned. He will let you opt for any type of disorder you like, and much worse to become suicidal. That way, he can take your soul to the pit of hell.

If Joseph Is With The Feds

2008-09-29T23:03:00.000-07:00

Genesis 47:20 (NKJV)

Then Joseph bought all the land of Egypt for Pharaoh; for every man of the Egyptians sold his field, because the famine was severe upon them. So the land became Pharaoh’s.

With all the "learned" people in America, educated by premier universities, well-known doctorates of so-and-so, the American economy is in great trouble. When well-known universities said, “We don’t need God in our schools and universities!” God turned His face away and let the people be granted what they wished for.

On the contrary, Joseph trusted in God – he acknowledged that everything he knows came from God, and God added more to his wisdom, position, and power. God showed him how to go about the 7-year worldwide famine, such that only Egypt had enough food and supply to stand the test of economy and famine. He did not “steal” the glory that is due for the Lord, he gave it back every time he is in a situation.

When will the educated people of America really learn, that it is not because of human knowledge alone, but reliance in God that this country became so rich and powerful? If Joseph is with the Feds today, he can manage to buy the wealth of the world and bail out the American economy, probably even the world’s economy. All upon reliance in God's guidance and wisdom. Sadly, it is just a matter of time that America will fall to its face on the ground, until she acknowledges that God is the One who made America rich and powerful.

Real Christians Suffer

2008-09-29T22:20:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 45:7-8 (NKJV)

And God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you who sent me here, but God; and He has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

Read Genesis 45

Thoughts

We often do not understand when bad things happen to us. We freak out, we complain, we blame God, we backslide, and we never want to live a Christian life again. In our story, despite of what happened to Joseph, when everything seemed to be going down the drain, Joseph floated in the midst of adversity and kept trusting God. Joseph never complained, never murmured, and never blamed his brothers about his situation for he knew that the Lord was with him. And so, he can say at the end, “It was God who sent me here, and not you”.

This story can be paralleled in the story of Jesus. It wasn’t the Jews who killed Him, nor the Roman soldiers, nor Judas Iscariot – it was the Father God who sent Jesus to the cross (1 John 4:10), to save us from eternal damnation in the lake of fire, by paying the death penalty Himself – all because of His love for us. And now, Jesus sits on the throne in heaven as the ruler and judge of all.

Have you been walking in the Lord really faithfully, and still experiencing the hardships and trials in your life? Be joyful, it is according to God’s plan that He is preparing you for better things yet to come (1 Peter 5:10). God is preparing you to be a great blessing to other people – you may not know it, but it is in the hands of the Almighty God. Joseph was rewarded the position of Egypt’s prime minister, because of his faithfulness to God. You may not have that kind of reward on earth, but God prepared better rewards for you in heaven.

Prayer

Lord God Heavenly Father, help us when trials come along our way for Your sake, as we journey towards our destiny with You. Forgive us when we fall, restore to us the joy of salvation we have in you. Use us for Your glory and as blessing to others. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

How To Be Happy

2008-09-25T22:27:00.000-07:00

Psalm 1:1 (NKJV)

Blessed is the man
Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly,
Nor stands in the path of sinners,
Nor sits in the seat of the scornful

Let us not fool our emotions, real happiness is clearly defined in our text today. If we bring this up to our modern understanding, happiness is simply getting away ourselves from the ways of the wicked - that’s it! Very simple yet very effective. No messing around, and you’ll be happy.

However, happiness is pretty much distorted in our world today. It is being defined of “what we have” – such as, we will be happy if we have a big house, nice car, beautiful partner, obedient kids, good job, good salary, nice toys, and anything we think we should have. External things impacting our internal emotions.

Yet, happiness as defined in our text should be rooted into holiness. It should come out from the joy that we have inside, and the joy comes from knowing that we are safe and secure in Jesus Christ as our Savior. Such that, even if we don’t have the external material things – we will still be joyful and happy. But the Devil wants us to believe that happiness is a result of the external material things that we “must have”. And so, materialism is being marketed very effectively is all sorts of media – which makes many people superficially happy. If you don’t have the material things you wanted, would you still be happy?

Bitterness

2008-09-13T23:44:00.000-07:00

Ephesians 4:31-32 (NLT)

Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior. Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.

Have you ever encountered a person who is always irritated, always angry, with uncontrollable tongue, and always burning with fury? It is easy when you are driving during rush hours. But even then, you can always meet a person with a negative attitude and they are very, very contagious. Smiling is contagious but negativity infects to a large degree. Quite frankly, I am a very vulnerable person for contamination, and I easily become angry too.

As I read our text today (vv. 17-32), the Lord showed me that bitterness is one of the enemy’s strongest arsenals of fire power against Christians in the emotional realm. If we don’t let go of the negative attitudes listed above, we are actually grieving the Holy Spirit who is living in us (v. 30), and we can blast off and destroy a whole lot of relationships – in the family, in the church, in circle of friends, in our workplace, wherever. Simply because, they are things of the Devil and they should not co-exist with the Holy Spirit in us! So, we are commanded to “get rid of all bitterness”, tied with it rage, anger, harsh words, slander, and “all” types of evil behavior. We need to wipe them out with kindness, tenderheartedness, and forgiveness – only three things, but can clean out all sorts of dirt in our attitudes and emotions.

Short Meditations: The Power of Prayer

2008-09-09T22:36:00.001-07:00

James 5:17-18 (NLT)

“Elijah was as human as we are, and yet when he prayed earnestly that no rain would fall, none fell for three and a half years! Then, when he prayed again, the sky sent down rain and the earth began to yield its crops.

Elijah is a dude with awesome power in prayer. He can pray for drought of three and a half years, and he can pray for rain after that. When he prays, he prays earnestly bending to the ground with his face between his knees (1 Kings 18:42). This is a picture of a woman in birthing position. Elijah was basically praying in labor! Even so, Jesus prayed before his arrest with sweat like drops of blood (Luke 22:44).

Prayer is not just wishful thinking, it is a serious conversation with the Lord to ask about His will, not our will – which is mostly selfish in nature. Elijah apparently prayed seven times, and God answered his prayers (1 Kings 18:43-44). There is something in doing it seven times, for it is the number of completion or perfection. So when we pray, we do it earnestly and completely. It is not because we want to twist God’s arm, or that the Lord doesn’t hear, or because it is His requirement, but simply – it is a God thing to commune with Him and fellowship with Him in our prayers, and then God answers our prayers in His perfect time. Are you laboring in prayer yet? Be joyful, God will not tire you waiting.

Short Meditations: You're a WIP!

2008-09-07T23:39:00.000-07:00

Philippians 1:6 (NIV)

“Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

I used to be a project manager myself and I understand the importance and joy of finishing and completing a project – setting a timeline, following through all the critical tasks that need to be accomplished according to schedule, striking the right balance between efficiency and effectiveness, setting the right amount of manpower, man-hours, logistics, and many other things. There is that sense of fulfillment deep inside that lifts up your spirit to achieve even furthermore, when everything is said and done. However, that experience is nothing compared to God’s working in Christians – those who trusted in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

Christians are all “work in progress, or WIP”, as far as the Lord is concerned. When He called us to be His followers and we accepted God’s calling, the Lord started grinding and molding us into the persons He wanted us to be. Christian life is not a walk in the park, it is a constant battle against our enemy, the Devil. Yet, in the midst of all our struggles, God is there before us caring and guiding us. Apostle Paul, while penning the words in our text today was in a lower dungeon in prison chained to Roman soldiers guarding him. Despite of his situation, he had the joy and treasures of encouragement to tell about the church in Philippi which he had established.

We may not be persecuted like the early Christians, yet we fail at times in our Christian walk. But God’s work is based on His faithfulness and not on our failures. And so, we have that confidence that one day, when we are done and completed, we will reflect God’s glory and honor.

When Sin Catches Up With You

2008-09-07T22:00:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 42:21 (NLT)
Speaking among themselves, they said, “Clearly we are being punished because of what we did to Joseph long ago. We saw his anguish when he pleaded for his life, but we wouldn’t listen. That’s why we’re in this trouble.”

Read Genesis 42

Thoughts

It is just a fact of life. Our sin always requires pay back time. Anything we do, from simple disobedience from our parents, telling lies, hurting someone, infidelity, to homicide or murder – it always comes back to charge for the penalty. It is not a question of if, but when. In our text today, we see that it was pay back time for the brothers of Joseph to face the consequence of their sin against Joseph. However, we see here a very important principle of the Scriptures – the mercy of God reflected in the Old Testament.

The ten brothers of Joseph could have been summarily executed when they came from Canaan to Egypt to buy food during the worldwide famine, for Joseph have all the power in his hands to do as he wishes. Yet, Joseph was overwhelmed with compassion and love for his brothers, that he had to cry out secretly. While his brothers were trembling in fear, Joseph was weeping down in compassion.

Joseph reflects the compassion and love of our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus feels the same way for us sinners – we deserve punishment and death because we offended the Creator of the heavens and the earth. We all sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Rom. 3:23), and we deserve nothing but death (Rom. 6:23). But like Joseph, Jesus broke down and wept because of our foolishness, He had compassion and love for us, that He was willing to die on the cross just to rescue us from the penalty of our sin, which is eternal damnation in the lake of fire. It was reserved for the Devil and his demons, but many people choose to go there too.

Sooner or later, your sin will catch up with you. But right now, Jesus is offering you His forgiveness and salvation. There is one of two things you can do: acknowledge that you are a helpless offender and sinner, just like Joseph’s brothers who are at the mercy of Joseph’s hand, and receive forgiveness and salvation from the Lord Jesus Christ – OR – remain proud and seemingly can work things out by yourself, but then the end is death and damnation (Prov. 14:12).

Prayer

Lord God Heavenly Father, we humbly bow down and acknowledge that we are all sinners, and nothing we can do to save ourselves. Have mercy on us and forgive us, that we may find mercy and salvation in the blood of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.

Knowing and Caring

2008-08-21T23:34:00.000-07:00

I heard this on podcast and I like it .....

"People do not care how much we know, until they know how much we care"

It’s not in me, but God

2008-08-21T23:28:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 41:38 (NKJV)

And Pharaoh said to his servants, “Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom is the Spirit of God?”

Read Genesis 41

Thoughts

Talking about a person with total package solution, Joseph has it. All because, the Spirit of God was with him. Fresh from the dungeon of the prison, he finally got his break, and then catapulted into Prime Minister of Egypt. How cool was that? You may say, yet it happened to Joseph. But it was not an easy process. Because before that, Joseph was grinding into the valleys of trial at the dungeon. God was preparing him to be a “fool” proof minister of God’s work and of Egypt.

Early on at the prison cell, Joseph interpreted the dreams of the two servants of Pharaoh, the butler and the baker – both apparently offended the Pharaoh. The interpretation of their dreams by Joseph came into fruition during Pharaoh’s birthday, the butler was restored to office, and the baker was executed. Once the butler was restored to office, he forgot about Joseph. Only after two years past that he remembered Joseph, when Pharaoh was the one who got dreams that no one can interpret. Not even Pharaoh’s best fortune tellers, wise men, magicians, sorcerers, or astrologers can interpret Pharaoh’s dream. Only a person with close encounter with the Lord, that the Lord will reveal dreams to whom He pleases, such as Joseph.

In our text today, we see that God is the author of our dreams, and He is also the Revealer. “It is not in me; God will give Pharaoh an answer of peace.” Joseph said in verse 16. “The dreams of Pharaoh are one; God has shown Pharaoh what He is about to do”, again he said in verse 25. Joseph was just an instrument of God to reveal His purpose. The good thing about Joseph was, he did not take credit of the things he had done, he fully understood that everything came from God and he was giving back all credit to God. And so, the Lord was delighted with Joseph that he was elevated as Prime Minister of Egypt.

Joseph did not just interpret Pharaoh’s dreams, and he could have lied about the reality that was about to take place – seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine, after all, he was at the enemy’s territory. Rather he relayed the message from God totally and completely, and even came with solutions on what to do. We see that Joseph had the personality of being plain-old, flat-out, truthful person. He does not withhold the truth, probably even if people cannot handle the truth. That made him in trouble with his step brothers, but now he is elevated by God because of his truthfulness.

When God uses you, do you take the credit? Or give it back to God with thanksgiving? It is not us, it is all about Jesus.

Prayer

Dear Lord Heavenly Father, it is not because of us that we can do wonderful and incredible feats, it is all because of You. You alone made things possible beyond our knowledge and abilities. We give You back the honor and glory. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

I Blog For God

2008-08-13T22:14:00.000-07:00

I blog for the Lord
My precious Audience
People blog about many things
To attract and please people

I blog for the Creator
Of the heavens and of the earth
To whom I put my pleasure
And His pleasure is my desire

Praise the Name of the Lord
Praise His holy Name

iBlog4God

Do You Really Trust God?

2008-08-11T22:42:00.001-07:00

Today's Verse

Psalm 20:7 (NKJV)

Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.

Thoughts

We live in a world where we are trained to plan everything, check all the details, cover all our bases, leave nothing to chance, failure is not an option, and do whatever we can to secure our future. These are fine, after all the Bible teaches us not to slacken, not to be complacent, but to be prepared, and to be forward looking. Yet many times, we are caught up in all these rush and find ourselves relying in our own abilities, and leaving behind the God-factor - trusting in the Lord.

Having chariots and horses in the ancient world is like having the firepower and domination in today’s modern warfare. The enemies of Israel have the firepower, but here King David relies in the name of the Lord, as he always did even when he killed and triumphed over Goliath. We read over and over again in the Bible how God reminded His people to rely on Him, and not on human capabilities. Yes, we need to be prepared and be ready, but let us give God the room for Him to work in us and for us. After all, it is God who provides for all our talents, abilities, opportunities, health, and even our capacity to work.

Christian life is not a walk in the park, it is a constant battle against the forces of darkness (Eph. 6:12). And so, we can either be a combatant or a captive. We are captives if we are no different from other people living in constant sin and have no regard of the things of God. We are combatants if we live by faith, spreading His Word, trusting God, and following His will and commands in our lives.

I love the story of Pastor Chuck Smith regarding a small woman in her nineties, with big Cadillac car moving around the country to different churches just to exhort people how worthy it is to trust in God. One day, a man was touched by her testimony and offered the woman a kind of help that is available anytime, anywhere, at any condition, at any case her Cadillac breaks down – for he owns a large trucking company. So he handed his personal business card, with his private telephone number. She took the card and looked at it, smiled and handed it back and said, “For seventy years I’ve been trusting the Lord to take care of me, and He has never failed me. Though I appreciate your offer and I hope you’re not offended, I would rather continue to trust in the Lord than to trust in you to help me out of a jam.”

How often do we trust in our own securities? In our finances? In our capabilities? In our armies, tanks, and warplanes? If we trust God, we have that peace of mind that cannot be found anywhere else. Trust God, for He cares.

Prayer

Dear Lord, thank You for the promise that You will never leave us, nor forsake us (Heb. 13:5) – when we put our trust in You. Help us not to panic when problems come our way, but to look upon You, for You are faithful and true. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Seeing God Through Us

2008-08-09T23:27:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 39:3 (NKJV)

And his master saw that the LORD was with him and that the LORD made all he did to prosper in his hand.

Read: Genesis Chapter 39

Thoughts

Joseph’s story covers more than 25 percent of the last chapters of Genesis, summarizing more than nine decades of his life. Here, we see that the Lord had been working in the life of Joseph. Joseph had a roller-coaster ride in his life; he started from up being his dad’s favorite, went down to the pit and then sold as slave, went up to Potiphar’s house, went down to prison for a crime he did not commit, and finally went up to Pharaoh’s palace. Yet, with all those successes and trials, we never saw Joseph complaining about anything, except one when he said “How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” What was his secret? God was with him, and he stayed in the Lord.

It is interesting to know, how Joseph handled everything in his life, much more when he smelled success and slowly getting elevated despite of the downsides that happened in his life. He could have grabbed all the opportunity that he can have, bragged about how good and how handsome he was, taken Potiphar’s wife under his control, taken Potiphar’s position under Pharaoh, and did every successful person can do – got into power and destroyed everyone who wronged him and were against him, just as the world teaches.

Yet Joseph was not looking for his own agenda, he was looking at God’s agenda for his life. He knows that God had much better things ahead, even if God was not holding down the punches of trials in his life that definitely can bring him down. His eyes were fixed on what God had in store for him. At the end, God rewarded him, put him in a position where God can use him more effectively – next to the Pharaoh. Literally, he became the savior and hero of the ancient world, for God used him and blessed him in ways he never expected.

You may be in a situation where everything seems to be going against you. You may feel like throwing down the towel, and say “I quit, I’m done”. And you pondered, you can just go through the currents of life instead. Look at God’s agenda for your life again, and be still and know that God is in the midst of your trials and hardships. Only then, people will see God through you because you reflect His image in your life whatever the situation maybe. Joseph kept his calm in the Lord, until one day, the Lord lifted him up and elevated him where he should be. You can keep your calm, and wait upon the Lord. God is not forgetful in His promises, He blesses those who trust in Him.

Prayer

Lord God Heavenly Father, forgive us for not abiding in You when trials come. Help us to be still and know that You are God, that You are in control of everything. Make us like gold purified in fire, only then Your reflection can be seen through us, when the impurities are burned away and separated. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

My Psalm of Praise

2008-08-09T05:42:00.000-07:00

Dear God Heavenly Father
Help me to remember Your goodness and loving kindness
In the midst of trial and temptation
Make me strong to stay in You.

Give me the strength to hold on to Your promises
When people surround me to turn me away
Shield me with Your love and mercy
Keep my path straight and righteous before You.

When I drop and fall along the way
You lift me up with Your wings
You keep me under Your shadow
You are my shield and my fortress.

Hallelujah to Your Name
Thank You for the blood that saved us
Glory to Your Holy Name
You alone are God Almighty.

In the Name of Jesus
Every knee shall bow and every tongue confess
That Jesus Christ is Lord
The Creator of the heavens and the earth.

When I sin against You
Forgive me with Your mercy and grace
When I transgress before You
Cleanse me by the blood of Jesus.

Make me walk in Your ways
How righteous are Your ways Oh Lord
How righteous are Your ways
They are life to our spirit.

When darkness comes around us
You are my Light and my Guide
You show me Your righteous path
The hard and narrow path that brings life.

Glory to Your Name
Your Name be exalted on high
On earth as it is in heaven
The Name above all names.

Evil may be all around us
But one with You Oh Lord is a majority
The Devil may be in control
But You are the ultimate Authority.

Oh how comforting the peace we have in You
Oh how assuring to know You are my God
There is none like You Oh Lord
The God of the heavens and the earth.

You are from everlasting to everlasting
You are the author of life
You know me even before I was born
For you appointed my life in You.

Who can know Your ways Oh Lord
Who can fathom Your wisdom
There is no one for Your thoughts are higher than our thoughts
Your ways are higher than our ways.

The Devil will tremble
Evil will fall
You appointed them in Your wrath
They know they will end.

They hook up people in their death beds
They gather people to unrighteousness
People follow through the broad way
The way that leads to death.

They make their followers flourish
And give them false security
At the end of the road
Death is waiting for them.

How foolish to enjoy the temporary pleasures of sin
The Devil makes sin look pleasurable
And attaches the hook of death
The penalty of sin is death.

Keep us in You Oh Lord
Make us remain in the Vine
Do not make us dry out
But water us with Your Spirit.

Make us light and salt of this earth
To show people Your love and salvation
Take away our idleness Oh God
Use us in Your holy purpose.

Many people are suffering
Many people are bound for hell
Yet You love them enough
And You take no pleasure in the death of the wicked.

How lovely is Your dwelling place
You desire us to be with You
You have given us victory in Your Name
You alone are the Holy God.

The Enemy is defeated
You are victorious
Who is like You Oh Lord
There is none for You alone are God.

From Bad Deal To Blessing

2008-08-03T22:59:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 38:11 (NKJV)

Then Judah said to Tamar his daughter-in-law, “Remain a widow in your father’s house till my son Shelah is grown.” For he said, “Lest he also die like his brothers.” And Tamar went and dwelt in her father’s house.

Read: Genesis Chapter 38

Thoughts

Jacob’s sons were slowly breaking up: Simeon and Levi’s killing spree in Shechem, Reuben’s abuse of Bilhah (his father’s wife), Joseph was sold into slavery, and now Judah associated himself with the Canaanites, basically he was sleeping with the enemy. He befriended a Canaanite guy, married a Canaanite woman, and found a Canaanite woman for his son – the woman’s name was Tamar.

Judah’s two sons (Er and Onan) became wicked that God took their lives away. And so Tamar, Judah’s daughter-in-law was left hanging in the balance. Judah had a third son named Shelah, and promised Tamar that when he will reach adulthood, Tamar could marry him also. It was a tradition that succeeding younger brothers must marry their older brother’s wife when he dies, to continue the legacy of the oldest brother (Deut. 25:7). So more likely, younger brothers must have an approval of whom the oldest brother should marry.

Judah sent Tamar back to his dad, probably having the thought that she will marry some Canaanite man and he can get rid of her eventually from wreaking havoc to his family. Shelah is the only son left to continue the family clan, and no way he’s gonna be dead too. In reality, Tamar was just one woman caught up in the mess of Judah’s family. Later, because of a broken promise, Tamar did what any woman would do; she made a way to get justice for herself by disguising as a harlot to be impregnated by Judah, since Judah did not give Shelah to Tamar when he was at the right age. As the story goes, Tamar was proven to be more righteous than Judah because of the instances that transpired. Tamar became pregnant with twins (Perez and Zerah) and was the first of the four non-Jewish women to be included in the lineage of the Lord Jesus Christ (Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheeba).

The moral of the story, we often disregard other people that seem to be irrelevant, someone who is outside of our group, we focus on our Christianese comfort zones, and don’t mind about others. But in God’s eyes, He can make use of anyone He wants to use, even a Canaanite woman who was non-Jewish. It shows that God’s grace was already at work in the lives of non-Jewish people very early on. Even until now, many people like us who are outside the chosen nation of Israel can be included in God’s heavenly family because of His own work through the sacrificial death of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is not because of our own doing or qualifications, it is by God’s grace. God can turn bad deals in our lives to blessings we never imagined.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, we cannot thank You enough that we have the opportunity to be called sons and daughters of God because of You (John 1:12). You brought us out of the miry clay, and continue sanctifying us until one day - we will live with You in heaven. Praise You Lord Jesus. Amen.

Every Knee Shall Bow

2008-07-30T00:22:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 37:7 (NKJV)

There we were, binding sheaves in the field. Then behold, my sheaf arose and also stood upright; and indeed your sheaves stood all around and bowed down to my sheaf.”

Thoughts

Here is Joseph, 17 years old, very young, careless, and carefree. We do not know if he was just insensitive to his surroundings, unaware of the envious eyes of his brothers planting evil in their hearts day by day. Joseph was the 11th son of Jacob through Rachel, who died giving birth to her second son Benjamin – Jacob’s 12th son. Remember that Jacob had four wives, whom Rachel was his favorite wife and her son Joseph was Jacob’s favorite too! Jacob made Joseph a tunic of many colors - or we may call today a Gucci designer coat! Jesus later emphasized about man and wife, not man and wives, meaning a man should only have one wife (Matt. 19:5).

Joseph had dreams and was interpreted by his brothers and parents as them bowing down to him one day, and Joseph reigning over them. This made his brothers even more furious about Joseph. We will know later that Joseph became the one who interpret dreams, for God had given him the ability. Many Bible teachers believe that Joseph is a type of Christ in the Old Testament, meaning there were instances in the life of Joseph and Jesus Christ that were similar. Joseph is one of the early representations of Jesus Christ. They were both hated by their brothers, they were put to death categorically and rose back up to life, Jesus was sinless and no fault was mentioned about Joseph, they saved their brothers who hated them, they were both loved by their fathers.

Joseph went through many trials and testings through the years, and then God elevated him to the highest position before the Pharaoh, and was given all authority over the land. His brothers and father eventually paid respect and bowed to him when the great famine came. Even all people who came bowed down to him, so they can get food supply.

Someday, Jesus who was tested, tempted, crucified, died for our sins, then rose again from the dead – will be reigning over all people and creation. God elevated Him and given Him all the authority and “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:10-11).

No matter who we are, whether we believe in Jesus Christ or not, we will all bow down before Jesus and there is no exception – only the final destination will make the difference, whether heaven or hell. If the demons trembled and submitted to Jesus’ authority, and paid respect (Matt. 8:31), could we be more stubborn and powerful not to submit to Jesus?

Prayer

You, Oh Lord, are the King of kings and Lord of lords, the Creator of the heavens and the earth. Who could stand in pride before You? We are just like wax melting and bowing before Your holy presence. We worship and lift up Your holy Name. In Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.

Weight Loss Tips - Absolutely Inexpensive

2008-07-17T00:09:00.000-07:00

I want to share the following tips which are really effective in weight loss. I have done it myself and lost 15 pounds in 8 weeks - without joining or paying expensive weight loss programs. These steps are "live normally" procedures without inflicting sorrow and regret to yourself as you lose weight. Eat the things you used to eat, do the things you used to do. The only things you need to add to yourself are self-control and discipline.

Here are the steps to a healthy life:

1. PRAY - The first thing you need to do is to pray. You need the will and discipline to reduce your weight and live a healthy lifestyle. The God of all creation lacks nothing to give when you pray. He can give you the will to go on. You always need to go back to this step as you go along with your program.

2. DETOXIFY - One of the best secrets to weight loss is to detoxify your body. You need to take out something that will make your body "cry" for food, or something that makes you hungry. You need to reduce on alcohol, caffeine, and other chemicals that will make you feel very hungry, even medicines! While doing that, you can take your favorite “antioxidant” green tea while at work for as many times as you can, when you go home, or even when at the restaurant – order a green tea. The most important thing is, do not put sugar or sweetener. If you really cannot live without the taste of sugar, buy flavored green tea like honey or lemon. If you are not a tea fan, try unsweetened juices (which are still sweet) like raspberry, wild berry, pomegranate, and the like – pick the organic products if possible. After a week, you will notice that you feel a bit lighter and healthier, and less bad breathe when you wake up in the morning. You will also experience less rumbling in your tummy, and so you can extend your time before you eat. That is, because the toxins that rotten your body and mouth become less and less.

3. NO SUGAR – Of course this will never happen because any food that you eat most often has sugar content. So, if you wage war against sugar or sweetener, in your drinks – then your only source of sugar will be from the food you eat which could still be 60 to 70% of your total sugar intake. Another way to reduce sugar is to read labels on the grocery products, select the ones with lowest sugar content. Takes time but it pays. If you are a fan of coffee shops like Starbucks, get a latte instead of the fancy sweetened drinks. The latte will also help your tummy spit out the toxins broken down by your green teas during the day. Yet, you need to be home by then so you can visit the restroom as often as you need.

4. FOOD INTAKE REDUCTION – If you are successful with Steps 1 to 3, you may not feel like eating too much because you get full quite easily. Basically, your tummy had become more efficient that it needs less food to run it. Even if this is not the case, you still need to measure your food intake and start taking lesser portion gradually as your tummy adjusts. Do not force your stomach to go empty, otherwise you are inviting problem which could develop to a medicinal ailment like ulcer. This process is always progressive and results do not come overnight, so do not try to rush. After two weeks, you may begin to notice that you need to adjust your belt by one hole tighter. Your 33 size pant will start to become loose. As you see developments, you feel the urge to be more aggressive, relax – this is a long distance race, no need to sprint your way down and eventually lose your momentum.

For a normal built person like me (170 pounds or more), weight loss happens quickly within 4 weeks period. After that, the drop in weight becomes less and less as the time prolongs. It may mean that I am now reaching my normal body mass index, that even how hard I will do my dieting, the effects are not as much as before. It will come to a point that you are just maintaining your supposed body mass index. When that happens, and you want to achieve more, then do the next step.

5. EXERCISE - Now that you feel lighter and healthier probably after 4 or 6 weeks, this step will now be easier for you. Although, you can exercise even from the beginning, you may not have that endurance to go on because you are heavier and less healthy. In such case, you may feel discouraged and not proceed. I think it is better to exercise once you have reached the point where you want to lose more, because you are now lighter and you will not tire easily as when you were heavy. It is now easier to do your exercise. It is also safer, because you do not stress your bones and joints as when you were heavy. You will now burn the excess fats and convert them to muscles during this time, while losing more weight.

6. TREAT YOURSELF – Your simple dieting may have saved you a bit of expense. You can treat yourself from time to time so as not to feel deprived. You may buy yourself a real good ice cream, or dine with your family, or have lunch with friends at least twice a month. But of course, the discipline should remain intact, that you need to do this weight loss for your own good and cause.

Hope these tips will help you as it helped me lose weight and feel healthier. As you do these, you will have frequent visits to your weighing scale. This is your ultimate feedback system – get an accurate scale. Better yet, get an analog scale, you cannot fool it and it will not fool you.

Taking Matters Into Our Own Hands

2008-07-14T23:19:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 34:30 (NKJV)

Then Jacob said to Simeon and Levi, “You have troubled me by making me obnoxious among the inhabitants of the land, among the Canaanites and the Perizzites; and since I am few in number, they will gather themselves together against me and kill me. I shall be destroyed, my household and I.”

Read: Genesis 34-35

Thoughts

Chapter 34 tells a story of rape, deception, and mass murder. The sons of Jacob had taken matters into their own hands by taking vengeance against the people of Shechem for the rape of their sister Dinah. Jacob, now a godly man, is reaping the fruits of his past works. His sons have learned the art of deceit and used it for mass murder. Although, it may have been the correct course of action – but when it is not consulted before the Lord, then it is not the right action. And now again, Jacob and his family is on the run to avoid escalation of trouble among the people of the land.

It happens many times in our lives too. We simply take matters into our own hands, without first asking the Lord for guidance. It seems that having ADD (attention deficit disorder) is more of a normal trait for many people, rather than a disorder – even for Christians. We people can’t just wait! Many relationships have been broken, churches breaking up, opportunities getting lost, and many missed blessings – simply because we take matters into our own hands. We can’t wait what the Lord has to say by reading His word, much less ask the Lord for guidance. As a result, we end up putting ourselves and others in jeopardy. Simeon and Levi were not the only ones affected by their actions, but for the whole family and tribes of Israel. Yes, when we foul up, it affects other people too and not just us.

Nevertheless, God’s mercy and grace is never swayed by the wrong actions of man. The word “oops!” is not just in God’s vocabulary. He knows and understands our frailty. The Lord spoke to Jacob to meet the Lord in Bethel and worship Him there, the place where he once took refuge while fleeing from his bro Esau (Gen 35:1). The Lord is bringing him back to the same place while running for their lives again.

That’s what we need to do when we fail, and keep failing. Go back to where we met the Lord, back to our own Bethels and worship the Lord there. But like Jacob, we need to take down our idols and gods first – basically confessing our sins and leaving behind all that binds us in this world (Gen 35:2). Only then, we can have God’s protection and blessing. Only then we can have peace in our lives, and not worry about the enemies and problems that chase us.

Prayer

Dear God Heavenly Father, forgive us for taking wrong actions and sinning against You. Forgive us for our frailty and lack of faith. Help us not to go before You, but to wait on Your leading and guidance. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

All We Like Sheep

2008-07-06T01:57:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Isaiah 53:6 (NKJV)

All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one, to his own way;
And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.

Thoughts

Many times we people think that we are smart, talented, and genius. Intellectually, there’s no doubt about it, because God has given talent to each one of us. We can do a lot of things, invent powerful machines, create wonderful arts, and many others that make our world a better place to live.

Yet for many times, the Bible describes “all” of us as sheep. Sheep is one of the dumbest animals on the planet, if not the dumbest. When unguided, sheep can plunge to their death in a cliff, and then followed by other sheep. Sheep are extremely social animal where in most cases congregate and following each other, thus a shepherd can just lead one sheep and others will follow. However, in the absence of a shepherd, when a sheep is separated from a herd, the sheep becomes highly stressed and easily panics and its action can cause self-inflicted damages. Sheep have no defense mechanism, and they are easy target for predators like wolves, lions, bears, and coyotes.

In our own folly, we tend to follow our own instinct and knowledge; we put aside God in our lives and live the way we wanted to be. We say to ourselves, we don’t need the Shepherd – and in many cases, we are inviting trouble to ourselves. Prestigious universities in North America which were founded to promote Christ are now secularized and have nothing to do about the Lord who made them successful. Any thought about God and the Bible are now being taken out of the classrooms, from hotel rooms, from the court houses, from offices, parks, and other public areas. Atheism is promoted, other religions are welcomed, paganism is practiced, and that’s what America embraces. Sooner or later, the United States is no different than Saudi Arabia where Islam becomes the only allowed religion.

We are like sheep and we are not as wise as we think we are. Left alone to ourselves, we easily plunge to our death. We may know a lot of things, but the wisdom that comes from the Lord through Jesus Christ – our Good Shepherd - is our only guiding light to life. King David who was a shepherd himself acknowledges the need of the Lord as his Shepherd, when he said in Psalm 23:1 (NLT) – “The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need”. There is a need of dependence on the Lord, we need a Shepherd - Jesus Christ, the Savior of our souls. Only in the Lord, we can have peaceful rest for He leads us to streams of living water, He guides us with his staff, and all the goodness in this life and life to come is always before us.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank you for coming to this earth to save us and guide us to everlasting life. You are our Good Shepherd, help us to trust and follow You, for we are as sheep that gone astray. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

De God is ons toevluchtsoord!
(God is our refuge! In Dutch)

Are You Facing Danger?

2008-06-29T23:44:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 32: 9-11 (NKJV)

Then Jacob said, “O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, the LORD who said to me, ‘Return to your country and to your family, and I will deal well with you’: I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which You have shown Your servant; for I crossed over this Jordan with my staff, and now I have become two companies. Deliver me, I pray, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau; for I fear him, lest he come and attack me and the mother with the children.

Read: Genesis 32

Thoughts

Are you in a situation where you are facing real danger that is inevitable? That is what Jacob is facing after following God’s order to go back to his own country – the place that God is giving to him. Jacob and his caravan had just passed across Jordan River, which could mean – no way of turning back easily. And now, report is saying that the one he fears – his brother Esau whom he deceived, is coming their way! Esau was with four hundred men, the best archers during that time. A threat that could easily annihilate Jacob and all who were with him - servants, mothers, and their children.

Many times, we are placed in a situation like Jacob does. When we really decide to follow the Lord, suddenly things start going against our way. Hardships start to burden us, fear is having grip on us, suddenly we are facing rejection – at work, with friends, and with relatives. Suddenly relationships start to go sour. And then we find ourselves feel like retreating, but it is hardly possible when we have crossed the river of commitment. In such cases, the only way possible is too look up. To look upon God whom we followed.

Jacob started with fear, did his best solutions – to split up the troop, to assemble barriers of “gifts and appeasements” hoping to cool down Esau’s anger and revenge, once he gets into Jacob. But then, Jacob did the even better solution – to call upon the Lord, to take refuge on God, and claim God’s command and promise. That is the best thing to do when we face real danger in following the Lord, give the situation over to God – and He will deliver us. After all, only the Lord can give us protection and comfort in times of troubles, for He is our God of refuge. “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.” (Psalm 46:1).

And God did protect Jacob and delivered him from his fears (Gen 33:10). We know that if we give our fears over to God, then we will get same kind of protection and refuge from the Lord.

Prayer

Dear Lord Heavenly Father, You are our refuge and comfort. We find peace when focus our eyes and trust in You, in times of troubles. Thank you Lord for helping and protecting us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Rethinking Life

2008-06-23T21:08:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Ecclesiastes 5:15 (NLT)

We all come to the end of our lives as naked and empty-handed as on the day we were born. We can’t take our riches with us.

Read: Ecclesiastes 5

Thoughts

I woke up this morning feeling kind of dry and empty, I don’t know if the heat wave in the area has something to do with it. But sometimes, I guess each person will somehow come to that kind of feeling where you wake up one morning and begin to feel like life is empty. And then, you start questioning yourself what life is for. I thought this could be one instance when the enemy will attack because I am vulnerable and ruin my day, so I bowed and pray to the Lord, then read my Bible. For some reason I came across Ecclesiastes 5, and read King Solomon’s emotions and regrets, and joys in life.

Have you ever thought what is good, bad, and best in this life is? Take it from King Solomon, the guy who basically has gone through “all” what life could offer: wisdom, wealth, wives, wretchedness, wickedness, wildness, and anything you can think of. He did not merely thought about what things in life would be, but he tried them himself, even in many instances disobeying God!

Talking about worldly experiences, King Solomon tried it all – not once, not twice, but hundreds until he finds them they never satisfy at all! He was the richest man who ever lived (1 Kings 10:23): he ruled kingdoms, he had 700 wives and 300 concubines, his music is the real orchestra – no iPods or MP3 players, no home theater systems, he always wants the real thing. He doesn’t watch in 70” plasma, he watched games right before his eyes – no 3D please, just real! His circles of friends were kings and conquerors and they gave their daughters to him for wives. Silver was greatly devalued during Solomon’s time (1 Kings 10:21), and possibly just like pieces of rocks that you can put in the foundation of your house. He was crazy about wheels and horsepower (1 Kings 10:26)! Yet, because of all these things and his wives, his heart was drawn away from the Lord, and he greatly transgressed and did evil in the eyes of God (1 Kings 11:9).

And when he grew old, he realized that life is not found in the things he acquired, or the successes he achieved – he calls them “vanity”, meaningless, worthless (Ecc 12:8)! But rather, life and joy and happiness is only found in the “fear” of the true and living God – not afraid, but holy reverence. After all, God judges everything we have done in this life whether good or bad (Ecc 12:14). Solomon said it is good to have things in life and enjoy what you have for these are God’s blessings (Ecc 5:18-20), but don’t set your heart on them for they are nothing. Set your heart on the living God.

You may be young and vibrant, and you think you have life – think again. If you are wiser than Solomon who wrote wise books of Proverbs (31 chapters) and Ecclesiastes (12 chapters), and you think you can beat that, then don’t believe when he said, “Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, ‘Life is not pleasant anymore.’ ” (Ecc 12:1- NLT). The word is “now”, not later when it is too late.

Prayer

Lord God, forgive us if we focus our life on the things of this world. Open and guide our minds to remember You in the days of our lives, that we may honor and glorify Your holy Name. Amen.

Are You A Blessing To Others?

2008-06-18T21:08:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 31:42 (NKJV)

Unless the God of my father, the God of Abraham and the Fear of Isaac, had been with me, surely now you would have sent me away empty-handed. God has seen my affliction and the labor of my hands, and rebuked you last night.”

Read: Genesis 31

Thoughts

It is often confusing what principles we cling to as we live in this world. Popular belief says: you are the priority, get as much as you can, stay at the top of the pack, be popular, and never mind the others. The Bible says otherwise, and it is hard to follow. It is just against the tide. In our passage, we saw that Jacob had learned to trust God after many failures. He had learned how to be a servant, to be humbled, and be taken advantage of - in a foreign country, contrary to what he used to be – a supplanter, and “All I can have” mama’s boy. After many years of hardship and trials, and no one to turn to, he turned and trusted the God of his fathers.

And now, Jacob is the source of blessings for his uncle Laban, for the Lord has blessed all his works. When we learn to give all our failures to the Lord and trust in Him, it is then that God will turn it around into blessings. There is nothing more rewarding than humbling ourselves to be used by God, and in turn be a blessing to others as Jacob did. And even when it seemed Jacob was ripping off Laban before their departure going back to his country, God’s blessing and allowing was there – for He is the avenger of the humble and the lowly.

Are you striving to compete and be at the top, not minding who’s gonna hurt, and who’s gonna be trampled down? The Lord is teaching the other way around. In God’s economy, the way up is down, and the way down is up. When we humble down ourselves and trust God for our future, then He will lift us up. But if we seek to be the top dog, be self-sufficient, and have the “I can do it” mentality, then it becomes the work of the flesh, instead of the Spirit of God. Jacob could have turned the situation upside down, make himself rich and make Laban poor, and let Laban serve him, but he did not for he learned the joy and blessings of humility and godliness.

Learn to be blessed and be a blessing from the person who learned it the hard way, Jacob - the father of the twelve tribes of Israel.

Prayer

Lord God Heavenly Father, many times we are tempted to do things our way, to strive to the top no matter what. We forgot to rely on You, and so we missed Your blessings. Help us Lord to be humble and lowly, knowing that You care more than enough for us. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Honor Your Parents

2008-06-08T16:25:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Exodus 20:12 (NIV)

Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you.

Thoughts

This is the fifth commandment of the Ten Commandments, God had given the Israelites through Moses. But this is the “first” commandment with promise (Eph 6:2). In fact it is the “only” commandment with promise! Why is it so important that the Lord had to attach such promise, and not to all the commandments? When you have the words “so that”, then something follows afterwards – and it is good, it spells long life. In fact, this is the secret to long life! It is not some magic fountain, some freezing machine, or by any invention and medicine.

In the United States, there is growing problem of juvenile delinquencies and increasing at sharp rate. If not controlled, then this country will become a country of anarchy. No rules, no standards, no peace, everything is chaos, no long life – everyone will die at youth because of violence, drugs and vices, suicides, and others. Even aggravated by some self-righteous civil rights movements, where they promote that disciplining children is inhuman and against the law. The Bible says, “Blessed is the man you discipline, O LORD, the man you teach from your law” (Psalm 94:12).

The Lord instituted or established the family as the primary environment for training children into obedience, character building, and values forming. According to studies, the greatest influence to children largely comes from the environment of the family which is 93%, 5% comes from school, and 2% from others including church. Therefore, the family is where kids must learn to practice submission and obedience to authorities placed by God – which are the parents. Then, when children are grown up, they learn how to submit to authorities – the law, the police, their bosses, their spouse, and any authority. No matter how good or bad parents are, it is not an excuse - it is God’s commandment, and it is God who rewards or punishes.

The Lord is the Lord of order and peace, and He knows best that obedience when practiced - however small - brings forth long life and lasting rewards. Jews rebelling against Moses were swallowed in a pit, Satan rebelled against God will be kept in a pit forever, left-wing or right-wing groups rebelling against nations were buried in a pit, a disobedient young and beautiful girl was found in a pit in Florida – raped and murdered. How shall we learn obedience and not rebellion? The Lord established the rules and authorities, follow and obey – and live long.

Prayer

Lord God Heavenly Father, there is life and fulfillment in obedience. When You commanded us to obey, it is for our own good. Forgive us Lord when we fail, guide us that we may follow. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Vertrauen im Lord!
(Trust in the Lord! In German)

Today's Motto

2008-06-08T15:45:00.000-07:00

In Essentials - Unity
In Non-essentials - Liberty
In All Things - Charity

(motto claimed by Restoration Movement)

My Country, 'Tis of Thee

2008-06-08T14:42:00.000-07:00

(also titled as "America")

I stumbled along this song which I used to sing as a 5-year old boy back in Baguio, PH. With the eroding American culture, and with the lack of historical knowledge by many young people, this may remind how American fathers used to love their country.
______________________________________________________________

by Samuel Francis Smith

My country, 'tis of thee,
Sweet land of liberty,
Of thee I sing;
Land where my fathers died,
Land of the pilgrims' pride,
From every mountainside
Let freedom ring!

My native country, thee,
Land of the noble free,
Thy name I love;
I love thy rocks and rills,
Thy woods and templed hills;
My heart with rapture thrills,
Like that above.

Let music swell the breeze,
And ring from all the trees
Sweet freedom's song;
Let mortal tongues awake;
Let all that breathe partake;
Let rocks their silence break,
The sound prolong.

Our father's God to Thee,
Author of liberty,
To Thee we sing.
Long may our land be bright,
With freedom's holy light,
Protect us by Thy might,
Great God our King.

(added to celebrate Washington's Centennial)

Our joyful hearts today,
Their grateful tribute pay,
Happy and free,
After our toils and fears,
After our blood and tears,
Strong with our hundred years,
O God, to Thee.

Additional Verses by Henry Van Dyke

We love thine inland seas,
Thy groves and giant trees,
Thy rolling plains;
Thy rivers' mighty sweep,
Thy mystic canyons deep,
Thy mountains wild and steep,
All thy domains.

Thy silver Eastern strands,
Thy Golden Gate that stands
Fronting the West;
Thy flowery Southland fair,
Thy North's sweet, crystal air:
O Land beyond compare,
We love thee best!

If I Were The Devil

2008-06-07T13:51:00.000-07:00

By Paul Harvey
(ABC Radio Commentator)

I would gain control of the most powerful nation in the world;

I would delude their minds into thinking that they had come from man's effort, instead of God's blessings;

I would promote an attitude of loving things and using people, instead of the other way around;

I would dupe entire states into relying on gambling for their state revenue;

I would convince people that character is not an issue when it comes to leadership;

I would make it legal to take the life of unborn babies;

I would make it socially acceptable to take one's own life, and invent machines to make it convenient;

I would cheapen human life as much as possible so that life of animals are valued more than human beings;

I would take God out of the schools, where even the mention of His name was grounds for a lawsuit;

I would come up with drugs that sedate the mind and target the young, and I would get sports heroes to advertise them;

I would get control of the media, so that every night I could pollute the minds of every family member for my agenda;

I would attack then family, the backbone of any nation. I would make divorce acceptable and easy, even fashionable. If the family crumbles, so does the nation;

I would compel people to express their most depraved fantasies on canvas and movies screens, and I would call it art;

I would convince the world that people are born homosexuals, and that their lifestyles should be accepted and marveled;

I would convince the people that right and wrong are determined by a few who call themselves authorities and refer to their agendas as politically correct;

I would persuade people that the church is irrelevant and out of date, the Bible is for the naive:

I would dull the minds of Christians, and make them believe that prayer is not important, and that faithfulness and obedience are optional;

I GUESS I WOULD LEAVE THINGS PRETTY MUCH THE WAY THEY ARE!

In God’s Time

2008-06-03T22:54:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 30:22-23 (NKJV)

Then God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her and opened her womb. And she conceived and bore a son, and said, “God has taken away my reproach.”

Read: Genesis 30

Thoughts

Child-bearing is a big deal for many women. In the Middle East, infertility of the wife could be a ground for divorce. And if that happens, the infertile woman may lose her husband and security, and could end up being a servant or prostitute in order to survive. And we see this kind of desperation and uneasiness in Rachel’s actions, when she saw that her sister Leah keeps on bearing children while she remains barren. She sounded like putting up a fight with Jacob by her complaint in verse 1, and Jacob responded angrily, “Who do you think of me, like God who withholds you from giving birth?” (my paraphrase). And maybe probably, to appease Jacob’s anger, she gave her maid Bilhah to Jacob to bore a child for her. She followed the steps of grandma Sarah who gave her maid Hagar to Abraham for child-bearing.

Even then, with all the worries and attempts to remedy things in order to have a child, God already had plans long before. God – remembered, listened, and opened Rachel’s womb (verse 22). God was not forgetful that He “remembered”, but it is now God’s time to execute His plan. God’s timing never comes early or late – it is always the perfect timing for He is not bounded by time, for God is eternal – no beginning and no end!

We often miss out God’s best for us because we panic, we freak out, we lose track, we lose faith, we become impatient, and we end up doing the remedies of the flesh. Instead of seeking guidance from God through His word – to know whether God says “no”, “wait”, or “yes”. You may not hear God audibly, but His Spirit speaks within you that He gives you comfort and courage when it is time to go on. Many victories in battles were won, because of the character of waiting and patience. Many survivors of earthquakes and disasters were the ones who waited for help, those who freaked out and worried died. We too can win our battles in life when we wait upon the Lord, and be patient. God’s plan in your life does not change, wait while worshiping the Lord. Do not waste time worrying and complaining.

Isaiah 40:31 says, “But those who wait on the LORD shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

Prayer

Lord God Heavenly Father, give us the character of patience and waiting, replace our unbelief with faith, our worries with worship, and our complaints with comfort. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Gott ändert nie!
(God never changes! In German)

The Temple Sacrifice

2008-06-01T21:28:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Judges 16:28 (NKJV)

Then Samson called to the LORD, saying, “O Lord GOD, remember me, I pray! Strengthen me, I pray, just this once, O God, that I may with one blow take vengeance on the Philistines for my two eyes!”

Thoughts

The story of Samson in the Bible is very well known both in the Christian and non-Christian communities. It is the story of a man who was called and appointed by God even before birth to be the deliverer and judge for Israel. The concept of judge during that time is different from the judges we have today, who wear long black robes, they sit at court houses, and hammering the gavel. Judges in the time of Samson are ordinary people like town elders, appointed by God or leaders, sitting by the city gate, and performing judgment whenever two persons have issues. Few examples were Lot sitting by the city gate at Sodom, Moses judging the people of Israel, and Joshua who succeeded Moses.

Samson’s story is both bad and good. He was raised from a very godly family, we may nick name him as “Sunny”, and was set apart by God as a Nazirite – which means he should not take any wine products, he should not touch any dead thing, and no razor or scissor should come near his hair (Judges 13). And if he does, God’s Spirit will be with him, and he will have tremendous power, wisdom, and strength – and Samson was! Many great Bible characters were born from barren mothers, and Samson is one of them. They really must be God-made heroes.

Initially, Samson was doing well for the Spirit of the Lord was moving through him (Judges 13:25). But in chapter 14, sudden shift of event happened for Samson took charge of the stirring wheel of his life, and drove “down” to Timnah – a Philistine town. What he’s gonna do in a Philistine town when God called him to be judge in Israel? Many times we are like that, we cannot wait to take control of our lives, instead of letting the Holy Spirit lead us. By then, Samson began his spiritual and moral descent, he had broken the vow of being a Nazirite by going through the vineyards, killing a lion with his bare hands, and eating honey taken from the dead lion. Only one rule was left unbroken, having a haircut at the Devil’s salon.

He engaged himself with Philistine women until he was caught up with Delilah – who made him weak, as the name implies. And finally, he gave in to have his haircut, then the Spirit of the Lord left him. Now, Samson is totally not a Nazirite anymore for he broke all the rules, his giver of strength and power left him – and was turned to nothing by his enemies, but as a donkey grinding the wheels. Until one day, he made a final request for the Spirit of God to strengthen him again – his hair may have grown back for sometime, he turned his trust back to God, to make his life as final sacrifice in the temple of his enemies. God acknowledged his faith.

Are you living or planning to live your own life after giving it to the Lord? Jesus said, “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.” (John 15:4). Don’t waste your life, give it to Jesus. Don’t wait before it’s too late – abide in the Lord.

Prayer

Dear Lord Jesus, help us to abide in You that we may live holy lives before You. You bought us with Your blood, and we are yours. You are praise worthy and there is none like You. Amen.

Live A Holy Life

2008-05-29T23:46:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

1 Peter 1:15-16 (NLT)

But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

Thoughts

For much of us, holy living is kind of strange idea that is hard or maybe impossible to achieve. We were all born sinful and we live in this corrupt and wicked world that we can easily get influenced by it or ride into its ways. In Genesis 6:5, the Lord God looked into the people of the earth and said with desperation that “every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually”.

Many people do not want to become Christians because they think that life will become boring and they will lose all their “good times” with sin. Thinking that there is God up there who is some kind of cosmic killjoy. And yet, even Christians tend to think that way too. Bible study becomes boring, prayer time becomes boring, and going to church is not cool!

Peter who had denied Jesus three times in a row, now has understood what is it all about holy living. After all, holy living – with all the hardships, trials, persecutions, and even physical death – will someday meet its match when Jesus will return and be revealed to the whole world (verse 7)! There is that great inheritance – incorruptible, undefiled, unfading, waiting for those who lived a holy life (verse 4).

On the other hand, if we persist to live unholy lives, consequences are waiting on the other side of the bridge. The Bible says there is no inheritance in God’s kingdom for those who sin continually in the eyes of God (1 Cor 6:9). If you truly are a Christian, cleansed and saved by the blood of Jesus, prove by living a holy life.

Sad to say, people have watered down the idea of sin and made them sound politically correct, thereby misleading many people into committing these very sins. Abortion is now termed as unwanted pregnancy or pro-choice. Genocide as ethnic cleansing. Sexual immorals as intimate partners, or sexual liberals. Suicide as bi-polar disorder. Homosexuals as same-sex partners. And many others. But, in the pure eyes of God, sin is sin, and holy is holy. Are you looking forward for heavenly inheritance? Live a holy life and reap the rewards that await for those who are committed.

Prayer

Dear Lord Heavenly Father, You desired that your children would live holy lives for You are holy. Even the desire to be holy, You have given us for we can do nothing good by ourselves. Forgive us for many times giving in to our worldly and selfish desires. In Jesus' name, Amen.

O Deus bless o!
(God bless you! In Portuguese)

We Reap What We Sow

2008-05-27T15:42:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 29:25 (NKJV)

So it came to pass in the morning, that behold, it was Leah. And he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I served you? Why then have you deceived me?”

Read Chapter: Genesis 29

Thoughts

The principle of sowing and reaping is now working in the life of Jacob. Here in our passage, Jacob the supplanter, met his match – his uncle Laban. After deceiving his brother and dad, now he is the one about to be deceived by his uncle. At first, Laban seemed generous that he offered Jacob salary for his services. But as the story goes, Jacob ended up being tricked.

Jacob requested Rachel as the prize, for seven-year labor. This seems typical in Middle Eastern culture even until these days, that a guy will pay huge amount for his bride. In Saudi Arabia, a guy will pay at least 27,000 dollars for a bride. At the end of seven years, Jacob thought he finally achieved his dream prize – Rachel. He was wrong, Laban switched the older Leah for Rachel on the wedding night, as it was the tradition for the older to be married first. Seven years was like seven days to Jacob, because of his love for Rachel. But now, he had to work again for another seven years. Fourteen years past, and Jacob got a tender-eyed Leah, and beautiful Rachel, plus two maid-concubines Bilhah and Zilpah.

In this life, we cannot escape the consequences of our wrong actions - whether it is sin, wrong decisions, unwise moves, or whatever. It is just a matter of time that it will ripen and fall into our basket - we will reap what we sow. However unfortunate Jacob had gone through, God was still in control and protecting Jacob. God allows the natural things as consequences of our actions to mold us, and shape us according to His will. God had given us the Bible as our manual to guide us, but not to stop us from what we want to do. He often times put a blockage on our path to protect us, when we pray for guidance and protection, but when we do not take heed and just keep going then we reap the consequences.

So, do we have to blame God for the bad things that happen to us? The answer is no. God is our Father that He cares too much for us to be hurt, but He is holy and just that He allows us to go through our own consequences – and so we reap what we sow.

Prayer

Dear Lord Heavenly Father, give us the wisdom to follow and obey You. Help us to learn from our own mistakes, and help us to grow into maturity even as we walk with You Lord. In Jesus Name, Amen.

A World Gone Wrong

2008-05-21T23:17:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 6:5 (NLT)

The Lord observed the extent of human wickedness on the earth, and he saw that everything they thought or imagined was consistently and totally evil.

Read: Genesis 6:1-8

Thoughts

Mankind basically did not change after the first worldwide judgment – by the deluge or great flood. Everything started right, and then suddenly, it goes wrong. Why is that, you may ask? Verse 5 says, our thoughts and imaginations are consistently and totally evil, that is why. We live in sexually active environment, where perversion is all around – on TV, in the internet, billboards, magazines, advertisements, everywhere. Even if you go to Saudi Arabia where woman are wrapped with abayas and body exposure is prohibited, you can still see the lust in the eyes men, they even lust among fellow men!

Sexual sin is basically the highlighted sin in verses 1 to 8. It spread like epidemic in the days of Noah that God cannot tolerate anymore the evil that it brings. It was like, they have sex to breed good kind of warriors, in order to conquer territories. Now, as to the puzzle who “the sons of God” who intermarry with the “daughters of men” are, is still unclear to many Bible teachers. Some suggest that they are fallen angels, and some suggest they are the godly lineage of Seth (Adam’s son who replaced Abel), who intermarry outside the lineage.

It is sad to know that the world we live in today is already in that direction, where evil continues to flourish around us, especially sexual sin. Even the immediate consequence of this sin in the form of STD, HIV, AIDS or what have you is still being ignored by many. Much worse, the increase of abortion, divorce, homosexuals, bisexuals, and the like is unstoppable!

God will again purge the whole earth the second and last time. Not with flood, but with fire. We do not know what kind, but some suggest it could be through nuclear war, or secret weapons that could melt flesh, or comets and asteroids that will collide with earth and generate extreme heat, we just don’t know. What we know is what Luke 17:26 says, “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man.” Are you ready, when that time comes? Jesus – the Son of Man - is the Lion and the Lamb (Rev. 5), He was the Lamb and offered as sacrifice for our sins, and He is also the Lion who will judge the condemned to be thrown into the lake of fire. Will you face Him as the Lamb or as the Lion?

Prayer

Lord God Heavenly Father, forgive us for we are soaked in sin around us. Help us to be pure that You may find us worthy when You return. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Today's Sayings

2008-05-15T13:46:00.000-07:00

Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, it empties today of its strength.

Unconfessed Sin

2008-05-14T11:21:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Psalm 32:3 (NLT)

When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day.

Read Chapter: Psalm 32

Thoughts

Sin. The thing that separates a person from the Holy God. The thing that can separate a man from his wife. The thing that separates a son or daughter from his or her parents. The thing that pulls a person down into the pit of hell. We must know that God never sends a person to hell, people chose to go there because they cling to their sin. Sin is a sin whether big or small. Even when we think we are not like the criminals in jail, we are still sinners (Romans 3:23).

In our passage, we see King David’s own description of keeping unconfessed sin. He committed murder and adultery. He planned that his faithful soldier Uriah be killed in the battlefront that he may take his wife Bathsheba (2 Sam 11:15). All along, David thought he had gotten away with his problem and apparently enjoying his sin. But God dealt with him straight to his face, through the prophet Nathan. We see the expression “You are the man!” from Nathan when he confronted David for trying to cover up his sin (2 Sam 12).

Are you keeping unconfessed sin? Do you feel that groaning inside, making your bones grow old – as David described? Do you feel like wasting away and your vitality being dried up? These may be signs that the Lord wants you to bring out unconfessed sin. Otherwise, if you enjoy doing sin and never felt any guilt, you may not belong to God’s family and God’s Holy Spirit is not in you. For the Holy Spirit is the One who convicts us of our sins (1 Thes 1:5).

We often fall into keeping sins, how little they may be. It is like taking a baby python, or baby jaguar as our pet that we get used to it. And when it grows, it is like nursing death in our lap. One day, we find our pet eating us up. That’s how unconfessed sin works in our lives. Unless we confess them, throw those deadly pets away into their place, we are endangering our lives into the pits of hell. David’s son King Solomon wrote, “He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy.” (Prov. 28:13). Are you willing to receive mercy? Confess your sin before the Holy God, and His arm is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear (Isaiah 59:1).

Prayer

Dear Lord God, we sin as we live in this world. But thank You for the blood of Jesus that cleanses us from all our sin. Help us to acknowledge them everyday that we may find mercy from You. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Compromised Life

2008-05-13T17:01:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 19:29 (NKJV)

And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot had dwelt.

Read: Genesis 19

Thoughts

Living a compromised Christian life always comes with a cost. Lot lost everything, including his wife, when God destroyed and burned Sodom and Gomorrah , and ending up with dysfunctional family. It started in Lot’s life meddling around in Egypt , when he and Abram “went down” to Egypt during the famine in Canaan . Egypt is a picture of worldly living.

When Abram and Lot parted ways after leaving Egypt , Lot lifted his eyes and saw the plains of Jordan and looked like Egypt ! So he decided to stay in the plains, and then in Sodom . But then, God decided to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah because of the extreme wickedness of the people.

We read that Lot even hesitated to leave Sodom . Except that the angels grabbed them out of Sodom by force. His wife longing for Sodom looked back and turned into pillar of salt, as the angels warned them earlier not to look back. Eventually, Lot and his daughters decided to live on the mountains. And there, incestuous relationship with his two daughters happened with the help of wine. Their offsprings of Moabites and Ammonites became fierce enemies of Israel.

When we chose to live a compromised life, one thing leads to another, and another, and so on. And when we stir the pool of sin, there are ripples and repercussions that we need to bear. Compromising starts with little things, grows to bigger things, we rationalize things, until our reasoning becomes desensitized, like what happened to Lot . Taking one small step at a time, until he was trapped into worldly living, and then destruction came.

Prayer

Dear Lord Heavenly Father, we always fumble and stumble as a result of our foolishnessyou’re your mercy nd grace, help us to stand up, cope up, follow You, and restore our fellowship with You. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Zum Gott der Ruhm sein !
(To God be the glory! In German)

Words on parenting

2008-05-12T22:48:00.000-07:00

Parenting is one of the most difficult tasks for a man and a woman having a family. The early years of parenting is exciting until a child reaches his or her teen years, then problems begin to pile up. But then, parenting should not be as frustrating only when we really learn and give time to our kids as we teach them the lessons in life. When we invest in our children time and effort, it would not be for long that we see the results pay off.

Here are some simple words that may help, as we parents help our children grow and straighten up their life - TEACH your kids:

T - Train up a child in the ways of the Lord.
E - Encourage them to live Godly lives. Be a good example as parents.
A - Assure your love and support for your children equally. Show them your affection.
C - Chasten your children accordingly, not unreasonably. Correct them as God corrects His children.
H - Host your home as sanctuary for your children. Not as hostile battlefield.

God bless.

Making Wrong Choices

2008-05-12T13:26:00.000-07:00

Today's Verse

Genesis 25:33 (NKJV)

Then Jacob said, “Swear to me as of this day.” So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob.

Read: Genesis 25

Thoughts

Many sufferings faced by many people today are the results of bad or wrong choices in life. Given the opportunity to revert it back, they will say - they will never do the same thing again. It can be buying the wrong car, marrying the wrong person, getting into vices, not wanting good education, and many others that has lifetime impact in our lives. In our text, Esau tripped off into making the bad decision by selling his birthright for a bowl of stew – on the spur of the moment, and therefore losing the thing with lifetime value. You may say, how lame was that? We too can be as lame, when we despise those things that really matters.

We are living in a culture and society pampered with entertainment and easy lifestyle. As though, life is all about getting rich and getting happy, without the sacrifice of work and effort. We get disoriented and make believe on what we see on TV, on the movies, and other means of entertainment. All those are scripted and not real! And suddenly, we find ourselves waking up in the reality of life, and then we get disillusioned.

Birthright in the old days could imply the right to inheritance. If we translate today, it could mean wealth, priority, and power – all waiting for you. If you are flying, or checking in into a hotel, or getting into a line of people – being in the priority always pays a lot! There is a birthright waiting for each one of us, not for an earthly wealth and power but for a more glorious and lasting one. That is getting an inheritance and access to God’s heaven – only through Jesus Christ. An inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade – kept in heaven for you (1 Peter 1:3-5).

How can you get that birthright? Jesus said, you must be born again (John 3:7). The term born again may shun many people away, but what Jesus said – Jesus said, and nobody can change it. And it really shuns people even in Jesus’ time because they can’t get it. It sounded foolish to many people even today, yet it is what it is. The foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom (1 Cor 1:25). You need to be renewed, become brand new, fresh, born again – because birthright cannot be given to your old person!

Jesus is still calling for people to be born again into the Spirit of God (John 3:6). Will you be like Esau, who for the temporary appetite and pleasure of the flesh, exchange that which has lasting value – his birthright? If you are a Christian, are you enjoying temporary pleasures of sin instead of growing in the Spirit? Are you still living in the flesh? Take hold of that which has eternal value – born and live in the Spirit of God.

Prayer

Lord God Heavenly Father, thank You for the birthright we have in Jesus. Help us to live the newness of life in the Spirit. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Honorer le Seigneur Almighty!
(Honor the Lord Almighty! In French)