Transformational Leadership

Divine Favour Brings Blessings (Luke 1:39-56)

2012-02-17T06:46:00.000+08:00

Luke 1:39-56 Now Mary arose in those days and went into the hill country with haste, to a city of Judah, and entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. And it happened, when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, that the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Then she spoke out with a loud voice and said,"Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! But why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For indeed, as soon as the voice of your greeting sounded in my ears, the babe leaped in my womb for joy. Blessed is she who believed, for there will be a fulfillment of those things which were told her from the Lord." And Mary said: "My soul magnifies the Lord, And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior. For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant; for behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed. For He who is mighty has done great things for me, And holy is His name. And His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation. He has shown strength with His arm; He has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He has put down the mighty from their thrones,And exalted the lowly. He has filled the hungry with good things,And the rich He has sent away empty. He has helped His servant Israel,In remembrance of His mercy, As He spoke to our fathers,To Abraham and to his seed forever." And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her house. NKJV

After receiving the Angel Gabriel's pronouncement, Mary immediately left Nazareth to go to the hill country of Judea to look for Elizabeth, for the Angel had said that "your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren." Mary needed to be sure that that what the Angel said was true--and she was reassured the moment she met her cousin Elizabeth. (Note: KJV translates the word Greek word sungenis as "cousin"; modern translators prefer "relative"). Elizabeth under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit called Mary "blessed" thrice ("Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ... And blessed is she who believed..."). Even the unborn John the Baptist, a 6-month foetus in his mother's womb, leaped for joy at the voice of Mary's greeting!

With this confirmation of witnesses, Mary was overwhelmed with gratitude and thanksgiving, and agreed that she was indeed blessed because now "all generations will call me blessed." To be highly favoured is to be triply blessed! For Mary, this blessing of God translates into an expression of praise and worship to God her Benefactor, commonly known as the Magnificat. Notice the different tenses used in the NKJV to describe what her soul and spirit are doing: "my soul magnifies (simple present) the Lord" and "my spirit has rejoiced (present perfect) in God my Savior". This subtle change of tenses is not reflected in modern translations but it is there in the Greek original of this verse. What it says is that worship begins first in the spirit (unconscious and invisible part of the person) before it is manifested in our soul (the conscious and visible part of the person). True worship, as Jesus has said, is "in spirit and in truth". The first is largely a work of the indwelling Spirit and the second is an expression of God's truth we have learned.

In fact, the Magnificat echoes the prayer of Hannah, the mother of Samuel found in 1 Samuel 2:1-10: "My heart rejoices in the Lord; in the Lord my horn is lifted high... There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God... Those who were full hire themselves out for food,but those who were hungry hunger no more...The Lord sends poverty and wealth; he humbles and he exalts. He raises the poor from the dust and lifts the needy from the ash heap; he seats them with princes and has them inherit a throne of honor." Mary's praise was informed by what she learned from Scriptures (OT). True worship needs the Spirit and the Truth taught by God's Word. It starts in spirit where the Spirit dwells and overflows into our soul where our mind informed by the Word, expresses its praise to God. The worship that is only Spirit is unbalanced as much as the worship that is only Word. Jesus gives us the true balance in worship - it has to be "in spirit and in truth".

This is confirmed further in Paul's letters to the Ephesians and Colossians where there are two similar passages speaking of praise to God originating in the Spirit and Word:

Eph 5:18-19 be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs

Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs

Father, thank You for Your Spirit and Your Word. Help us offer to You worship that originates in our spirit where Your Spirit dwells and overflows into our mind where Your Word dwells. Amen.

Nothing is Impossible with God (Luke 1:23-38)

2012-02-16T06:58:00.000+08:00

Luke 1:23-38 When his time of service was completed, he returned home. After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion. "The Lord has done this for me," she said. "In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people." In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end." "How will this be," Mary asked the angel, "since I am a virgin?" The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. For nothing is impossible with God." "I am the Lord's servant," Mary answered. "May it be to me as you have said." Then the angel left her.

Here we have two miracle birth of divine favour occurring in two "impossible" situations: one on Elizabeth who was barren because she was advanced in age and the other Mary who was not married

Set Apart for Divine Mission (Luke 1:5-22)

2012-02-15T06:43:00.001+08:00

Luke 1:8-22 Once when Zechariah's division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John. He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God. And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous — to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." Zechariah asked the angel, "How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years." The angel answered, "I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their proper time." Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple. When he came out, he could not speak to them. They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.

Zechariah's wife, Elizabeth, was barren. They were both advanced in years. Very likely, Zechariah would have prayed for a child and equally likely he would have stopped praying about it many years ago when Elizabeth went past her child-bearing age. In the natural, it would be impossible (if not too late) for God to answer his prayer. So when the angel announced that "your prayer has been heard" it is unlikely a reference to Zechariah's personal long-forgotten prayer for a son, but more likely to his current intercession for Israel's redemption and the promised Messiah since he was selected to be the priest offering incense at the altar in the Holy Place. That may account for his reaction to the angel's announcement. When the angel declared that "your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John", his first response was one of doubt, "How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years." While Zechariah's doubt was understandable by anyone using his common sense, he nevertheless had discounted the possibility that God could and would work above the laws of nature to accomplish his redemptive purpose. For his doubt, he was unable to speak from that point onward until his son John was born. If God has said he is going to do something, we are called to believe it, not doubt it.

So, Zechariah would have a son whose name was given by the angel as John. John is the shortened form for Jehochanan, which means "the grace of Jehovah." Through John (and later Jesus his cousin), the Lord would bring about a new dispensation of grace to Israel - and through Israel to the whole world.

How John was to fulfill his role:

1. Consecrated as a Nazirite ("He is never to take wine or other fermented drink"): Like Samson, John was to lead a consecrated and separated life as God's agent of change. Being a Nazirite from birth makes John conscious of his life mission always. It was something that he was constantly being reminded of as his hair grew.

2. Filled with the Spirit ("he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth"): Unlike Samson where the Holy Spirit came only when Samson needed to perform a special task, John was filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth. John was the last of the Old Covenant prophet but the first into the New Covenant experience of the Spirit's permanent indwelling. Again, we see that God's infilling is closely associated with our consecration to His purpose. God will fill us as we walk in His purpose -- not otherwise. That accounts for why some Christians, though consecrated and filled with the Spirit, nevertheless never become "full of the Spirit" because they did not commit themselves to live a consecrated life set apart to fulfil God's purpose. Instead, they pursue their own selfish ambition in the name of God.

3. Clear Life Mission ("to make ready a people prepared for the Lord"): John's mission was defined for him, viz., to prepare the people for Jesus' coming. This he will do by going "before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous." In a word, repentance. His mission was to prepare people by calling them to turn from their self-focused life to seek the Lord and His coming Kingdom. The Church is called to a similar mission - to urge those who are living in the kingdom of darkness to change their attitude (repent) towards their old lifestyle. Repentance is making a 180 degree turn from self to Christ so we can become members of the Kingdom of God and experience righteousness, peace and joy that flows from the Holy Spirit. What an exciting purpose to be alive for!

Father, thank You that You have shown us how You can use us to fulfil Your mission: by setting ourselves apart for Your purpose, by walking in the fullness of Your Spirit and by helping others turn from darkness of sin into the light of Christ. Amen.

Inspiration is Hard work (Luke 1:1-7)

2012-02-13T07:01:00.000+08:00

Luke 1:1-7 Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well along in years.

Luke begins his Gospel (Good News) by stating his method, purpose, and context. However, he acknowledges that he was not the first to write an account of the events surrounding the birth, life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. There were previous narratives about Jesus already circulating (notably Matthew & Mark, beside others) that Luke consulted in writing his Gospel: "Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us." So Luke, having "carefully investigated everything from the beginning" composed his Gospel. To confirm what was already written, he also spoke to "eyewitnesses and servants of the word (apostles)" who were still alive when he researched for the Gospel.

So, the following are the characteristics of Luke's Gospel:

(1) Inspiration and Hard Work ("carefully investigated from the beginning"): All Christians accept that the Gospel of Luke is a work inspired by the Holy Spirit and therefore now considered by the Church as part of the New Testament Scripture. But he testified that his work is a product of careful investigation and research There are some in the Church of Jesus Christ who have the mistaken idea that inspiration and research are somehow incompatible. I remember once hearing Pastor Lawrence spoke at a chapel service in Trinity Theological College in 1988 to students and faculty members (I was a student then), that every sermon he preached on Sunday was like a term paper - he said he spent 30 hours every week to prepare for a 30 minute sermon! I was amazed. His preaching that day was anointed and animated - even till to today, it remains so.

So hard work is not incompatible with inspiration. Edison has been famously quoted as saying that genius is "1% inspiration and 99% perspiration." I think the same can be said of inspired writing and preaching: it is a product of 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.

(2) Clear Purpose ("write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus"): Luke's Gospel was written with a specific person in mind, someone by the name of Theophilus. Theophilus was obviously someone of high social standing since Luke gave him the honorific title of "most excellent." There has been much speculation as to who Theophilus was: some suggested he was a high-ranking Roman official, while others suggested he was a high priest by the name of Theophilus ben Ananus. Some even suggested that "Theophilus" is not a person but a generic term for "Friend of God" (theo-God; philia-friend). Be that as it may, we are quite certain that Luke was addressing or at least dedicating his Gospel to a person of high standing whom he prefaced with the title "most excellent".

In the same manner, in our evangelistic writing or preaching, we always need to keep our target in mind so that we may address issues that are specific to that reader or listener. Writing or preaching must meet a specific needs of the readership and audience. So, being clear about who our readers and listeners are help us become more focused in our Word ministry.

(3) Specific Context ("In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah"): Luke places his Gospel in a historical context. The Gospel is the Good News about the Kingdom of God. It's not otherworldly and only focused on the afterlife. The Gospel's context is historical and very much this-worldly. It's Good News for the living, not the dead. It is rooted in this planet earth, not in the heavenly hereafter. The Gospel was not just a series of spiritual principles, but an historical event that is very much rooted in historical reality. The Gospel is a story that began in the time of Herod king of Judea - a time when Judea was under Roman rule through Herod the Roman-appointed proxy king. In the midst of political oppression and despair, the Gospel came as a light in darkness.

To proclaim the Gospel well, we need to remember three things: we must know our content well through careful investigation. Secondly, we must know the people we are trying to reach. Finally, we must know the social and historical context to which the Gospel is proclaimed. The hope of the Gospel is not the possibility of escape from the harsh reality of this life but the power of God to transform this harsh life. That is the Good News of the Kingdom of God - that light has come in the midst of darkness. Wherever the Gospel is received, life and light return to the community.

Father, give us the discipline to study Your word so that we may be able to explain it more accurately to those who are asking of us the reason for our hope. May Your Spirit empower us to be diligent in this study. Amen.

Life without a King (Judges 19-21)

2012-02-11T07:34:00.000+08:00

Judges 21:15-25 The people grieved for Benjamin, because the Lord had made a gap in the tribes of Israel. And the elders of the assembly said, "With the women of Benjamin destroyed, how shall we provide wives for the men who are left? The Benjamite survivors must have heirs," they said, "so that a tribe of Israel will not be wiped out. We can't give them our daughters as wives, since we Israelites have taken this oath: 'Cursed be anyone who gives a wife to a Benjamite.' But look, there is the annual festival of the Lord in Shiloh, to the north of Bethel, and east of the road that goes from Bethel to Shechem, and to the south of Lebonah." So they instructed the Benjamites, saying, "Go and hide in the vineyards and watch. When the girls of Shiloh come out to join in the dancing, then rush from the vineyards and each of you seize a wife from the girls of Shiloh and go to the land of Benjamin. When their fathers or brothers complain to us, we will say to them, 'Do us a kindness by helping them, because we did not get wives for them during the war, and you are innocent, since you did not give your daughters to them.'" So that is what the Benjamites did. While the girls were dancing, each man caught one and carried her off to be his wife. Then they returned to their inheritance and rebuilt the towns and settled in them. At that time the Israelites left that place and went home to their tribes and clans, each to his own inheritance. In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.

This final segment of Judges is the conclusion of a sordid story that started in Judges19:1 with the verse: "In those days Israel had no king" and ending with the same refrain in Judges 21:25, "In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit."

The story was told about a nameless Levite from the hill country of Ephraim with a concubine who left him to return to her father's house in Bethlehem, Judah. After four months of separation, the Levite decided to go and bring back his concubine from her father's house. After some delay, he and his concubine finally left the father's house. On the way back they stayed overnight at Gibeah in Benjamin. An old man took them in for the night. When some men of the town found out that the old man had a male guest, they demanded the old man to let them have the male guest for sex. The old man refused and instead released the concubine to them. They sexually abused the concubine and left her dying at the door of the old man's house.

The next morning the Levite found the concubine at the door dead. He cut her limbs and body into 12 parts and sent them to all the tribes of Israel. Israel became indignant at the wickedness committed by the Benjamites. They confronted Benjamin to release those wicked men for execution. But Benjamin refused and fought the other tribes of Israel. What ensued was a series of battles that left 40,000 Israelites and 25,100 Benjamites dead. These battles almost decimated the entire tribe of Benjamin, save 600 Benjamite fighters who fled to the rock of Rimmon and the 400 virgins who were spared. So 200 Benjamite men had no virgins to continue their family lines because the rest of the tribes had vowed never to give their own daughters in marriage to them over this incident. So, the Israelites decided to let the Benjamites seize their virgin daughters who came for the annual festival at Siloh to be their wives. This way, the Israelites ensured they kept their vow not to "give" their daughters to the Benjamites since their daughters were "taken" from them by the Benjamites by force. Such were the days of the judges when "there was no king" and "everyone did what he saw fit."

The lesson for today: Where there is no king and no governing authority, there will be anarchy and lawlessness among God's people. But thanks be to God that today, we have a King and His name is Jesus. He has been given "all authority in heaven and on earth" (Mt 28:18). As subjects of this spiritual kingdom, we are called to submit to His rule by keeping the Law of the Spirit who is now within us. The Church is not a place without king and without authority and without law. The law of the Spirit is the law of life and love proclaimed by Christ in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).

Father, we thank You that You have called us to order and decency, to be a people who lives by the law of the Spirit of life within us. Through the outer man we keep the outward laws of the land but with the inner man we keep the inward law of the Spirit of life defined by our King, the Lord Jesus. Amen.

Compromising Integrity to Get Promotion (Judges 18:14-21)

2012-02-10T08:46:00.000+08:00

Judg 18:14-21 Then the five men who had spied out the land of Laish said to their brothers, "Do you know that one of these houses has an ephod, other household gods, a carved image and a cast idol? Now you know what to do." So they turned in there and went to the house of the young Levite at Micah's place and greeted him. The six hundred Danites, armed for battle, stood at the entrance to the gate. The five men who had spied out the land went inside and took the carved image, the ephod, the other household gods and the cast idol while the priest and the six hundred armed men stood at the entrance to the gate. When these men went into Micah's house and took the carved image, the ephod, the other household gods and the cast idol, the priest said to them, "What are you doing?" They answered him, "Be quiet! Don't say a word. Come with us, and be our father and priest. Isn't it better that you serve a tribe and clan in Israel as priest rather than just one man's household?" Then the priest was glad. He took the ephod, the other household gods and the carved image and went along with the people. Putting their little children, their livestock and their possessions in front of them, they turned away and left.

Six hundreds men from Dan with their families were passing by Micah's house on their way to attack the people of Laish to disinherit them of their lands and possessions and dwell there. The five men who had earlier passed by Micah's house on the way to spy Laish told their brothers about the ephod and idols in one of Micah's houses. They went into house and took away the items, including the young Levite priest. Initially Levite protested but when the Danites offered him a better prospect of being a priest to "serve a tribe and clan in Israel" instead of just one man's household, the Levite was glad and closed an eye to their theft of Micah's ephod and idols.

While it is tempting to just apply today's lesson to people in ministry (after all, aren't priests & pastors the same persons in some churches?), nevertheless, the principle behind the story of the young Levite applies to people in the marketplace too. The same temptation and same motivation can cause us to compromise our integrity in the following ways:

(1) Dishonesty ("Be quiet! Don't say a word"): The Danites told the young Levite priest to keep quiet about the dishonest act that was taking place - stealing what belongs to another company. These "carved image, the ephod, the other household gods and the cast idol" could well have its modern equivalents in terms of industrial theft of competitor's design prototypes, intellectual properties, development plans, etc) that that come with the person being head-hunted.

(2) Disloyalty ("Come with us, and be our father and priest"): The Danites were asking the young priest to dump Micah who had been treating him "like one of his sons" (Judges 17:11). Loyalty to our benefactor is an important character trait. When we can betray our own benefactor, we display a callousness of character that is inconsistent with the fruit of the Spirit of faithfulness. Joseph exemplifies loyalty to his employer when he told his employer's wife who tried to seduce him, "My master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?" (Gen 39:9).

(3) Dishonour ("Then the priest was glad. He took the ephod, the other household gods and the carved image and went along with the people"): The final step in the process of moral degradation was to finally become an accomplice in this dishonourable act of deception and theft- he personally carried the ephod and idols and joined the Danites.

The temptation of a better prospect in terms of pay, prestige and power was too strong an inducement for this young Levite not to jump ship. But in the process, he compromised his integrity by indulging in dishonest, disloyal and dishonourable conduct. The lesson for all in ministry and marketplace is this: the only promotion we seek is from the Lord and the only motivation we change job is to fulfill His purpose in our lives, not just to seek worldly advantages for ourselves. Jesus has promised that if we "seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, all these things (pay, power & prestige) will be added to us (by God)" (Matthew 6:33).

Lord, we know that it is Your will to exalt Your children, just as You did for Joseph and Daniel in the Old Testament. So we ask that You purify our motives so that our desire is always to seek Your Kingdom purpose, leaving pay, promotion and prestige into Your hands to bestow according to Your will. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Privatising Faith in God (Judges 17)

2012-02-09T06:54:00.000+08:00

Judg 17 Now a man named Micah from the hill country of Ephraim said to his mother, "The eleven hundred shekels of silver that were taken from you and about which I heard you utter a curse — I have that silver with me; I took it." Then his mother said, "The Lord bless you, my son!" When he returned the eleven hundred shekels of silver to his mother, she said, "I solemnly consecrate my silver to the Lord for my son to make a carved image and a cast idol. I will give it back to you." So he returned the silver to his mother, and she took two hundred shekels of silver and gave them to a silversmith, who made them into the image and the idol. And they were put in Micah's house. Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some idols and installed one of his sons as his priest. In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.

A young Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, who had been living within the clan of Judah, left that town in search of some other place to stay. On his way he came to Micah's house in the hill country of Ephraim. Micah asked him, "Where are you from?" "I'm a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah," he said, "and I'm looking for a place to stay." Then Micah said to him, "Live with me and be my father and priest, and I'll give you ten shekels of silver a year, your clothes and your food." So the Levite agreed to live with him, and the young man was to him like one of his sons. Then Micah installed the Levite, and the young man became his priest and lived in his house. And Micah said, "Now I know that the Lord will be good to me, since this Levite has become my priest."

Samson was the last judge mentioned in the book of Judges. Judges chapters 17-21 contain a series of disconnected stories about the chaotic times of the judges (between Joshua and Samuel). The expression "In those days, Israel had no king" was repeated 4 times (17:6, 18:1, 19:1 and 21:25) and the expression "everyone did as he saw fit" was repeated twice in the four occurrences. Here the writer inspired by the Spirit was telling us what could happen if there is no spiritual and political authority in a society. While we recognize an individual's right to free expression, extreme individualism can lead to a sort of "privatized faith."

This story about Micah is an example how one man decided to make faith a private enterprise by:

(1) Making his private brand religion ("Now this man Micah had a shrine, and he made an ephod and some idols"): Micah made the gods he wanted--it was unlike other idols because they were made from silver. He also made an ephod and appointed one of his sons as the priest. Here was religion fully privatized -- it was like a family business. The head of the family defined what kind of idols to worship and who should be the high priest to enquire of the Lord. God was no longer a Person we obey, but Commodity to use to meet our family emotional and spiritual needs. God has become a means to our ends. The similarity to how some "family churches" is run is striking.

(2) Hiring his private priest ("Live with me and be my father and priest, and I'll give you ten shekels of silver a year, your clothes and your food."): Micah saw an opportunity in the young Levite from Bethlehem to transform his private shrine into a public shrine so that others could also "enquire of the Lord" through an orthodox Levitical priest. So he decided to engage the young Levite from Bethlehem as his personal priest for a fee. Micah's fee was not a free-will offering but a salary--it entitles him to use the priest as he saw fit. The young Levite was contracted to be his "father and priest." Now his private religion is ready to "go public" with a Levitical priesthood.

(3) Furthering his private interests ("Now I know that the Lord will be good to me, since this Levite has become my priest."): And the motivation for this privatised faith is self-interest: "Now I know the Lord will be good to me". It's all about using God to meet our needs, not about serving Him and meeting His needs for establishing His Kingdom and fulfilling His will in our lives. Privatised religion is concerned only with the unholy trinity: I, Me and Myself.

Lord, how we are always tempted to turn religion into something to further our self-interests rather than the interests of Your Kingdom. May You search our hearts, that we do not use church and Christianity as a means to our own ends. Help us to love You, not use You, by obeying Your commands today. Amen.

Samson-Charisma or Character? (Judges 16:15-30)

2012-02-08T06:47:00.003+08:00

Judges 16:15-30 Then she said to him, "How can you say, 'I love you,' when you won't confide in me? This is the third time you have made a fool of me and haven't told me the secret of your great strength." With such nagging she prodded him day after day until he was tired to death. So he told her everything. "No razor has ever been used on my head," he said, "because I have been a Nazirite set apart to God since birth. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as any other man." When Delilah saw that he had told her everything, she sent word to the rulers of the Philistines, "Come back once more; he has told me everything." So the rulers of the Philistines returned with the silver in their hands. Having put him to sleep on her lap, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair, and so began to subdue him. And his strength left him. Then she called, "Samson, the Philistines are upon you!" He awoke from his sleep and thought, "I'll go out as before and shake myself free." But he did not know that the Lord had left him.
Then the Philistines seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. Binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding in the prison. But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved. Now the rulers of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate, saying, "Our god has delivered Samson, our enemy, into our hands." When the people saw him, they praised their god, saying, "Our god has delivered our enemy into our hands,the one who laid waste our land and multiplied our slain." While they were in high spirits, they shouted, "Bring out Samson to entertain us." So they called Samson out of the prison, and he performed for them. When they stood him among the pillars, Samson said to the servant who held his hand, "Put me where I can feel the pillars that support the temple, so that I may lean against them." Now the temple was crowded with men and women; all the rulers of the Philistines were there, and on the roof were about three thousand men and women watching Samson perform. Then Samson prayed to the Lord, "O Sovereign Lord, remember me. O God, please strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes." Then Samson reached toward the two central pillars on which the temple stood. Bracing himself against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other, Samson said, "Let me die with the Philistines!" Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived.

Samson fell in love with Delilah, a Philistine woman. The rulers of the Philistines offered to pay her 1,100 shekels of silver each. After three attempts and Samson lied each time, Delilah used her ultimate weapon - nagging: "With such nagging she prodded him day after day until he was tired to death. So he told her everything." So Delilah cut his hair and Samson's eyes were gouged out and he became a prisoner. The saddest part of this final story of Samson was this verse: "But he did not know the Lord had left him." Samson, the Nazirite from birth, surrendered the last symbol of the vow.

Despite his wild and convoluted life, Samson was mentioned as one of the Heroes of Faith in Hebrews 11:32-34, "And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies." If there is one word to describe Samson, it is: GRACE. He knew how to access the grace of God through faith--which for him is the gift of God. In fact, grace in Greek is charis, from which the word for spiritual gift, charisma, is derived. So, when we experienced God's grace, we receive God's gifts (power) to complete His mission for our lives. Despite Samson's lack of commitment to live a holy life, he was nevertheless able to access the power and presence of God. This also explains why some well-known preachers can continue to minister in power even though they are living double lives - a public persona of the holy man of God and the private life of moral indiscretion. The grace of God (power) is accessed through faith, not a moral lifestyle. But a lack of commitment to obedience will ultimately lead to a loss of commitment to faith and God's presence: : "But he did not know the Lord has left him." The sad part of this verse is "he did not know."

What makes Samson a man of faith and qualifies him to be listed as one of the Heros of Faith despite his moral indiscretion?

(1) He knew his strength came from the Lord ("If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me"): He was fully aware that by himself he was weak, but his strength was a supernatural enduement kept by faith demonstrated in his not cutting his hair. God has always used visible symbols of faith to help us exercise our faith. In the New Testament, the symbols are laying on hands, anointing oil and the spoken word. So long as we continue to use these means of faith, God honours our faith, despite a lifestyle that is less than perfect. We are able to experience His gifts as we use the means of faith at our disposal.

(2) He placed himself in places where he had to exercise faith ("Put me where I can feel the pillars that support the temple, so that I may lean against them."): Faith is always associated with action. Though he could not see, he wanted the servant who was holding him to put his hands against the pillars so that he could act in faith for the last time. To grow in faith, we have to put ourselves in situation where our faith will be called into play. Faith can only be exercised in the context of fulfilling God's purpose in our lives. Unfortunately, we often trivialize faith by using God to get parking lots and stop the rain so we can go picnic. We need to be plugged into the divine mission so that our faith will be put to service in God's kingdom, not just to satisfy our needs. William Carey, the first missionary to India, wrote: "Expect great things from God. Attempt great things for God."

(3) He prayed bold prayers ("O Sovereign Lord, remember me. O God, please strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes."): In one final prayer for strength to complete his life mission, Samson asked for the last time God's power to destroy the Philistines. He pushed the pillars and the roof of the building collapsed on the 3,000 Philistine men and women gathered to make sport of Samson.

Samson's story is a positive lesson on how we can experience God's charisma through faith, but a negative lesson on how we can lose God's character through lack of commitment to obey God's commands. We cannot violate God's commands and still continue to enjoy His presence -- there will be a time when enough is enough, even for God. And when it happens, we may not even know it.

Father, help us live a consistent and holistic life. Not just focusing on charisma to be blessed but also on character in order to be a blessing. Not just faith but also obedience. Amen.

Killing a Thousand with a Donkey's Jawbone (Judges 15:9-15)

2012-02-07T06:39:00.000+08:00

Judg 15:9-15 The Philistines went up and camped in Judah, spreading out near Lehi. The men of Judah asked, "Why have you come to fight us?" "We have come to take Samson prisoner," they answered, "to do to him as he did to us." Then three thousand men from Judah went down to the cave in the rock of Etam and said to Samson, "Don't you realize that the Philistines are rulers over us? What have you done to us?" He answered, "I merely did to them what they did to me." They said to him, "We've come to tie you up and hand you over to the Philistines." Samson said, "Swear to me that you won't kill me yourselves." "Agreed," they answered. "We will only tie you up and hand you over to them. We will not kill you." So they bound him with two new ropes and led him up from the rock. As he approached Lehi, the Philistines came toward him shouting. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power. The ropes on his arms became like charred flax, and the bindings dropped from his hands. Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men.

The chapter begins with Samson wanting to return back to the Philistine wife he had just abandoned. When her father objected, he became angry and decided to take it out on the Philistines by burning their grain fields, vineyards and olive groves. He tied foxes together in pairs at the tails with a torch fastened to the tails and let them loose in the Philistines' fields. However, when the Philistines found out that it was Samson who did this, they went up to Judah to demand for Samson. Judah handed Samson over to the Philistines, bound in ropes. But as soon the Philistines came upon him shouting, the Spirit of the Lord came upon Samson in power and the he broke free of the ropes that tied him and killed a thousand Philistine men with a fresh jawbone. At the end of this slaughter, he was thirsty and God opened up a hollow place where water came out to quench his thirst.

An amazing super-hero story of the Marvel Comics variety! Samson single-handedly destroyed a thousand Philistines. Despite his quick temper and destructive supernatural strength, there is one redeeming feature in Samson - he knew his victory was not his own, but the Lord's: "You have given your servant this great victory."

Three important lessons regarding the ministry of the Holy Spirit:

1) Holy Spirit empowers for Service ("The Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power"): Notice that the Holy Spirit "came upon" him in power whenever he had to confront the Philistines - which was God's destiny for him. The anointing of the Spirit is to empower us to fulfill God's purpose in our lives, not just to make us feel good. Many Christians want to be filled with the Spirit because they want to experience the feelings of love, joy and peace associated with the Spirit's power. But those are fruits of obedience as one fulfils the destiny of God for his own life. The more we do the will of God, the more we are filled with the Spirit. One of the reasons why many prison ministry volunteers became "addicted" to the work was because of the tremendous joy experienced after each session with the inmates. The reason for the joy was that as the volunteers fulfilled the will of God in "visiting Jesus" in the prison (see Matthew 25:36), they were filled with the Spirit afresh and the Spirit imparted joy. If you are currently feeling spiritually "dry," perhaps it is time to evaluate your lifestyle: are you still actively fulfilling God's destiny in your life?

2) Holy Spirit breaks bondages ("The ropes on his arms became like charred flax, and the bindings dropped from his hands"): When we experience the Spirit's infilling, we are also being set free from spiritual and carnal bondages that bind us. Just as the ropes that bound Samson dropped off like charred flax, so bad habits will drop off as the Spirit gains access to more and more areas of our spirit, mind, emotion and body. The more we walk in obedience to the purpose of God, the more we are filled with the Spirit. The more we are filled with the Spirit, the more we have victory over personal habits that hold us back. As someone has said, "I don't wait until I'm perfect to do; I do in order that I can become perfect."

3) Holy Spirit uses simple tool ("Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck down a thousand men"): When we are led by the Spirit, God can use us with the little that we have. In the case of Samson, he only needed a jawbone to kill 1,000 men. When we are filled with the Spirit, we can achieve more with less. We don't need the state-of-the-art equipment to do the will of God. Simplicity is the hallmark of the ministry of the Spirit. Many models of church and ministry have become too complex and complicated. We need to return back to the "Simple Church" model that is primarily focused on achieving the purposes of God, not the Complex Church that tries to meet the endless needs of the congregation.

Father, You can do more with one person anointed by the Spirit with a simple tool than many persons with complex state-of-the-art equipment but not anointed by Your Spirit. Help us return to the simplicty of ministry by relying on the power of Your Spirit. Amen.

Law in New & Old Covenants

2012-02-06T08:15:00.000+08:00

Judg 14:10-20 Now his father went down to see the woman. And Samson made a feast there, as was customary for bridegrooms. When he appeared, he was given thirty companions. "Let me tell you a riddle," Samson said to them. "If you can give me the answer within the seven days of the feast, I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes. If you can't tell me the answer, you must give me thirty linen garments and thirty sets of clothes." "Tell us your riddle," they said. "Let's hear it." He replied, "Out of the eater, something to eat;out of the strong, something sweet." For three days they could not give the answer. On the fourth day, they said to Samson's wife, "Coax your husband into explaining the riddle for us, or we will burn you and your father's household to death. Did you invite us here to rob us?" Then Samson's wife threw herself on him, sobbing, "You hate me! You don't really love me. You've given my people a riddle, but you haven't told me the answer." "I haven't even explained it to my father or mother," he replied, "so why should I explain it to you?" She cried the whole seven days of the feast. So on the seventh day he finally told her, because she continued to press him. She in turn explained the riddle to her people. Before sunset on the seventh day the men of the town said to him, "What is sweeter than honey?What is stronger than a lion?" Samson said to them, "If you had not plowed with my heifer,you would not have solved my riddle." Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power. He went down to Ashkelon, struck down thirty of their men, stripped them of their belongings and gave their clothes to those who had explained the riddle. Burning with anger, he went up to his father's house. And Samson's wife was given to the friend who had attended him at his wedding.

In this passage, Samson came across as a person who was braggy (challenging the 30 wedding companions to a bet), temperamental (abandoning his new bride in anger), and violent (killing 30 Philistine men at Ashkelon to take their clothes as prizes for his wedding companions). Nevertheless, we read that the "Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power" before he went on his killing spree to get his thirty sets of clothes. There is nothing positive about his behaviour that one could recommend to imitate: it's one big "negative demonstration" -- what one should never do as a Spirit-filled believer. He exhibited more of the flesh than the Spirit.

One can only say that the Old Covenant ministry of the Spirit has to be quite different from the New Covenant ministry of the Spirit. In Jeremiah and Ezekiel, we are told that the difference is in the way the Law operates: in the OT, it was an outward obligation, but in the NT it will be an inward compulsion:

Jer 31:33 "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the Lord. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people."

Ezek 36:26-27 "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws."

The Apostle Paul describes in 2 Corinthians 3:6 this difference between the old and new covenants in terms of keeping "letter" of the law (outward obligation) and keeping the "spirit" of the law (an inward compulsion): "(God) has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant- — not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life."

So in summary, the ministry of the Spirit under the New Covenant consists of:

(1) An Outward Ministry: The book of Acts describes mainly the ministry of the Spirit in the same manner as in the Old Testament, viz., the "coming upon/on" of the Spirit. Consider the following texts:

Acts 1:8, Jesus said, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you."
Acts 10:44 While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message.
Acts 11:15 "As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning."
Acts 19:6-7 When Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.

Also notice that in all instances of the Spirit's ministry in Acts, it is closely associated with the outward manifestations of the Spirit. Whenever the Spirit was "received" or the believers were "filled" as a result of the Spirit "coming upon" them, the manifestations consist of tongues, healing, prophecy. These are what Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 12:7 as the "manifestation of the Spirit...given for the common good". He then went on to list the entire 9 manifestations: word of wisdom, word of knowledge, faith, healing, miracles, prophecy, spiritual discernment, tongues and interpretation (1 Cor. 12:8-10). The Greek word for "manifestation" is phanerosis, translated as exhibition and expression, suggesting outward signs. So the outward ministry of the Spirit, always the one that is immediately obvious to everyone, is the release of the gifts of the Spirit. This is therefore similar to the Old Testament examples as in the case of Samson. It is primarily about power to do the will of God.

(2) Inward Ministry of the Spirit: The new thing about the New Covenant is the relationship between believer and the Law. Under the Old Covenant, the Law is an external obligation. Under the New Covenant, the Law is an internal compulsion because of the Spirit's indwelling. The Spirit does not negate the Law but empower its fulfilment within us. So, the contrast between the Old and New Covenants is not between Law & Grace, but Outward Law and Inward Law. Grace has always been the operating principle in both covenants activated through faith. Without grace, there can be no faith: "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith" (Ephesians 2:8). OT saints are called "heros of faith" because grace was the operating principle in in the Old Testament. Law was not nullified but fulfilled under the New Covenant that Jesus came to bring: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished" (Matt 5:17-18).

Father, what a wonderful and consistent God You are! You have said, "I do not change." Indeed, You are the same yesterday, today and forever! Thank You that grace and law are present in both covenants, but now Your law is now dwelling within us through Your Spirit so that we now have the obedience of faith that leads to eternal life, not death. Amen.

God's GIfts & Call Are Irrevocable (Judges 14)

2012-02-03T06:26:00.002+08:00

Judges 14:1-9 Samson went down to Timnah and saw there a young Philistine woman. When he returned, he said to his father and mother, "I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife." His father and mother replied, "Isn't there an acceptable woman among your relatives or among all our people? Must you go to the uncircumcised Philistines to get a wife?" But Samson said to his father, "Get her for me. She's the right one for me." (His parents did not know that this was from the Lord, who was seeking an occasion to confront the Philistines; for at that time they were ruling over Israel.) Samson went down to Timnah together with his father and mother. As they approached the vineyards of Timnah, suddenly a young lion came roaring toward him. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat. But he told neither his father nor his mother what he had done. Then he went down and talked with the woman, and he liked her. Some time later, when he went back to marry her, he turned aside to look at the lion's carcass. In it was a swarm of bees and some honey, which he scooped out with his hands and ate as he went along. When he rejoined his parents, he gave them some, and they too ate it. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey from the lion's carcass.

Unlike other judges of Israel which are military leaders rallying the Israelites to war against their oppressors, Samson was a one-man band. His deliverance of Israel from the Philistines can be said to be "incidental" or even "accidental": he did not intentionally set out to deliver Israel from the Philistines but only to fulfil his own desires. Samson was a person driven by his own desires and passions. If it has not been clearly stated in the Scriptures that his desire to get a young Philistine woman to be his wife "was from the Lord, who was seeking an occasion to confront the Philistines," one would be hard-pressed to understand how Samson could be the one who "will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines" as promised in Judges 13:5.

Samson grew up as an impetuous man controlled by his passions rather than by the Spirit of God, though the Spirit had begun to stir in him as he grew up in Mahaneh Dan (Judges 13:25). His passion-driven personality came into fruition as a young adult in Judges 14 to the point of violating his Nazirite vow:

(1) He took a non-Israelite wife ("I have seen a Philistine woman in Timnah; now get her for me as my wife."): As a Nazirite he had taken a vow of separation from everything unclean. But Samson was a man controlled by his passion-- when he saw this Philistine beauty, he "fell in love" with her at first sight. It didn't matter to him that this woman of his infatuation was a non-Israelite and marrying her would be a violation of his Nazirite vow of separation from everything that was unclean: "Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons" (Deut 7:3). He was the "feel-good" guy - whatever feels good is right.

(2) He went into the vineyards ("As they approached the vineyards of Timnah"): As a Nazirite, Samson was supposed to stay away from grapes and here he was right in the midst of it. He probably walked faster than his aging parents and when they were lagging far behind, he took a detour into the vineyard to get some grapes to eat. That was when he was confronted by the lion. He was clearly indifferent to his call to live a separated life as a Nazirite. He was controlled by the lust of his flesh - the stomach.

(3) He went near the lion's carcass ("he turned aside to look at the lion's carcass"): As a Nazrite he was to stay away from dead body because touching it would make him unclean. And this principle applies to dead animals too. In Leviticus 5:2, it says: "if a person touches anything ceremonially unclean — whether the carcasses of unclean wild animals or of unclean livestock or of unclean creatures that move along the ground — even though he is unaware of it, he has become unclean and is guilty." So he not only went near, he actually touched it when he scooped out the honey from it.

Samson was a man controlled by worldly passions described by 1 John 2:16 as the "lust of the eyes" (he wanted the woman he saw), the "lust of his flesh" (he wanted to eat grapes) and "pride of life" (he wanted to gloat over the lion he had killed with his bare hands). He was an enigmatic character that was chosen despite his flaws to serve God's purpose of delivering Israel. He was a man ruled by his own passions rather than God's laws. As Romans 11:29 declares, "for God's gifts and his call are irrevocable." Here is the principle of grace at work: God works out his purpose inspite of Samson's moral violations. Of course, it is not God's desire for Samson to be ruled by his passions, but nevertheless God's call and gifts are irrevocable--either by good or by evil, His ultimate purpose will triumph even in our sins. God has declared that He would use Samson to deliver Israel from the Philistines and He will remain faithful to His promise even though Samson was unfaithful because God cannot violate His promise as embedded in the gifts and call bestowed upon him via His Spirit coming upon him.

Father, thank You for Your grace that is at work in us despite our flaws. Nevertheless, may You help us live our lives to reflect Your holy character and not contradict it. Amen.

Godly Parenting Starts with Godly Parents (Judges 13:8-25)

2012-02-02T06:46:00.000+08:00

Judges 13:8-21, 24-25 Then Manoah prayed to the Lord: "O Lord, I beg you, let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born." God heard Manoah, and the angel of God came again to the woman while she was out in the field; but her husband Manoah was not with her. The woman hurried to tell her husband, "He's here! The man who appeared to me the other day!" Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he said, "Are you the one who talked to my wife?" "I am," he said. So Manoah asked him, "When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule for the boy's life and work?" The angel of the Lord answered, "Your wife must do all that I have told her. She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean. She must do everything I have commanded her." ...The woman gave birth to a boy and named him Samson. He grew and the Lord blessed him, and the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him while he was in Mahaneh Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Like all husbands, Manoah still had doubts that the wife really saw an angel and received the promise of a son. So he prayed to the Lord to see the angel again on the pre-text of wanting to learn how to raise up the boy. And the Lord obliged him. God is patient with us in our weakness - the psalmist affirms in Psalm 103:13-14 that God is more like a loving father than a severe judge: "As a father shows compassion to his children, so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust." When the angel of the Lord finally appeared, Manoah repeated his question: "When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule for the boy's life and work?" And the angel's reply was not about the son but about the wife: "She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean. She must do everything I have commanded her."

Manoah wanted to be a good parent to the promised son, but the angel's answer to him gives us three important principles for good and godly parenting:

(1) Godly Parenting begins with Godly Parents ("Your wife must do all that I have told her"): Parenting is not about methods but about models. While Manoah was asking for "rule for the boy's life and work," the angel's focus is not on the boy but on the parents (in this case, his wife): "Your wife must do all I have told her." The starting point of godly parenting is godly parents.

(2) Godly Parenting is Godly Living ("She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean"): Manoah's wife was told to avoid alchohol and "anything unclean" because whatever she imbibes would go into the baby in the womb through the shared blood stream. So godly parents must live the kind of lifestyle they want to see in their children. It's no use saying, "Do what I say but don't do what I do!" Whether we like it or not, children usually do not do what their parents say but will do what their parents do. So godly parents must practise before they preach. (A pastor once told me that he usually pracises after he preaches!)

(3) Godly Parenting is a Joint-Effort ("She must do everything I have commanded her"): Obviously, this instruction is directed at Manoah because he asked the question about parenting. In other words, the angel of the Lord expected Manoah to help his wife observe everything that the angel commanded her. Godly parenting is not just the mother's responsibility but also the father. But the father is not just the final court of appeal, but should be involved with the children from the start. Absentee fathers is the main cause of much juvenile delinquency.

Lord, help us to be the kind of perons we want our children to become. Amen.

Born for a Purpose (Judges 13:1-7)

2012-02-01T05:55:00.000+08:00

Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, so the LORD delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years. A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was sterile and remained childless. The angel of the LORD appeared to her and said, “You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son. Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean, because you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines.” Then the woman went to her husband and told him, "A man of God came to me. He looked like an angel of God, very awesome. I didn't ask him where he came from, and he didn't tell me his name. But he said to me, 'You will conceive and give birth to a son. Now then, drink no wine or other fermented drink and do not eat anything unclean, because the boy will be a Nazirite of God from birth until the day of his death.'"

The birth of Samson was a miracle because his mother was sterile and childless. Nevertheless, an angel of the Lord promised her that she was going to conceive and have a son who would be set aside as a Nazirite from birth. According to Numbers 6:1-8, a Nazirite (in Hebrew means "separated") is someone who has taken the vow of separation to consecrate himself for a purpose. The Nazirite law stipulates that a Nazirite cannot touch wine or any fermented drink (i.e. alcoholic drinks). In fact, he cannot even eat the raisins or grape juices--not even the skins or the seeds. Also he is not allowed to cut his hair or go near a dead body during the period of separation.

While the Nazirite vow is only for a period of time, the boy born to Manoah's wife (Samson) was to be a Nazirite for a lifetime because God has set him apart for a life calling: "the boy will be a Nazirite of God from birth until the day of his death". Paul affirms in Ephesians 2:10 that all Christians are similarly set apart because we are "God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." He further testifies in Galatians 1:15 that this preparation did not start at his conversion on the road to Damascus but from his birth: "God...set me apart from birth and called me by his grace." In other words, God's grace is at work from the day we are born to prepare us for a life calling. He puts us through many pre-conversion experiences (family, education, work, etc.) to groom us to fulfil our divinely appointed destiny.

But when it comes to the subject of divine calling, there are two opposite views, both I believe are not totally scriptural: (1) that only certain people have divine callings and they are all in full time Christian ministry (pastors, missionaries, mercy works, etc); (2) everybody is called and our calling is simply our vocation (students, parents, employees, businessmen, etc), so when we carry out our responsibilities diligently and do everything "for God's glory", we have fulfilled our calling. However, I believe both views are somewhat mistaken. Let's look at some facts about Samson's calling:

(1) Divine Calling is to Fulfill God's Purpose, not Our Needs ("Judg 13:5
he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines"): Notice that Samson's specific life mission was to deliver Israel from Philistines. So the mission has to do with God's purpose for Israel - in other words, it fulfils a Kingdom need, not just a personal ambition. Many of our human responsibilities are done for our own benefits rather than God's, so they cannot be thought of as a divine calling. If normal human responsibilities are divine calling, then everybody is doing it - including those who do not know God.

(2) Divine Calling is Separate from Normal Human Activities ("the boy will be a Nazirite of God"): As a Nazirite, he was set apart ("separated") to fulfil a divine purpose. It was something that is beyond his normal human responsibilities as son or as a member of the community. Everyone who makes the Nazirite vow has taken it to do something different from the normal activities of life. While divine calling can be embedded in normal human responsibilities (e.g. Joseph), it is nevertheless beyond it. For Joseph, his calling was just not to be the best Prime Minister of Egypt that he could be but that through his position, "God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives"-- including his own family (Gen 50:20).

Another example may be that of Susanna Wesley, the mother of John and Charles Wesley who is known as the "Mother of Methodism". She experienced many great hardships and one of them was that her husband left her for a year because of a minor dispute. During that difficult period, she penned these words to her absentee husband: "I am a woman, but I am also the mistress of a large family. And though the superior charge of the souls contained in it lies upon you, yet in your long absence I cannot but look upon every soul you leave under my charge as a talent committed to me under a trust. I am not a man nor a minister, yet as a mother and a mistress I felt I ought to do more than I had yet done. I resolved to begin with my own children; in which I observe the following method: I take such a proportion of time as I can spare every night to discourse with each child apart. On Monday I talk with Molly, on Tuesday with Hetty, Wednesday with Nancy, Thursday with Jacky, Friday with Patty, Saturday with Charles." She was not raising her children just to succeed in life but to succeed in God's purpose. Two of her sons (John and Charles Wesley) left a global legacy through Methodism because of Susanna Wesley's sense of calling beyond that of the normal responsibility as motherhood.

(3) Divine Calling is Life-long ("from birth until the day of his death"): The call of God is life-long because the preparation starts from birth - even before we know God. The Methodists call that "prevenient grace"--we are God's "workmanship" (Greek: poem) from the day we were born to prepare us for the divine calling when we know Him and ready to fulfil that call. For some, this calling may come in the form of a "full-time" Christian ministry as pastors and missionaries. For others, it may be like Joseph and Susanna Wesley embedded within their vocation--but the call is always to fulfil God's Kingdom purpose, not our own needs. God shapes and moulds our personality and character through appropriate life experiences and then endowed us with spiritual gifts at conversion in order that we might fulfil the mission which he has prepared long before-hand for us.

Father, may Your will be done in our lives. May Your Kingdom come through us. Show us what Your life calling is for us so that we may fulfil it. Amen.

Divided by Doctrinal Shibboleths (Judges 12:1-6)

2012-01-30T06:26:00.003+08:00

Judg 12:1-6 The men of Ephraim called out their forces, crossed over to Zaphon and said to Jephthah, "Why did you go to fight the Ammonites without calling us to go with you? We're going to burn down your house over your head." Jephthah answered, "I and my people were engaged in a great struggle with the Ammonites, and although I called, you didn't save me out of their hands. When I saw that you wouldn't help, I took my life in my hands and crossed over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord gave me the victory over them. Now why have you come up today to fight me?" Jephthah then called together the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. The Gileadites struck them down because the Ephraimites had said, "You Gileadites are renegades from Ephraim and Manasseh." The Gileadites captured the fords of the Jordan leading to Ephraim, and whenever a survivor of Ephraim said, "Let me cross over," the men of Gilead asked him, "Are you an Ephraimite?" If he replied, "No," they said, "All right, say 'Shibboleth.'" If he said, "Sibboleth," because he could not pronounce the word correctly, they seized him and killed him at the fords of the Jordan. Forty-two thousand Ephraimites were killed at that time.

Here we have the tragic byproduct of success--envy and jealousy. The Ephraimites felt offended that Jephthah left them out of the battle. The result was an episode of fratricide that left 42,000 Ephraimites dead. The killing of the Ephraimites hinges on their ability to pronounce the word "shibboleth" correctly. The Ephraimites would pronounce shibboleth as sibboleth - that was enough warrant to be killed. This was an unnecessary war between brothers--and the Church has its share of such fratricidal conflicts in its 2,000 years history: wars, inquisitions, persecutions over petty differences. The Church has its own shibboleths too, often triggered by envy and jealousy over other brothers' success in their ministry.

Envy and jealousy are often unseen motives for much of our angry actions and angry words. In the case of the Ephraimites, their envy and jealousy led to an act of war between brothers aggravated by the following angry words:

(1) Threatening Words ("We're going to burn down your house over your head"): There is no justification for such threats except that they were venting their own sense of outrage of being excluded in Gilead's success. But angry words are dangerous because they can lead to conflicts that may engulf many innocent bystanders. In the church, angry words have split the church and caused outsiders to become disillusioned about the Church and Christianity.

(2) Hurtful Words ("You Gileadites are renegades from Ephraim and Manasseh."): That was the last straw for Jephthah. It was bad that the Ephraimites crossed over the Jordan with their forces, but now they added insult to injury with their hurtful words by calling the Gileadites "renegades" of Ephraim and Manasseh. Now the pride of Gileadites was hurt and the retaliation was deadly: 42,000 Ephraimites were dead before the fire died down.

(3) Divisive Words ("All right, say 'Shibboleth.'"): Though Gilead was from the Ephraim and Manasseh, but because they lived on the east side of the Jordan, some words were pronounced differently. In particular, the word "shibboleth" was pronounced differently by the Gileadites from the Ephraimites who said it as "sibboleth." But that distinction was enough to get the Ephraimites killed.

Thankfully in Singapore, because of close proximity and constant interactions, Christians from different denominations are coming together in unity, especially in the workplaces, to reach those who are still outside the kingdom. But in many parts of the world (including Asia), denominations have their shibboleths that separate brothers from brothers. Denominational competition in the mission field is a sad expression of pride, envy and jealousy. We focus too much on what divide us (we called them "distinctives") rather than what should unite us - the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

May the Lord's Prayer in John 17 for the unity of the church be answered in our generation. Let's put aside our doctrinal and denominational shibboleths and come together against our common Enemy, the Devil.

Father, may You deliver us from our shibboleths, so that we may fulfill Your mission as one body in Christ. Amen.

Paganised Christianity - The Fu Lu Shou Gospel (Judges 11:29-39)

2012-01-28T06:58:00.000+08:00

Judges 11:29-39 Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah. He crossed Gilead and Manasseh, passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from there he advanced against the Ammonites. And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord: "If you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the Lord's, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering." Then Jephthah went over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord gave them into his hands. He devastated twenty towns from Aroer to the vicinity of Minnith, as far as Abel Keramim. Thus Israel subdued Ammon. When Jephthah returned to his home in Mizpah, who should come out to meet him but his daughter, dancing to the sound of tambourines! She was an only child. Except for her he had neither son nor daughter. When he saw her, he tore his clothes and cried, "Oh! My daughter! You have made me miserable and wretched, because I have made a vow to the Lord that I cannot break." "My father," she replied, "you have given your word to the Lord. Do to me just as you promised, now that the Lord has avenged you of your enemies, the Ammonites. But grant me this one request," she said. "Give me two months to roam the hills and weep with my friends, because I will never marry." "You may go," he said. And he let her go for two months. She and the girls went into the hills and wept because she would never marry. After the two months, she returned to her father and he did to her as he had vowed. And she was a virgin.

Jephthah made a rash vow to the Lord to offer as a sacrifice whatever came out to meet him at the door of his house if he returned in triumph from battle against the Ammonites. When the first person to meet him at his house turned out to be his only daughter, his rash vow became a personal tragedy. Jephthah's vow might have been due to his shallow understanding of the Lord's character, attributing to the God of love the same characteristics of the Baals and Asthoreths, which required human sacrifices. Such syncretistic theology can only be corrected through proper teaching of God's Word. However, for Jephthah, this was not done and though he was filled with the Spirit ("the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah" which imparts divine charisma), he was seriously wanting in the Word (which imparts divine character).

While we may deplore Jephthah's simplistic mindset, unfortunately, such syncretistic theology is present even in our days--especially so, among Asian Christians converted out of non-Christian religions. The tendency of transferring our former pagan attitudes towards towards the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ can be seen in the following ways:

(1) The "Fu Lu Shou (福禄寿)" Gospel: The attributes of the Taoist trinity of luck (福), wealth (禄), and longevity (寿) are often transferred to the God of the Bible as a Deity to bless us with good fortune, wealth and health. The Prosperity Gospel (which its "blessing" theology that emphasizes receiving blessings from God while ignoring the hard sayings of Jesus to "deny yourself, take up the cross and follow me") makes easy assimilation of the Fu Lu Shou attitudes into Christianity. While such "positive" attitudes may be less harmful than Jephthah's human sacrifice understanding of Yahweh, it nevertheless produces a shallow Christianity with no depth of character. The discipleship message is left out because it's too painful. But pain is necessary for character building. Jesus himself had to learn obedience through his sufferings: "Although (Jesus) was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him" (Hebrews 5:8-9). So when Jesus insisted that anyone who wants to be his disciple must "deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me" (Luke 9:23), he is emphasizing the priority of character (Christlike obedience) over charisma (grace-blessings). Jephthah had charisma of leadership when the Spirit came upon him, but he lack the character of leadership becaus of his faulty theology.

(2) Keeping God in the Temple: For Asians, their deities are localised in the temples, if they don't bring them back to their homes or workplaces by setting up altars for them. Asian deities are there to bless those who pray to them and place no demand on the adherents to live morally or to be involved in selfless service. So increasingly we see Christianity also has become a "weekend religion" with a God that is left in the church when believers go back to their homes and workplaces. Worship and Word have become a weekend activities in the Christian temples--sorry, I mean, churches. This separation of faith from life is again a result of this transference of pagan attitudes into Christianity, resulting in a paganised Christianity.

(3) Christianity a Religion,not Relationship: Asian religions focuses on doing the proper rites and rituals to ensure the favour of the deities to bring luck, wealth and health, but no one would think of having an intimate relationship with the deities they pray too. They are best left in the temples (some look terrifying!). They are not like the Father-God of the Bible who seeks to have a relationship with us as children. So Christianity has become a religion of rules, rites and rituals -- anything but a daily talking relationship with Father God. Out of sight (from churches) is out of mind.

We need to redeem our theology from paganistic attitudes and restore biblical theology of a God as loving but holy--a God who not only wants to bless us, but who wants us to be a blessing to others. The Gospel is Good News because it transfers us from the pagan self-centred religion into the Kingdom selfless faith that is seeking to "deny self, take up the cross" in order to follow Christ.

Father, renew our mind and purge it from unbiblical and pagan ideas that have been transferred to You. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Don't Need to be Perfect to Serve (Judges 11:1-11)

2012-01-27T07:05:00.000+08:00

Judg 11:1-11 When the Ammonites were called to arms and camped in Gilead, the Israelites assembled and camped at Mizpah. The leaders of the people of Gilead said to each other, "Whoever will launch the attack against the Ammonites will be the head of all those living in Gilead." Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior. His father was Gilead; his mother was a prostitute. Gilead's wife also bore him sons, and when they were grown up, they drove Jephthah away. "You are not going to get any inheritance in our family," they said, "because you are the son of another woman." So Jephthah fled from his brothers and settled in the land of Tob, where a group of adventurers gathered around him and followed him. Some time later, when the Ammonites made war on Israel, the elders of Gilead went to get Jephthah from the land of Tob. "Come," they said, "be our commander, so we can fight the Ammonites." Jephthah said to them, "Didn't you hate me and drive me from my father's house? Why do you come to me now, when you're in trouble?" The elders of Gilead said to him, "Nevertheless, we are turning to you now; come with us to fight the Ammonites, and you will be our head over all who live in Gilead." Jephthah answered, "Suppose you take me back to fight the Ammonites and the Lord gives them to me — will I really be your head?" The elders of Gilead replied, "The Lord is our witness; we will certainly do as you say." So Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and commander over them. And he repeated all his words before the Lord in Mizpah.

Jephthah was an unlikely leader because of his social disadvantages. He was rejected by his family, elders and people:

(1) Rejected by his own family ("when they were grown up, they drove Jephthah away"): Jephthah was a son of a prostitute. He would be considered an illegitimate son because his father did not marry his mother. Having grown up in such a family, he was very likely to have been taunted by his step-brothers as he grew up. The ultimate indignity he suffered was when they became adults, his step-brothers drove him out of the family.

(2) Rejected by his elders ("Didn't you hate me and drive me from my father's house?"): He was not only rejected by his brothers; he was also rejected by his tribal leaders. The elders of Gilead did not think he was worthy of living among them as illegitimate son of a prostitute. So, they sanctioned the family decision to disinherit him.

(3) Rejected by his people ("settled in the land of Tob, where a group of adventurers gathered around him and followed him"): He had no family and tribe to return to and so had to settle in the land of Tob. His family and community was a band of "worthless rebels" (NLT)-- or we may say, social outcasts.

The only redeeming quality Jephthah had was his ability to fight. He was described as a "mighty warrior". And when the situation arose that required his talent, he was selected to head up Gilead's army. If a HR manager were to look at Jephthah's resume today, he wouldn't survive the first scrutiny. Such a person simply does not have the background and experience to be considered for the top job. However, the elders of Gilead were not looking for a flawless resume. They were just looking to his one qualification - that he was a warrior. Everything else was secondary to this ability and willingness to fight against the Ammonites. Apparently, they could not find such a person among themselves.

I am quite sure when Jephthah was approached to lead Gilead against the Ammonites, he must have thought it was a joke. But then he realized that he had one qualification that none other had: the courage and temperament of a warrior.

We don't have to be perfect to do the will of God. As we see in later part of the chapter, Jephthah had one serious character flaw - he was a rash man. But nevertheless, God could use him to be Israel's judge and deliverer because he had one quality that set him apart from his people--his courage.

The lesson today is: we don't need to have the perfect resume to serve God, but we do need to be available to God to use whatever gift He had given to us to get the job done.

Father, I thank You that we don't have to wait until we are candidates for sainthood before we can serve You. We can serve You as we are, despite our disadvantages in terms of family background, educational and work experience. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Dealing with Roots, not Fruits (Judges 10:1-16)

2012-01-26T06:22:00.000+08:00

Judg 10:6-16 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord. They served the Baals and the Ashtoreths, and the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites and the gods of the Philistines. And because the Israelites forsook the Lord and no longer served him, he became angry with them. He sold them into the hands of the Philistines and the Ammonites, who that year shattered and crushed them. For eighteen years they oppressed all the Israelites on the east side of the Jordan in Gilead, the land of the Amorites. The Ammonites also crossed the Jordan to fight against Judah, Benjamin and the house of Ephraim; and Israel was in great distress. Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord, "We have sinned against you, forsaking our God and serving the Baals." The Lord replied, "When the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines, the Sidonians, the Amalekites and the Maonites oppressed you and you cried to me for help, did I not save you from their hands? But you have forsaken me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you are in trouble!" But the Israelites said to the Lord, "We have sinned. Do with us whatever you think best, but please rescue us now." Then they got rid of the foreign gods among them and served the Lord. And he could bear Israel's misery no longer.

Just 45 years after Abimelech, and two judges later (Tola & Jair), a new generation arose and the same sad story repeats itself: "Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord." Only this time, it was worse: they not only prostituted themselves with the Baals and Ashtoreths, they also served "the gods of Aram, the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab, the gods of the Ammonites and the gods of the Philistines." Again, when Israel served these gods rather than the true God, Yahweh, He sold them into the hands of the Philistines and the Ammonites for 18 years. When the distress became unbearable, they cried out to the Lord: "We have sinned against you, forsaking our God and serving the Baals." But the Lord did not immediately send a judge to deliver them. Their prayer was ineffective until they got rid of the foreign gods among them and served the Lord only. Only when this happened that the Lord "could bear Israel's misery no longer."

What important lessons can we glean from today's passage?

(1) Teaching God's Word to the next Generation ("Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord"): This is a new generation that grew up during the judgeship of Tola and Jair--a total of 45 years. Faith was taken for granted: one glaring omission is the absence of teaching of God's Word. In Deuteronomy 6:1-9, Moses entrusted the responsibility for teaching God's Word to parents: "These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life... These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates." Apparently, during the period of the judges, Israelite parents failed in their responsibility to pass on the teaching of God's Word from one generation to the next, creating this continual backsliding in Israel.

(2) Repentance is more than confession ("We have sinned against you, forsaking our God and serving the Baals."): Confession is "agreeing with God" that our action is wrong. Confession acknowledges that the things we are now doing are not pleasing to the Lord. But confession is only the beginning of repentance: Israel acknowledged that they have sinned in forsaking God and serving the Baals. But their confession did not move God to act on their behalf: "But you have forsaken me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you are in trouble!" Confession is only the first step in the journey of repentance. True repentance goes beyond confession to action.

(3) Repentance deals with roots, not fruits ("they got rid of the foreign gods among them and served the Lord.") It is only when Israel got rid of the idols in their midst to turn to the Lord that Scripture tells us that the Lord "could bear Israel's misery no longer." As long as they held on to their idols and did not clear them out of the land, God did not respond to their prayers and their cries for help. God's heart began to turn towards Israel when they took action to remove the idols from among them. True repentance deals with the roots, not just the fruits. Confession acknowledges that we have bad fruits, but repentance gets rid of the bad roots that produce the bad fruits. For some, the roots may be the love of money; for others, the love of power; and yet others, the love of pleasures. Recent headlines in our national papers regarding some top officers in the SCDF and CNB simply confirm that the roots of all "personal misconduct" are found the three fatal attractions: fortune, female and fame. Even Christians are not spared from corruption (spiritual and moral) when we refuse to deal with the roots of our "personal misconduct".

Lord, we acknowledge that we are constantly being tempted daily in the areas of money, sex and power. The higher our position, the greater the fall. May You lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil - roots and all. In Jesus' name, Amen.

We Reap What We Sow (Judges 9:22-57)

2012-01-25T06:50:00.001+08:00

Judges 9:22-25, 50-57 After Abimelech had governed Israel three years, God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem, who acted treacherously against Abimelech. God did this in order that the crime against Jerub-Baal's seventy sons, the shedding of their blood, might be avenged on their brother Abimelech and on the citizens of Shechem, who had helped him murder his brothers. In opposition to him these citizens of Shechem set men on the hilltops to ambush and rob everyone who passed by, and this was reported to Abimelech...Next Abimelech went to Thebez and besieged it and captured it. Inside the city, however, was a strong tower, to which all the men and women — all the people of the city — fled. They locked themselves in and climbed up on the tower roof. Abimelech went to the tower and stormed it. But as he approached the entrance to the tower to set it on fire, a woman dropped an upper millstone on his head and cracked his skull. Hurriedly he called to his armor-bearer, "Draw your sword and kill me, so that they can't say, 'A woman killed him.'" So his servant ran him through, and he died. When the Israelites saw that Abimelech was dead, they went home. Thus God repaid the wickedness that Abimelech had done to his father by murdering his seventy brothers. God also made the men of Shechem pay for all their wickedness. The curse of Jotham son of Jerub-Baal came on them.

Here we have an important principle that Paul himself asserts even in the New Testament in Galatians 6:7-8, "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature (flesh), from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life." Whether under law or grace, this law of sowing and reaping applies in either direction - positively leading to life or negatively leading to destruction. In the context of Galatians, Paul is talking about the importance of being led by the Spirit rather than by the sinful desires of the flesh; among the list of manifestations of the sinful nature listed in Galatians 5:19-21 are Abimelech's character flaws: viz., discord, selfish ambition, dissensions and factions.

Some important lessons from the life of Abimelech which serve as a warning to us not to sow the flesh but to the Spirit are:

(1) Sin Opens the Door to Evil Spirits ("God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem"): When we indulge in the sinful desires of the flesh, we are no longer walking by the Holy Spirit and so that opens our lives to attack by evil spirits. Even though the verse quoted here says that "God sent an evil spirit", it is best understood as God removes the protection from those who chose to walk in the flesh for evil spirit to attack. It amounts to the same thing, but God is not the author of evil - it simply means that when we choose to walk by the desires of the sinful nature, we are no longer protected by God's spiritual armour and become vulnerable to evil spirits. Abimelech and the citizens of Shechem were co-conspirators in the killing of Gideon's seventy sons. So, evil spirit came between them to stir up strifes among them. The safest protection against spiritual oppression is to walk in the Spirit by surrendering our daily decisions to the control of the Spirit. We know we are walking by the Spirit when love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control mark our attitudes and actions.

(2) Sin has consequences ("the crime against Jerub-Baal's seventy sons...might be avenged on their brother Abimelech and on the citizens of Shechem"): The principle of sowing and reaping is an inexorable law: when we sow to the flesh, we reap destruction. There is no way around this, even for believers living under grace. Consider the following practical examples: if we break the law by speeding beyond the legal speed limits, we will be caught and fined; if we cheat on our spouses, the consequences of divorce and family breakup are inevitable; if we are dishonest in the way we handle company or church finances, we will soon have the CPIB over our offices. Sin has consequences. I once saw a banner hanging in a secondary school that reads, "We are free to make our choices, but not free to decide the consequences." Paul seems to be extending this principle beyond this earthly life by warning the Christians at Galatia that walking by the flesh has eternal consequences: "I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God" (Gal 5:21).

(3) God ensures justice is done ("God repaid the wickedness that Abimelech had done to his father by murdering his seventy brothers"): The law of sowing and reaping is a divine law of retribution that God himself upholds because the underlying principle is divine justice. Justice is an attribute of God's holy character. While divine grace can overcome divine justice and spare us from the consequences of our actions, nevertheless Paul's warning to believers is not to take grace for granted: "Shall we sin that grace may abound? God forbid!" (Rom. 6:1-2). Grace is not a doctrine to believe in but a reality we experience as we learn to live by the power of the Spirit.

Father, may You help us sow daily to the Spirit so that we may reap eternal life. Amen.

Leaders are Servants, not Lords (Judges 9)

2012-01-24T08:43:00.001+08:00

Judg 9:7-20 When Jotham was told about this, he climbed up on the top of Mount Gerizim and shouted to them, "Listen to me, citizens of Shechem, so that God may listen to you. One day the trees went out to anoint a king for themselves. They said to the olive tree, 'Be our king.' "But the olive tree answered, 'Should I give up my oil, by which both gods and men are honored, to hold sway over the trees?' "Next, the trees said to the fig tree, 'Come and be our king.' "But the fig tree replied, 'Should I give up my fruit, so good and sweet, to hold sway over the trees?' "Then the trees said to the vine, 'Come and be our king.' "But the vine answered, 'Should I give up my wine, which cheers both gods and men, to hold sway over the trees?' "Finally all the trees said to the thornbush, 'Come and be our king.' "The thornbush said to the trees, 'If you really want to anoint me king over you, come and take refuge in my shade; but if not, then let fire come out of the thornbush and consume the cedars of Lebanon!' "Now if you have acted honorably and in good faith when you made Abimelech king, and if you have been fair to Jerub-Baal and his family, and if you have treated him as he deserves—and to think that my father fought for you, risked his life to rescue you from the hand of Midian (but today you have revolted against my father's family, murdered his seventy sons on a single stone, and made Abimelech, the son of his slave girl, king over the citizens of Shechem because he is your brother)—if then you have acted honorably and in good faith toward Jerub-Baal and his family today, may Abimelech be your joy, and may you be his, too! But if you have not, let fire come out from Abimelech and consume you, citizens of Shechem and Beth Millo, and let fire come out from you, citizens of Shechem and Beth Millo, and consume Abimelech!"

Abimelech was the son of Gideon through a concubine from Shechem. After Gideon died, he instigated his own people in Shechem to revolt against Gideon's 70 sons and install him as king over Israel by asking them one question: "'Which is better for you: to have all seventy of Jerub-Baal's (Gideon's) sons rule over you, or just one man?' Remember, I am your flesh and blood." (Judges 9:2). Abimelech tried to set himself up as king without the Lord's appointment and anointment. He was not empowerd by the Holy Spirit but by his own ambitious spirit and lust for power. So when the men of Shechem decided to support him since he is "our brother" and gave him seventy shekels of siliver, Abimelech used the money to hire mercenaries as his followers. He then went to Ophrah and killed Gideon's other seventy sons on one stone, but one of the seventy sons, Jotham managed to escape the mass slaughter (read Judges 9:1-6). So when Jotham heard that the men of Shechem and Beth Millo had installed Abimelech as king, he climbed up to the top of Mt Gerizim and shouted to them the quoted parable about the trees seeking for a king (Judges 9:7-20).

There are three important lessons from this parable:

(1) Don't worship human leadership ("One day the trees went out to anoint a king for themselves"): The trees in this parable has a problem: they wanted a king "for themselves" and they want to "anoint" this king themselves. So, the whole leadership set-up was by man and for man. God was not in the equation. I am not saying that there is no role for leadership in the Body of Christ, but rather that we should not look to human leaders (kings) to solve our problems. Only God can solve our problems. Paul has this to say to the 1 Corinthians 3:5-9: "What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe — as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The man who plants and the man who waters have one purpose, and each will be rewarded according to his own labor. For we are God's fellow workers; you are God's field, God's building."

Leaders are not lords nor bosses, but only servants--servants of the Lord and servants of the people. Leaders are God's agents to carry out His plan and purpose and it is God whom we should follow, not men. Like Apollos and Paul, they are not "great men" of God but "only servants" with specific role and specific purpose within God's plan--they are fallible humans just like you and me. To elevate them to god-like status and pass our responsibility for seeking God ourselves to them is to court potential personal spiritual disaster when the leader we worship falls (as has happened many times before here in Singapore).

(2) Contentment comes when we use our gifts to bless others ("Should I give up my oil...Should I give up my fruit...Should I give up my wine...?): The first three trees (olive, fig and vine) express contentment because God has made them to bless others through their gifts (oil, fruit and wine). In the same way, God has blessed everyone of us with gifts--both natural (by physical birth) and supernatural (by spiritual birth). Some have the leadership gifts to rally God's people towards fulfillment of God's purpose (saving souls), while the rest of us have other gifts to assist those with leadership gifts in the process. The leadership gift is not the "higher" gifts any more than the neck is "higher" gifts because of its position. Without the rest of the body providing locomotion and activites, the neck-leadership cannot communicate what the head (Christ) wants to the rest of the body to carry out the task. In God's organization, everyone is equal, except the Head who is Christ whom we all submit, including the neck-leaders.

Every Christian has a unique calling based on the two-dimensional gifts that God has bestowed on us from our first and second births. God has prepared each of us to serve him from the day we were born by giving us natural abilities and relevant experiences of life and also by anointing us with His Spirit for a special calling through the spiritual gifts (charisma). Our gift is not our money (which many short-change God with), thinking that once we have paid our tithes, we have paid our dues! When we use our gifts to bless others, thus fulflling God's purpose for our lives, we experience contentment. And when we are contented, we do not strive for power, position or privileges. Unfortunately, many Christians are not aware of their natural nor supernatural gifts and callings. And so they strive for "success" in the wrong arena - either by struggling for power within the church political hierarchy or in the workplace for position, money and power. It is important for all Christians (not just those who are called to lead) to discover their gifts, for in discovering their gifts, they also discover their calling. Such gifts and calling always have the same theme--to bless others (not just ourselves). The olive trees bless others by giving them "honour", the fig trees bless others by giving them "good and sweet" fruits, while the vines bless others by cheering them with wine.

(3) Following wrong human leaders can bring disasters ("let fire come out of the thornbush and consume the cedars of Lebanon!"): The trees finally find the leaders they are seeking for - the thornbush. But the thornbush is a wrong kind of leader to follow because it promises fire to "consume the cedars of Lebanon". We have to be careful as Christians never to give unequivocal allegiance to any man: submission to authority does not translate to subservience to the human leader. Any human leader who demands "canonical obedience" (obedience without question) is asking followers to treat them not as man but god. We should thank God for good leadership gift because it comes from God, but don't confuse the gifts with the persons who exercise the gifts. Church history is replete with disastrous stories of unthinking allegiance to a human-god who held sway over the compliant trees. Fire and destruction had attended these obedient followers. Let's not forget the tragedy that attended members of People's Temple under Rev. Jim Jones in 1978 when he led 909 members to commit mass suicide/murder in the jungles of Jonestown, Guyana (northern coast of South America) by forcing everyone to ingest cyanide-laced communion wine. Over 200 children died with their parents.

Father God, may You open our eyes to look to You alone, and not give our unquestioning allegiance to any man. Grant us discern to separate the gifts from the persons who lead us. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Dangers of Going Beyond Our Calling (Judges 8:22-32)

2012-01-21T06:44:00.001+08:00

Judg 8:22-32 The Israelites said to Gideon, "Rule over us — you, your son and your grandson — because you have saved us out of the hand of Midian." But Gideon told them, "I will not rule over you, nor will my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you." And he said, "I do have one request, that each of you give me an earring from your share of the plunder." (It was the custom of the Ishmaelites to wear gold earrings.) They answered, "We'll be glad to give them." So they spread out a garment, and each man threw a ring from his plunder onto it. The weight of the gold rings he asked for came to seventeen hundred shekels, not counting the ornaments, the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian or the chains that were on their camels' necks. Gideon made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town. All Israel prostituted themselves by worshiping it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and his family. Thus Midian was subdued before the Israelites and did not raise its head again. During Gideon's lifetime, the land enjoyed peace forty years. Jerub-Baal son of Joash went back home to live. He had seventy sons of his own, for he had many wives. His concubine, who lived in Shechem, also bore him a son, whom he named Abimelech. Gideon son of Joash died at a good old age and was buried in the tomb of his father Joash in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

After Gideon had defeated the Midianites--who were Ishmaelites, ancestors of present-day Arabs--the people wanted to elevate him to be their king because "you have saved us out of the hand of Midian." Gideon gave them the theologically correct answer: "I will not rule over you, nor my son rule over you. The Lord will rule over you." He was fully aware that God had anointed him with the Spirit to be a judge (military deliverer) to save Israel from the Midianites but not as a king. Moses had given this warning in Deuteronomy 17:14-15, "When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, "Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us," be sure to appoint over you the king the Lord your God chooses." While rejecting the formal position of kingship, Gideon nevertheless lusted after the privileges of kingship that the people so willingly offered him. So, he took advantage of the human desire of the people for a king and lived the privileged life of a king marked by:

(1) Wealth ("each of you give me an earring from your share of the plunder"): He asked for a share of the gold ear-rings plundered from the Midianites. It came to about 1700 shekels (43 pounds/20 kg). But the people did not just bring the gold rings but also "ornaments, the pendants and the purple garments worn by the kings of Midian or the chains that were on their camels' necks." So Gideon acquired instant wealth that would have been the prerogatives of kings!

(2) Power ("Gideon made the gold into an ephod, which he placed in Ophrah, his town.") In a theocratic society like Israel, the centre of power is found in its religion: viz., the power to hear God's instruction that belongs to the high priest. The ephod is a breastplate worn by the high priest when he wanted to inquire of the Lord through the Urim and Thumin. So by placing his own DIY ephod at his own hometown, he ensured that this power to hear God's voice stay with his family. So, from that time onward, any tribe that wanted to know the will of God would have to come to Ophrah and of course to Gideon and his family to "inquire of the Lord." Gideon had gone beyond his calling as Israel's judge to become also Israel's high priest. And it caused Israel to prostitute themselves by worshipping the ephod at Ophrah--this became a "snare to Gideon and his family."

(3) Women ("he had many wives"): And Gideon lived it up to his unofficial kingship position - he took many wives and had seventy sons from them. He violated Moses' stipulations for kings in Deut 17:17, "He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold." So, Gideon, while ostensibly rejecting the position of a king, abused the authority given to him as unofficial king - taking many wives and accumulating wealth.

The Gideon family's defacto rule over Israel came to a head when Abimelech, one of Gideon's son from a concubine, challenged the rule of Gideon's seventy sons in order to usurp the unofficial throne for himself (next chapter). So, Gideon lived like a king because the people wanted him, but knowing that he was not chosen to be king nevertheless took advantage of the situation to live like one!

Such is the temptation of charismatic leadership--to go beyond the call and to take on privileges and authority that do not go with the original call. Gideon's story also highlights the weakness of human followers, from obeying the Lord to obeying the leader. This is seen not just in the secular world but also in the churches. How many church members would quote what their pastor says to justify their belief systems instead of what God says? I have sat at table talk discussion when what Pastor So-and-so said in his sermons carries more weight than what God has said in His Word. Sometime, dangerously so because the church members have given the Pastor So-and-so the authority and power he did not have and should not take. But sadly, as a pastor myself, the temptation to take what does not belong to us but to God is great. That is how Lucifer became Satan. And we pastors are not free from the temptation. That is why God will have to put a thorn in our flesh to keep us from an inflated ego.

Father, help us recognize the limits of our calling and not take on privileges and powers that You have not given us. May You deliver us from this temptation of wealth, power and adoring females to walk according to our gifts and calling. Amen.

Maintaining Unity Requires Effort (Judges 7:24-8:17

2012-01-20T06:55:00.000+08:00

Judg 7:24-8:12 Gideon sent messengers throughout the hill country of Ephraim, saying, "Come down against the Midianites and seize the waters of the Jordan ahead of them as far as Beth Barah." So all the men of Ephraim were called out and they took the waters of the Jordan as far as Beth Barah. They also captured two of the Midianite leaders, Oreb and Zeeb. They killed Oreb at the rock of Oreb, and Zeeb at the winepress of Zeeb. They pursued the Midianites and brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon, who was by the Jordan. Now the Ephraimites asked Gideon, "Why have you treated us like this? Why didn't you call us when you went to fight Midian?" And they criticized him sharply. But he answered them, "What have I accomplished compared to you? Aren't the gleanings of Ephraim's grapes better than the full grape harvest of Abiezer? God gave Oreb and Zeeb, the Midianite leaders, into your hands. What was I able to do compared to you?" At this, their resentment against him subsided.

Gideon faced his first test of leadership: detractors from within the ranks.

(1) Men of Ephraim ("Why didn't you call us when you went to fight Midian?"): The Ephraimites criticized Gideon sharply because they felt insulted that Gideon did not call them to join the battle against the Midianites, but Gideon's tactful answer turned away their wrath: "God gave Oreb and Zeeb, the Midianite leaders, into your hands. What was I able to do compared to you?" Their pride was assuaged and their resentment subsided.

(2) Men of Succoth ("Why should we give bread to your troops?"): Unlike the Ephraimites who wanted a part of the action, here we have the opposite: the men of Succoth would not have anything to do with the battle against the Midianites. By not giving bread to their brothers for fear of retaliation from the Midianites should Gideon failed in his mission, they were in actual fact taking the side of the enemies of Israel. These detractors were not just sabotaging Gideon--they were sabotaging God's purpose. Gideon's anger was aroused and he threatened the officials of Succoth with severe retribution which he carried out after he returned in triumph from the battle.

(3) Men of Peniel ("they answered as the men of Succoth had"): The men of Peniel responded to Gideon's request the same way as the men of Succoth: "Why should we give bread to your troops?" They demonstrated the same careless indifference to Gideon's mission and the same concern for self-preservation rather than the pursuit of the will of God. Again, Gideon threatened them with severe retribution which he carried out when he returned to Peniel.

Why was there a basic difference between the attitude of the men of Ephraim and the men of Succoth and Peniel? An important fact is that unlike the Ephraimites who lived on the west side of the river Jordan and so felt connected to the other nine and a half tribes of Israel, the men of Succoth and Peniel were living on the east side of the river Jordan and did not feel the same connection with the fate and destiny of the rest of Israel. They could not identify with Israel as a nation - emotionally and spiritually, though they were aware of their historical ties. The river Jordan became a obstacle to unity as a people of God.

Which brings us to the main lesson for today: a break in communication and contact between people undermines unity. The two and a half tribes living on the east side of the Jordan over time lost their sense of identity with the nation of Israel and became preoccupied with their narrow self-interests rather than the larger interests of the nation.

Constant communication and contact are critical to maintaining unity in any group of people. Unity cannot be taken for granted - whether in the church, in a family or in a married couple. Lack of communication and contact will slowly result in emotional and ultimately spiritual divorce from one another. That is why Paul exhorts in Ephesians 4:3 "Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace."

Father, help us never to take unity for granted -- whether it be in our marriage, our family or our church. Help us to make every effort to keep up the communication and contact essential to keeping the unity of the Spirit. Amen.

Gideon's Trumpets and Torches (Judges 7:9-22)

2012-01-19T06:30:00.001+08:00

Judg 7:9-16, 19-22 During that night the Lord said to Gideon, "Get up, go down against the camp, because I am going to give it into your hands. If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah and listen to what they are saying. Afterward, you will be encouraged to attack the camp." So he and Purah his servant went down to the outposts of the camp. The Midianites, the Amalekites and all the other eastern peoples had settled in the valley, thick as locusts. Their camels could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore. Gideon arrived just as a man was telling a friend his dream. "I had a dream," he was saying. "A round loaf of barley bread came tumbling into the Midianite camp. It struck the tent with such force that the tent overturned and collapsed." His friend responded, "This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash, the Israelite. God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands." When Gideon heard the dream and its interpretation, he worshiped God. He returned to the camp of Israel and called out, "Get up! The Lord has given the Midianite camp into your hands." Dividing the three hundred men into three companies, he placed trumpets and empty jars in the hands of all of them, with torches inside.... Gideon and the hundred men with him reached the edge of the camp at the beginning of the middle watch, just after they had changed the guard. They blew their trumpets and broke the jars that were in their hands. The three companies blew the trumpets and smashed the jars. Grasping the torches in their left hands and holding in their right hands the trumpets they were to blow, they shouted, "A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!" While each man held his position around the camp, all the Midianites ran, crying out as they fled. When the three hundred trumpets sounded, the Lord caused the men throughout the camp to turn on each other with their swords.

It is natural to be awed and intimidated by an assembly of 132,000 fighting men in one place with their camels. Verse 12 describes the gathering to be as "thick as locusts" and their camels "could no more be counted than the sand on the seashore." Knowing that Gideon would feel overwhelmed with only 300 men with him, the Lord told Gideon to go down with his servant Purah to assess the enemy's morale. When he heard one soldier telling another about a dream he had of a giant barley loaf come crashing into their camp and their declaration ("God has given the Midianites and the whole camp into his hands"), Gideon worshiped God on the spot and went away encouraged.

Knowing that the Midianites were already on the edge, God gave Gideon the strategy to push them over the edge--by frightening them with loud sound and bright light. At a given signal, they blew their trumpets, broke the jars so that the torches inside became suddenly visible, and shouting "A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!" The noises and the sudden appearance of bright lights around the camp threw the Midianite camp into a panic and they turned their swords on their fellow soldiers. So, the 300 men did not have to fight the enemies--they were killing one another in the camp and the army fled in confusion. Gideon called out the Israelites to pursue the fleeing army and the Midianites were routed.

When the Lord wants us to do the impossible, He does not expect us to do it by ourselves alone. He will get involved in the process:

1) He will encourage us ("If you are afraid to attack, go down to the camp with your servant Purah"): God knows our frame and remembers we are dust. He knows we need encouragement and will not force us to do something for which he does not prepare us. So when we are given a task, let's pursue it with our whole heart, even though we may not know how it will turn out, for the Lord will direct our steps - one step at a time. But we must move so that He can direct. There is no perfect conditions to obey: the right moment is when we hear His voice.

2) He will prepare the way ("This can be nothing other than the sword of Gideon son of Joash"): Gideon saw the Lord had already prepared the way for victory: the Midianites had already conceded defeat even before the battle had started. Again, what is required of us is to act decisively and with boldness, knowing that the Lord has already prepared the way. We don't have to engage in "what if" scenarios because there can only be one outcome when God is in our mission- success!

3) He will give us creative ideas ("he placed trumpets and empty jars in the hands of all of them, with torches inside"): In pursuing God's mission God's way, we have to stay flexible and learn to listen to Him for His strategies. Who would go into battle with only trumpets and torches - unless the idea is the Lord's? So, we have to listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches. We cannot be locked into traditional ways of doing things -- even if those ways have been successful in bygone years. Salvation is always NOW. Some church pastors and elders like to hold up "traditions" as a security blanket, declaring that what has worked in the past will work today. The world has changed and the old ways that worked for previous generations will not necessarily work for a new generation. We need new strategies to reach the new Internet & Facebook generation. Worship and evangelism have to be contextualised to be meaningful.

Father, You are a creative God, and You delight in diversity, not uniformity. Your creation speaks of newness and endless varieties even within the same specie. Help us to be tuned into Your Spirit that we may do things never done before. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Gideon's 300 (Judges 7:1-8)

2012-01-18T06:29:00.003+08:00

Judg 7:1-8 Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The camp of Midian was north of them in the valley near the hill of Moreh. The Lord said to Gideon, "You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, announce now to the people, 'Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.'" So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained. But the Lord said to Gideon, "There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, 'This one shall go with you,' he shall go; but if I say, 'This one shall not go with you,' he shall not go." So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the Lord told him, "Separate those who lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who kneel down to drink." Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink. The Lord said to Gideon, "With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place." So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others. Now the camp of Midian lay below him in the valley.

Gideon's army started off with 32,000 men. The enemy's strength was 135,000 men. Israel was greatly outnumbered by 4:1. But to God, 32,000 men was too many. So, 22,000 fearful men were asked to go home and only 10,000 men remained, which means Israel was now outnumbered 13:1. But even that was too many for God. The final count: 300 of the 10,000 men were chosen. Now Israel is outnumbered 400:1. But why did the Lord want to reduce Gideon's army from 32,000 to 300? His reason: "that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her." This goes against the conventional military wisdom of 3:1 ratio to guarantee success.

What qualities did the 300 have that the others didn't?

(1) Bold and Courageous: Moses instructed Israel in Deut 20:8 to release any soldier who is fearful: "Is any man afraid or fainthearted? Let him go home so that his brothers will not become disheartened too." So, the first 22,000 men disqualified themselves because they were afraid of taking on the vastly superior enemy. If we want to be counted among Gideon's 300, we need to be bold and courageous in our actions, and not just play it safe. But however, there are two ways we can become bold and courageous - one is to trust in own prowess and the other is to trust in God's power. So these two groups need to be separated.

(2) Ready to Respond: Unlike those who went down on their knees to drink, the 300 selected were in a position of alertness - ready to move and respond to God's call. The 9,700 soldiers who went down on their knees disqualified themselves because they were too preoccupied with their own needs and too presumptuous, that the enemy would not appear anytime in that place. Faith requires us to remain alert and sensitive to the Spirit and be ready to move when the Spirit commands us to move. We cannot be so caught up meeting our own needs and desires (even if legitimate) that we are unable to respond quickly when the opportunity presents itself.

(3) Seeking God's Glory: The ultimate reason the 300 were chosen is because they would be the ones who would claim no credit for the victory, for it is possible to think, "We're the elite! That's why we are chosen!" The 300 were so focused on the mission and ready to respond to God that they had only one motivation: that God might be glorified through them. Ministry is never about meeting our needs, but always about meeting God's needs: "Your kingdom come! Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven!"

Father, teach us to be like Gideon's 300, bold and courageous, ready to respond to Your call and seeking only Your glory, not ours. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Gideon - the Reluctant Leader (Judges 6:11-32)

2012-01-17T06:10:00.001+08:00

Judg 6:11-18, 25-32 The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, "The Lord is with you, mighty warrior." "But sir," Gideon replied, "if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, 'Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?' But now the Lord has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian." The Lord turned to him and said, "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?" "But Lord," Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family." The Lord answered, "I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together." Gideon replied, "If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me. Please do not go away until I come back and bring my offering and set it before you." And the Lord said, "I will wait until you return."... That same night the Lord said to him, "Take the second bull from your father's herd, the one seven years old. Tear down your father's altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole beside it. Then build a proper kind of altar to the Lord your God on the top of this height. Using the wood of the Asherah pole that you cut down, offer the second bull as a burnt offering." So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the Lord told him. But because he was afraid of his family and the men of the town, he did it at night rather than in the daytime. In the morning when the men of the town got up, there was Baal's altar, demolished, with the Asherah pole beside it cut down and the second bull sacrificed on the newly built altar! They asked each other, "Who did this?" When they carefully investigated, they were told, "Gideon son of Joash did it."

Gideon is a most unlikely candidate for leadership. We might call him the "reluctant leader". Leadership is a matter of calling, not volunteering--at least in the Kingdom of God. God calls His own leaders and He confirms their authority before the people. So because it is God who calls, the leader serves God alone by doing what He has commanded the leader to do. A spiritual leader's authority does not come from his position or title. In fact, he needs no title and position in any organization because his authority comes from hearing God's voice and carrying it out. His authority is not given to him by man but by God. His authority to do comes from hearing the words: "I will be with you" (v.16).

So, Gideon was an unlikely leader for the following reasons:

(1) He has no faith in God ("if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us?"): When the angel of the Lord addressed Gideon as the "mighty warrior", he probably turned around and looked behind me and then thought incredulously: "Who? Me? Mighty Warrior?" In fact, at that point, Gideon was anything but mighty - he was threshing wheat in the winepress to hide from the Midianites! Furthermore, he was not a man of great faith either. Seven years under the Midianites' oppression has reduced his faith to ashes: "Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, 'Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?' But now the Lord has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian." But the Lord's response was: "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand." Gideon did not have much faith left of him, but whatever faith that was left in him was enough for the Lord - as long as he was willing to do the task he was sent to do. Jesus said the same thing to his disciples in Matthew 17:20, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." We don't need big faith to do God's works; we only need bold action.

(2) He has no credentials ("My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."): Gideon was not from a privileged family with the right connections. In other words, he was not qualified. The Lord's response to that was: "I will be with you." In fact, that is all we need to do God's work. Having the right academic and theological degrees is nice, but those credentials will not get us very far or transform lives and communities unless the Lord is with us. So, the only credential with need to do God's work is a degree from IAU - I Am with U! When we are committed to fulfilling the Great Commission, we have this guaranteed credential from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself: "And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Matthew 28:20).

(3) He has no confidence ("If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me."): Here is a man who was hiding from the Midianites, and even though he had an encounter with the angel of the LORD, he still needed to be sure he was not imagining things or hallucinating, that it was really God who was speaking to him. He needed to be sure that this whole episode was not a dream. So, he needed physical signs to confirm the reality of what he was experiencing: "Please do not go away until I come back and bring my offering and set it before you" (v.18). Surprisingly, the Lord obliged: "I will wait until you return." God is patient with us - despite our little faith in Him, despite our feeling of inadequacy, despite our lack of confidence in ourselves. He is patient with our weaknesses--so long as we are prepared to obey His command. Moses had the same excuses as Gideon. God responded to his excuses at every point, except one - when Moses said, "Send someone else!" That is when the LORD was angry with him. So, God is patient with us in our weaknesses, but not in our disobedience.

God gives us task we can handle. Gideon was not asked to lead Israel into battle immediately but to start with removing the altar to Baals and the Asherah pole beside it. It was an easy task - but Gideon lived up to his reputation as a coward. He did it at night! But the important thing is - he obeyed God's command. While this may seem like a small step of faith, it has great spiritual significance. To destroy the altar of Baals and the Asherah pole is to remove the spiritual bondage Israel had come under because of their worship of these demonic spirits. It is the first step towards ultimate deliverance from the Midianites for it clears the way for the LORD to move on behalf of the nation. So it's "one small step for Gideon, one giant leap for Israel."

Father, we thank You that You are always patient with us in our weaknesses. We only need You to be with us to overcome all our weaknesses for when You are with us, You are our power and might against every forces of evil thrown at us. Thank You that all You want from us is obedience. Amen.

The Price of Disobedience (Judges 6:1-10)

2012-01-16T08:34:00.000+08:00

Judg 6:1-10 The people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, and the Lord gave them into the hand of Midian seven years. And the hand of Midian overpowered Israel, and because of Midian the people of Israel made for themselves the dens that are in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds. For whenever the Israelites planted crops, the Midianites and the Amalekites and the people of the East would come up against them. They would encamp against them and devour the produce of the land, as far as Gaza, and leave no sustenance in Israel and no sheep or ox or donkey. For they would come up with their livestock and their tents; they would come like locusts in number—both they and their camels could not be counted—so that they laid waste the land as they came in. And Israel was brought very low because of Midian. And the people of Israel cried out for help to the Lord. When the people of Israel cried out to the Lord on account of the Midianites, the Lord sent a prophet to the people of Israel. And he said to them, "Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I led you up from Egypt and brought you out of the house of bondage. And I delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of all who oppressed you, and drove them out before you and gave you their land. And I said to you, 'I am the Lord your God; you shall not fear the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell.' But you have not obeyed my voice." (ESV)

When Christians suffer some misfortune, the common Christian responses are: (1) blame the devil ("it's a spiritual attack") or (2) blame God ("it's God's will"); or (3) blame the Government! But seldom do we like to look within ourselves for the reason because we believe that under grace, God will no longer "punish" us since Jesus has taken the punishment for all our sins - past, present and future. So, if something bad happens to us, it can't be because we have a problem.

In Judges 5, we read the same sad refrain of Israel's story: "the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites." Israel suffered for 7 years under the oppression of the Midianites which led the Israelites to ask the question echoed by Gideon (v.13): "If the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us?" The answer was given by the Lord to Israel through his prophet (v.10): "But you have not obeyed my voice." It's a hard pill to swallow to admit that we are the problem!

I remember the time when I was still in University and had just became a Christian for slightly more than a year: I wanted to pursue a relationship which I knew was not in line with God's word. I came to the point of even renouncing my faith in the God of the Bible just so that I could keep this relationship. But this resulted in spiritual and emotional depression. A few days before a major examination, I was trying hard to revise for the examination in the study room of my faculty. But I couldn't concentrate and so I took out a book loaned to me by my spiritual mentor. I came across Gideon's question: "Oh my Lord, if the Lord be with us, why then is all this befallen us?" (KJV). The author of the book continued with the answer which jumped off the page of the book: "ye have not obeyed my voice."

Suddenly, I felt the Holy Spirit rebuking me and pointing his finger at the root of my spiritual and emotional depression: "you have not kept my word!" My immediate response was, "O Lord, I'm sorry!" and immediately I felt the Holy Spirit rushed into my soul and lifted me out of my depression almost instantly. I jumped off my chair and all the other students studying in the same room stared at my strange behaviour (they might be thinking I've gone over the cliff with the exam stress!). But I was overwhelmed with joy and I left the room thanking God for His grace! From that day onward, I made a commitment to God that I would take His word seriously and review everything I have been taught against what the Bible says.

So, God will still discipline us when we choose to disobey his voice, just as He disciplined Israel when they chose to disobey his command. The writer to the Hebrews gives us the clearest teaching on why Christians who are under grace still suffer from adversities:

Hebrews12:7-11"Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." (NIV)

Father, when your hand of discipline works against us, help us not to blame the devil, the government or You. Instead, help us accept Your discipline and repent from our sin. Amen.

Celebrating God & His People (Judges 5)

2012-01-14T06:23:00.000+08:00

Judg 5:1-5 On that day Deborah and Barak son of Abinoam sang this song:
"When the princes in Israel take the lead, when the people willingly offer themselves — praise the Lord!
Hear this, you kings! Listen, you rulers! I will sing to the Lord, I will sing;
I will make music to the Lord, the God of Israel.
O Lord, when you went out from Seir,when you marched from the land of Edom,
the earth shook, the heavens poured, the clouds poured down water.
The mountains quaked before the Lord, the One of Sinai, before the Lord, the God of Israel...
So may all your enemies perish, O Lord!
But may they who love you be like the sun when it rises in its strength."

Deborah and Barak wrote a song to praise the Lord by recounting what He has done for Israel in routing the Canaanites. According to OT scholars, the Song of Deborah is one of the most ancient songs of Israel. It is very likely composed by Deborah and sung by her. Songs are creative medium to refresh the mind and to renew the spirit of the people. When the Lord has done great things on our behalf, we ought to remember them by turning them into songs of praise.

What are some characteristics of Deborah's song of praise?

(1) Celebrate God's People ("When the princes in Israel take the lead, when the people willingly offer themselves--praise the Lord!"): St Augustine has famously said: "Without God, we cannot, but without us, he will not." We ought to celebrate the people of God who willingly offer themselves - both leaders and followers. We are not being egoistic when we tell one another, "Great job!" because in celebrating God's people, we also celebrate God. It's the same too in the natural realm: when we compliment some children for their exploits, their parents who are listening in will be beaming with pride! Let's thank God for His church and the exploits of His leaders and their followers. Let's be liberal in praise for one another, as much as we praise God. It's ironic if we think we can genuinely worship God while criticising His leaders and their followers. Jesus said, "Whatever you did to the least of my brothers, you did it to me" (Mt 25:40).

(2) Celebrate God's Pleasure ("I will sing to the Lord, I will sing; I will make music to the Lord, the God of Israel"): C.S. Lewis wrote in his book on psalms that celebrating God is like enjoying a beautiful sunset - your pleasure is completed when you tell it aloud to someone next to you: "Wow, what a beautiful sunset!" In the same way, when we celebrate the Lord, who is much more majestic in His glory, we are completing our enjoyment of Him. While we sing to boast about the Lord to others ("Hear this, you kings! Listen, you rulers!"), a song of praise is directed primarily "to the Lord" - it's for His pleasure. Our song and music give the Lord pleasure.

(3) Celebrate God's Presence ("The mountains quaked before the Lord, the One of Sinai, before the Lord, the God of Israel"): God's presence is awesome - when the Lord moves, the earth shakes, the heavens pour and the mountains quake! Figuratively speaking, we know that whenever God moves in our midst, demons will flee, God's Spirit will be poured out and all chains will be broken. God's power is found in His presence. Let's celebrate His presence, not just His power.

(4) Celebrate God's Promises ("But may they who love you be like the sun when it rises in its strength"): What a glorious promise to those who love God - they will be like the sun rising in increasing strength. There is no stagnancy when we love God - we will get better and stronger everyday. May God cause us to shine ever more brightly in darkness. When her sister became very ill in the Nazi concentration camp, Corrie Ten Boom was angry about the terrible conditions of the camp where they were interned. Corrie's sister remarked: "God's light shines brightest in darkness."

Lord, may we be like the sun, ever increasing in its strength, so that we can bring Your light to dark places even as we celebrate Your love and Your goodness demonstrated at the Cross. May we bring Your presence, pleasure and promises to places that need them. Amen

Gift, not Gender, Qualifies a Leader (Judges 4)

2012-01-13T10:18:00.000+08:00

Judges 4:4-10 Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel at that time. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim, and the people of Israel came up to her for judgment. She sent and summoned Barak the son of Abinoam from Kedesh-naphtali and said to him, "Has not the Lord, the God of Israel, commanded you, 'Go, gather your men at Mount Tabor, taking 10,000 from the people of Naphtali and the people of Zebulun. And I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin's army, to meet you by the river Kishon with his chariots and his troops, and I will give him into your hand'?" Barak said to her, "If you will go with me, I will go, but if you will not go with me, I will not go." And she said, "I will surely go with you. Nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman." Then Deborah arose and went with Barak to Kedesh. And Barak called out Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh. And 10,000 men went up at his heels, and Deborah went up with him. ESV

Barak could have been on the honour roll of Israel's judges, but he didn't quite make it because he was not willing to obey the Lord's command unconditionally: "If you will go with me, I will go, but if you will not go with me, I will not go." He ended up playing second fiddle to Deborah who was the only woman on the honour roll of Israel's judges. Though a prophetess whose ministry was primarily to reveal the mind and plan of God, she nevertheless ended up having to go to battle with Barak because he would not do it alone. Though Barak did lead Israel's army into battle subsequently and routed the Canaanite mechanized army with 900 horse-drawn chariots, the honour of killing the Canaanite commander Sisera did not go to him but to a woman named Jael, a Kenite: "But Jael the wife of Heber took a tent peg, and took a hammer in her hand. Then she went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple until it went down into the ground while he was lying fast asleep from weariness. So he died" (v.21). So the honour of this deliverance of Israel went to two women - Deborah and Jael.

The Bible does not discriminate against woman leadership, though most women prefer the man to take the lead, as in this story. Deborah wanted Barak to take the lead, but he balked and so history remembers Deborah but not Barak.

What makes Deborah different from Barak?

(1) Giftedness ("a prophetess"): Prophets are Spirit-gifted persons who are spiritually atuned to God's voice. They speak only what they hear from God. Deborah heard God telling her to command Barak to lead Israel into battle against the Canaanites. A prophet is one of the five leadership gifts of the church as listed in Ephesians 4:11, "It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers." It was her spiritual gift that sets her apart as a leader, not her gender. Spiritual gifts are the foundation for all ministries in the Body of Christ.

(2) Leadership ("people of Israel came up to her for judgment"): She exercised her leadership according to the prophetic gift she had to make judgment for the people who came to her. Though not a military commander, she nevertheless was recognized as Israel's judge, despite the fact that she was already married. So, it's not true that if a woman is married that she must alway play second-fiddle to her husband. A woman can be a leader in her own right, not just in the home but also in the community.

(3) Submission ("I will surely go with you"): Despite her leadership position in Israel, she willingly submitted herself to Barak's leadership in the battle. This submission is what makes a woman feminine. A woman who usurps a man's authority is an ugly sight. Deborah, despite her gift and leadership, submitted to Barak and went with him as he requested.

(4) God-centred ("the Lord has given Sisera into your hand"): Deborah was conscious that though God may allow us to share His glory, nevertheless it is Him who grants us victory and success in our endeavour. When we succeed, we enjoy the same glory that belongs to God and so Jael received her share of glory in the defeat of the Canaanites when she killed Sisera with a tent-peg.

Lord, may You raise up more women as leaders in Your church and in places where women are treated as second-class citizens, for You have shown in Deborah that a person's ministry is not defined by her gender but by her gift. Amen.

A Man of Destiny (Judges 3:12-30)

2012-01-12T06:49:00.001+08:00

Judg 3:12-15, 20-30 Once again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and because they did this evil the Lord gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel. Getting the Ammonites and Amalekites to join him, Eglon came and attacked Israel, and they took possession of the City of Palms. The Israelites were subject to Eglon king of Moab for eighteen years. Again the Israelites cried out to the Lord, and he gave them a deliverer — Ehud, a left-handed man, the son of Gera the Benjamite. The Israelites sent him with tribute to Eglon king of Moab... Ehud then approached him while he was sitting alone in the upper room of his summer palace and said, "I have a message from God for you." As the king rose from his seat, Ehud reached with his left hand, drew the sword from his right thigh and plunged it into the king's belly. Even the handle sank in after the blade, which came out his back. Ehud did not pull the sword out, and the fat closed in over it. Then Ehud went out to the porch; he shut the doors of the upper room behind him and locked them...While they waited, Ehud got away. He passed by the idols and escaped to Seirah. When he arrived there, he blew a trumpet in the hill country of Ephraim, and the Israelites went down with him from the hills, with him leading them. "Follow me," he ordered, "for the Lord has given Moab, your enemy, into your hands." So they followed him down and, taking possession of the fords of the Jordan that led to Moab, they allowed no one to cross over. At that time they struck down about ten thousand Moabites, all vigorous and strong; not a man escaped. That day Moab was made subject to Israel, and the land had peace for eighty years.

Ehud's strategy for defeating the oppressors (the Moabites) was to go for Eglon king of Moab, a fat man. After presenting the tribute to Eglon, he got Eglon to dismiss his guards claiming he had a secret message to the king from God. When Eglon was alone, Ehud went towards him and plunged an 18-inch sword (hidden under his clothing on his right thigh) into the king's belly and killed the king of Moab. He then locked the doors and escaped to Seirah. From there he blew the trumpet and the Israelites followed him to defeat Moab, killing 10,000 Moabite able-bodied men at the fords of Jordan that led to Moab. And Israel had rest for eighty years.

God used a left-handed man to defeat Moab by going for the king of Moab. What kind of leader was Ehud that God could use as Israel's deliverer-judge?

(1) A Man of Strategy ("a double-edged sword...strapped to his right thigh"): When he felt God's call in his life to deliver Israel out of the hand of Moab, he conceived of a plan to kill Eglon, the king and leader of Moab. It was Eglon who rallied the Ammonites and Amalekites to attack Israel. Ehud's strategy was to strike at the top man to spread disarray in the enemies' ranks. It was pre-meditated and he volunteered to be the person to present the tribute to Eglon. His choice of a double-edged sword about one and a half foot long was to ensure that it would penetrate through Eglon's fat belly to strike his vital organs to kill him. In fact, he plunged the blade so deep into the king's belly that it went out through the other side, with the handle embedded inside his belly fat.

(2) A Man of Courage ("I have a secret message for you, O king"): Ehud's plan requires courage to come right into the palace, the power centre of Moab and right into Eglon's presence to carry out his plan. If Eglon refused to send the guards away, his plan would fail or he would be killed after plunging the sword into the king's belly. But Ehud told the king, "I have a secret message for you". The king fell for the ruse and Ehud was able to carry out his plan and escaped through the porch, after locking the doors of the upper room.

(3) A Man of Action ("Follow me, for the Lord has given Moab, your enemy, into your hands"): He knew Israel could only be delivered from the Moabite oppression if the tribes unite together against the Moabites. Having just killed the king of Moab, he was able to rally Israel together to go into battle and subsequently defeated the Moabites, killing 10,000 able-bodied men at the fords of Jordan.

It took only one man (Ehud) to change the course of history. But Ehud is no ordinary character - he was a man with a vision of how Moab could be defeated. However, a vision without courage to carry it out will not become a reality. But at the end of the day, it is decisive actions that will translate vision into reality.

Israel's destiny was changed by the courageous action of one man with a vision. We can be God's change-agents too if we ask God for a bold plan and the courage to carry it out. We can all be persons of destiny for God.

Father, You desire Your children to be persons of destiny, to be change-agents in our churches, communities and workplaces. May Your Spirit empower us with Your vision and the courage and power to translate Your vision into reality. Amen.

Spiritual Oppression & Deliverance (Judges 3:1-11)

2012-01-11T09:31:00.001+08:00

Judges 3:1-11 Now these are the nations that the Lord left, to test Israel by them, that is, all in Israel who had not experienced all the wars in Canaan. It was only in order that the generations of the people of Israel might know war, to teach war to those who had not known it before... They were for the testing of Israel, to know whether Israel would obey the commandments of the Lord, which he commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses. So the people of Israel lived among the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And their daughters they took to themselves for wives, and their own daughters they gave to their sons, and they served their gods. And the people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. They forgot the Lord their God and served the Baals and the Asheroth. Therefore the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he sold them into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia. And the people of Israel served Cushan-rishathaim eight years. But when the people of Israel cried out to the Lord, the Lord raised up a deliverer for the people of Israel, who saved them, Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. The Spirit of the Lord was upon him, and he judged Israel. He went out to war, and the Lord gave Cushan-rishathaim king of Mesopotamia into his hand. And his hand prevailed over Cushan-rishathaim. So the land had rest forty years. Then Othniel the son of Kenaz died. ESV

Judges chapter 3 begins with the mention of three of Israel's fifteen judges: Othniel who delivered Israel from the Mesopotamians, Ehud who delivered Israel from the Moabites and Shamgar who delivered Israel from the Philistines. Today we focus on Othniel, the younger brother of Caleb.

Israel violated the Lord's command in Deuteronomy 7:1-5 by giving their sons and daughters in marriage to the non-Israelite nations living among them: "When the Lord your God brings you into the land you are entering to possess and drives out before you many nations... Do not intermarry with them. Do not give your daughters to their sons or take their daughters for your sons, for they will turn your sons away from following me to serve other gods, and the Lord's anger will burn against you and will quickly destroy you." Moses' warning came to pass as the Israelites soon served the Baals and the Asheroth, male and female fertility gods of the Canaanites, thereby corrupting themselves spiritually and morally with the evil practices of ritual sexual orgies and child sacrifices. The Baals are gods of nature and Asheroths are gods of love and sex. Consequently, they came under the oppression of Cushan-Rishathaim for eight years. But when they cried out to the Lord, He sent Othniel to deliver them out of the Mesopotamian oppression and Israel had rest for 40 years.

Three important lessons for us to reflect on:

(1) Training in spiritual warfare ("to teach war to those who had not known it before"): God allows evil to remain among us so that we can learn how to fight them and not yield to them. As long as we remain on this earth, there will always be evil and suffering around us and we have to learn to exercise faith in God to become victors, not victims, of evil. The Lord's Prayer, "Lead us not into tempation but deliver us from evil," suggests that evil will always be with us but prayer will empower us to be overcomers.

(2) Spirit of Baals & Asheroth/Ashtoreth ("served the Baals and the Asheroth"): Baals is the god of nature and Ashtoreth is the goddess of love and sex. While we may no longer bow down to such physical idols, many, including Christians, are still bowing down to the spirit of Baals (belief in the power of nature - naturalism & evolutionism) and Ashtoreth (obsessed with love and sex - teen sexual promiscuity is a widespread concern in Singapore). Such beliefs and practices undermine our faith and obedience to Lord as revealed in Scripture. We have in some places confused the Baals with Yahweh because we want God to be like Baals - able to bring material blessings and comfort to our lives. While there is no doubt that the Lord/Yahweh we worship will bless us with health and wealth, but He is more concerned about our character than our creature comforts and convenience. To the man who said, "I will follow you wherever you go," did not Jesus reply: "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head"? (Luke 9:58).

(3) Holy Spirit power ("the Spirit of the Lord was upon him"): What makes Othniel an instrument of deliverance is the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Oppression is brought on by the spirit of Baalism - manipulating the gods to satisfy our material desires. Sadly, the over-emphasis on material prosperity and blessings by some preachers can cause immature Christians to go down the road of self-serving religion -- of using God rather than loving Him, which is manifested by a strong desire to obey Jesus' commandments: "If you love me, you will keep my commandments" (John 14:15). However, if we walk by the Spirit it would manifest itself in our becoming like Christ in our character - the fruit of the Spirit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control. The motive for this character-formation is love of God and love for God: "And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us" (Romans 5:5).

In the same way, we can come under spiritual oppression if we compromise with the spirit of Baals and Asthoreth (focusing on getting blessed). And similarly, we can only be set free from spiritual oppression if we walk by the power of God's love (focusing on becoming a blessing).

Father, set us free from the self-focused life of spiritual oppression to walk in the power of the Spirit-anointed life marked by freedom from spiritual, mental and emotional oppression. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Thorns in Your Flesh (Judges 2:8-23)

2012-01-10T06:51:00.003+08:00

After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord and served the Baals. They forsook the Lord, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They provoked the Lord to anger because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. In his anger against Israel the Lord handed them over to raiders who plundered them. He sold them to their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist. Whenever Israel went out to fight, the hand of the Lord was against them to defeat them, just as he had sworn to them. They were in great distress. Then the Lord raised up judges, who saved them out of the hands of these raiders...But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their fathers, following other gods and serving and worshiping them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways. Therefore the Lord was very angry with Israel and said, "Because this nation has violated the covenant that I laid down for their forefathers and has not listened to me, I will no longer drive out before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. I will use them to test Israel and see whether they will keep the way of the Lord and walk in it as their forefathers did." The Lord had allowed those nations to remain; he did not drive them out at once by giving them into the hands of Joshua. NIV

Joshua's generation served the Lord throughout his lifetime. But immediately after he died, the next generation forsook the Lord to serve the Baals and the Ashtoreths because they "knew neither the LORD (Yahweh) nor what he has done for Israel." In turning from Yahweh to the Baals and the Ashtoreths, Israel "prostituted" themselves to serve "other gods and worshiped them." They rejected the Lord's commands and corrupted themselves spiritually and morally as the worship of the Canaanite gods would involve temple prostitution and sexual immorality. God's response was to turn them over to their enemies who defeated them in battle and plundered the land. But whenever Israel cried out to the Lord, He had compassion on them and send judges to deliver them out of the hands of the enemies. Israel would serve the Lord as long as the judge lived. And then when the judge died, Israel backslided again. And so the cycle repeated itself for 400 years. So the Lord declared that he would not drive out the enemies in order to use them as "thorns in your sides" (Judges 2:3, ESV) to see if they would keep the way of Yahweh.

Lessons from this passage:

(1) Disciple the next generation ("another generation grew up"): The generation of Joshua obeyed the Lord. But their children forsook the Lord.We should take the call to "disciple the nations" to include the next generation. We cannot take it for granted that just growing up in a Christian family or going to church every Sunday the next generation will automatically adopt the faith of their parents. Parents have a duty to disciple their children and not leave that task to the Sunday School teachers. What they observe at home everyday has more impact on their faith than what they hear in church on Sunday. It's not their parent's words they follow but their lifestyle.

(2) Thorns in our sides ("I will use them to test Israel"): We all have encountered "thorns in your sides" (though we may prefer to call them a "pain in our neck"). It could be someone in our family or in the office. Or we ourselves (God forbid) could be thorns in someone else's flesh! But "thorns in our sides" are placed there by the Lord to test and humble us, to see if we would be faithful to the covenant. We would have preferred a thorn-free life, but unfortunately even Paul himself has his own "thorn in the flesh" experience described in 2 Corinthians 12:7, "To keep me from becoming conceited because of these surpassingly great revelations, there was given me a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me." Paul calls his thorn a "messenger (lit. angel) of Satan." Some scholars believe this refers to some physical infirmity, but the Greek word angelos suggests the thorn is personal, not physical. When we come across difficult people who constantly harass us, don't immediately pray, "Get thee behind me Satan!" because it may be God you're trying to cast out, but rather thank God for using that person to keep our ego deflated when it has become over-inflated by our success.

(3) No trial lasts forever ("the Lord raised up judges"): When the lesson is learnt, the deliverance will come--God will send his deliverance in time. While we are groaning under the oppression of difficult bosses or challenging colleagues, let's take time to reflect on (not reject) what God is saying to us through these difficult experiences. God does not speak only through Scriptures but also through circumstances. We need to discern God's revelation not just in His Word, but also in His works. Once the lesson is learnt, the trial will be over. In 2 Corinthians 10:13, Paul asserts: "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it."

Very often, when we are backsliding (whether consciously or unconsciously), God's method of restoration is often through painful circumstances and people. We can backslide even when we are at the peak of spiritual revelations -- like Paul, we may become conceited and so the thorns have to be in place to deflate our ego. It's only when we feel weak that we are strong. For it is when we think we have it all made out that we are in greatest danger of backsliding: "That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Cor 12:10).

Father, much as we dislike unpleasant experiences, yet we acknowledge that You are sovereign and nothing happens but is allowed by Your loving hand. When we face our challenging circumstances, may Your grace be sufficient for us and Your power be made perfect in our weaknesses. Amen.

Question for Your Comments: How do we know if a particular difficult situation is from God or Satan? Or does it really matter?

Dealing with Enemies Within (Judges 1:27-2:5)

2012-01-09T07:20:00.000+08:00

Judg 1:27-2:5 But Manasseh did not drive out the people of Beth Shan or Taanach or Dor or Ibleam or Megiddo and their surrounding settlements, for the Canaanites were determined to live in that land. When Israel became strong, they pressed the Canaanites into forced labor but never drove them out completely. Nor did Ephraim drive out the Canaanites living in Gezer, but the Canaanites continued to live there among them. Neither did Zebulun drive out the Canaanites living in Kitron or Nahalol, who remained among them; but they did subject them to forced labor. Nor did Asher drive out those living in Acco or Sidon or Ahlab or Aczib or Helbah or Aphek or Rehob, and because of this the people of Asher lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land. Neither did Naphtali drive out those living in Beth Shemesh or Beth Anath; but the Naphtalites too lived among the Canaanite inhabitants of the land, and those living in Beth Shemesh and Beth Anath became forced laborers for them. The Amorites confined the Danites to the hill country, not allowing them to come down into the plain. And the Amorites were determined also to hold out in Mount Heres, Aijalon and Shaalbim, but when the power of the house of Joseph increased, they too were pressed into forced labor. The boundary of the Amorites was from Scorpion Pass to Sela and beyond.
The angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bokim and said, "I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land that I swore to give to your forefathers. I said, 'I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars.' Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this? Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be [thorns] in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you." When the angel of the Lord had spoken these things to all the Israelites, the people wept aloud, 5 and they called that place Bokim. There they offered sacrifices to the Lord.

The book of Judges (following Joshua) describes the period of Israel's history between Joshua and the appointment of the first king of Israel, Saul. This period lasted about 400 years. It was a time in Israel's history where there was no central king ruling the twelve tribes; instead Israel were ruled by tribal elders. However, on many occasions, when Israel was threatened by an external enemies, God raised up "judges" (not judicial judges like we have today but ad-hoc Spirit-anointed military leaders) to rally Israel against the enemies that threatened them. Over the course of 400 years, the biblical record mentions 15 judges, of whom the better known are Deborah, Gideon, Samson and Samuel. This was also a period of continual backsliding of Israel into Baalism and defeat by the enemies and repentance and restoration as judges were raised to defeat the enemies. There was at least 10 cycles of such spiritual reclension and restoration over 400 years.

Today's text shows us the source of this spiritual yo-yo experience of Israel - it all starts when they did not deal decisively with the enemies within their borders, but instead pressed them into service for their own benefits - mainly as forced labourers. But these enemies within continued their practice of Baal worship which became a snare to Israel who soon adopted these practices. So the Angel of the Lord at Bokim warned them: "I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land that I swore to give to your forefathers. I said, 'I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars.' Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this? Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be [thorns] in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you." (Judges 2:1-3). So, by not dealing decisively with the enemies within, Israel's history over the next 400 years was marked by spiritual backslidings, divine chastenings and subsequent restoration by judges.

What lessons can we draw from Israel's history? The parallel to Israel's "enemies within" is the works of the sinful flesh that dwells within every believer. Israel's problem was that they were unable and also unwilling to deal with the enemies within. Instead, they accommodated them and used them to further their self-interests. Paul gives us a list of these "enemies within" in Galatians 5:19-21, "Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God" (ESV).

Let's unpack each of these items under 3 categories: physical, spiritual and social enemies:

1. Physical Enemies:

sexual immorality: any kind of sexual activity outside of the married life
impurity: any activity that compromises purity of thoughts and desires e.g. internet pornography, X-rated movies, music, etc.
sensuality: any activity that indulges the fleshy appetites e.g. food, drink and sex
drunkenness & orgies: wild partying

2. Spiritual Enemies:

idolatry: any activity that involves the worship of other deities
socery: any activity that tries to tap the power of darkness e.g. Feng Shui, black magic, oujia board, etc.

3. Social Enemies:

enmity: hatred, resentment, unforgiveness, etc.
strife: quarrels, arguments, subversion, etc.
jealousy: envy and competition
fits of anger: uncontrolled anger, rages, etc.
rivalries: factions, racism, sibling rivalries, department rivalries, etc.
dissessions & divisions: politicking, sabotaging, etc.

Some of us may attempt to use these enemies to further our career prospects or business opportunities. Such attempt to accommodate these "enemies within" will result in spiritual backsliding. Let's not compromise with these enemies within but deal with them decisively by confessing them as sins and renouncing them completely.

Lord, we ask You to forgive us for the above compromises with the flesh within us. We reject these practices here and now in Jesus' name. We also renounce all evil spirits and spiritual bondages associated with these activities in Jesus' name. Amen.

Biblical Wisdom for Success in Life (Proverbs 8:12-21)

2012-01-08T07:36:00.001+08:00

Prov 8:12-21 "I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence;I possess knowledge and discretion. To fear the Lord is to hate evil;I hate pride and arrogance,evil behavior and perverse speech. Counsel and sound judgment are mine;I have understanding and power. By me kings reign and rulers make laws that are just; by me princes govern, and all nobles who rule on earth. I love those who love me,and those who seek me find me. With me are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity. My fruit is better than fine gold; what I yield surpasses choice silver. I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice, bestowing wealth on those who love me and making their treasuries full."

Here we have a good understanding of what bibiblcal wisdom is. It is associated with three importance words: prudence, knowledge and discretion (v.12).

(1) Prudence: Wisdom is associated with prudence, the habit of thoughtful and thorough consideration before one acts. It is the opposite of making rash and ill-conceived decisions.
(1) Knowledge: Wisdom is not built on ignorance. The more we learn (from our own experience and others - through listening and reading Scriptures and the books written by the wise), the more wisdom we possess. So, it has to do with knowledge acquisition.
(2) Discretion: Wisdom is ultimately also about discretion - the ability to make good and right choices. Careful planning and consideration with the right knowledge form the foundation for making good choices.

So, how do we know if we have biblical wisdom? The following are characteristics associated with biblical wisdom:

(1) "Fear of the Lord" (v.13): The fear of the Lord is the "beginning of wisdom" (Prov. 9:10). When we have the fear of the Lord, we have a protection from making choices that leads to moral and spiritual corruption. Those who do not have the fear of the Lord ultimately lose their moral and spiritual compass. Without the fear of the Lord, we tend to make decisions on the basis of convenience and expediency rather than spiritual values and moral convictions because it is the belief in a holy and loving God that keeps us from wrong choices.

To "fear the Lord is to hate evil." Good is whatever is consistent with God's own loving and holy character and evil is whatever is contrary to His character. Morality is not some kind of objective reality in this Universe standing apart from everything else but is a personal and relational principle defined by who God is in His essential divine nature.

(2) "Counsel and sound judgement" (v.14a): Possessing biblical wisdom gives us the ability to give good counsel and make sound decisions. When we have biblical wisdom that has its foundation in the fear of the Lord, we will be able to give sound advice and make the right judgments about situations.

(3) "Understanding and power" (v.14b): Understanding is insights and power is the strength to persevere in the choices we have made. The wise person does not waver after making a decision because it is based on spiritual and moral insights informed by right moral foundation and knowledge.

What are the results of possessing biblical wisdom?

(1) "By me kings reign": We are able to lead others. When we lose our spiritual and moral foundation, we lose the authority and mandate to rule.
(2) "Rulers make laws that are just": Societal transformation is possible through righteous and just laws. Every government needs leadership that has biblical wisdom. We see societies crumpling in many places where the political leadership have abandoned biblical convictions in their legal system.
(3) "Riches and honor": When our lives are built on biblical wisdom, we can be assured of success in this life - riches, honor, wealth and prosperity.

Father, You have said that if we lack wisdom we can ask You for it. Right now, we ask You for wisdom from above so that we can make right decisions and lead others in the path of success as Your Word defines it. In Jesus' name, Amen.

De-spiritualizing Isaiah 61:1-3

2012-01-07T20:48:00.001+08:00

Isa 61:1-3 The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion — to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.

After my trip with the i61 team last week to visit the Genesis Home at Chiang Dao (Northern Thailand) for orphans of Kachin refugees from Burma, my understanding of Isaiah 61:1-3 has taken a less spiritual and more holistic interpretation. We are familiar with this passage because Jesus quoted it at his inaugural sermon at Nazareth in a synagogue. Jesus applied this prophetic passage to himself, declaring himself as the one whom the Spirit of the Lord has anointed (see Luke 4:18). For years, I have always interpreted this text spiritually in the context of Jesus' ministry: the "poor" are those who have not heard the Gospel (Good News). The "captives" and "prisoners" are those who are under demonic oppression. While this is not wrong in its context because Jesus did preach the Gospel to the spiritually poor ("Blessed are the poor in spirit", he says in Matthew 5:5), and he did set captives of demonic oppression free and forgive those who were held prisoners of their own sins, but in the context of Isaiah's days, it has a more social and holistic implications.

When we visited the orphans who have nothing (no families, no parents, and no proper food & shelter to live in), our perception of "poor" changes from spiritual to material. They are already believers in Jesus Christ, but they needed to experience the hope and joy of the Gospel (Good News) in this life, not the next life. Eternal life cannot be just a "pie in the sky when you die"--the Father's abundant love must be experienced here and now. When we deliver to them the blessings of the Father in terms of our presence with them and our material gifts, it was really Good News to them. They experienced the abundant life that Jesus promised through our simple gifts and contributions to their school lunch, by showering them with love and just being parents to them who have no parents.

While most of us take family, home, education, shelter and food for granted in Singapore, these children consider these basic necessities of living as privileges, not rights. They are the "brokenhearted" because they have lost parents, homes and families; they are not captives and prisoners of demons (for they have been set free in Christ) but they are captives and prisoners of systemic poverty. The only way they can be set free of this systemic captivity is through Good News bearers who bring education and material provisions to help them break free and become people who can walk in dignity and freedom.

And the best part is we already have the means to do it. It costs only $9 (SGD) to pay for a student's school lunch for one whole month! [Most of us spent $9 in one lunch!] Five of the teenagers in the Genesis Home went without lunch because they could not afford the $9. Our team paid for the 5 students so that they could have lunch for up to 7 months.

Proverbs 3:27-28 say, "Do not withhold good from those who deserve it,

when it is in your power to act. Do not say to your neighbor, 'Come back later; I'll give it tomorrow' — when you now have it with you."

Jesus said in Matthew 25:37-40 that on Judgement Day, "the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?' 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.'"

Father, may You open our eyes to see You among the poor brothers & sisters in desperate needs. Give us a heart of compassion and selfless action. Amen

It's time to move on...

2012-01-04T12:51:00.001+08:00

Deut 1:6-8 The Lord our God said to us at Horeb, "You have stayed long enough at this mountain. Break camp and advance into the hill country of the Amorites; go to all the neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the mountains, in the western foothills, in the Negev and along the coast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the Euphrates. See, I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land that the Lord swore he would give to your fathers — to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob — and to their descendants after them."

I started running Alpha in 1995 as vicar/priest of Anglican parish. Since then, I think I have sat in on more than 70+ Alpha Courses--in local churches, prisons, and workplaces. I joined Alpha Singapore as a part-time staff in 2002, while I was still pastoring a small church fellowship. In 2003, I decided to join Alpha Singapore as their fulltime "ministry" staff - to conduct Alpha training workshops. Since that time, I have done Alpha training workshops in Malaysia (East & West), Brunei, Indonesia (from Sumatra on the West to Sulawesi on the East), Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, including trainers' training in India & China. In these ten years, I've had opportunities to interact with countless ordinary church members, marketplace leaders, church deacons and elders, denominational heads, bishops and archbishops.

In that time, I've seen Alpha brought many new believers into God's Kingdom. But I realize that Alpha is just one aspect of a local church life -- the outreach arm. Once the Alpha guests become graduates, the issue of integration brings up various issues that many churches are not prepared to address: changes in church systems and cultures. It's easy to train the Alpha teams the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to become seeker-friendly to run Alpha successfully. But it's not so easy to change the church to become seeker-friendly because it involves changes in leadership structures, ministry systems and church culture.

Many churches are still locked in the members-only leadership structures, systems and culture. It's a classic case of old wineskin trying to hold the new wine. In many instances, the old wineskin triumphs over the new wine - resulting in spillage and lost of new Alpha converts.

Having seen this, I believe that there is a need for a more holistic approach to evangelism - namely, becoming a missional church. A missional church is not one with mission & evangelism programs. Rather, it's a church with an outwardly-focused mindset that sees its primary ministry as towards the non-members (lost), not the membership. The truth is, typically, up to 80% of church funds are spent inwardly for ministries to church members. The mindset of many church leadership is still very much inwardly focused and the structures and systems, including the culture, reinforce this inward focus.

So, I hope that by going half-time with Alpha with effect from this month, I can free myself up to focus on helping churches become missional, i.e. doing more things outside the walls of the church. Jesus came to seek and save the lost, and the lost are usually not found inside the walls of the church. The church is not a holding room for people waiting for rapture, but a training camp to send out teams into the lost world to demonstrate the Good News of the Kingdom by blessing them and sharing the Father's love with them in real ways through holistic programs. While I've tried to share the missional church concept under the Alpha banner, unfortunately, these attitudes and skills are often confined to the Alpha teams and Alpha courses but have not infiltrated the congregation at large.

Honestly, I haven't got a clue as to how the Lord will lead me from Alpha to missional training. I'm taking one step at a time. But going half-time also means half-pay. So, I'm now concentrating on generating the additional incomes to support this ministry. Currently, I'm doing a bit of part-time lecturing in a private business school (HRM, marketing & organizational behaviour). However, I want to move into life coaching-training work/ministry to develop every individual's potential to its fullest. The tool I'm using is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI), a personality type inventory, for which I have been certified as a trainer. I hope to use the MBTI tool as the bridge to reach out to Christians & non-Christians alike through individual coaching and group workshops in the churches, schools & marketplace. The MBTI tool coaching can be extended to vocational coaching, pre-marital preparation, marriage enrichment, parenting skills, communication strategies (for teachers, speakers & preachers), leadership styles and team-building. [If you know of anyone who may benefit from such one-on-one coaching, please contact me at 96707359 or email me at cmthen@gmail.com. The first session on MBTI profiling is free. It can be done face-to-face or online through Skype.].

Happy New Year and may you all have a great year ahead of you!

Chee Min
4 Jan 2012

Leadership is Influence (Joshua 23-24)

2011-12-26T07:47:00.001+08:00

Josh 24:14-18, 29-32 "Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." Then the people answered, "Far be it from us to forsake the Lord to serve other gods! It was the Lord our God himself who brought us and our fathers up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we traveled. And the Lord drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the Lord, because he is our God"... After these things, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of a hundred and ten. And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath Serah in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash. Israel served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced everything the Lord had done for Israel.

Joshua died at a ripe old age of 110 years. But before he died, he summoned all the leadership of Israel (elders, heads, judges and officers) and urged them to be faithful in serving the Lord, making no compromises with other gods - whether of the past ("gods of your forefathers") or of the present ("gods of the Amorites"). Joshua set a personal example by declaring publicly before the leaders of Israel: "But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord." And the leaders echoed his commitment: "We too will serve the Lord, because he is our God." And God's word tells us that "Israel served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and the elders who outlived him."

Here we have an important maxim for of leadership: "Like leaders, like people." John Maxwell has said that "leadership is influence"--spiritual and moral influence. The greatest test of leadership is when people imitate our attitudes and commitments. When a leader is well respected, his attitudes and commitments are adopted by the followers.

In this passage, we observe the three dimensions of Joshua's leadership influence:

(1) Leadership within the Family ("But as for me and my household"): Joshua's leadership starts in his household - his family. As Paul has declared in 1 Timothy 3:5, "for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God's church?" The first test of leadership is found in the home: what kind of spiritual and moral influence does the leader exercise over his or her children? Do they respect his or her attitudes and commitments enough to adopt them?

(2) Leadership as a Family ("But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord"): It is only when leadership is exercised as a family ("we will serve the Lord") that the influence is spilled over into the next tier of leadership. When our co-leaders observe our family unit serving the Lord together, the influence will then overflow into the community. A leader whose family is in disarray will have limited influence over his senior leadership team. He will lose his moral authority to speak, no matter how charismatic he may be in other aspects of his leadership skills. There has been in recent years an erosion of moral leadership as people focuses on just the leadership charisma rather than character. A leader's moral conduct is considered his private affair and will not have an implication for the "leadership" he exercises in the corporation or institution. But there can be no distinction between personal and public moral authority: if our personal morality is in shambles, we cannot expect to exercise public moral authority, which is the only authority that has the power to be a postive influence on others. If our private morality is questionable, we may actually influence our people negatively instead of positively, leading into moral and spiritual corruption in society.

(3) Leadership among Leaders ("We too will serve the Lord, because he is our God"): Joshua' personal commitment to the Lord was adopted by the leadership of Israel because the Lord was also "our God". They adopted the God of Joshua because they had a shared experience with Joshua in witnessing God's faithful interventions on behalf of Israel. To lead our leaders, we have to bring them to where we want them to be so that they can experience what we experience. So because Joshua was able to influence the leadership of Israel, the people followed their elders as Scripture records that the people "served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders." We can only exercise leadership over our leaders by letting them observe how we respond to real-life crises and situations. We cannot lead from our private study and library, away from the actions. The general must lead the charge into battles and not stand apart on some safe high ground to observe our people's struggles against the foes.

True leadership must not just be spiritual but also moral--in other words, charisma and character. Charisma without character has created spectacular falls in recent church and political leadership. Like it or not, people lose their respect and confidence in a leader (spiritual or secular) when he or she exhibits moral failure through infidelity to their spouses. If a leader is not committed to influence his or her family spiritually and morally, how can we expect him or her to be committed and responsible to others outside the family?

Father, You have shown us in Your Word the importance of leadership within the home, for that is where true leadership is nurtured. May Your Spirit and Your Word be our source and guide in developing spiritual and moral influence in our society today. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Obeying God's Commands Keeps Us in His Love (Joshua 22)

2011-12-25T08:36:00.002+08:00

Josh 22:1-8 Then Joshua summoned the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh and said to them, "You have done all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded, and you have obeyed me in everything I commanded. For a long time now — to this very day — you have not deserted your brothers but have carried out the mission the Lord your God gave you. Now that the Lord your God has given your brothers rest as he promised, return to your homes in the land that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you on the other side of the Jordan. But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you: to love the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul." Then Joshua blessed them and sent them away, and they went to their homes. (To the half-tribe of Manasseh Moses had given land in Bashan, and to the other half of the tribe Joshua gave land on the west side of the Jordan with their brothers.) When Joshua sent them home, he blessed them, saying, "Return to your homes with your great wealth — with large herds of livestock, with silver, gold, bronze and iron, and a great quantity of clothing — and divide with your brothers the plunder from your enemies."

Here we read about the faithfulness of the two and a half tribes of Israel (Reuben, Gad and half-tribe of Manasseh) who settled on the land east of the Jordan: they had accomplished their mission by helping their brothers from the other nine and a half tribe conquer the Canaan land and settle there. Now they were finally returning home - and with the exhortation from Joshua to remain faithful to the Lord and his commands: "to love the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul." Here we have an echo of Jesus' summary of the law as "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your mind, with all your soul and with all your strength" (Mt 22:37; Mk 12:30). What does it mean to "love the Lord your God"? Well, Joshua elaborated it as "to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him".

As I have intimated elsewhere that charisma (grace-gift) is often exalted above character. Here Joshua is in effect saying that the doing (accomplishing a mission) is over, but the being (growing in character) must continue. To obey God's commands (whether under the Old or New Covenant) is foundational to growth in character. Even Jesus emphasized that in His Great Commission to His disciples: "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations... teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you" (Mt 28:19). There is no lawless covenants in the Bible. All covenants have obligations, though they may differ from one another.

There are 600+ commands under the Old Covenant, and there are also 600+ commands under the New Covenant. Jesus' own commands include the following: love your enemies, pray for those who curse you, do to others what you would want others to do to you, give to anyone who asks of you, forgive those who sinned against you, do not look at a woman to lust after her, do not be angry with your brothers, give to the poor, show mercy, walk the second mile, pray and fast in secret, do not worry about life, seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, do not be judgemental, have faith in God, follow me and I will make you fishers of men, abide in me, love one another, etc. The list just goes on and on...if we include the commands in Acts, the epistles and the Book of Revelation. If we are truly under grace and walking by the Spirit, we will demonstrate these attitudes and actions. But this is not a one-way street: keeping the commands enables us to walk by the Spirit, just as walking by the Spirit empowers us to keep the commands.

Israel did not earn the right to become God's chosen people; neither does the Church. We are saved by grace through faith, not by works (Eph 2:8-9). But we must not forget Ephesians 2:10, "For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do." While we are not saved BY good works, we are saved FOR good works. And good works is a fruit of obedience to the Lord and his teaching. Jesus affirms that our relationship with the Father is kept through obedience: "As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love" (John 15:9-10).

Whoever teaches or undermines the importance of obedience to Christ's commands undermines Christ's integrity and character and is preaching heresy.

Father, what a joy and privilege it is for us Your children to keep Your commands, because Your burden is light and Your yoke is easy. For it is in obeying Your commands that we have remained in Your love! Amen.

God is So Good! (Joshua 20-21)

2011-12-24T07:29:00.000+08:00

Josh 20:9 Any of the Israelites or any alien living among them who killed someone accidentally could flee to these designated cities and not be killed by the avenger of blood prior to standing trial before the assembly.
Josh 21:41-45 The towns of the Levites in the territory held by the Israelites were forty-eight in all, together with their pasturelands. Each of these towns had pasturelands surrounding it; this was true for all these towns. So the Lord gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their forefathers, and they took possession of it and settled there. The Lord gave them rest on every side, just as he had sworn to their forefathers. Not one of their enemies withstood them; the Lord handed all their enemies over to them. Not one of all the Lord's good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled.

God designated 6 cities of refuge for those fleeing from the "avenger of blood" when they accidentally caused the deaths of the avenger's family member, relative or friend. God also set aside 48 towns in every tribe for the Levites to live in and keep their livestocks, for the tribe of Levi had no inheritance in the land for they were set apart for the Lord's service.

Joshua 21:42-45 teaches three important things about God: "So the Lord gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their forefathers, and they took possession of it and settled there. The Lord gave them rest on every side, just as he had sworn to their forefathers. Not one of their enemies withstood them; the Lord handed all their enemies over to them. Not one of all the Lord's good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled."

(1) God is sovereign ("So the Lord gave Israel all the land he had sworn to give their forefathers"): The earth is the Lord's and it is His to give. Whatever God wills it shall be done. This is a manifestation of God's sovereign authority over the earth and no one can question the way He allocates lands and resources to the nations. No one who fears the Lord and do what is right will suffer from want.

(2) God is powerful ("the Lord gave them rest on every side"): What God wills, He also enables. If it is God's will, He will provide the power for us to get the job done. We only need to obey His commands and carry them out. We may feel weak and inadequate, but when we are weak, He is strong: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Cor 12:9).

(3) God is faithful ("Not one of all the Lord's good promises to the house of Israel failed; every one was fulfilled"): What a faithful God - He keeps promises, not some but all -- everyone! Let's not doubt God and trust man. Let trust God alone because He keeps promises.

Thank You Father for You are not only loving, but You are in total control of world events and You have the power to enforce Your will and plan. Amen.

Inheriting the Landlord (Joshua 18-19)

2011-12-23T09:30:00.002+08:00

Josh 18:1-7 The whole assembly of the Israelites gathered at Shiloh and set up the Tent of Meeting there. The country was brought under their control, but there were still seven Israelite tribes who had not yet received their inheritance. So Joshua said to the Israelites: "How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you? Appoint three men from each tribe. I will send them out to make a survey of the land and to write a description of it, according to the inheritance of each. Then they will return to me. You are to divide the land into seven parts. Judah is to remain in its territory on the south and the house of Joseph in its territory on the north. After you have written descriptions of the seven parts of the land, bring them here to me and I will cast lots for you in the presence of the Lord our God. The Levites, however, do not get a portion among you, because the priestly service of the Lord is their inheritance. And Gad, Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh have already received their inheritance on the east side of the Jordan. Moses the servant of the Lord gave it to them."

The land had rest from war, but only 4 of the 12 tribes had settled in their own allotments. Joshua was peeved by the remaining seven tribes for their delay in taking possession of their lands: "How long will you wait before you begin to take possession of the land that the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you?" The 12 tribes can be divided at this juncture thus:

4 tribes had taken possession of the land: Judah, Gad, Reuben and Manasseh/Ephraim
7 tribes had not taken taken possessions of the land: Benjamin, Simeon, Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Napthali & Dan
1 tribe had no land to take possession of: Levi, whose inheritance is the priestly service to the Lord.

The three categories could easily represent three kinds of believers:

(1) Those who have received the lands: The first category of believers are represented by the 4 tribes that have received what was promised. As explained before, God has blessed us with "every spiritual blessing in Christ" and that all the promises of God are "yes" in Christ (Eph 1:3; 2 Cor. 1:20). The war with Satan is over; the enemy has been defeated at the Cross. Jesus has received from God the "promise of the Father," viz., the Holy Spirit. All the spiritual blessings of God are ours by virtue of the fact that we are in Christ. The conduit of these blessings is the Holy Spirit. Like electrical wires, we are all plugged into the divine power sockets, ready to draw on all the spiritual blessings through the electricity of the Holy Spirit. But the switch is on our sides: we need to turn on the switch to let the spiritual blessings flow into our lives. The switch is asking in prayer. Faith is not just believing but receiving by asking in prayer: "Ask and you will receive!" So the first category refers to Christians who not only believe in God's promises but have received them by asking in prayer.

(2) Those who have not received the lands: The second category of believers are represented by the 7 tribes. They believe the promises of God but have not received the blessings that are already theirs in Christ because they did take possession by asking for these blessings in prayer. As the Apostle James lamented in James 4:2, "You do not have, because you do not ask God." Jesus himself has said of such believers in John 16:24, "Until now you have not asked anything in my name. Ask and you will receive and your joy will be complete." The biblical vehicle for receiving is not confessing but asking--in prayer. Confessing is believing--but asking is receiving. Demons confess Jesus too: "What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are — the Holy One of God!" (Mark 1:24), but demons do not receive anything because they will never ask God for anything. It's in asking that one receives.

(3) Those who receive no land but the Landlord: The last category of believers are represented by the Levites who served in the temple. They had no land allotted to them, only cities. But they had something far more valuable - they served the Landlord! The Landlord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth! So the psalmist declares in Psalm 24:1, "The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it." And New Testament believers are the new priesthood, and therefore we do not just own lands but the Landlord! Praise the Lord! God's Word affirms this great truth in Romans 8:32, "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all — how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?"

Father, thank You that we do not possess only the lands but also the Landlord! For You have given us on Christmas Your Son and we know together with Him, You will also give us all things! Amen.

Making Decisions We will Regret (Joshua 16-17)

2011-12-22T08:47:00.001+08:00

Josh 17:12-18 Yet the Manassites were not able to occupy these towns, for the Canaanites were determined to live in that region. However, when the Israelites grew stronger, they subjected the Canaanites to forced labor but did not drive them out completely.
The people of Joseph said to Joshua, "Why have you given us only one allotment and one portion for an inheritance? We are a numerous people and the Lord has blessed us abundantly." "If you are so numerous," Joshua answered, "and if the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you, go up into the forest and clear land for yourselves there in the land of the Perizzites and Rephaites." The people of Joseph replied, "The hill country is not enough for us, and all the Canaanites who live in the plain have iron chariots, both those in Beth Shan and its settlements and those in the Valley of Jezreel." But Joshua said to the house of Joseph — to Ephraim and Manasseh — "You are numerous and very powerful. You will have not only one allotment but the forested hill country as well. Clear it, and its farthest limits will be yours; though the Canaanites have iron chariots and though they are strong, you can drive them out."

The house of Joseph (comprising the two half-tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh) was the second largest tribe after Judah. By virtue of their number, they wanted from Joshua a greater allotment of the land, but yet they were unwilling to drive out the Canaanites but prefer the easier of option accommodation by subjecting them to forced labour. However, this act would cause Israel to suffer constant harrassments from the Canaanites in later generations and the Canaanites became "thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare to you" (see Judges 2:27-3:3).

What lessons can we learn from the bad decision of the house of Joseph?

(1) Compromise ("However, when the Israelites grew stronger, they subjected the Canaanites to forced labor but did not drive them out completely"): The Canaanites were idolatrous worshippers of Baal and Astheroth, the god and goddess of fertility who practised sexual immorality and human sacrifices. They represented spiritual and moral corruption within Israel, which later became a snare as Israel forsook the Lord to serve the Baals & Asthoreths: "They provoked the Lord to anger because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths" (Judg 2:12-13). Accommodation to sin will lead to acceptance and finally adoption of the sin.

(2) Pride ("Why have you given us only one allotment and one portion for an inheritance? We are a numerous people and the Lord has blessed us abundantly."): In effect, the house of Joseph was telling Joshua: "We are are such great people but you are not giving us due respect by alloting to us so small an land area." Pride is a bad motivation to asking for more. The tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh were blessed with "numerous people" and had become proud. When we have become rich and powerful, we have to watch out for pride seeping into our attitude, because pride can produce a terrible fall. In this case, pride blinded Ephraim and Manasseh from their real problem (Canaanites) towards peripheral issues--we needed more land.

(3) Excuses ("all the Canaanites who live in the plain have iron chariots, both those in Beth Shan and its settlements and those in the Valley of Jezreel"): Joshua was obviously irritated by the house of Joseph's demand for more land. His sarcasm is obvious: "If you are so numerous, and if the hill country of Ephraim is too small for you, go up into the forest and clear land for yourselves there in the land of the Perizzites and Rephaites." The house of Joseph's excuses: (1) the hill country is not enough even if we clear some forests (2) the Canaanites in the plains have iron chariots. Joshua's response to these two excuses: (1) Clear the forest completely, and there will be enough land (2) though the Canaanites have iron chariots, you can drive them out.

Bad decisions are the result of compromises with sin, pride in ourselves, and excuses we make to avoid the difficult choices.

So what does it take to make good decisions? The exact opposites:

(1) Ethical Integrity: Make no compromise with what is shady and wrong. Practise integrity in our actions and no accommodation with unethical behaviour.
(2) Modest Attitude: Even if we think we are successful and powerful, we should avoid leverage on that but adopt an attitude of teachability & humility.
(3) Divine Presence: Remember that God is with us and He is bigger than all the excuses we can think of.

Father, help us to do Your will wholeheartedly by getting rid of compromises, pride and excuses. Amen.

Defeating the Enemies Within (Joshua 14)

2011-12-21T08:43:00.000+08:00

Josh 14:15-15:1, 14-19 Then the land had rest from war. The allotment for the tribe of Judah, clan by clan, extended down to the territory of Edom, to the Desert of Zin in the extreme south.... And Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak, Sheshai and Ahiman and Talmai, the descendants of Anak. And he went up from there against the inhabitants of Debir. Now the name of Debir formerly was Kiriath-sepher. And Caleb said, "Whoever strikes Kiriath-sepher and captures it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter as wife." And Othniel the son of Kenaz, the brother of Caleb, captured it. And he gave him Achsah his daughter as wife. When she came to him, she urged him to ask her father for a field. And she got off her donkey, and Caleb said to her, "What do you want?" She said to him, "Give me a blessing. Since you have given me the land of the Negeb, give me also springs of water." And he gave her the upper springs and the lower springs.

Israel has finally received her possessions. She has received what was promised and "the land had rest from war." In fact, every tribe was allotted their inheritance as described in Joshua 15-19. Nevertheless, the end of war is not the end of the battles. We read that Caleb was still driving out the inhabitants of Debir with help from Othniel who captured Debir. Othniel was later to become Israel's first judge after Joshua has died (Judges 3:9).

The spiritual lessons for us here are:

(1) The War is Over ("Then the land had rest from war"): Joshua has completed his mission - he has conquered the land and the war is over. The twelve tribes received their allotments of land. They have inherited the land that God has promised their Abraham 400 years earlier. Joshua is a type of Christ (in fact, the name "Jesus" is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew name "Joshua"). Christ has similarly defeated the devil at the Cross and has received from God the "promise of the Father": "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places" (Eph. 1:3). We have inherited the spiritual riches of God in Christ. We have rest from our war with the kingdom of darkness because Jesus has triumphed over Satan, the prince of darkness.

(2) The Battles are On-going ("And Caleb drove out from there the three sons of Anak, Sheshai and Ahiman and Talmai, the descendants of Anak."): While the land is firmly in the hand of Israel, nevertheless the enemies still dwell within the land. Caleb and Othniel had to engage the Anakites and the inhabitants of Debir. Just as Christ has blessed us with every spiritual blessing, not every believer has complete victory over the enemies within: viz., sinful addictions and habits, sicknesses, demonic influences, etc. that continually dog their walk with God from within.

The enemies are no more external but internal. Paul calls this enemy the "flesh." We have to deal with the flesh on a daily basis, because it is the flesh that triggers the inner battles that every believer experiences within: "But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these" (Gal 5:16-21, ESV)

(3) Asking is the Way to Victory ("When she came to him, she urged him to ask her father for a field."): The way of victory in the Christian life is not fight the flesh but to ask for power to defeat the flesh, viz., the Holy Spirit. Caleb's wife, Achsah, demonstrated feminine wisdom on how to possess our possessions: she asked her husband Othniel to ask Caleb. But like many blurr males who often find it difficult to ask for anything (especially, directions!), Othniel did not ask Caleb for the field. So Achsah like all practical females took it upon herself to ask her father: "Give me a blessing. Since you have given me the land of the Negeb, give me also springs of water." And she received what she asked for!

Paul puts it this way: "Walk by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh." The "springs of water" that Achsah received is a type of the Holy Spirit who is the "waters of life." We are to drink daily of the Spirit to overcome the downward pull of the flesh. We can't get rid of the flesh -- it is embedded within our human nature. But we can walk by the Spirit and overcome the desires of the flesh. Someone compares this to aerodynamics. While we cannot remove gravity, we can defeat it by riding on the winds by applying the power of air-lift to get us soaring upward against downward pull of gravity.

Let's not deny the reality of the flesh. But let's not be defeated by it either. We have the springs of life, the Holy Spirit. Let's ask for it today and everyday!

Father, grant us Your Spirit to defeat the desires of the flesh. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Never too Old to Serve (Joshua 14)

2011-12-20T06:44:00.000+08:00

Josh 14:6-15 Now the men of Judah approached Joshua at Gilgal, and Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said to him, "You know what the Lord said to Moses the man of God at Kadesh Barnea about you and me. I was forty years old when Moses the servant of the Lord sent me from Kadesh Barnea to explore the land. And I brought him back a report according to my convictions, but my brothers who went up with me made the hearts of the people melt with fear. I, however, followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly. So on that day Moses swore to me, 'The land on which your feet have walked will be your inheritance and that of your children forever, because you have followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly.' "Now then, just as the Lord promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the desert. So here I am today, eighty-five years old! I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I'm just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the Lord helping me, I will drive them out just as he said."

Caleb and Joshua were two of the twelve spies that Moses sent to explore the land of Canaan some 45 years ago when Caleb was only 40 years old. They were the only two of the twelve spies who gave a good report while the other ten spies sparked panic in the camp of Israel through their negative report. Now, at 85, Caleb was ready for another major project: "Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day... the Lord helping me, I will drive them out as just he said." What a man of God! At 85, Caleb was not thinking of retiring to look after grandchildren but of re-tyring for his next lap.

There are four reasons why Caleb at 85 was still ready for the next challenge of his life:

(1) A Man of Character ("I brought him back a report according to my convictions"): Caleb was a person of spiritual and moral convictions--in other words, a man of character. Nowadays, too many Christians are chasing after leaders with charisma instead character. Men and women of godly character may not always have scintillating personality, but they are solidly built on spiritual and moral convictions. In this post-modern era where everyone lives by the values of convenience and comfort, we need more men and women of godly character who live by solid scriptural convictions and are prepared to make a difference in the world by standing up against ungodly values.

(2) A Man of Obedience ("you have followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly"): A godly character is demonstrated in godly conduct of wholehearted obedience to the Lord. Caleb was a man who followed the Lord wholeheartedly. He did not follow the crowd, but stood with Joshua against the majority opinion. Godly people are able to stand on their own convictions and not be swayed by the spiritual or moral flavour of the month.

(3) A Man of Vigour ("I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out"): Here is where many Christian leaders fail: we are not disciplined in keeping our body under subjection and therefore our ministry is cut short by poor health and premature death. Paul himself said, "Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified" (ESV).

Here I'm referring to the discipline of eating, sleeping and exercise. We are all familiar with pastors and ministers who died prematurely of degenerative diseases. We like to say that their premature demise is "God's will", thereby blaming God for their poor physical health. Whereas the truth is our physical vigour is a consequence of our choices. In the Scripture, we do not read of men and women of God dying prematurely of degenerative diseases but they lived till a ripe old age--with the exception of martyrdom. Jesus and his eleven disciples died prematurely through martyrdom but John lived into his 90's. The Apostle Paul also lived into his 80's before he was executed for his faith in Rome. Many Christians spiritualize their gluttony as "enjoying God's abundance." We need to be like an athlete, subjecting our body to discipline and training so that we can remain vigorous at 85 and not bed-ridden and senile!

(4) A Man of Faith ("Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day"): Finally, Caleb was a man of faith. Faith comes from hearing and hearing by the word of God. He held on to the Lord's promise for 45 years. And he was ready to claim that promise at 85! Our faith is always based on God's promise, not on wishful thinking. If there is no promise in the Word for a blessing, we should not pray for it because it's likely to be presumption not faith. There are many promises in the Old and New Testaments and Paul says in 2 Corinthians 1:20-21 that all of God's promises are always yes and amen in Christ: "For no matter how many promises God has made, they are 'Yes' in Christ. And so through him the 'Amen' is spoken by us to the glory of God." That is why faith is nurtured when we read God's word. The more we know Scripture, the more we know his promises and the stronger our faith in God.

Father, You have given us Caleb as an example of what a man of character, obedience, vigour and faith is capable of doing. May those among us who like to think we are too old for any new venture reject such unbelieving idea and renew our commitment to You to conquer our next mountain. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Fulfilling our Life Calling (Joshua 12-13)

2011-12-19T07:48:00.000+08:00

Josh 12: 7-24 These are the kings of the land that Joshua and the Israelites conquered on the west side of the Jordan, from Baal Gad in the Valley of Lebanon to Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir (their lands Joshua gave as an inheritance to the tribes of Israel according to their tribal divisions—the hill country, the western foothills, the Arabah, the mountain slopes, the desert and the Negev — the lands of the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites)... thirty-one kings in all.
Josh 13:1-8 When Joshua was old and well advanced in years, the Lord said to him, "You are very old, and there are still very large areas of land to be taken over. This is the land that remains: all the regions of the Philistines and Geshurites: from the Shihor River on the east of Egypt to the territory of Ekron on the north, all of it counted as Canaanite (the territory of the five Philistine rulers in Gaza, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gath and Ekron — that of the Avvites); from the south, all the land of the Canaanites, from Arah of the Sidonians as far as Aphek, the region of the Amorites, the area of the Gebalites; and all Lebanon to the east, from Baal Gad below Mount Hermon to Lebo Hamath. As for all the inhabitants of the mountain regions from Lebanon to Misrephoth Maim, that is, all the Sidonians, I myself will drive them out before the Israelites. Be sure to allocate this land to Israel for an inheritance, as I have instructed you, and divide it as an inheritance among the nine tribes and half of the tribe of Manasseh." The other half of Manasseh, the Reubenites and the Gadites had received the inheritance that Moses had given them east of the Jordan, as he, the servant of the Lord, had assigned it to them.

To be a Kingdom of Priests, Israel needed to become a people with a king, a law and land. They had the first three (people, God as King, Law) under Moses. Now they possessed the land. The areas taken by Israel were mostly in the hill regions, away from the coastal lands yet to be conquered. It would take Israel another four to five hundreds years to complete the conquest of the coastal areas at the time of King David.

Here are three important spiritual lessons from Joshua 12 & 13:

1) Our ministry is part of the whole ("thirty one kings in all... there are still very large areas of land to be taken over"): Despite the fact that Joshua had successfully defeated 31 kings, the conquest of the land was incomplete. Nevertheless, he had completed his mission of settling Israel into Canaan. It remains for David, four centuries later, to complete the task of conquest of the remaining lands.

Each of us has a part to play in God's divine plan and we should be content to fulfill our part. Jesus said in John 17:4, "I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do." His mission was to train the twelve disciples despite the fact that not everyone had believed in the Gospel. In the same vein, Paul too declared in 2 Tim 4:7, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." For Paul, his life mission was to bring the Gospel before Jews and Gentiles and their kings even though the world was not evangelized. Paul fulfilled his mission when he appealed to Caesar and died as a martyr according to tradition in Rome.

2) Our ministry is a lifetime calling ("Joshua was old and well advanced in years"): Joshua served till his death. Similarly, Jesus served till the night before his crucifixion (though only 33 years old), and Paul served until he was executed for his faith in his 80's. For those of us who have the good fortune of "retirement" from our secular job, the remaining years should be used fruitfully for the Kingdom's work, not sqaundered in idle pleasures. Every Christian is a minister, whether in "full-time" ministry or not, because everyone has received a spiritual gift from the Spirit at our conversion. Our life calling is defined by our giftedness and it never ends until our life ends. We should not be like the last man who buried his talent until the master returned.

3) Our life purpose is to fulfil our personal mission ("Be sure to allocate this land to Israel for an inheritance, as I have instructed you"): Joshua's life purpose was to bring Israel into Canaan over the Jordan, settle them and distribute to each of the 12 twelve tribes their allotted lands. He did not complete the conquest of all of Canaan, but he had fufilled his personal mission of ensuring Israel has become a Kingdom with a King (God), Law and Land. Similarly, each of us have a personal mission God has given us to fulfill. We are not called to do everything, but we are called to do one thing -- and to do it well.

Father, thank You that we are not called to solve the world's problems, but only to fulfil our part of the personal mission You have committed to each of us when You bestowed us spiritual gifts at our conversion. May Your Spirit open our eyes to know our personal mission and strengthen our hearts and minds to be committed to the mission until we breathe our last breath. Amen.

Divine Holiness & Judgement (Joshua 11)

2011-12-16T06:48:00.000+08:00

Josh 11:4-9, 16-20 They came out with all their troops and a large number of horses and chariots — a huge army, as numerous as the sand on the seashore. All these kings joined forces and made camp together at the Waters of Merom, to fight against Israel. The Lord said to Joshua, "Do not be afraid of them, because by this time tomorrow I will hand all of them over to Israel, slain. You are to hamstring their horses and burn their chariots." So Joshua and his whole army came against them suddenly at the Waters of Merom and attacked them, and the Lord gave them into the hand of Israel. They defeated them and pursued them all the way to Greater Sidon, to Misrephoth Maim, and to the Valley of Mizpah on the east, until no survivors were left. Joshua did to them as the Lord had directed: He hamstrung their horses and burned their chariots... So Joshua took this entire land: the hill country, all the Negev, the whole region of Goshen, the western foothills, the Arabah and the mountains of Israel with their foothills, from Mount Halak, which rises toward Seir, to Baal Gad in the Valley of Lebanon below Mount Hermon. He captured all their kings and struck them down, putting them to death. Joshua waged war against all these kings for a long time. Except for the Hivites living in Gibeon, not one city made a treaty of peace with the Israelites, who took them all in battle. For it was the Lord himself who hardened their hearts to wage war against Israel, so that he might destroy them totally, exterminating them without mercy, as the Lord had commanded Moses.

We now look at the difficult issue of "ethnic cleansing" by Israel in the name of God. Note that verses 18-20 state: "Joshua waged war against all these kings for a long time. Except for the Hivites living in Gibeon, not one city made a treaty of peace with the Israelites, who took them all in battle. For it was the Lord himself who hardened their hearts to wage war against Israel, so that he might destroy them totally, exterminating them without mercy, as the Lord had commanded Moses." It was total extermination of the southern and northern coalition of kings that came against Israel, except for the Hivites living in Gibeon who made a peace treaty with Israel. Such wholesale slaughter of kings, people, old and young, men and women, including even livestocks, is hard for us moderns to accept. We would classify such wholesale destruction of peoples as genocide.

To place this issue in context, we need to consider the following:

(1) Defensive wars ("Joshua waged war against all these kings for a long time. Except for the Hivites living in Gibeon, not one city made a treaty of peace with the Israelites, who took them all in battle."): Except for Jericho & Ai that were situated along the path of Israel into Canaan, Israel's wars with the rest of the southern and northern cities were defensive as the kings in the south and north formed alliances to attack Israel. The Hivites in Gibeon were spared because they made a peace treaty with Israel. So, Israel's destruction was not an unprovoked attacks on peaceful peoples wanting to be left alone.

(2) Divine Judgement ("For it was the Lord himself who hardened their hearts to wage war against Israel"): Note that the initiative for the destruction of the Canaanite cities came from the Lord himself, for it was part of God's divine judgement against these peoples because of their vile and wicked religious practices of human sacrifices (including children) and sexual immorality (temple prostitution as part of fertility cult of Baal). So, Moses warned the Israelites in Deut 18:9-12, "When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not learn to imitate the detestable ways of the nations there. Let no one be found among you who sacrifices his son or daughter in the fire, who practices divination or sorcery, interprets omens, engages in witchcraft, or casts spells, or who is a medium or spiritist or who consults the dead. Anyone who does these things is detestable to the Lord, and because of these detestable practices the Lord your God will drive out those nations before you." So, Israel under Joshua was God's sword of judgement against peoples who were morally and spiritually corrupt.

Is God biased against other religions? No, God's judgement is against moral and spiritual corruption wherever it is found--even in Israel. In 586 BC, God's judgement fell on Israel when she began to adopt the vile practices of the Canaanite religion of Baal worship. The sword of judgement was the Assyrians and the Babylonians and Israel was destroyed and the peoples deported to foreign lands. So, in that sense, God's standard of judgement is the same towards all peoples who engaged in moral and spiritual wickedness.

(3) Divine holiness ("so that he might destroy them totally, exterminating them without mercy, as the Lord had commanded Moses"): The Canaanite peoples were morally and spiritually corrupt beyond redemption--young and old, men and women. In order that the land might be made holy, every form of wickedness has to be eliminated. Note that whenever there is acknowledgement of God's holiness (Rahab & her family, the Gibeonites), there is mercy. In other words, the only way a people can escape divine judgement is through repentance and faith because divine holiness cannot be compromised. The story of Israel's wandering in the wilderness for forty years contains many episodes of divine judgement against Israel when they compromised God's holiness. So, it is not a case of ethnic cleansing but moral and spiritual cleansing. Whenever a people or nation embraces evil practices as described in Deuteronomy 18:9-12, they face divine wrath and judgement--this could come as wars or natural disasters. The whole earth belongs to the Lord and therefore holy: "The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters" (Ps 24:1-2). The flood in Genesis 6-9 describes the awful reality of divine judgement against human wickedness. From history, we have also records of sudden destruction of entire peoples (e.g. Incas) who practice the same wickedness as the Canaanites, which often included human sacrifices.

Father, You are holy. Help us understand and appreciate Your holiness and Your wrath against human wickedness that compromises Your holiness and reign over this earth. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

Partnering with God (Joshua 10)

2011-12-15T06:53:00.000+08:00

Josh 10:9-14 After an all-night march from Gilgal, Joshua took them by surprise. The Lord threw them into confusion before Israel, who defeated them in a great victory at Gibeon. Israel pursued them along the road going up to Beth Horon and cut them down all the way to Azekah and Makkedah. As they fled before Israel on the road down from Beth Horon to Azekah, the Lord hurled large hailstones down on them from the sky, and more of them died from the hailstones than were killed by the swords of the Israelites. On the day the Lord gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the Lord in the presence of Israel: "O sun, stand still over Gibeon, O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon." So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the nation avenged itself on its enemies, as it is written in the Book of Jashar. The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a man. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel!
Josh 10:40-42 So Joshua subdued the whole region, including the hill country, the Negev, the western foothills and the mountain slopes, together with all their kings. He left no survivors. He totally destroyed all who breathed, just as the Lord, the God of Israel, had commanded. Joshua subdued them from Kadesh Barnea to Gaza and from the whole region of Goshen to Gibeon. All these kings and their lands Joshua conquered in one campaign, because the Lord, the God of Israel, fought for Israel.

Putting aside for the moment the difficult issue of what moderns would consider "ethnic cleansing" by Israel in the name of the Lord, we would like to focus on the principle of partnership with God in any endeavour. Note that Joshua's conquest against the Southern Kings is a purely military campaign and we do not need to spiritualize it in order to glean valuable spiritual and practical lessons from it.
The divine-human partnership can be understood in 3 dimensions:

1) Human responsibility ("After an all-night march from Gilgal, Joshua took them by surprise"): In any form of divine-human partnership - whether in the marketplace or in the ministry - the human responsibility cannot be ignored or overlooked. Joshua and his army had to do an all-night march, sweating it out in order to be in that place where they could take the enemy by surprise. Surprise is one of the most important element in conventional military strategy, and no military leader, Christian or otherwise, can ignore it. Just because God is with us does not mean we need to stop exercising practical and conventional wisdom. Even though we expect and believe God to work on our behalf, we still need wisdom, not just revelation, to get the job. In fact, Paul's prayer for the Ephesian church is that they might have the "Spirit of wisdom and revelation" (Eph 1:17).

Of course, there are some things that only God can do, but there are other things that we must do. As St. Augustine is often quoted to have famously said: "Without God, we cannot. Without us, God will not."

2) Divine participation ("The Lord threw them into confusion before Israel, who defeated them in a great victory at Gibeon"): As Joshua's army attacked the enemy, God worked in tandem with them to throw the enemies into confusion. The victory is the Lord's but He works as we work. If Joshua has not been in that place where his army was ready to pursue the enemy, God would not be able to act on their behalf to defeat the enemy. So in any divine-human partnership, God and man must work in tandem. It's not just "let go, and let God" but "let's go, and let God." Divine power is not an excuse for inaction on our part.

3) Supernatural intervention ("the Lord hurled large hailstones down on them from the sky, and more of them died from the hailstones than were killed by the swords of the Israelites"): The third dimension of the divine-human partnership is supernatural intervention. Even as we engage our own wisdom and experience to the task, we have to make room for divine intervention in unexpected and supernatural way. We need to believe that God's power will not only be active in us and through us but also for us. In other words, we expect divine intervention to take place in changing the situation in our favour. Divine participation is not limited to granting us wisdom and revelation to do the job but also direct divine intervention to change the circumstances in our favour - whether in business, ministry or relationship.

Lord, we thank You that You are Emmanuel, God with us! Thank You that You are our Senior Partner in every endeavour - whether in the marketplace or in ministry. Amen.

Making Decisions We Don't Regret (Joshua 9)

2011-12-07T07:26:00.000+08:00

Josh 9:14-21 The men of Israel sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord. Then Joshua made a treaty of peace with them to let them live, and the leaders of the assembly ratified it by oath. Three days after they made the treaty with the Gibeonites, the Israelites heard that they were neighbors, living near them. So the Israelites set out and on the third day came to their cities: Gibeon, Kephirah, Beeroth and Kiriath Jearim. But the Israelites did not attack them, because the leaders of the assembly had sworn an oath to them by the Lord, the God of Israel. The whole assembly grumbled against the leaders, but all the leaders answered, "We have given them our oath by the Lord, the God of Israel, and we cannot touch them now. This is what we will do to them: We will let them live, so that wrath will not fall on us for breaking the oath we swore to them." They continued, "Let them live, but let them be woodcutters and water carriers for the entire community." So the leaders' promise to them was kept.

Joshua and the leaders were deceived by the Gibeonites because they "did not inquire of the Lord." Their victories over Jericho and Ai had made them self-reliant rather than God-reliant. Confronted with the Gibeonite's ruse, they fell for it by making a treaty of peace because they did not inquire of the Lord. Once they discovered they had been deceived by the Gibeonites, Israel could not go back on their promise because they had ratified it with an oath in the name of the Lord God of Israel. So, the Gibeonites were not destroyed and lived among them as woodcutters and water-carriers for the Israelites.

All of us have experienced committing ourselves to verbal agreements and legal contracts which we regret later because we "did not inquire of the Lord" - in worldly matters like employment, bank loan, purchase of goods & services, business partnership and contracts--even, marriage. Somehow we feel that these are secular matters and therefore do not require us to seek God's endorsement. But once we have committed to these agreements -- whether verbally or in writing--we are bound to fulfil the obligations. While some decisions may be morally neutral, they may yet distract us from fulfilling God's purpose in our lives. Though the Gibeonites did not present Israel with a great problem later on and even became assimilated into Israel's faith and culture, it nevertheless obligated Israel to come to Gibeonites' rescue when they were threatened by other cities (Joshua 10).

In order to prevent making decisions that will be a distraction to our fulfilling of God's purpose and which we may regret later because of the obligations we put ourselves under, we have to learn to commit every decision to the Lord as we make them. When King Artaxerxes asked Nehemiah what he wanted, he shot an arrow prayer to God: "Then I prayed to the God of heaven and I answered the king" (Nehemiah 2:4-5). Let's bring God into every decision we make, no matter how routine or how secular it may be. A quick prayer, "Lord, grant me Your Spirit of wisdom and revelation" will deliver us from decisions we may regret later.

Father, as we go out to the world again today, we are confronted with myriad decisions - personal, family, work, recreation and church. Help us not to rely on our own wisdom but to bring You into our every decision today. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

Leadership Principles for Success (Joshua 8)

2011-12-06T06:52:00.001+08:00

Josh 8:1-4 Then the Lord said to Joshua, "Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai. For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land. You shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set an ambush behind the city." So Joshua and the whole army moved out to attack Ai. He chose thirty thousand of his best fighting men and sent them out at night with these orders: "Listen carefully. You are to set an ambush behind the city..."

Having dealt with the problem of sin within, Joshua was ready to re-launch an attack on Ai. Notice that the last time, they were self-confident and sent only 3,000 men against Ai. This time, the Lord's instructions to Joshua illustrate three important common-sense principles for success in any type of endeavour - whether in the marketplace or ministry:

(1) Practical Wisdom ("Take the whole army with you"): Just because God is with us does not mean we should slacken and act without conventional wisdom. God instructed Joshua to bring the "whole army" into battle - not to underestimate the enemy's capacity but to overwhelm the enemy's strength. God's promise of victory does not mean we should commit less resources to the work - in fact, God's promise of victory should motivate us to commit even greater resources to achieve His purpose. The "whole army" turns out to number a total of 30,000 men, unlike the last failed campaign of only 3,000 men.

(2) Sound Strategy ("Set an ambush behind the city"): Here there is no suggestion to march around the city like before in Jericho. Instead, God instructed Joshua to set up an ambush - a classic texbook military strategy. Joshua ordered 5,000 of his best fighting men to set an ambush behind the city: "Listen carefully. You are to set an ambush behind the city. Don't go very far from it. All of you be on the alert. I and all those with me will advance on the city, and when the men come out against us, as they did before, we will flee from them. They will pursue us until we have lured them away from the city, for they will say, 'They are running away from us as they did before.' So when we flee from them, you are to rise up from ambush and take the city. The Lord your God will give it into your hand. When you have taken the city, set it on fire. Do what the Lord has commanded. See to it; you have my orders" (Josh 8:4-8). Joshua led the main force in a frontal attack to lure the men of Ai out of the city by pretending to flee.

I was once admonished by a church leader that I should not apply the same standard of discipline and diligence of the marketplace into church ministry because "this is church--a place of love and grace." To this brother, grace means being "gracious," overlooking ill-discipline and complacency in the ministry. I don't see this attitude displayed by Joshua: despite the promise of victory, he selected 30,000 of his best fighting men to go into battle. Grace is not an excuse for indolence and indifference, but rather grace energizes us to give our very best for the Lord.

(3) Clear Communication ("Hold out toward Ai the javelin that is in your hand, for into your hand I will deliver the city."): Whatever work or ministry we are involved in, clear communication is absolutely essential. Joshua held up his javelin at the right moment to signal the ambush party to enter the city. Good leadership requires clear communication at the appropriate moment. People need to have clear guidelines and values to perform excellently within the given framework.

God's promise of victory does not mean we should ignore conventional leadership principles of practical wisdom, good strategy and clear communication. Whether in the marketplace or church, we need all three princples to achieve success in our endeavour.

Lord, what a privilege to serve You because You do not abandon us to our own devices. But yet You do not ignore the common-sense principles of leadership when You give us instructions. May our ears be always open to Your instructions that we might have victory in our every endeavour. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

God's Absence Spells Failure (Joshua 7)

2011-12-05T07:31:00.000+08:00

Josh 7:10-13 The Lord said to Joshua, "Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions. That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction. "Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, 'Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: That which is devoted is among you, O Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove it.

After a major victory and easy walkover at Jericho, Joshua thought the next smaller city Ai would be just another walkover. They send 3,000 men to attack the city and was routed, leaving 36 of the Israelites dead. Joshua was totally devasted by that experience and fell before the Lord in anguish and despair. That was when the Lord said to Joshua to "Stand up! What are doing down on your face? Israel has sinned."

Israel was consecrated to the Lord through circumcision, so was a holy people set apart for God's glory. What makes them holy is the manifested Presence of God in their midst as symbolised by the Ark of the Presence in the Holies of holy of the Tabernacle (portable temple). Holiness and sin cannot co-exist, just as light and darkness cannot coexist. If God's presence is to remain in the midst of Israel, sin has to be removed. Israel was a kingdom of priests, a holy nation chosen by grace and entered into through faith:

Ex 19:3-6 Then Moses went up to God, and the Lord called to him from the mountain and said, "This is what you are to say to the house of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: 'You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.' These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites."

As much as grace bestows on Israel the unmerited favour of the Lord of the earth, it nevertheless obligated them to be holy. Priests are consecrated to serve the Lord and every Israelite was to be a priest - holy before the Lord. Holiness is a state of being bestowed on Israel by virtue of God's holy presence dwelling among them. However, the holiness can be compromised if sin is tolerated in the camp. Israel experienced defeat at Ai because the presence of God was not with them when they attacked Ai. Sin has compromised the presence and power of God working on their behalf: "Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep... I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction." (v. 11,12).

If it's the presence of God that guarantees success in any Christian endeavour - whether in the marketplace or church - then the absence of God also means failure and defeat. The way to restore holiness in the camp is to get the person who have sinned to confess and forsake the sin. Maybe some may be thinking that this event took place in the Old Testament when Israel was "under law" but such thing would not happen in the New Testament when the church was "under grace". But God has not changed and His presence through the indwelling Holy Spirit makes holiness an even more urgent priority. The story of Annanias and Sapphira and the immediate judgment upon them resulting in their death is recorded for all generations to come (read Acts 5:1-10).

Grace is not an excuse to tolerate sin, but an opportunity to abide in the holy Presence of God in Christ: "If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love." (John 15:7-10, ESV). If Jesus, the Son of God, needed to keep the commandments to abide in the Father's love, what makes us think we can ignore the Father's commandments and still abide in His love? This is presumption, not faith.

Father, we thank You that Your Presence guarantees our success. May You instruct us so that we may walk in obedience to Your Spirit of holiness and abide in Your Presence always. Amen.

Following God's Strategies Brings Success (Joshua 6)

2011-12-03T06:43:00.002+08:00

Joshua 6:1-5 Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the Israelites. No one went out and no one came in. Then the Lord said to Joshua, "See, I have delivered Jericho into your hands, along with its king and its fighting men. March around the city once with all the armed men. Do this for six days. Have seven priests carry trumpets of rams' horns in front of the ark. On the seventh day, march around the city seven times, with the priests blowing the trumpets. When you hear them sound a long blast on the trumpets, have all the people give a loud shout; then the wall of the city will collapse and the people will go up, every man straight in." ...So the Lord was with Joshua, and his fame spread throughout the land.

Before Joshua launched his attack on Jericho, he had an encounter with a man standing with a drawn sword in his hand who identified himself as the "Commander of the army of the Lord" (Joshua 5:13-15). This Commander came with a message: "Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy." This experience reminds Joshua that the Lord is the Commander-in-chief, not him. Since He was the Commander-in-chief, He had specific instructions about the coming battle that He expected Joshua to obey.

When Joshua heard the instructions, he must have thought it was ridiculous: March around Jericho every day for six days in a procession led by seven trumpet-blowing priests in front of the ark and on the seventh day to do the same thing seven times ending with a loud shout by the people. But if the battle is to be the Lord's, so must the strategy be. This strategy was repeated somewhat almost a thousand years later when King Jehoshaphat appointed men to sing to the Lord ahead of the army (2 Chron 20:21-22). The key to defeat the enemies is to lift up God's name through our praise using musical instruments and voice. When we lift up God's name in praise and worship, His presence and power is released in our midst on our behalf to defeat the enemies!

When God promises to "be with us" in our endeavour, He does not mean he is going to be cheer-leading us from the bench, but rather He will join us in the game as the Captain and provide us the strategies to win the game. The key to success in any endeavour is listening to the Captain in the field to do as we are told. It does not matter what work we are engaged in--when the Lord is in it and the strategies are from Him, we turn our secular work into spiritual ministry!

Scripture tells us in Proverbs 3:5-6 to "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight." We are called not to lean on own understanding but to acknowledge the Lord as King and HE will make our paths straight, meaning that the initiative and instruction will come from Him. When we pray and seek the Lord for wisdom and direction in our work, we must expect Him to speak to us, giving us clear instructions. So, we should not be in a hurry to make decisions, but to wait until we have heard clearly His voice.

Father, we want to thank You that You are not a Commander-in-chief who simply delegate his responsibility to us and left everything for us to decide--regarding the what, how and when to do our job. Instead, we look to You to provide us with clear instructions to fight every battle we face in the church and in the marketplace. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

A New Beginning (Joshua 5)

2011-12-02T06:54:00.002+08:00

Josh 5:8-12 And after the whole nation had been circumcised, they remained where they were in camp until they were healed. Then the Lord said to Joshua, "Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you." So the place has been called Gilgal to this day. On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover. The day after the Passover, that very day, they ate some of the produce of the land: unleavened bread and roasted grain. The manna stopped the day after they ate this food from the land; there was no longer any manna for the Israelites, but that year they ate of the produce of Canaan.

The moment Israel crossed the Jordan, three things happened:

1) All males were circumcised: All the males who were not circumcised after the Israelites came out of Egypt forty years ago were circumcised. They ranged from infants to 60 years-old (the oldest males who were still alive were below 20 when Israel begun the 40 years wilderness wandering.) Circumcision is a type of baptism in the New Testament: "In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ, having been buried with him in baptism and raised with him through your faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead" (Col 2:11-12). The Lord told Joshua, "Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you." Egypt was a type of the world and Satanic kingdom. When a person is baptized, God removes the "reproach of Egypt" from him so he is no longer under the rule and power of darkness. Baptism sets us free from Satan's claims over us.

2) They celebrated the Passover: The Passover was a celebration of God's mercy when the angel of death passed over the Hebrew homes on the night before they left Egypt forty years earlier. Jesus on the night before his crucifixion was celebrating the Passover with the disciples when he gave the bread and wine a new meaning: "Take and eat; this is my body...Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins" (Mt 26:26-28). While the circumcision, like baptism, is done once, the Passover like the Lord's Supper is repeated. What these two ordinances of Israel (circumcision and Passover) suggest to us who are in the Church is that Israel was as much a part of God's redeemed people as we are now. Israel has its covenantal symbols (circumcision and Passover) and covenantal obligations to keep Law of Moses while the Church has its covenantal symbols (baptism & Holy Communion) and covenantal obligations to keep the Law of the Spirit of Christ:

Rom 8:1-2 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.

Gal 6:2 Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Rom 13:8-10 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

There are altogether 600+ covenantal obligations under the Law of Moses and there are equally 600+ covenantal obligations under the Law of Christ in the New Testament. Both the old and new covenants were given by grace and received through faith, but their privileges and obligations are different. It's not that Israel in the old covenant has an obligation to keep the laws whereas the Church in the new covenant has no obligation to keep the laws. Each covenant has its obligation to a different set of laws. The old covenant laws of Moses were mostly outward, whereas the new covenant laws of Christ are mostly inward. When Paul says that "Christ is the end of the Law" (Rom. 10:4), he is referring to Law of Moses, not the Law of Christ.

3) The Manna Stopped: When Israel entered the Promised Land and started to eat the produce of the land, the supernatural provision of God (manna) that had kept them alive for 40 years stopped falling from the sky. The manna was a temporary provision and now that the Israelites had access to the produce of the land, the manna became unnecessary. Where there are natural provisions of God, we should not seek the supranatural provision, because the miracle is a temporary provision. Like healing and health: healing is a manna of God when natural means cannot save us. But once we are healed, we should go on to take care of our health through healthy diet and exercise like any normal human being. To expect miracle when God has already provided for us in the natural is to tempt God.

Father in heaven, You are a supernatural and also practical God. You have provided us in many ways - some supranatural, some natural, We want to give You thanks that all blessings are from You and all blessings are supernatural because they began in the supernatural act of God in Creation. May we learn to discern when to expect the supranatural and when to receive the natural blessings from You with equal faith. Amen.

The Solid Rocks of Faith (Joshua 4)

2011-12-01T05:36:00.000+08:00

Josh 4:5-7, 23-24 "Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, 'What do these stones mean?' tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever"...Joshua said to the Israelites, "For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan just what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God."

Our God is the God of memorials - He wants us to remember what He has done so that our faith is based on historical fact, not mere fantasy. The faith of future generations of Israelites is to be founded on solid rocks - twelve to be exact--and not on shifting sands. Faith is not make-belief but trust that grows out of historical evidence of God's faithfulness in the past. The twelve stones serve as a "sign among you" for the future generations, to remind them of God's power and presence among them: "These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever." But they are not meant to create nostalgia of the "good old days", a celebration of past traditions but rather they are to serve as stepping stones into our present and future walk with God: "He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God."

And of course, for the Church, God has also instituted memorials to His faithfulness by leaving behind the Scripture and the Lord's Supper as constant reminders to us of His love and power, not only to Israel and the Church, but to all who would put their faith in Jesus Christ our Saviour. Our faith in God is therefore founded on the solid rock of the Word of God (Scripture) and the Work of the Cross (Lord's Supper) that we might know that He is the Lord of heaven and earth and that we might always love and fear Him.

Father, thank You that You have not only done great things in the past on behalf of Israel and the Church, but You have left behind memorials to remind us of Your faithfulness to Your children. Even as we read Your Scripture daily and partake in the Lord's Supper regularly, may our love and fear of You grow stronger every day. Amen.

Carriers of God's Presence (Joshua 3)

2011-11-30T06:52:00.002+08:00

Josh 3:2-4, 14-17 After three days the officers went throughout the camp, giving orders to the people: "When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests, who are Levites, carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before....So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.

The "ark of the covenant" was mentioned 27 times in the book of Joshua and 9 times in chapter 3 alone. What was the "ark"? This was a chest made of wood but overload with gold. The cover of the chest had two cherubim carved on top of it, with their wings touching. The chest contained three items: Moses' two law tablets, the manna, and Aaron's rod. When the tabernacle was set up, the ark was placed right inside the innermost sanctuary of the tabernacle, called the Holy of Holies, or Most Holy Place. There was a veil separating the ark from the other section of the tabernacle and only the High Priest could enter into the Most Holy Place where the ark was placed, and only once a year on the Day of Atonement. The ark was where the Shekinah Glory (the manifested Presence of God) rested. It symbolizes the Manifested Presence of God in Israel.

Joshua 3 teaches three important lessons about the Ark:

1. It led the way (v.3-4): "When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests, who are Levites, carrying it,you are to move out from your positions and follow it" (v.3). It tells us that God is leading the Israelites. God does not just command us to go, but He comes along with us--and even goes ahead of us to prepare the way for us.

2. It is carried by the priests (v.3,6,8): "Joshua said to the priests, 'Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people.'So they took it up and went ahead of them" (v.3). In the Old Testament, only the priests were allowed to carry the ark, but not the people. The ark, the Presence of God, is holy and so those who carry it must be holy. However, in the New Testament, all believers are members of the "royal priesthood" (1 Pet 2:9) because God has made us "to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth" (Rev 5:10). So, Christians are now the carriers of the Ark of the Presence and we bring God's Presence wherever we go. We don't wait for Sunday to experience God's Presence because He is with us from Monday to Friday in the marketplace.

3. It releases the miracle-power of God (v.15-16): "Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing." Whenever the Presence of God is found, there He works miracles among us. The expression, "the Lord was with" so-and-so is the guarantee of God's presence and power: "And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal the sick." (Luke 5:17). The purpose of Christian worship is to welcome the presence of the Lord in our midst with our heart-felt praise. When God reveals His Presence, we experience divine worship and power in our services.

Lord, may we be carriers of Your Presence into the marketplace so that those do not believe may behold Your glory and experience Your power through our ministry to them. Amen.

Planning is Faith in Action

2011-11-29T06:09:00.000+08:00

Josh 2:1 Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. "Go, look over the land," he said, "especially Jericho." So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there....8 Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, "I know that the Lord has given this land to you and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you...11 When we heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. 12 Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will save us from death"...24 They said to Joshua, "The Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands; all the people are melting in fear because of us."

Despite the promise of His presence and success God gave to Joshua, he nevertheless sent out the two spies to "look over the land, especially Jericho." No one would doubt that Joshua was a man of faith, but why then did he send his spies to "check it out" first? I can think of three possible reasons:

1) Survey the Terrain ("Look over the land"): As a good military commander, Joshua needed to know the terrain. No commander fights a battle without knowing the enemy's terrain and how to deploy his troops. In other words, good planning is not opposed to faith, or we may say that faith is not a license for irrationality. The greater our faith, the greater the need to plan because planning is faith in action. In any ministry or mission, we need a good knowledge of the ground conditions so that our strategies match the actual ground situations. Every ministry takes place in a context - political, cultural, social and economic. When a ministry leader uses the same strategy in every context, he is likely to fail because each context requires different strategies to optimise the deployment of the troops & weapons.

2) Survey the People ("especially Jericho"): Joshua also needed to know specifically the kind of enemies he would be facing - viz., the people dwelling in Jericho. In spiritual as in military warfare, we need to know our enemy and their true state. Our enemy is the devil and his demons. While we should not underestimate their power, neither should we be intimidated by their schemes, because they are defeated already at the Cross. Like the people of Jericho, whenever they know that the children of the Kingdom of God are coming their ways, they "melt with fear." Unfortunately, there are still Christians who will freak out and become paralyzed with fear when they are confronted with the enemy. Instead of the enemy melting with fear, such Christians simply melted -- away! But we need to remember what Jesus said to His disciples in Luke 10:18-19, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you." May we the People of the Lord, march boldly into enemy territories and not stay within the safe confines of the church and do only war games on Sunday with no real enemies in sight.

3) Save the Lost ("show kindness to my family"): We go into enemy territory not on a "search and destroy" mission, but "search and save" the lost who want to come out of the enemy's power. God's mission is always a mercy mission in even the midst of judgment. Joshua's military objective was to destroy the enemies and their infrastructure and to redeem the land and the people for the Lord. Wherever faith is found and there are those seeking salvation, our mission is to help them come out of darkness into the light of the Kingdom of God. Rahab represented those who are doomed for destruction but found grace because she believed that the Lord is the "God in heaven above and on the earth below."

God has called His Church to move into enemy territories, not to seek and destroy but to seek and save. If there is only one soul to be saved, it's worth our time, energy and money.

Lord, deliver us from our selves - our indolence, excuses and inertia. Grant us grace to move out of our comfort zone into enemy territories for it is there that the lost are found. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

Prerequisites for Prosperity & Success (Joshua 1)

2011-11-28T05:33:00.000+08:00

Joshua 1:5-9, 18 "As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go"... "Only be strong and courageous!"

In this first chapter of Joshua, three themes are repeated throughout:

(1) "be strong and courageous" (v.6, 7, 9, 18): Joshua was on the verge of entering Canaan to possess the lands promised to Israel. But to inherit the promises of God require strength to persevere and courage to act in unknown situations. When faced with the unknown, we tend to be filled with fear and anxiety--that is natural and not a sin. However, the way to overcome the paralysis caused by fear and anxiety is to apply strength and courage to the endeavour. Just because there is a promise does not mean we only need to sit on it or even to stand on it--instead, we need to walk and run with it. There is no substitute for strong and courageous actions to be "prosperous and successful" (v.8).

(2) "I will be with you" (v.5, 9, 17): God's presence is the guarantee of prosperity and success in every endeavour--whether spiritual or secular. We need God's presence in every project we are engaged in--whether done in the church, in the marketplace or in the family. God's promise of "I will be with you" is our guarantee of victory and successful. When Jesus gave His Great Commission to His disciples in Matthew 28:18-20, he concludes with the promise: "I will be with you always!" Without God's presence, all our actions may end in failure, but with His presence, we are guaranteed prosperity and success.

(3) "Be careful to obey" (v.7, 8, 16, 17): In the midst of God's presence, we must be careful to do everything that is consistent with His character as exemplified in the laws. Keeping the laws is not "under law" but "under grace" because it means the privilege of living by God's standards and walking in a way that is consistent with His character and His Holy Spirit. We are "under law" only when we put our trust in the Law to save us, but we are under grace when we keep the law because we are already saved by grace through faith. Faith is demonstrated in our obedience to the law. We are "under law" if we think keeping the laws will save us. Grace does not make obedience unnecessary but grace makes obedience possible. Joshua is under grace, but he is commanded to be careful to obey the commandments.

So, to be "prosperous and successful" , we need to practise three things:
(1) always act with strength and courage--don't allow fear to paralyse us from acting;
(2) practise the presence of God--keeping God "online" by remembering to acknowledge and invoke His presence everytime we do or say something
(3) obey the commands of God as spelt out in the New Testament (there are 600+ commands in the New Testament alone!).

Father, we thank You we are saved by grace through faith so as to produce good works. May Your Spirit empower us to walk in obedience so that we may bear fruit that will glorify You. Amen.

Signs of the Kingdom (Mark 16:15-20)

2011-11-24T06:41:00.000+08:00

Mark 16:15-20 He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned." ...Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it.

The Gospel of Mark ends with the challenge to preach the good news (gospel) to "all creation." Here we have a description of the 3-fold aspects of true conversion: "whoever believes and is baptized will be saved...Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it."

1) Upward Conversion to Christ: "he who believes..." Faith opens our heart to Christ as Lord and starts us on a new relationship with Him. That is the first dimension of conversion - an upward conversion. This is analogous to conception in physical birth--a new life has started!
2) Inward Conversion to Christ's Community: "and is baptzed". After delivery, there is an immediate post-natal care that includes the cutting of the unbilical cord, getting the baby to take its first breath and the cleaning up of the baby before presenting it to its family. The cleaning up process is analogous to water baptism. It prepares us for membership into God's family, which is Christ's Community. It is in the context of Christ's Community that we discover identity in Christ and develop our spiritual gifts and ministry to serve other members of the Church.
3) Outward Conversion to Christ's World: "Then the disciples went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it." Like infants that have finally become children we are re-introduced into the world to contribute to it and to change it. We need to be converted back to the Christ's world from which we have been rescued in order to extend the presence and power of the Kingdom of God into places where demons and diseases still reign. When we proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom in these pre-believing places, the Lord himself will come in our midst to work with us and amongst us: He will confirm His word with accompanying "signs" viz., the casting out demons and healing of diseases. The reason why some churches do not see more of these signs is because they are not involved in proclaiming the Gospel in the world, in places and among people where darkness still reigns. And such people are seldom found in the safe and saved environment within the four walls of the church.

Jesus has commanded his disciples to "heal the sick there, and say to them,'The kingdom of God has come near to you'" (Luke 10:9). The more we are converted outwardly to Christ's mission to the world, the more we witness these signs of the Kingdom. These signs are for the unsaved to convince unbelievers of the truth of the Gospel of the Kingdom and to confirm the word of God: "the Lord worked with them and confirmed his word by the signs that accompanied it."

May we be fully converted--upwardly to Christ as Head of the Church, then inwardly to Christ's Body, and finally outwardly to Christ's world. Lord, I thank You that the world does not belong to Satan. He is the usurper and all Creation belongs to You. Help us to go and reclaim Your world so that Your rule and reign may be extended to all places where darkness, disease and death now reign. In Christ's name, Amen.

Curious Facts about Jesus' Crucifixion (Mark 15)

2011-11-23T06:25:00.000+08:00

Mark 15:23-24, 37-38 Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him.. With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

There are two curious facts in the Mark's account of Jesus' crucifixion:

1) Jesus was offered wine mixed with myrrh: Jesus was offered wine mixed with myrrh before he was crucified. This concoction was supposed to be analgesic, given to those to be crucified to help alleviate the pain. But Jesus refused it! Jesus' self-sacrifice was to suffer all the pain and agony of the Cross on behalf of sinful man in order to redeem them. To alleviate the pain would be to undermine the process of redemption because he came to bear the full brunt of divine wrath upon Himself so that nothing is left for us to take.

2) Temple curtain torn into two from top to bottom : Another curious fact is that the temple curtain separating the Most Holy Place (where only the high priest could enter once a year) and the Holy Place (where all the other priests could enter daily) was torn - not from bottom up from top down! This suggests a divine act - God has torn down the curtain that has prevented direct access to Himself up to that point because Jesus has now paid the full price of sin. The atoning sacrifice has been offered and now God is fully accessible to anyone who comes via the Cross. There is no need for a curtain to hide God's presence. So, we read in Hebrews 10:19-22, "Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water."

The way into the Most Holy Place is now made possible through the shed blood of Jesus. No longer do we need to come before God with a "guilty conscience" but rather with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith. We have been cleansed of all sins and of all guilt and condemnation because Jesus paid the full price. Let's not make His death void by engaging in self-doubt and self-condemnation. We are fully accepted in Christ: "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding" (Ephesians 1:7-8).

Lord Jesus, thank You for taking upon Yourself the full punishment of our sin, so that we can be spared from the agony of death again. Thank You that the access to the Father is now open to us without any more guilt and condemnation from the Father. Amen.

The Beginning of the Birth Pains (Mark 13:5-8)

2011-11-21T07:31:00.001+08:00

Mark 13:5-8 Jesus said to them: "Watch out that no one deceives you. 6 Many will come in my name, claiming, 'I am he,' and will deceive many. 7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 8 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains...

As we read news of unusual natural disasters & calamities - earthquakes, tsunamis, unprecedented flooding in many places, terrorism, wars against terrorism, territorial disputes, economic troubles in the Eurozone--Jesus' warning of the "beginning of birth pains" has a very contemporary echo. The Four Horses of the Apocalypse as recorded Revelations 6:1-8 seem to have gone out in our generation:

1) The White Horse: "I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest" (Rev. 6:2). There are two interpretations of the White Horse: one, it is a symbol of the triumphant Church in the last days conquering, with Christ as the Rider. He carries only the bow because the Arrow of the Gospel of the Kingdom has gone out and the enemy has been defeated. Jesus said in Mark 13:10 that "the gospel must first be preached to all nations" before He returns to receive the Church. Even today, the Gospel has gone out in various ways as more and more people are coming to Christ. The Gospel of the Kingdom is going forth in power with accompanying signs and wonders to attest to its reality. The second interpretation is that it represents false Christs and false prophets going out to deceive the world. There is no doubt both events are happening in our generation.

2) The Red Horse: "Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other. To him was given a large sword" (Rev 6:4). There is little doubt this refers to Jesus' "wars and rumors of wars." (Mark 13:8). As nations compete for scarce resources to fuel their economic growth (oil, water and minerals), there is increasing tensions as we witness the assertive rise of China as the next superpower in the Asia-Pacific region to challenge the United States, even as Europe is engulfed in its own monetary crisis. There will be in coming years much economic and political uncertainties. Will these looming crises trigger of another major world military conflicts, causing Jesus' prophecy to come to pass: "Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom"?

3) The Black Horse: "I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, "A quart of wheat for a day's wages, and three quarts of barley for a day's wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!" (Rev 6:5-6). Clearly, the Black Horse is a symbol of economic depression in the world. Jesus warned of "famines" and there will be scarcity of food in the coming global economic depression. We are expecting food prices to inflate and it will soon be "a quart of wheat for a day's wages" in many parts of the world.

4) The Pale Horse: "I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth" (Rev 6:8). Here is death brought on by wars, natural disasters, diseases and wild beasts. Death and destruction will spread around the globe. Jesus describes the coming days as "days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now — and never to be equaled again" (Mark 13:19).

As we watch world events through the lens of biblical prophecy, we should be asking ourselves what the Church should be doing in the midst of these looming crises. The White Horse shows us the Church going out conquering in the midst of death, diseases and destruction. That is the priority of the church - not just warming the pews every Sunday in air-con comfort, contemplating our own good fortunes for being the Elect and the Select, but being stirred up with a compassionate and compelling desire to go out with the Gospel to save the lost while there is still time.

Father, may You fill us with Your Spirit to empower us to be Your witnesses, to go out into the world with the Gospel of the Kingdom and to rescue the lost and bring them into Your Kingdom. Amen.

Asking the Right Question (Mark 12:29-34)

2011-11-20T10:32:00.000+08:00

Mark 12:29-34 "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." "Well said, teacher," the man replied. "You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices." 34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, "You are not far from the kingdom of God."

In this chapter, three groups of people asked Jesus three questions:
(1) Pharisees & Herodians: "Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar?" (v.14)
(2) Sadducees: "At the resurrection, whose wife will a remarried widow be?" (v.23)
(3) Scribe: "Of all the commandments, which is the greatest?" (v.28)

Of the 3 questions asked, the first one was hypocritical and the second one was hypothetical but they were both traps. The first is a political trap: "Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar?" The second is a theological trap: "At the resurrection, whose wife will she be?" But both questioners got a resounding rebuke from Jesus for asking the wrong questions.

To the first question, Jesus replied: "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's." In effect, Jesus is saying, "You're confusing the priorities of the earthly and the heavenly kingdoms." To the second question, Jesus said: "You are badly mistaken!" In the resurrection, people will "neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven" (v.25). The first two groups asked the wrong questions about the Kingdom of God, and they came to the wrong conclusions. If we want to enter and experience the Kingdom of God, we have got to ask the right question.

The third person, a scribe, asked the right question about the Kingdom: "Of all the commandments, which is the greatest?" This person did not receive a condemnation from Jesus but a commendation: ""You are not far from the kingdom of God."

If we ask the right questions, we get the right answers which are life-transforming. If we ask wrong questions they lead us nowhere - they are dead-ends. Wrong questions (no better how intellectual, intriguing or stimulating) are useless because they lead a person to wrong conclusions. When the scribe asked, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" (v.28), he got from Jesus an answer that would ultimately transform not only his life but the lives of millions that followed after him: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."

Kingdom living is not so complicated that one needs a theological degree to describe it. In fact, it boils down to two simple commands: Love God and love men. Or if we were to reduce it even further to just one word - it would be LOVE. The Apostle John writes in 1 John 4:7-8, "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."

May God grant us the grace to simplify our faith, and not complexify it with theological jargon. When the great Swiss reformed theologian Karl Barth was asked to summarize the theology contained in his 14-volume Church Dogmatics, he thought for a moment and replied: "Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so." Amen.

Faith & Fig Tree (Mark 11:22-23)

2011-11-19T06:28:00.000+08:00

Mark 11:22-25 "Have faith in God," Jesus answered. "I tell you the truth, if anyone says to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."

In Mark chapter 11, we read about Jesus cursing a fig tree because it had no fruit (vv.12-14). And the following day, when the disciples passed by the same fig tree, they found that it had withered from the roots. So, when Peter saw it, he exclaimed to Jesus, "Rabbi, look! The fig tree you cursed has withered!" (v.21). Then Jesus replied as above: "Have faith in God." It seems like there is no connection between the cursing of the fig tree and the his reply to Peter. Why did Jesus say, "Have faith in God" in response to Peter's amazement that the fig tree Jesus cursed had withered?

Matthew's version of Jesus' response to Peter in Matthew 21:21-22 gives us a clue:

Jesus replied, I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done. If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."

In essence, Jesus' cursing of the fig tree was an exercise in faith: "not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain..." What is faith according to this fig-tree cursing incident? I can find three characteristics of faith here:

1) Faith is public: In other words, if we have faith in God, we will exercise it publicly. Faith is not something private, "between me and God" exercised on weekend away from the crowd. Jesus' faith was public and exercised in the arena of common everyday life (he was hungry). It was not some kind of ecclesiastical activity done within the walls of the church. The kind of faith Jesus demonstrated is faith exercised in the marketplace decisions in full view of everyone. The secularization of the public arena has made many Christians shrank from public exercise of their faith. This is inconsistent with Jesus' understanding of faith as something as natural as looking for food to eat when we are hungry.

2) Faith is vocal: He did not just believe in his heart but he also confessed with his mouth: "May no one ever eat fruit from you again." What we believe in our heart, our mouth speaks. Jesus has said in Luke 6:45, "The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks." Our heart faith is released in mouth confession. So, Jesus reiterated in Mark 11:23 "if anyone says to this mountain." Whatever may be our mountain (sicknesses, work challenges or life crises), we exercise faith by speaking to the mountain before us, saying, "Go, throw yourself into the sea!" If we have doubts, we will find it hard to verbalise this confession. But by saying it out loud, we affirm whatever little "mustard seed" faith we may have and allow God to bring His power to bear on our behalf.

3) Faith is persevering: Jesus says God's power is set in motion after speaking to the mountain, but the speaker must not "doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen." Confession is the first part of this act of faith. But we have to guard against doubts creeping in along the way. Faith stands on God's promises (not our wishful thinking), and doubt is contradicting the promises of God. Confession starts faith in motion, but is completed as we persevere in God's promises and not doubt. Notice that the outcome of such faith is set in passive tense ("it will be done") because faith looks to God himself (not the strength of our faith) to make things happen. We step out in faith by speaking out against the mountain publicly and we resist any temptation to doubt by putting our confidence in the power of God.

Father, strengthen our faith in You! Help us to be unashamed of our faith in You, declaring our faith publicly, vocally and steadfastly. Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

Giving Up to Gain More! (Mark 10:28-31)

2011-11-18T07:32:00.002+08:00

Mark 10:28-31 Peter said to him, "We have left everything to follow you!" "I tell you the truth," Jesus replied, "no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields — and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last first."

Earlier in this chapter, we read about a rich young man who came to Jesus to ask, "what must I do to inherit ETERNAL LIFE?" (Mark 10:17). When Jesus mentioned six of the Ten Commandments, the young man said he kept them all from childhood. But then Jesus said: "One thing you lack. Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven" (Mark 10:21). When the young man heard that, his face fell and he went away because he had great wealth.

If this young man would have stayed on a little longer, he would have heard how Jesus responded to Peter's declaration that "We have left everything to follow you!" Jesus' reply to Peter was: "I tell you the truth, no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields--and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, ETERNAL LIFE." In short, giving up EVERYTHING to follow Christ is not LOSS but GAIN--not only in the age to come but right now here in this life: "a hundred times as much in this present age." It reminds me what Jim Elliot wrote: "He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." The "gain" that Jim Elliot was thinking of is what happens after we die. But Jesus' promise of gain is what happens BEFORE we die - "in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields)".

So you can have the cake and eat it too! The young man was mistaken - he thought it was a win-lose situation Jesus presented him. In fact, Jesus presented the young man an offer he could not lose - winning in this present life and in the life to come! Hallelujah!

Thank You Father that giving up everything for You and Your Gospel is not LOSS but GAIN--not just spiritually but emotionally and materially. Amen.

Everything is Possible When We Believe (Mark 9:23-27)

2011-11-17T06:43:00.000+08:00

Mark 9:23-27 "'If you can'?" said Jesus. "Everything is possible for him who believes." Immediately the boy's father exclaimed, "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" When Jesus saw that a crowd was running to the scene, he rebuked the evil spirit. "You deaf and mute spirit," he said, "I command you, come out of him and never enter him again." The spirit shrieked, convulsed him violently and came out. The boy looked so much like a corpse that many said, "He's dead." But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him to his feet, and he stood up.

This story is about a father's small faith who nevertheless experienced a great miracle of deliverance for his demonised son because he was willing to ask Jesus to help him overcome his unbelief. We all have been there in the past (maybe even now) where our faith in Jesus is so small that our prayer always begins with, "If it is Thy will..." Jesus would have responded "If it is my will?" The issue is not whether it is God's will to heal and set people free; the issue is really whether we believe it is God's will to heal and set people free, for Jesus has said: "Everything is possible for him who believes." The problem of unanswered prayer is not found in GOD, but in US. Mark 6:5-6 records an incredible incident where Jesus couldn't heal many people because of their unbelief: "He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their lack of faith." It was the same Jesus, but few in that town were healed because of their lack of faith. The reply that Jesus gave to this unbelieving father is a blank cheque for all of us: "EVERYTHING is possible for him who BELIEVES."

We all struggles with issue of faith daily - some over sickness and health, some over job challenges, some over financial difficulties, some over children's behaviour, some over relationships with colleagues & family members and some over the salvation of our loved ones. Whatever may be the issue confronting us, it is very easy to despair of there being a breakthrough because we have asked for prayers but nothing has happened. And like the father, we have prayed but our prayer begins with: "If you can do anything" or "If it is Your will..." The words IF and BELIEVE are mutually exclusive. There cannot be an IF if there is a BELIEVE, because IF suggests that some things are NOT possible with God ("If you can...") but BELIEVE affirms that EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE with God!

Whatever may be the challenge facing us today, let's not pray with this preamble: "If You can/If it's Thy will..." Instead, let's confess, "Help me overcome my unbelief!" The devil's taunt to Jesus is: "If you are the Son of God..." IF undermines faith. To have faith is to believe that EVERYTHING is POSSIBLE WITH GOD! No "If's" and "buts' but only believe!

Father, help us overcome our unbelief when our faith is wavering. For we know that we can hinder Your power by our lack of faith. Instead, grant us faith to believe that all things are possible with God! Make us Your channel of divine power to bring salvation, healing and deliverance to people around us. Amen.

Releasing Kingdom Presence & Power (Mark 5:14-20)

2011-11-13T06:51:00.001+08:00

Mark 5:14-20 Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid.

Mark 5:32-34 Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. He said to her, "Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering."

Mark 5:40-43 After he put them all out, he took the child's father and mother and the disciples who were with him, and went in where the child was. He took her by the hand and said to her, "Talitha koum!" (which means, "Little girl, I say to you, get up!"). Immediately the girl stood up and walked around (she was twelve years old). At this they were completely astonished. He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this, and told them to give her something to eat.

These three amazing stories of Jesus' healing in Mark 5 tell us how Jesus not only preached about the Kingdom, but He also demonstrated its presence and power in His ministry.

(1) A mentally deranged man delivered from a legion of demons (1-20): The number of demons that went into this one man must be at least 2,000, for if we assume one demon went into one pig, there would be at least 2,000 demons that were cast out! A Roman Legion comprises up to 5,000 soldiers, so the number of demons cast out could well be up to 5,000! Demons occupy no "space" as they are not spatial beings and they can enter into one person by the thousands. So, when this man was delivered from the demons within him, he was "in his right mind." Some form of mental problems may have its source in demonic infestation.

(2) A woman healed of hemorrhage (21-34): No doctors were able to cure her problem, but when she touched Jesus in faith, she experienced healing. Faith is essential if we want to be healed. Pastors and evangelists need to preach more from the Gospels if they want their hearers to grow in their faith in Jesus.

(3) A 12 year-old girl raised from the dead (35-43): What a moving and amazing story of a father's perseverance of faith, despite the bad news that her daughter was dead. It was like the end of the road - game over. Yet Jesus encouraged the father not to give up. For Jesus, there is no such thing as "impossible" and no such thing as "it's game over, so let's quit!" I can imagine the joy of this father when he saw that his faith and perseverance paid off as his daughter was rescued from the dead. Death has lost its sting! Hallelujah!

Yet as amazing as these stories are, Jesus made an astounding promise in John 14:12 -- "whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father." His saying, "I am going to the Father" refers to the Holy Spirit's outpouring when he went back to His Father to receive the "promise of the Father" (Holy Spirit) on behalf of the Church.

We need to see more "greater works" ministry in the Church of Jesus Christ worldwide. That is the potential of Alpha ministry -- to restore the Gospel of the Kingdom in every church! We need to teach churches to "expect great things from God" and to "attempt great things for God" (William Carey). We need to not only talk about the Gospel but also demonstrate it, for Paul has said in 1 Corinthians 4:20, "For the Kingdom is not about talk, but power!"

Lord, You have taught us to pray daily "Your Kingdom come!" but we have managed to turn this powerful prayer into a ritualistic one. May Your Spirit open our hearts and minds to move us into a higher level of faith in our ministry so that every church will experience the "greater works" that You have promised! Thank You Jesus! Amen.

Three Commitments of Discipleship (Mark 3:13-15)

2011-11-11T06:18:00.000+08:00

Mark 3:13-15 Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. He appointed twelve — designating them apostles-that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons.

Here we read that Jesus "called to him those he wanted". Jesus takes the initiative in calling us. We do not become disciples of our own accord but only as a response to His call. So that is why Jesus said in Matthew 22:14, "For many are called, but few are chosen."

But who are the "chosen" ones? All who "came to him." So a disciple is not someone who goes to church but someone who responds to Jesus' call to follow Him: "Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Matt 4:19). The ultimate evidence of our following is becoming fishers of men.

What then are the commitments of true discipleship that turns a follower of Christ into a fisher of men?

(1) A Commitment to Spend Time with Christ: "that they might be with him." Jesus said in John 17:3 that eternal life is knowing God and Jesus Christ His Son. Spending time daily studying God's word and responding in prayer is one important pathway to knowing God. But this is not just an activity in the morning or evening or whatever time we have our Quiet Time, but an attitude to have throughout the day. We need to keep our communication with God "online" 24x7.

(2) A Commitment to Share the Gospel: "he might send them out to preach." When we see the word "preach" we think of the pastor "preaching" on Sunday to the converted. But that's not how the word "preach" is used in the New Testament. Preaching in the New Testament is heralding the Good News--it is about proclaiming and sharing the message of the Kingdom. The primary target is not the converted but the unconverted. So it can't be done on Sunday alone within the walls of the church. This "preaching" (proclaiming the Good News) has to be done in the marketplace & community where we work, live and even play. Alpha is a good tool to get the Gospel out into the marketplace and our community.

(3) A Commitment to Set People Free: "to have authority to drive out demons." Paul says in 1 Corinthians 4:20 that "the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power." There are many Christians, though having come to faith in Christ, are still oppressed by evil spirits so that they are unable to do the will of God. True discipleship must give the people power to set others free from demonic controls. Power evangelism is not an option but a necessity as true disciple of Christ.

True discipleship is therefore a commitment to spend time with Christ, to evangelise and to set people free.

Father, may Your Kingdom come and Your will be done in and through us. Amen.

Real Evidence of Discipleship (Mt 4:18-22).

2011-11-04T06:46:00.002+08:00

Matt 4:18-22 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. "Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men." At once they left their nets and followed him. Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

Jesus' first disciples were two sets of brothers--Peter & Andrew, James & John. And they were both busy casting or preparing their nets to catch fish. Jesus came and invited them to a higher call - no longer catching fishes, but catching men. A few observations about the kind of people Jesus selected to be His followers:

1. They were busy people: Peter & Andrew were busy casting a net into the lake, while James and John were busy preparing their nets. A person's potential for greater work of the Gospel is demonstrated first in their faithfulness to their secular vocation. God calls busy people because busy people are motivated people. "I'm very busy" is not an excuse for not getting into Kingdom work but the very reason for Kingdom work.

2. They were fishermen: Jesus called Peter, Andrew, James and John to become "fishers of men" precisely because they were fishermen. Their vocational skills and knowledge were transferable to Kingdom work. God has already prepared them for spiritual work through their "secular" vocation even before they were called. It is important for Christians who are currently working in the marketplace not to think of their work as irrelevant to the ministry God has called them to do. In fact, our workplace may be the ground where our ministry takes place. Nevertheless, just as God has prepared Moses for leadership of Israel through the wilderness by letting him spend 40 years leading flocks of sheep in the same area, so He has prepared each one of us who are in the marketplace for the same kind of work & ministry. Ministry should not be seen as "recreational" -- something different we do from our work to serve as a "break" from the daily grind of the workplace. Rather, ministry is simply an extension of what we do in the marketplace - using the same attitudes, skills and knowledge for Kingdom work.

3. They left their nets & boats: Once they caught the larger vision of the Kingdom ministry, we read that Peter and Andrew "left their nets" while James and John "left the boat and their father" to follow Jesus. For some people, God may call us to let go of our secular jobs in order to give ourselves full-time to Kingdom work. But Kingdom work is not be equated with church work. There are many expressions of Kingdom work -- and Kingdom work ought to be done in places where people are not members of the Kingdom. Such people are seldom found inside the four walls of the church on Sunday mornings! Jesus and His disciples moved from place to place in the marketplace of their days. They ran their "services" in publicly accessible places - marketplaces, open spaces (mountain plains), etc. The only "confined" places they conducted their "services" were in home and in the outer courts of the temple precinct.

Jesus called his disciples to follow Him so that they could become "fishers of men." The implication is that they were to do their ministry among people who were non-followers of Jesus. Jesus' call to ministry is not to fish for fishes already in the aquariums (translated "churches"), but to go where fishes are uncaught, viz., in the marketplace. Unfortunately, roughly 80-90% of a typical church budget is spent on staff and maintenance of buildings that are used primarily for "members only." We need to reverse the percentages - to release the bulk of our church budget to fish for the lost, not just feeding the fishes in the acquarium. In fact, the fishes that are caught should be taught to follow Jesus so that they would evolve into fishers of men, not remain fishes requiring constant care and nurture.

The real test of obedience of Christians to the Lord is not evidenced by their bible knowledge but evidenced by the number of lost fishes they have caught for God's Kingdom. This is Jesus' intended goal when He invites us to follow Him: "Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." What a privilege and joy to see people coming into the Kingdom!

Father, help us all to follow You diligently so that we may become fishers of men. Amen.

The Kingdom Has Arrived! (Mt 4:12-17)

2011-11-03T06:52:00.002+08:00

Matt 4:12-17 When Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, he returned to Galilee. Leaving Nazareth, he went and lived in Capernaum, which was by the lake in the area of Zebulun and Naphtali—to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah: "Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the way to the sea, along the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned." From that time on Jesus began to preach, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near."

Jesus started his ministry in Galilee--the "Galilee of the Gentiles". Galilee was at the cross roads of international trades, and so there were many Gentile traders staying or passing by Galilee. Jesus' appearance and preaching brought the light of the Gospel to "those living in darkness.. in the land of the shadow of death." But the Good News (Gospel) came with Jesus Christ - the light has come and darkness and death would soon be dispelled.

Jesus came preaching his startling message that brought hope to a dying people: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." But what did Jesus mean when He said the "kingdom of heaven is near." When I was a young Christian, I was taught that Jesus was referring to his Second Coming. In fact, the cross references were found in the following Gospel passages:

Matt 10:23 "I tell you the truth, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes."
Matt 16:28 "I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
Mark 9:1 And he said to them, "I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God come with power."
Luke 9:27 "I tell you the truth, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God."

But if the coming of the Kingdom is equivalent to the Second Coming of Christ, then Jesus' prophecy failed because after more than 2,000 years, He has not returned -- and all his hearers surely had since died. So, did Jesus make a mistake - or was it us who have made the mistake? Well for many years, I tried not to go near these passages, especially Matthew 10:23 & 16:28. It seems like the reference to the "Son of Man" surely must be pointing to the Second Coming and I didn't want to be found "twisting" Scripture to explain why Jesus was mistaken--if we interpret this as a reference to His Second Coming. I remember I was once asked to clarify Matthew 10:23 and tried to bluff my way through, but the questioner looked confused but remained unconvinced!

Yet if we read these passages carefully, we realize that Jesus assumed that these people who would witness the coming of the "Son of Man" and the "Kingdom of God" would die after they saw these momentous events: for "they will not taste death before" they saw the coming the Kingdom. So, Jesus could not have been referring to His Second Coming because the Second Coming will spell the end of this age (and the end of death!): "There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away" (Rev 21:4). So, whatever Jesus meant in the Gospel passages quoted above about the "Son of Man" and the "Kingdom of God" coming within the lifetime of his hearers, He could not have meant the Second Coming, for that will mark the beginning of a new order of things where death is no more and those who witness that climactic event would never taste death ever!

So what then is Jesus talking about? I believe that He was referring to His Resurrection (Jesus returning from the dead in his glorified body) and the subsequent coming of the Spirit to usher in the Kingdom of God in power on the Day of Pentecost. Clearly, Jesus associates the coming of the Kingdom of God with the coming of the Holy Spirit: "if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you" (Matt 12:28). These two events (Resurrection & Pentecost) took place within the lifetime of the hearers and 40 days after Jesus's resurrection, the Holy Spirit came in power.

Hallelujah, the coming of Kingdom of God is no more "near" but "here"! That is why Paul could refer to the Kingdom of God in the present tense in Romans 14:17, "For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." The Gospel of the Kingdom is not for the dead but for the living! Salvation is not life after death, but life before and beyond death!

Lord, we thank You that Your Gospel is for the living, not the dead. You have taught us to pray, "Your Kingdom come!" And we have seen Your kingdom come in glory in our churches and workplaces whenever and wherever we welcome Your Spirit into our midst. Amen.

Temptations of Sustenance, Security & Significance

2011-11-02T06:15:00.000+08:00

Matt 4:1-11 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. The tempter came to him and said, "If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread." Jesus answered, "It is written: 'Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.'" Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down. For it is written: "'He will command his angels concerning you, and they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'" Jesus answered him, "It is also written: 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'" Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. "All this I will give you," he said, "if you will bow down and worship me." Jesus said to him, "Away from me, Satan! For it is written: 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.'" Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him.

Note that it is the Spirit that led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the devil, which means that temptation is allowed by God to try our character--whether we have what it takes to resist evil. Temptation is not sin yet, but it can lead to sin. However, temptation is allowed to reveal any weakness within us and to confirm our strength in the Lord. While the Lord has taught us to pray, "Lead us not into temptation", it is not so much a prayer of avoidance but of deliverance - not to yield to temptation. However, in our daily interactions, we may face many situations where our character is tested. We need to pray for deliverance from such temptations.

The first temptation of Jesus is directed at his physical need for SUSTENANCE. Note that temptation does not come in obviously sinful form. It's often deceptive and dressed up with good intentions. Eating when you are hungry is not sin--it is a legitimate need. The issue here is not food but authority--would Jesus listen to the devil's or God's voice? Even if the devil's voice is suggesting something legitimate (like eating), it becomes sin when it is not of God. So Paul exhorts us in 1 Cor 10:31 "whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." Many times, the devil's temptation appeals to legitimate needs of ours and when we fail to discern the source, we fall into sin. Jesus' reply reveals the heart of this temptation - obedience to God's word or the devil's word: "Man does not live by bread alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God."

The second temptation of Jesus is directed at his psychological need for SECURITY. The devil wanted Jesus to prove that God would rescue him when he faced dangers, quoting Scripture to support his temptation! So, the devil suggested that Jesus should put God's word to the test by jumping off the top of the temple. But Jesus' reply is: "Do not put the Lord your God to a test." Notice that Jesus submitted to God's word rather than the devil's suggestion. Again the devil appealed to Jesus' legitimate need for security in God and suggested Jesus tested God's promise in His word. Jesus rejected this suggestion. Unfortunately, many believers put God to a test daily when they eat recklessly while claiming God's healing promises. We cannot put ourselves in life-threatening situations and expect God to deliver us. Scripture is quite clear about this: "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows." (Gal 6:7).

The final temptation of Jesus is directed at his spiritual need for SIGNIFICANCE. The devil offered Jesus the short-cut to self-actualization of becoming King of kings--minus the Cross. The temptation is to have the Crown without the Cross. It is an offer of significance without the need to carry the self-denying cross. Many Christians have yielded to this temptation of significance in the workplaces by compromising their moral principles and ethical values because it's too painful to take the integrity stand - to go against the grain of profit-at-any-cost ethics in the marketplace. The need for significance is a legitimate one because God has promised to exalt those who humble themselves--but only through the self-denying way of the Cross. There can be no Crown without the Cross. The short-cut to prosperity and success is a deadly temptation. Jesus' reply to the devil is: "Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only" - that is the true path to significance, not only in this world but also in the world to come. The power to resist the temptation of worldly significance is to worship God and serve Him only.

Father, help us discern Your voice in the midst of seductive voices coming from the devil and the world to get our sustenance, security and significance apart from obedience to You. May You deliver us from temptations to take short-cuts to achieve these legitimate goals. Fill us with Your presence and the vision of Your Kingdom. May we always seek first Your Kingdom and righteousness. In Jesus' name, Amen.

The Blessings of Water Baptism

2011-10-31T07:05:00.000+08:00

Matt 3:13-17 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to be baptized by John. But John tried to deter him, saying, "I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?" Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." Then John consented. As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

Jesus came to John to be baptised. Since Jesus had no sin, why did He let John baptize Him? When John protested that he needed to be baptised by Jesus instead, Jesus' reply was that it was proper in order to fulfil "all righteousness." What could Jesus have meant by that saying? I suggest that the "righteousness" refers to the Kingdom blessings all believers will receive though this act of obedience of faith:

(1) Membership of God's Kingdom: As the Firstborn of the New Creation, He set the example for baptism as the entry point into the Kingdom of God. As in Adam, all sinned, so in Christ, all are made righteous. Jesus Christ fulfilled this requirement of water baptism to pave the way for all other new creations to join the Church, of which He is the Head.
(2) Reception of the Holy Spirit. As the Prototype of the New Creation, He established the pattern for reception of the Holy Spirit as one of blessings of water baptism. The heaven opened up and the Spirit descended on Him like a dove. Here is what will happen in all future water baptism - the coming upon new believers of the Spirit. Whether we call this infilling, baptism or indwelling of the Spirit to me is not so important as the fact that water baptism is the occasion for the Spirit's empowerment of all new believers to become witnesses of Christ (Acts 1:8). In the Ancient Church, this practice of water baptism is always accompanied by the laying on of hands by the presbyter for the reception of the Spirit, in their prayer, "Come Holy Spirit".
(3) Consecration for Service: As the High Priest of our confession, Jesus submitted himself to the ritual cleansing for the priestly service just as the Aaronic priests who were washed and anointed with oil as part of their consecration for service, as recorded in Ex 40:12-13, "Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting and wash them with water. Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments, anoint him and consecrate him so he may serve me as priest." So both elements were present in Jesus' baptism - the cleansing with water and the anointing of the Spirit. Water baptism is the consecration of new believers for service before God.
(4) Seal of Approval by the Father: NT water baptism is not just about removal of sin but the approval of God: a voice from heaven declared (and continues to declare): ""This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." In every water baptism, God affirms the one who is being baptised as His special child "whom I love; with him I am well pleased."

What a privilege NT baptism is! It is more than just a symbolic public expression of our faith. Rather, it marks the blessings of the Kingdom life: viz., membership in the Kingdom, the reception of the Spirit, consecration for service and experiencing the seal of approval by our heavenly Father regarding our new status as sons and daughters of God! What a joyous occasion and life-transforming experience water baptism is when received in faith!

O Father, how we have trivialised water baptism and made it optional, as though it is largely a symbolic act, devoid of any spiritual realities. May Your Holy Spirit restore to Your Church the urgency and privilege of water baptism, so that new converts may experience the righteousness of the Kingdom right from the start of their Christian life! Amen.

Regeneration & Repentance (Mt 3:7-12)

2011-10-30T06:44:00.001+08:00

Matt 3:7-12 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: "You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father.' I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire. I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me will come one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not fit to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor, gathering his wheat into the barn and burning up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

According to John the Baptist, genuine repentance will produce the fruit of character transformation. But yet character transformation is impossible apart from the work of the Spirit. So, can the natural man who is unregenerated truly "repent"? Here in this context, John the Baptist mentioned the coming of the Spirit that will result in the separation of the wheat and the chaff. So, he is clearly linking the two idea of regeneration and repentance with the coming of the Spirit.

I used to think that a person must repent before he can be regenerated by the Spirit. But I now realise that repentance presumes regeneration and is a gift of God, arising from the same gracious work of the Spirit.

The following Scriptures suggest this idea of repentance as an act of God, rather than man:

John 16:8-9 "When he (the Spirit) comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment."
Acts 11:18 When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, "So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life."

While the natural man may experience the feeling of guilt and shame because of the consequences of his actions (Judas Iscariot is an example of remorse), only the Holy Spirit can convict a person of true guilt in the context of divine righteousness and judgement (Simon Peter is an example of repentance). Paul himself makes a distinction between the two kinds of sorrow in 2 Cor 7:10, "Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death." To require a natural man to repent in order to produce godly fruit is impossible apart from the Spirit's work. The repentance that leads to salvation has to start with the Spirit's work of conviction resulting in repentance and good fruits.

So on the Day of Pentecost, Peter was able to call for repentance only after the people were "cut to the heart", presumably because their spiritual eyes were already opened by the Holy Spirit to see the true nature of their guilt in the context of Peter's message of divine righteousness and judgement:

Acts 2:37-38 When the people heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?" Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

This has importance implication on how we get people "saved". So often we require people to repent in order to accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. To do so would be like asking a cat to bark. A cat will only be able to bark after it has been transformed into a dog. Regeneration is transforming a sinner into a saint through the process of being "born again" into a "new creation" in Christ (2 Cor 5:17). The one whom the Spirit has regenerated has his eyes opened and so can see himself as God sees him - a sinner in need of forgiveness. This will him lead to repentance, not just regret.

In the past, I have been guilty of requiring pre-believers to "repent" of their sins before they receive Christ. But that is a futile exercise in contradiction which does nothing but antagonize the pre-believers who think we are bigoted and presumptuous to judge their lifestyle as sinful. Now, I call for repentance only after a person has clearly been convicted and regenerated by the Spirit. Only a regenerated person understands the true nature of sin in the context of divine righteousness and judgement. Only then can repentance produces the fruit of the Spirit.

Father, give us a heart of compassion for those who are still lost in sin, rather than a spirit of condemnation, for truly as Jesus had said while he hung on the Cross: "Forgive them for they do not know what they are doing." Amen.

Repent & Receive (Mt 3:1-6)

2011-10-29T06:08:00.001+08:00

Matt 3:1-6 In those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the Desert of Judea and saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near." This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'" John's clothes were made of camel's hair, and he had a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. People went out to him from Jerusalem and all Judea and the whole region of the Jordan. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

John the Baptist must have looked like an eccentric mystic living at the fringe of the city & desert. His dressing was different (clothes made from camel's hair with a leather belt to hold it together) and so was his diet (locusts & wild honey). Yet, people went out to him from Jerusalem (town folks) and all Judea (country folks), including the whole region of Jordan. They came to listen to his compelling message: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near."

In a sense, the eccentricity of John the Baptist might have initially drawn the crowds (God's marketing strategy!). But in the end they heard his message. Sometime Christians need to do something "creative" to draw the crowds. God did it, so we must not think it's "carnal" or "worldly" to use creative means to motivate people to come and experience God.

The burden of John's message was: "The kingdom of heaven is near. So repent!" There are two parts to his message: (1) repent and (2) receive! We cannot receive from God unless we repent of self. We need to let go of the old to lay hold of the new. We need to release the past to inherit the future. We can't have the cake and eat it. So, we have to repent (turn away) from glitters of this present world in order to receive the gold of the world to come!

All who believed in John's message were baptized by him as a sign of their repentance from self-centred lifestyle to prepare for membership in the coming Kingdom. While it's unclear if they fully comprehended the nature of the imminent Kingdom, their hearts were moved and they were ready to receive it when it come.

Thank You Jesus that we are now citizens of the Kingdom through Jesus Christ our Lord and King. May this Kingdom rise up within us and may Your kingdom come and Your will be done here on earth as it is in heaven. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Jesus' Early Life of Obscurity

2011-10-28T06:37:00.000+08:00

Matt 2:16-23 When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. 17 Then what was said through the prophet Jeremiah was fulfilled: "A voice is heard in Ramah, weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because they are no more." After Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother and go to the land of Israel, for those who were trying to take the child's life are dead." So he got up, took the child and his mother and went to the land of Israel. But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning in Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Having been warned in a dream, he withdrew to the district of Galilee, and he went and lived in a town called Nazareth. So was fulfilled what was said through the prophets: "He will be called a Nazarene."

Jesus' life is clearly in the hand of the Father. Even Herod who had all the political power and cunning was outwitted not so much "by the Magi" (as he supposed) but by our heavenly Father. But unfortunately, he lived up to his murderous reputation by giving orders to kill all baby boys two years and younger in Bethlehem. Why did this man think He could frustrate the plan and purpose of the Almighty God? People who oppose the purposes of God bring greater disasters to their society. When men learn to live by the purposes of God the nation prospers and the people are blessed. As God's people in the marketplace, our role is to declare the purposes of God and to confront those who work against God's purposes and laws, not to condemn others but in order to protect the welfare of the nations.

When Joseph returned back to Israel from Egypt, he avoided Judea because of Herod's son Archelaus, who was equally murderous. Instead, Joseph brought his family to Nazareth, a relatively unknown town where he could raise his family away from the scrutiny of the powers to be. So, Jesus grew up in the outback town of Nazareth and was therefore called a Nazarene. For thirty years, Jesus lived a relatively normal human life, growing up, getting his education in the Torah -- just like any Jewish boy in a godly Jewish family. In the course of time, other siblings came along, not knowing his true self-identity except his parents.

Jesus' public ministry was only three years -- 10% of his life. But it was in the last three years of his life that he made his greatest impact in human history. Not to say that the rest of his 30 years were wasted. But they were preparation years - memorizing the Scriptures, attending the synagogues on Sabbath, learning to be a carpenter from his father Joseph. Quiet but formative years. The parenting roles of Joseph and Mary were critical in his early childhood development, both in imparting their love of God to him and also in teaching him precious lessons at the carpenter's workshop.

We don't need a privileged life to live significant life for God. A humble background with God is better than a privileged life without God.

Father, what a wonderful demonstration of Your grace and love for Your own Son when You placed Him in the care of earthly parents who loved You and walked in Your ways. What wisdom that You did not let Your Son be born in the palace in Jerusalem where the political and religious centre was but in a relatively unknown town called Nazareth, away from prying eyes. Thank You Lord that we don't need a privileged environment to become significant persons who can make an impact in the world. Amen.