Faith...Complete

For the past few years, I've always had the idea that for a woman to feel complete, she needs to get married and have children. Only then will she have completed what God has designed for her. It's just meant to be that way.

As time passes, I realise that this is not the case. The completeness doesn't come from a relationship with a man, a sense of belonging in a family. If a woman has it, it's a bonus that God has given and provisioned; if she doesn't have, she can still feel complete, at peace and comforted. It's the Grace of God that makes a person complete. And it is the faith of one in Christ that reaches out to recieve God's Grace. One needs to have faith that He loves you, He hears you, He answers your prayers to keep walking and bearing all the thorns in life, even when you pray God to remove the thorns and He doesn't not remove it, one must have faith that He knows it's better for you to bear the thorns than without it. The thorns have made people to lean on God. As a whole, one must have faith.

I have been reminded of the importance of faith many times this week: through the Christian book that I am reading, through the sermon, through the quiet time material, even through my keyboard lesson. I don't know what God is really trying to say to me exactly, neither do I know what lies ahead. But I know that He wants me to hang on and walk in faith with Him. "They looked unto him, and were lightened: and their faces were not ashamed" (Psalm 34:5). For a couple of days after the confirmation, I felt far away from God. I lost my connection with Him somehow. I just didn't know how to communicate with Him. But thank God that He keeps prompting me that I should have faith in Him.

I understand why God wants us to go to church, to be in a community with God's people around, to have our quiet time and so on. These are all channels for Him to talk to us too. But eventually, it's our personal relationship with God that sustains us, that makes up the faith. As A.W. Tozer has put it, "Faith is the gaze of the soul upon the Lord." It's fixing our eyes upon Him, setting our hearts for Him and "having the inward habit of beholding the Lord". One's relationship with God is personal, so is faith. Christianity is a relationship with God. And the relationship is solely based on one's individual faith in Him.

It is the Faith in Him that makes me complete. The song that I learned in my keyboard class just resonates the voice in my heart.

Complete by Parachute Band

Here I am, Oh God
I bring this sacrifice
My open heart
I offer up my life

I look to You, Lord
Your love that never ends
Restores me again

Chorus:
So I lift my eyes to You Lord
In Your strength will I break through Lord
Touch me now
Let Your love fall down on me
I know Your love dispels all my fears
And I will be complete in You

I will be complete in You

Anna

Everything is permissible...

Over the past one to two weeks, I've been struggling with this thoughts that doing law is not making sense to me anymore. Not in the sense that I find it boring, not in the sense that I find that I have lost my interest; but more on the notion that "who are we to judge other people?"

My prime reason to read law was to gain the legal reasoning and to train myself up in logical and analytical arguments. I have been enjoying it. However, as I am going through the courses, I feel more and more that the world is very subjective and there is just no sense that there should be any judgment by the court. It's just getting meaningless.

This coupled with what I have been reading on 1 Corinthians 4 and 6, Paul also discouraged people to go to the court to settle matters (1 Corinthians 6:1-11). In fact, Paul said,

"3 I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. 4My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me. 5Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God" (1 Corinthians 4:3-5)

It is very common to fall into the trap of judging people around us. I think even so for Christians. We hold onto the Word of God, we follow what the Bible says. There are truely things that are stated very clearly in the Bible of what to do and what not to do. But there are still many things that the Bible did not say explicitly. That's when we as Christians try to judge and sometimes take the Bible verses out of context to apply to the particular situation. But who are we to judge? Justice to one may not be justice to another. Anyway, we will not be able to understand the different sides of the stories and make a fair judgment. There can never be a fair judgment by us. There are three courts before which we stand:

People;

Our own conscience;

Jesus Christ.

We can deceive people, deceive ourselves but we can never deceive God and it's His judgment that matters.

However, just as I was so discouraged by the subjectivity of law, I realised that the subjectivity can still be put into good use. Paul says,

"'Everything is permissible for me'-but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible for me' - but I will not be mastered by anything" (1 Corinthians 6:12).

Then I read a guide on the Bible which has commented as follows:

"A man was walking down the street swinging his arms out from his chest and, by mistake, struck a passerby in the face. The man struck was furious and started to strike the man back. 'Hey, isn't this a free country? Can't a fellow do his exercises on the street if he wishes?'

'Yes,' was the answer, 'but remember where my nose begins, your liberty ends.'"

It's true that we have the liberty to do many things, as Paul has put it. And we cannot really judge others as simple as we think. But liberty does not mean recklessness. If our liberty harms another, then our liberty has gone too far. We are not to judge people, especially with the little rules that the Scripture has laid down. Perhaps it's better to think of it from another angle and to remind our brothers and sisters and ourselves that whether what we do will harm the weaker Christians, who will use our conduct as an example. We do not live on this world alone. Our conduct does affect others. By not being a stumbling block to our weaker brothers and sisters in Christ, we are glorifying God. This is also echoed in 1 Corinthians 8:9-13.

This concept of "liberty not Recklessness" parallels with one principle that I learnt in law: even though we all have human rights, our rights end as far as our rights infringe on others' freedom. For example, the freedom of speech ends when we are defaming people; our freedom to assemble ends when we disrupt public order. So, law helps to remind me of some important principles of life, helps me to understand the Bible from another perspective. It's useful.

Anna

Some Thanksgiving and Prayer from Oct 09

Thanksgiving:

-Cell group members have been faithful in memorizing the scripture weekly. :)

Prayer Pointers:

1)Pray for direction for cell group in 2010 so that cell will be able to do the Lord’s will.

2)Cell group planning to go for Cambodia’s mission trip in March 2010. Pray for favorable schedules for members so that we will be available.

3)Anna and Brenda are getting confirmed and are attending confirmation class. Pray that both of them will learn and grow in the Lord as they attend the classes. May the lessons be a fruitful time for them.

4)Pray for Edmund and Anna as they have just joined the Holistic Ministry in adults. May they be used to bless others and also be blessed from serving in the Ministry as well.

5)Pray that cell group will not only be inward looking to each other’s needs but also be actively reaching out to non-believers. So that cell group will know how to reach out to non-believers and be able to learn how to do so through lessons from Lawrence Seow.

Do add any thanksgiving or prayer pointers to the list if I have missed out any. :)
May we continue to know the Lord Jesus and make His name known. Have a blessed day.

Rgrds,

Ruijie

Thank you Lord, Daniel Poropat

The lyrics of this song really speak to me and the music is nice. The Sunday congregation actually sang this song 3 or 4 times in the service last Sunday!

Thank you Lord for the trials that come my way,
In that way I can grow each day as I let You lead.
And thank You, Lord, for the patience those trials bring,
In that process of growing I can learn to care.
But it goes against the way I am, to put my human nature down,
And let the Spirit take control of all I do.
For when those trials come, my human nature shouts the things to do; And God's soft prompting can be easily ignored.
I thank You Lord with each trial I feel inside,
That You're there to help lead and guide me away from wrong.
'Cause You promised Lord that with every testing, that Your way of escaping is easier to bear.
But it goes against the way I am to put my human nature down,
And let the Spirit take control of all I do.
For when those trials come, my human nature shouts the thing to do;
And God's soft prompting can be easily ignored.
I thank You Lord for the victory that growing brings,
In surrender of everything life is so worthwhile.
And I thank You Lord that when everything's put in place,
Out in front I can see Your face, and it's there You belong.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qirXlU7lQXA

Anna

Pure Grace

Tonight is one of the nights whereby I am touched and refreshed by the Lord during my Quiet Time.

I was touched that I am saved. Instead of eternal-death and condemnation, I received eternal life. I re-appreciate that it is pure grace and not by works, that led to my salvation. It is God who first extends himself and woo me from the beginning. I am like filthy rags and Jesus Christ allowed himself to take these filthy rags and make me clean. Undeserved grace. Amazing love.

He is worthy...because he was slain and with his blood, he purchased men for God (Rev 5:9, paraphrase)

Thank you, Lord

-ed-

Our 2 Girls from Vietnam

Vatican Bidding to Get Anglicans to Join Its Fold

VATICAN CITY — In an extraordinary bid to lure traditionalist Anglicans en masse, the Vatican said Tuesday that it would make it easier for Anglicans uncomfortable with their church’s acceptance of female priests and openly gay bishops to join the Roman Catholic Church while retaining many of their traditions.

Anglicans would be able “to enter full communion with the Catholic Church while preserving elements of the distinctive Anglican spiritual and liturgical patrimony,” Cardinal William J. Levada, the prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, said at a news conference here.

more on this in the link below
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/21/world/europe/21pope.html?_r=2&scp=1&sq=vatican%20bidding%20to%20get%20anglicans&st=cse

_____________

I got a shock when I see this news in the Straits Times a few days ago. I wonder what is our church's response to this.

-ed-

Jesus, lover of my soul

A lot of friends have tried to look out for potential partners for me out of good will that I should be dating someone. I think I should thank God that so far there is no one who is madly fasincated by me and like me to the extent that he is going all the way out to pursue me. That's because if he is someone that I don't like, I have to think of ways to diplomaticaly reject him; if he is someone that I really have chemistry with, I would definitely response. And by responding, it may eventually lead to the stage when I would hold tightly onto him just to make sure that I won't lose him. That's what I see in some of my friends' relationship. That's kind of suffocating. I thank God that He loves me so much and takes care of me so well and that I can respond to His love for me in such a free and easy way. I don't feel suffocated but I feel that I am being set free. Where on earth can I find such a person with whom I can be in love with in this way?

God has given me another way to feel secure, another much freer and ultimately certain way of security. As long as I open up the door of my heart to let Him in, He promised that He would come into our hearts. Having God in my life is really the greatest relationship I can ever have. I feel so filled and well-loved that I don't need any other thing. I should be thankful and treasure this amazing relationship that I have developed with God.

How I wish I can share this great feeling that is so deeply rooted in my heart with my loved ones who have yet to come to know God. It is my deepest desire to bring them to Christ. May God grant me the wisdom and the gift to draw them to Christ.

Anna

Are all born-again Christians fanatics?

My law lecturer has once said that all "reborn" Christians are fanatics. Well, that's definitely a sweeping statement but my first response was what he meant by reborn Christians. Did he mean those who were not born in a Christian family but came to know God when growing up and decided to commit their lives for God? Or those who were born into a Christian family or even those who came to know God later in life but back-slided? In any case, there was a period in their lives for this category of Christians that God was not well-regarded . So when they re-invite God to dwell in their hearts, they are "reborn".

I came from a non-Christian family and have always been surrounded by Taoists and Buddhists. I took me a long time and a long way to come to be fully convicted to allow God to take control of my life and be fully committed to God. Therefore, I belong to this category of reborn Christian. So am I a fanatic, at least in proclaiming the truth of God and to obey God's command for my life? Definitely! I wouldn't admit it right from the beginning, but when I search my heart deeper, I must say yes. If I was not so fully convinced and convicted of the fact that Jesus was the only way, the only truth and the only One, I would not still be a Christian by now and putting my priority for Him. It's because I have gone through a period of earnestly exploring and questioning and willfully disobeying and turning away from God's calling that made me a fanatic in defending what I believe in. I was also able to compare what it was like without God in my heart and what it is like now that I allow Christ to come in.

For those who were borned into a Christian family. They have been brought up with Christian education, knowing God and having God with them as they grow up. They know and have been taught how great and how important it is to obey God and to have God in their lives. But in practice, they cannot really compare. That's why as the preacher Benjamin Lee has said, it's really tempting to disobey God and just to see how it's like to lead a life without God in mind. In fact, I have heard a number of my German colleagues saying that the priests (most of them were born Catholics) always told them not to do this, not to do that because that's what God commanded...these "don't" teaching had a negative effect on them and as a child, the more "don't" teaching, the more they wanted to try and to disobey.

Even in our long spiritual journey with God, I'm sure there are many incidences when we are very tempted to close our ears to God's advice and calling because God calls us to do things that we don't want to obey. Very often we continue to indulge in this practice because we think that God is allowing this and still blessing us because He allows us to continue. But just as the preacher Rev. Dr. Simon Chan mentioned that sometimes God purposely take things that we thought are important to us and strike some sense out of us. Perhaps by doing so, it achieves the same effect of being "reborn".

I came across this quote from the confirmation class by J.C. Ryle, "Christ is never fully valued, until sin is clearly seen. we must know the depth and malignity of our disease, in order to appreciate the great Physician." This really strikes a chord in my heart.

Well, doesn't this leads to the conclusion that we learn best and most effectively through and from our negative experience? When I first became a Christian, one of my strongest desire was to bring up my children in the church environment, let them experience and be influenced by the goodness and love of God in this extended Christian family. But when I look at some of my friends who have been raised up in Christian families, not everyone of them really turned out to be fully obeying and listening to God. This fanatic flame doesn't seem to be burning in them. Maybe being brought up in a Christian family might not be that wonderful after all??? We all know what the standard answer to the question is, but how to defend your answer and be convincing for yourself, it's probably another big topic for discussion.

However, I do think that whatever kind of christian education that we have at any point in our lives, everyone's journey with the Lord is unique. God has a way to teach us, mold us and refine us. All that Christian education can do is just to set out a guideline to facilitate the individual to follow and ponder upon. I strongly believe that whether we are receptive of all the sermons, Bible discussions and our quite time, is really our willingness to hear and response to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

Fanatics will never be fanatics if they keep on denying that it's the wonders of God that they are experiencing.

Anna

Does Anyone Know about This?

I found such deep purpose and meaning and fulfillment in seeking Christ that I was compelled to ask the girl who led me to Him, "Does anyone else know about this?" She laughed, "Of course," she replied "why do you ask?"

"You mean all those people sitting in church knew about this and they never went out of their way to tell me?"

I have never recovered from the shock. How anyone who truly knows Christ can ever sleep more than four hours a night beats me. How can we who know the answers to the eternal why in people;s hearts do anything other than continually share it with others? we myst "go into all the world" and tell what we know. How can I wtch people filling their lives with water when I own the wine cellar? How could I find the cure for cancer and keep the secret to myself> Not me! The fact that we have the answers is just too exciting, too important not to share

---------------------

The above is quoted from a book i am reading now. These paragraphs struck a chord of guilt within me. Why am i not actively sharing the greatest treasure from others? What is holding me back?

This has been my struggle for a long time. I have to admit evangelism just do not come naturally to me. Often, the gift of the gab fails me when i engaged in spiritual or christian conversations with people. Sometimes, it can be that I lack the desire to share. And this could be due to fear of men, bo-chup attitude or simply lack of motivation.

However, i can see the reason why it is so important to engage in evangelism. Firstly, it is very clear in the bible. John 3:18 "Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son." Definitely, God has made it very clear. There is going to be a distinct line drawn between the believers and unbelievers. There is no middle ground.

Secondly, believing in Jesus promises eternal life and blessings. It is the greatest treasure that one can ever possess and guess what, this treasure can be given freely to anyone who wants it. Women can crave for diamonds and men can dream of getting a Ferrari. But, nothing beats having Jesus in your life.

So, it does make a lot of sense to share the gospel. But, one has to be wise in going about in this. You cannot always use a one-size-fit-all approach of always proclaiming the gospel. In this post-modern world, we cannot force the gospel down the throat of unbeliever. Constant proclaimation can turn out to be a turn-off instead of being fruitful. We cannot separate the message from the methods. The end does not justify the means. We have to pray and seek the Holy Spirit's guidance in evangelism.

To conclude, evangelism is such a massive portion of God's heart. It is also not easy. However, I pray that we will not give up. I pray that God will constantly enlarge my heart; to have the desire for the lost. May God help us!

-ed-

e-sword

Much has been discussed about "sword" recently in our cell because our dear sister Brenda's name means "sword' and she is a bit fastidious about it. No doubt the inituitive interpretation of the meaning of sword is a bit negative, yet I think I am compelled to write something positive about "sword".

I've been introduced to a Bible study software called "e-Sword" from my keyboard worship class for quite awhile. I wasn't drawn to using it immediately, neither have I appreciated its value at all. This is mainly because I've tried to search for software to have a PC version of the Bible and though there are many free software available on the web, I was just not drawn to either one and in a way, I have given up on this. So when I downloaded this version because I wanted to check out the meaning of a word in the Bible from that software, as instructed by the facilitator, I didn't really spend time exploring it.

Until this morning, I suddenly remember that the facilitator has mentioned that the word "Shema" means "hear intelligently" as stated in the Srong's definition in that software. So I decided to just check it out out of curiosity. I can't remember how eventually I ended up going to the e-Sword website and ended up finding the "treasure" hidden inside this software (I downloaded the application file from the school website so didn't check out the website of this software). I found that there are really quite a number of Bible commentaries offered by this software and they are FREE! What's most attractive is that the software enables me to cross-reference the different versions of Bible available for downloading and the different Bible dictionaries and commentaries as compared to me opening so many windows as what I have been doing previously. That's exactly what I want and what I need now!

The website is:

http://www.e-sword.net/index.html

I believe that other software offers similar things, just that I didn't explore them because I have to pay before I can explore them. This e-Sword offers many resources for free, not even a trial period is stipulated and it definitely helps to facilitate understanding the Word of God.

So hope you will check it out.

e-Sword's long definition is "the Sword of the Lord with an electronic edge". My perception of "Sword" has definitely changed after today's discovery of e-Sword.

And this "Sword of peace" as in "Brenda Shiloh" or "Shiloh Brenda", probably another positive connotation of "Sword", I suppose.

Anna

Pascal Wager

I came across this article on Pascal’s famous Wager and decided to blog about it.

Pascal argued that it is pragmatic to believe in God even if one cannot conclusively determine the existence of God. This make sense as the benefit of living with a belief in God far outweighs any disadvantages. In another words, this is a sure-win wager whereby we have nothing to lose and everything to gain from holding that belief.

From a pragmatic Singaporean mentality (together with my trader's instinct), this is a no-brainer. I will surely show hand as I have nothing to lose by believing in God. There is no downside. Only upside. Surely, if there is such a bet on the table, I will take it on.

However, as I got past the exuberance of the bet, I realize that mankind is not merely a jackpot machine. We cannot and should not use sheer willpower to believe in something just for its benefits. We cannot live a lie just because it is pragmatic. We cannot merely subscribe to a capitalistic mindset and let money and power (benefits) to determine God. We need evidence, revelation, morality, meaning, etc to determine the truth.

Having said that, there is also no harm for a non-believer to take the first step of determining God by going to church, reading the bible and praying. He can put God to a test by coming on God's terms and determine if God does exist. If God does exist, I believe God will lead that any honest seeker to Him. In fact, the wager is now on God to find him. If God is one who loves us and desires to be found by Man, this wager will also be a no-brainer too. He will conclude that there is God. Either way, the seeker has nothing to lose and everything to gain.

-ed-

Evaluating our walk with God

Here's the snapshot for our welcoming session for this week's cell...should have taken all of us in....

God's pharmacy

An interesting presentation on God's amazing creations.

God's Pharmacy

Anna

Religion and Christianity

Over the past few months, I have encountered a number of occasions when it's necessary for me to define what religion is in my conversations with others. Every time I just dodged it. today I faced with the same problem again and eventually I decided to do some research on it and found a website that contains a very resourceful answer to my question. I've quoted some below: http://www.religioustolerance.org/rel_defn.htm:

The English word "religion" is derived from the Middle English "religioun" which came from the Old French "religion." It may have been originally derived from the Latin word "religo" which means "good faith," "ritual," and other similar meanings. Or it may have come from the Latin "relig©re" which means "to tie fast."

Defining the word "religion" is fraught with difficulty. Many attempts have been made. Most seem to focus on too narrowly only a few aspects of religion; they tend to exclude those religions that do not fit well. As Kile Jones wrote in his essay on defining religion:

"It is apparent that religion can be seen as a theological, philosophical, anthropological, sociological, and psychological phenomenon of human kind. To limit religion to only one of these categories is to miss its multifaceted nature and lose out on the complete definition." 1

Dictionary definitions:

Dictionaries have made many attempts to define the word religion:

1)Barns & Noble (Cambridge) Encyclopedia (1990):
"...no single definition will suffice to encompass the varied sets of traditions, practices, and ideas which constitute different religions."

2)The Concise Oxford Dictionary (1990):
"Human recognition of superhuman controlling power and especially of a personal God entitled to obedience"

This definition would not consider some Buddhist sects as religions. Many Unitarian Universalists are excluded by this description. Strictly interpreted, it would also reject polytheistic religions, since it refers to "a" personal God."


3)Webster's New World Dictionary (Third College Edition):
"any specific system of belief and worship, often involving a code of ethics and a philosophy."
This definition would exclude religions that do not engage in worship. It implies that there are two important components to religion:

one's belief and worship in a deity or deities
one's ethical behavior towards other persons

This dual nature of religion is expressed clearly in the Christian Scriptures (New Testament) in Matthew 22:36-39:

"Teacher, what is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."

4)The Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry (CARM):
"An organized system of belief that generally seeks to understand purpose, meaning, goals, and methods of spiritual things. These spiritual things can be God, people in relation to God, salvation, after life, purpose of life, order of the cosmos, etc."

There are still many other definitions given on the website, by academics and others.

However, at the end of all these searches, the important point is not what religion is or how Christianity can be argued to fit in the different definitions or even why christianity is the only true religion. The truth that has to be reminded is that Christianity is in fact all about relationship, a relationship with God.

This is probably also why Christianity is so important and it's something that we can't live out. That's the purpose of life.

"The human heart is drawn to fall in love--a quality placed within our soul by God. Marriage is the human picture or illustration of the divine relationship we are ultimately destined to experience for all eternity with God once we’ve entered into a relationship with Jesus Christ. Ecclesiastes 3:11 says, “He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men; yet they cannot fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” (NIV) (Mary Fiarchild)

Our faith actually rests on our love for God. Therefore, if we are reminded that God is with us always wherever we go (Joshua 1:9), all the troubles, worries, disappointment and fear will not disturb or harm us.

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal." 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NIV)

In addition to this vertical relationship that we have with God, God also commanded that we should love one another, the hotizontal manifestation of the love that God has given us. However, it's sad that many people cannot practice this and thus results in unforgiveness, grudges against each other or awkwardness among each others. If one does not focus on the outcome and expectations of the human relationship, but on following God's command, that we are doing so as a way of building our relationship with God, I am sure human relationship can be much more genuine, comfortable and harmonious.

"Relationship can be thought of as a ship carrying some cargos that you need in order to answer your prayer. This ship in most cases is a person. Therefore, very often, God sends people among us to lead us to the fulfillment of our prayers." once said a preacher. I would further this analogy to the relationship with God. Our disorientation in many circumstances in life can be redirected, if we have found God to be the "ship" to guide us and sail us through and lead us to the destination.

Anna

Chruch Life

Now,, church community life becomes somewhat like a boxing ring where we come into the center for periods of time and then go back to our corners to get patched up at the end of the day. Is that harsh? I don't think so. I don't think so. I listen as I travel and hear story after story of broken lives and shattered optimism. Is there an answer here? Yes, I believe there is. Here I borrow from a metaphor used by a former Muslim. He described for me the two ways of looking at life and religious commitment. “ In the West, if life is illustrated by a circle, then a small dot somewhere inside that circle is religion. Life is the ends, belief the means. For the Muslim, by contrast, religion is defined by the circle and a small dot somewhere in the middle is life. One's personal faith is the ends; life is the means.” In other words, what defines what? What circumscribes what? Until we see reality ordered in the way God has designed it to be, we will always become imitators of the world with a pseudospirituality and a cosmetic faith. - Ravi Zacharias

saw this interesting except from the book I am reading

- Ed -

Bible and Whiskey

I came across an interesting sentence from a book (a novel) this morning:

"Sometimes, a Bible in the hand of one man is worse than a whiskey bottle in the hand of ---" (fill in the dashed line yourself with whoever you know has drinking problem.)

How vivid is the description of the situation when we misinterpret the Bible! Well, maybe whiskey is not a very good analogy, perhaps red wine is a better one, at least in my opinion.)

Anna

Reflection on the devotional comment on Colossians 3:23

I think it's very true that very often we get too absorbed about ourselves that we have failed to take a helicopter view of everything, especially with regards to relationship.

A lot of times when we love or hate a person, we get too emotionally involved to that extent that there is only this particular person in the whole world. In effect, the position of God in our hearts has been compromised, diminished or even taken over. And things will get out of hands because we no longer allow God to pacify our hearts.

Once there was a radio interview with an old lady whose husband has just died. The couple have lived most parts of their lives together and everybody knew that they were loving couple. So, the interviewer asked her whether she was very sad and whether she would be able to overcome this lost. She replied that she would be able to let go without problems, because as a Christian, the one that she loved most was Jesus Christ.

That old lady illustrates very well that as long as we rest our human relationships in God, even the husband and wife relationship, we will not be too carried away to the extent that we lose our senses.

In the same token, in employer and employee relationship, sometimes we are too absorbed that our bosses did not really justifiably reward us. But if we put God in the picture, we won't be angry that much. Once a friend told me that he used to work under a supervisor that was very good in his work, but his boss did not appreciate him. This supervisor always told him that "God is with me." so that supervisor was not angry. Of course when it's time for that supervisor to move on, he did move on. But during that time when he was unjustifiably treated, he was still at peace with God and did not let the human relationship bother him much. I have been practising this for the past few months and it works well. Sometimes I forget but still I keep trying.

Important reminder that it's not about me and him/her, but about putting God in the center of our lives.

Anna

Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men

I lifted the below from a website:

The concept of serving God in one’s vocation may at times seem overwhelming. The key to success in this endeavor is to do it one day at a time. Last night I caught the final set of the U.S. Open tennis match between Andy Roddick and Fernando Gonzales. Roddick won in straight sets to advance to the quarter finals. In the interview after the match, Andy was asked about his hopes going forward. He responded that he has tried to approach the tournament “one point at a time.” This is the approach of every great champion, and it is also the best way to ensure success as you seek to honor God in your vocation.

Purpose in your heart that you will glorify God today in the performance of your duties, in your interactions with co-workers, superiors, employees and customers. Pray for grace to enable you to exalt your Savior from your first interaction to your final transaction of the day. As you encounter each challenge to your contentment, pray again for God to glorify Himself through your response, and remind yourself that you represent Him and that your reactions will either honor Him or dishonor Him in the eyes of men. And be thankful, today, for the grand privilege of carrying the testimony of Jesus into your place of business.

- Ed -

Jonah

I was on this book of Jonah for the past few days and have been thinking about it for quite some time. It's not quite easy to believe that Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights. However, Isn't Jesus' resurrection equally unbelievable and yet I believe and that forms the very basis of my belief in Christ? From first asking myself what my attitude toward Jonah's experience should be to now believing it, it's quite an amazing journey but my faith is definitely renewed and my trust in God affirmed. In fact, this is probably a good reminder of our faith in God.

From a guidebook, it has been pointed out that Jonah is a type of Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. And Jonah is a type of Israel in his disobedient to God, swallowed by nations of the world, but will yet give her up when Christ comes and be witnesses of God everywhere. Jesus also pointed out Jonah to the scribes and the Pharisees as the only sign (Matthew 12:38-40) when He was asked. A short book, yet significant! So is the Christian faith, concise yet profound!

PS At the end of the book, it was recorded that Jonah was angry that God was compassionate and gracious towards Nineveh. Jonah found it hard to love the city (Nineveh) of that hostile country (Assyria) to Israel (his own country). In the devotional material, it pointed out that God's love has a bit of irrationality in it, because it's across all creatures and all circumstances. I wonder whether this is consistent with the agape love in "The Four loves' written by C.S.Lewis. This agape love is unconditional, but I wouldn't link it to irrationality. On the other hand, Eros, is the type that most people associate with irrationality. Or is love in general irrational across the board ?

Anna

What wounds has God left you with that make you constantly dependent upon him?

I was reading Genesis 32 on the account of Jacob being transformed completely and finally convinced that blessing can only be obtained from God. His total change of characters from Jacob to Isreal was brought about through costly personal struggle.

The question, "What wounds has God left you with that make you constantly dependent upon him?" was the question asked in the devotional material relating to this passage. When I asked myself this question, I instantly thought of my BGR (boy-girl-relationship) in the past. To cut the stories short, all of them just turned away all of a sudden, or maybe they just "dumped me", so to speak. That made me wonder or even conclude that there was something wrong with me. This has definitely left scars on me, making me numb and phobic. But the healing came from God. The experience made me realise that no matter what I do, I am not in control but God is. In fact, these are occasions when God drew me closer to Him step by step and sent people around me to show His love for me. All these have left me dependent on God completely and not to take matters into my own hands.

That question also reminds me of a testimony that I heard from a church friend few years ago. Though it may not really be a wound for her, but it's a struggle that made her depend on God thereafter.

She is a talented, capable American. A mother of four, obtained scholarship to study African language, worked as a translator for the embassy, can speak fluent German. She said that God has always just been the icing on the cake. But one winter, her view changed completely. It was snowing heavily. Her son was having high fever and she needed to send him to hospital urgently. However, she couldn't start the car because of the cold, there was no one in sight, she couldn't contact her husband and it seemed that it's the end of the world. She said she was so helpless and clueless but it's at that particular point that she realised she was so powerless but God was powerful. Eventually her prayer was answered and everything was fine.

Reluctant to admit, but it's true that through ordeals that we learn to depend on God.

Anna

Nissi: Pls take some time to read

Hi everyone,

I understand that there has been some concern regarding the state of our cell group recently. Please take some time to read my thoughts when you are free.

Personally, as I continue to serve the cell group, I would like to state my stand on certain issues.

Cell group future

I sincerely hope that the topic of splitting will not be raised within cell group for the time being as we begin this rebuilding process. We have worked hard to make the cell group what it is today, please do not destroy what we have built by requesting for the cell group to split once again.

With regards to whether cell group carrying on or not, I am not entertaining any ideas of splitting and will definitely plan as if Nissi will carry on to function. The idea of a merge is also out.

Let me explain the rational.

Our strength is not only in numbers. As Hebrews 10:24 states, the community of believers are called to spur one another on is love and good deeds. The function of the cell group is for believers to spur one another on in their love with God and good deeds. If our cell group has a large number of people but still does not serve to encourage one another, I guess we have missed the biblical basis for cell group.

I understand that some people feel that the cell group is getting too small and wish to see a merge if possible. As we are in this rebuilding phase, I urge you to be patient and allow the Lord to add to our numbers once again. If however you feel that the numbers are too discouraging for you to grow spiritually, then I suggest that you leave for another cell group. Ultimately, I really pray that for any cell group a person attends, the cell group must enable him/her to grow spiritually and be spurred to love God and do good deeds. (back to the function of a cell group)

The idea for a merge is also out because I believe that our cell group will be divided when it comes to choosing a new cell to merge with. A merge will probably be as good as splitting up. This will create even more problems for the cell group.

Church events

Secondly, I do wish to see our cell group members be part of the larger community of Christ. As believers, we have not only a responsibility to one another( Heb 10:24), we also have a corporate responsibility.

Biblical basis:

1 Cor 12:27 tell us that “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.”

1 Cor 12:21 “ Now the eye cannot say to the hand “I don’t need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet “I don’t need you!””

Drawing a principle from this verse, we as a cell group cannot flee from our corporate responsibility to the church. If we are part of COR which is the body of Christ, we cannot say that we do not want to be involved in the church events because they are not important. No, we are all part of the body Christ and each member has a role to play.

While I cannot enforce everyone to come for every church event, I sincerely hope that we understand why our presence at any church event is important. It is not only our corporate responsibility as a body of Christ but also our presence will affect the morale of other members as well.

Cell Attendance

As discussed on Sat’s cell group(18 July), we all have shared how critical each person is to the cell group because of small numbers. Noting this, I urge everyone to make cell group a priority. Remember that when choose to make cell group a priority, we are effectively obeying God and I believe that the Lord is pleased.

Final Notes

As we begin this rebuilding phase of our cell group, I urge everyone to make cell group and church a priority as Heb 10:24 and 1 Cor 12:27 commands. I pray that your presence in cell group will not be one out of obligation and rules, but because Christ has loved us so that we may be able love our neighbor as ourselves (2^nd commandment Matt 22:39). Let us strive to please the Lord in this area of our lives.

Some verses of encouragement

Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honour one another above yourselves. Romans 12:9-10

Rgrds,

Ruijie

Waiting patiently on God's perfect timing

I've been joggling in my mind this theme of waiting on God's Perfect Timing for the past one week. It started off with my quiet time topic on John 11, talking about Jesus' withdrawal to a place a few miles from Jerusalem, with the possible interpretation of Jesus focusing on his father's timing to be the passover lamb. This topic just echos my current season of waiting: waiting for job advancement, waiting for the studies to finish, waiting for a relationship, waiting for people to change their hearts and so on.

"Everything has it's own timing; when it's time, it will happen." A well-known cliche, even in non-biblical context. But until this perfect timing comes, one just has to wait. Waiting is just a terrible thing, as miserable as receiving a bad outcome or sometimes even worse. Even though I perfectly appreciate, understand and am convinced that God's plans for me are in God's time domain, everything has it's divine order and I am to enjoy every season that God has given , I just find it hard to sail through this period patiently. I am just not the type of person who likes to remain inactive and wait patiently for something to happen. It gives me the feeling that I am really powerless (even though I really am) and I am at the mercy of external forces.

After some time, some research and some experience, I'm convinced that in order to complement this passivity with my restlessness, I can only actively trust, resist and pray. The three elements actually complement and work hand in hand. "Trust in Him at all times, O people." (Psalm 62:8) "I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope.' (Psalm 130:5)

Trusting, because that's the basics of the whole beliefs. If He is not answering my prayers, it's not because He can't hear or He ignores me, but because He has a grand plan, in His time frame and in His way of answering my prayers. By trusting, it pacifies the restless heart.

Resisting, because there is always the temptation of taking things into my own hands. I want to expertise the whole thing, in the end I just show that I don't trust God and I don't listen to God. Pacifying my heart with the trust of my God will probably help me to be filled with patience and rest in God.

Praying, because that's the way to let out all the anxieties and let God handles the whole matter. Very often, when I am troubled, or sad, I (well at least for girls) tend to look for someone to talk to, just someone to listen to my problems will lighten my burden. I don't even intend to seek their advice most of the time. Talking to God is probably the best source that I can ever find. For me, prayer is like a private conversation with God. It is very personal, very intimate and is also the best way of seeking to listen to God's reply. Every time I pray, my focus will be realigned and tuned. The prayer on the matter is different every time, though similar. It's like the Newton-Raphson method of getting to the closest solution through some iterations. It's also like finding the best recipe for a dish. How much salt and sugar to put, how long it should be baked and so on have to be refined through some trials. For every prayer, I check my heart, listen to God's answer and next time when I pray on that same matter, I can refine the prayer and I believe this will eventually tune my heart and make me aware of what God's plan for me. is

God always allows us to have the freedom to choose, to decide and to contribute to our own lives. I believe we are also given the honour to be a co-author of our lives. Even this is part of His plan. Sometimes we can just be easily lost as we have absolutely no idea how to exercise this freedom. We have the freedom to hasten the matters, but if we want to conform to God's time, trusting, resisting and praying persistently are probably good procedures to adopt.

Anna

Blessing for Blessing

Eph 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.

My QT this week is on Ephesians. And I am really blessed when I read Spurgeon's sermon on this verse. Below is an extract:

Blessing for Blessing

How, then, do we bless God? Well, I should say, first, that this language is the expression of gratitude. We say with David, "Bless the Lord, O my soul," … We can bless God by praising him, extolling him, desiring all honour for him, ascribing all good to him, magnifying and lauding his holy name.

We also bless God in the spreading of his kingdom. We can win hearts to him through his mighty grace blessing our service. We can fight against evil; we can set up a standard for the truth. We can be willing to suffer in repute, and every way else, for his name's sake. We can by his grace do all this, and thus we are blessing God. Surely, dear friends, if it is well-pleasing in God's sight that sinners should repent, if it makes heaven the gladder, and makes joy in the presence of the angels that men should repent, we are in the best and most practical way blessing God when we labour to bring men to repentance through faith in Christ Jesus.

There is also another way of blessing God which, I trust, we shall all endeavour to practise; and that is by the doing good to his children. When they are sick, visit them. When they are downcast, comfort them. When they are poor, relieve them. When they are hard pressed by outward adversaries, stand at their side, and help them.

You cannot bless the Head, but you can bless the feet; and when you have refreshed the feet, you have refreshed the Head. He will say, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." If they be naked, and you clothe them; if they be sick, and you visit them; if they be hungry, and you feed them; you do in this respect bless God. David not only said, "Thou art my Lord: my goodness extendeth not to thee;" but added, "but to the saints that are in the earth, and to the excellent in whom is all my delight."

You can be good to them, and in that respect you may be blessing God. He has done so much for us, that we would fain do something for him; and when we have reached the limit of our possibilities, we long to do more. We wish that we had more money to give, more talent to use, more time that we could devote to his cause, we wish that we had more heart and more brain; sometimes we wish that we had more tongue, and we sing,—
"Oh, for a thousand tongues to sing
My great Redeemer's praise!"

______

Blessed be our Lord Jesus Christ

-ed-

http://www.spurgeon.org/sermons/2266.htm

Some Smokey Mountain Pixs

a boy playing with water







children playing on a mattress





Inside a typical house. The house is so small, about the size of 2 sofa sets









rubbish and mud strewn all over the place










familiar sight of rubbish and mud..sigh

Praying with perseverance by Bishop John Tan

There was an engaging sermon on Sunday by Bishop John Tan. He touched on the topic of praying with perseverance. As he has put it, it's a difficult topic because the topic itself is a mystery. However, he has put it in such an illustrations-filled manner that he has made his view clear to the audience.

He said that sometimes we have to pray many times, over a long period of time, maybe even over years for some circumstances before our prayers are being answered. Sometimes, we don't even seem to get the answer. That maybe because that is then already the answer given by God. We will never know what God has intended for us and God is sovereign. However, Bishop John Tan gave reasons on why sometimes, sometimes even Jesus has to pray several times or sometimes only the prayers of certain people (righteous people) are effective.

He said when we pray, it's actually a way of releasing the power of the Holy Spirit in us. Sometimes, we may not have prayed sincerely, whole-heartedly. So we didn't really release the power of the Holy Spirit in us. Sometimes, because the matter that we pray for requires more power to be dealt with and praying just once may not have released enough power. We have to keep on praying and allow the power from each prayer to be accumulated so that we have gathered enough power to deal with the matter.

He brought out a very clear illustrations for this release of power. He said that our prayers are like the ingredients for making a chemical, for example water, H2O. You must have enough molecules, two molecules of Hydrogen and a molecule of oxygen before a molecule of water can be formed. If we do not pray enough, there are simply not enough ingredients to cause the chemical reaction to take place. But when we have the right ingredients and the right quantity, the chemical reaction can then take place in heaven and the power of the Holy Spirit can be released through us (Revelation 8:3-5).

Bishop pointed out that our God is present, He listens and He cares, that's why we pray. Our prayers are being stored in "golden bowls" (Revelation 5:8) in heaven. They are highly valued. Every prayer counts. God also looks at the quantity of our prayers and it sometimes requires a certain level of quantity for prayer before God answers.

In fact, Bishop John Tan has given a lot of examples in the Bible and explained them clearly. I really think that it's valuable to check it out. A record of the sermon should be out on the COR website in a couple of days, I think.

Anna

One man’s waste is Another man’s treasure

I have returned from a trip where i visited the Smokey Mountains in Philippines. It has certainly awaken my senses to the poor and their real needs.

The New Smokey Mountain is a dumpsite whereby the poor ravages through the trash to salvage any sellable items they could, just for that few pesos (a few cents) for their meals.

The New Smokey Mountain Project brings a little glimmer of hope to the needy here. Groceries are distributed, games are played, clothes are given and most of all a heart to share the grief. (please refer to http://www.oikoshelpinghand.org/ for more info).
______________________________________________

Personal Reflections:
(an excerpt of my diary)

This is unacceptable. The air is pungent, mixed with choky fumes from nearby charcoal-making wood. This has been a day of great sunny weather but it seems that is the only good thing.

Everywhere you see is landfills of rubbish. It is a graveyard of waste. Somehow, the items that are found irrelevant by others have settled here, beneath my feet. This garbage has nowhere to go. Their final destination is Smokey Mountain. Daily, rubbish trucks make a pilgrimage and place them among their brothers. Likewise, Smokey Mountain is the final stop for the poor. In this rubbish, they found them relevant. They live and thrive on this trash. It breaks my heart. My discards turn out to be treasures for them. How can this be?

The hardy children are scavenging the garbage, hoping to find something useful. Buzzing flies, instead of justice, are their constant companion. They climb on top of rubbish trucks. With their iron claw, they rummage through the trash. They dig and dig; hoping to find something to heal their starving stomach. The chains of poverty have ensnared them. There is no hope. They cannot get out. They must keep digging in order to survive.

What is civilization when we have this nonsense around, whereby one man’s waste is another man’s treasure? My mind cannot comprehend this. Just like the poor in Smokey Mountain, it is empty. It simply does not make sense.

- ed -

Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Psalms 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Last Saturday, we did Psalms 37:1-7 and we focused on Psalms 37:4. Till now, this verse has a deep impact on me. I am still meditating on it in my daily life.

I would like to share this verse to those who did not come to cell. Have a great week ahead.

-ed-

My life, a Cross

Recently, I drew the below picture out when i was doing my QT.

Basically, it shows that i am a see-through screen whereby my life and behavior will just be a display of the cross behind me. In another words, I will just be a transparent medium to depict Christ.

It is definitely a challenging thought for me. Just thought i share this with everyone

-ed

God's Love for us

Hi cell group,

I would like to share a beautiful verse with everyone. A verse I read during my quiet time which reminded me of the great love Jesus has for all of us.

Jesus fulfills Isaiah's prophecy of the Suffering Servant.

Isa 53:5

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities, the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

The reason we can worship and have peace in our lives was because Jesus took the punishment for us.

May this verse remind us of how much Jesus loves us and the extent that he was willing to go through for us. In light of God's great love for us, Do you trust in the Lord today?

A link below for a graphical representation of what He has done for us. May our lives and all we do be centered around the love He has for us.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fG5PkU92vpw

Ruijie

Being Baptized in the Holy Spirit

Here comes the analogy of being baptised in the Holy Spirit:

The Greek word for baptize is baptidzo, which means immerse. The analogy used was making pickles from cucumber. One of the processes in making pickles is calling for the cucumber to be immersed and soaked in the brine and the pickling solution for several weeks. What happens during this soaking time is that the marinade or the pickling solution soaks deep into the flesh of the cucumber until it takes on the flavor of the pickling solution so that it no longer tastes like a raw cucumber. Every fibre of the cucumber will be transformed completely and takes on the flavor of the pickling solution. This is what it's meant by soaking. When someone is baptized in the Holy Spirit, he is being marinated in the presence of the Holy Spirit, soaking in the River of God, that he no longer "tastes" like his old, raw nature any longer, but he has taken on the flavor of the Holy Spirit.

I would say that it's also like allowing the Holy Spirit to fill your blood so that the Holy Spirit is circulated throughout your body and regulates and control your every move.

Anna

A glove analogy

I attended the workshop called "Not I but Christ" from the women conference. The speaker was an English and she spoke like a small stream of water, nice and tranquil and it's like music to the ears, yet a bit hard for me to concentrate. But still, I was captivated when she gave us an illustration for the idea of Christ being the power source inside us:

Gal 2:20 — “I have been crucified with Christ and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me…”

I may say to a glove, “Glove, pick up this Bible,” and yet, somehow, the glove cannot do it. It has a thumb and finger, the shape and form of a hand, and yet it is unable to do the thing I command it to do.

You may say, “Well, of course not. You didn’t tell the glove how to pick up the Bible.” However, I can instruct, and teach, and coach that glove until my patience is exhausted, but the glove, try as it will, still will not pick up that Bible.

Yet I have a glove at home that has picked up my Bible dozens of times…but never once before I put my hand into it! As soon, as my hand comes into that glove, the glove becomes as strong as my hand. Everything possible to my hand becomes possible to that glove—but only to the measure in which the glove is prepared to clothe the activity of my hand.

That is what it is to have Christ, by His Spirit, dwelling within you. You are the glove, Christ is the Hand! Everything that is possible to Him becomes possible to you, and with Paul you may say, “I have strength for all things in Christ Who strengthens me” (Phil 4:13).

(Illustration from The Saving Life of Christ by Maj. Ian Thomas)

There was another illustration on the idea of being baptised in the Holy Spirit. I will write on this...

Anna

Women's Conference

First of all, I would like to thank Sarah for inviting us to attend the Women's Conference. Honestly, I didn't know what to expect from the conference but it turned out well. The speakers are really good.

One of the speakers, Wilma, she shared a few of her personal stories with us. One of the stories that struck me is the one about her personal experience in helping others. She shared that back in U.S., her cell has a nice practice of taking care of young mothers during their confinement period. So, the ladies in the cell group will volunteer to cook for young moms who are having their confinement. Despite Wilma's busy schedule, Wilma also volunteered to cook for one of the young mom. One day, when she was preparing the dinner for the young mom (Sally or something), she asked herself: Am I cooking for Sally because I care for her or am I doing it because of other reasons? personal reasons? She realised that she did that so that she can prove to others that she is good.

I was surprised that she can be so honest to admit things like that. Given our human nature, it is true that sometimes we are like her.

Today's quiet time is quite relevant to this topic. Thought I would like to share this. It's about having a Christ-like character - having a heart like Jesus and a mind that thinks like Him. Pray that I will grow closer to that. Same prayer for our cell group.

-Lishan

Promises of Strength in Times of Stress

Hi everyone, I would like to encourage everyone with verses that will help us in our times of stress and fear.

"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?"
Psalm 27:1

"Be strong and let your heart take courage, all you who hope in the Lord."
Psalm 46:1-3

"He gives strength to the weary, and to him who lacks might He increases power."
Isaiah 40:29

"Do not fear, for I am with you; do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with my righteous hand."
Isaiah 41:10

"Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful."
John 14:27

"Do not be anxious about anything but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."
Philippians 4:6-7

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."
Philippians 4:13

"Cast all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you."
1 Peter 5:7

Rgrds,

Ruijie

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

Psalm 107:1 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

----
My all-time fav verse for the past 3 days.

-ed-

Intentional/unintentional sin?

I just wanted to write down my thoughts after reading Numbers 15. It is about the penalty concerning unintentional sin and presumptuous sin. The chapter was suggested to me after I brought up my view that having the desire alone or having the action alone does not constitute to sinning. Numbers 15 mentioned about unintentional sin and there was punishment to that, so it may suggest that having the action itself is sinning. That got me rethink my view.

I think the sin that was mentioned in Numbers 15 was referring to those acts that violates the Ten Commandments "that the Lord has commanded you by the hand of Moses" (Numbers 15:23). So at that point of time, if any act that was contrary to the Ten Commandments, that's sin. However, as we have already discussed in the recent Bible study, sin can be interpreted as anything that is not pleasing in the eyes of God. This goes far broader than the Ten Commandments in our present context.

I would interpret the chapter as such: In the context of the Old Testament, God has given the law to the people "as a means of defining themselves ethnically as against the 'unclean' Gentiles" (quote taken from "Encounter with God"). That was a specific set of rules at that time and that's how they automatically judged an act as sinful or not. Therefore sinning in the context of the Numbers was acting against the Ten Commandments. What Numbers 15 emphasized however, i think is the huge difference in penalty for unintentional sin and presumptuous sin. I think the focus is on the fact that something unintentional is not the cause of God's wrath. However if the sinful act is presumptuous, that really brings "reproach on the LORD" (Numbers 15:30).

On the other hand, the death and resurrection of Jesus has brought us forward to another age. We are no longer living just by the law given to the people at the time of the Old Testament, but by the grace of God, or the Spirit of God. We have also discussed that sin is more to the Ten Commandments. Therefore, how we define sinning (not sin, but committing sin) is probably also different. Maybe my suggestion that sinning is a result of both the sinful desire and the sinful act can still hold.

That's just my thoughts.

Anna

Disappointments & Failures

This morning, I was reading Luke 24:13 - 35 and I decided to blog about what I have learnt. These are the 3 main pts:

1. How can we not see Jesus in our life?
2. We can read the bible & still not see God
3. Jesus allows us to live a life of faith with deeds 

1. How can we not see Jesus in our life? 

The 2 men were downcast (v 17) with what has happened. They have so much expectation (v21). Their human perception of how things should work out did not happen. And they were disappointed.

 My thoughts:

The amazing thing for me is that they were talking to Jesus & they did not recognize him. How can it be?

 I will suggest that it is because of disappointments & failures. For me, sometimes, I get so bogged down with disappointments that I fail to see Jesus. When things do not work out as I expect it to be, I over-analyze and I become downcast like these 2 men in the bible. Often, I allow these disappointments to miss the big picture.

 This is strange despite still believing in Jesus Christ and being blessed with so much personal testimonies. 

2. We can read the bible & still not see God

 V 25 -27 shows Jesus giving a sermon or bible study. Yet, despite receiving bible knowledge (or teachings), they fail to recognize Jesus.

My thoughts:

Sometimes, certain of my experiences of QT, sermons, mirror that. 

I do receive knowledge as I listen to these sermons and read the bible. But, often, I fail to understand, i.e. I did not recognize Jesus. At this point, I will like to say that I am not referring to an extraordinary experience like a transformation or conviction. Instead, I guess I am referring to the biblical knowledge that takes into perspective of who Jesus is. More importantly, I do not want to miss the point of just getting the ‘burning hearts’ (v32) feel good factor & fail to see who Jesus is. 

3. Jesus allows us to live a life of faith with works 

After they recognize Jesus (v31), Jesus disappeared. Why did he do that? Why didn’t he stay longer? It is similar to some experiences when there is a deep conviction and, after a while, it disappears and is forgotten.

 My thoughts:

I believe that there is a purpose for this. And it is linked to the principle: “faith without works is dead” (James 2:26).

 Faith without works is like saying that I can have the faith that Jesus can so easily solve our problems and I need not put in any human effort to solve it. For example, I can pray & faith that I will pass my CFA exams but if I do not work for it, then it is just faith without works. And this faith is dead.

 I believe that if Jesus deposits faith in us, he will allow the opportunity for faith to be manifested into works. The two guys in Luke displayed that. Jesus disappears after they recognize Jesus. Subsequently, in v 33, they got up and returned to Jerusalem and told that everyone that the Lord has risen. This is faith demonstrated through work.

 Conclusion

I just hope that in the busyness of my life, I will not miss out Jesus and learnt to be fruitful in the faith that Jesus has given me. 

Ed