Today's Scripture Reading

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 13, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. [James 5:16]

It is not always easy to confess our sins to other people because we all do harbour ‘secret’ sins that we prefer to keep them to ourselves. In fact, some of these sins are so personal that we would never thought of them to telling others. No one is immune to this, not even the most pious people that we know of. All of us do have faults and sins that we don’t want others to know. We may compromise our confession of these sins by asking people to pray for us and we generalize them like, “Please pray for me asking God to forgive all my sins. I know I am a wretched man and I covet your prayer to make me more like Jesus. I am now struggling with some sins which I prefer not to share with you at this moment. I urgently need your prayer.” Although this is not the best approach, but it is better than doing nothing. When this confession is made in truth and in spirit, God is merciful, He knows our faults, He knows our weaknesses, He will forgive us and His Holy Spirit will strengthen us to help us in all our struggles.

Praying for one another is not a suggestion from God but is a commandment by God and He will only hear our prayer when we are right with Him and our prayer must be an unselfish one. Using our five fingers as reminder, an unknown author has penned the following order of how unselfish prayers should be prayed:

1. Thumb
Since our thumb is nearest to us, begin by praying for someone closest to us. They are the easiest ones to remember. They may be our brothers, sisters, pastors or missionaries from our own local church. C.S. Lewis said that praying for those we love is a “sweet duty.”

2. Index or Pointing Finger
Let our "pointing finger" remind us to pray for church workers who teach, instruct, and heal. This includes teachers, doctors, and evangelists. They need support and wisdom for pointing others in the right direction.

3. Middle Finger
Our tallest finger reminds us of our church leaders and our national leaders as all leaders are anointed by God. They are entrusted with great responsibilities and sometimes with very little or no rewards. We can never pray too much for them.

4. Ring Finger
The ring finger is our weakest finger as any piano teacher will testify. This weak finger reminds us to pray for the weak such as those who are sick and those who are discouraged, in trouble, or in pain, physically or emotionally. It also reminds us of children because they are most vulnerable. We pray that God will help them to make the right choices, to be obedient to parents, to bring them good Christian friends and that they will participate only in wholesome activities.

5. Little Finger
Our little finger is the smallest finger of all, which is where we should place our individual wants and desires in relation to others. The Bible says do not think yourself more highly than you ought (Romans 12:3). It reminds us to pray also for ourselves but we must first put all the interest of others before us as this is the best way to our Christian walk.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 14, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. [1 John 2:15-16]

To many of us Christians, the word “worldliness” can be quite synonymous as the word “self-centeredness”. God has entrusted to us with all His created things, living and non-living, but we have grossly used, abused and misused His creation. We can honestly say that any places which men have been before were later become a mess. If we were to look at the mess created as the result of irresponsible discard of waste materials in the beaches, forests, mountains, we can’t help it but to feel the self-centeredness and evilness of men just through this one selfish and irresponsible act. We think more of about our own conveniences and disregarded the inconveniences of others. Many beaches now have signs warning people that swimming is prohibited because the water is too dirty and polluted. This is just a tiny glimpse of the human selfishness and self-centeredness. No wonder God has declared that the man’s heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9).

As believers we are no longer of the world - no longer ruled by sin, nor are we bound by the principles of the world of self-centeredness. We are to be set apart from the world and not to engage in the sinful activities the world promotes, nor are we to retain the insipid, corrupt mind that the world creates. We can and we should enjoy God’s majestic creation like those beautiful mountains, trees, flowers, beaches, weather, four seasons, gazing stars but we must do it with selflessness and responsibilities. We must not abuse and misuse God’s creation. God has warned that He will “destroy those who destroy the earth” (Relevation 11.18). We are to live in such a way that those outside the faith see our good deeds and our manner and know that there is something “different” about us. Christians who make every effort to live, think and act like those who do not know Christ do Him a great disservice. Even the heathen knows that “by their fruits you will know them (Matthew 7:16),” so as Christians, we should exhibit the fruit of the Spirit within us. We are to conform ourselves and our minds to that of Lord Jesus (Romans 12:2). This is our daily service and commitment to Him.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 15, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. [John 10:10]

It is a misconception among many non-Christians (and to some extent Christians) that Christian life is boring and uninteresting. Christians are perceived to be dull, humourless and austere people. They have the idea that we have to live with countless rules and restrictions and because of these overwhelming restrictions, it is really difficult to enjoy life. Many non-Christians have the wrong concept of what joy is all about. Years ago I had a non-Christian friend who told me that the reason why he did not want to be a Christian was because when he died he would not be able to find beautiful and sexy women like Marlyn Monroe and most probably he would be meeting only saints like Joan of Arc. What he meant was that people like Marlyn Monroe is condemned to hell and Joan of Arc is in heaven. Of course, he wasn’t serious. He was joking. However, this indicated the misconception of Christianity and Christian living. Only boring, rule-abiding people will be in heaven and fun-loving people will be in hell. What a heresy!

Christians are promised with abundant life. But the life of abundance is not what the world gives – wealth, power, prestige. God is not concerned with physical and material well-being of His children. Physical blessing may or may not be the by-products of God’s way of life; neither our wealth nor our poverty is an indication of our standing with God. Certainly, God desires us to prosper in good health (3 John 2) as well as materials well-being. God restored Job with more than what he had before he lost all his possessions (Job 42:12). But it is enough that He assures us that we need not worry about what we will eat or wear (Matthew 6:25). His main concern is our relationship with Him. A Christian life should revolve around growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:18). Abundant life is a process of learning, practicing, maturing, adjusting, enduring and coming for the glory of God.

In fact, a truly holy Christian life is ultimately more exciting, successful, and satisfying than most people can imagine. Our Christian living comes with full of responsibility, self-restraint and self-control, but the rewards and blessing that accrue over a lifetime of pleasing God and living His way of life simply overwhelm the seemingly onerous duties and strictures. As many of us can testify, once we have truly dedicated our life to Christian walk in accordance to His will, our completely guilt-free life will give us a great sense of peace that the world cannot offer.

That is why many are still so miserable even though they have all the enjoyment that the world could provide and that is because those worldly pleasures do not please Him. This is no difference from a child who keeps doing those things that his father tells him not to do. His father will be angry with him and the child in turn will feel very miserable. And the reverse it true. If a child obeys his father and does those things that his father tells him to do, his father will be pleased with him and in turn the child will be happy too. Likewise, if we can do all the things that please our Heavenly Father, He will be very pleased with us and we too will be joyful. He will not hesitate to tell us like what He has told His Son, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:16).

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 16, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. [Galatians 2:20]

Religious rule keeping can be a burden to many people. It’s endless. There is always sometime to do and some gods to please. Before I gave my life to Jesus, I accompanied my mother to various temples and each time I could see how busy the devotees were. They were there to please their gods but with ulterior motives of expecting material blessings from their gods. My mother was no exception.

One of my most joyful days was when my mother bought a bottle of kerosene and told me that she wanted to burn her idols. For over 40 years, she had prayed to those idols. It was a great joy that she had finally given up idol-worship. Christ has entered into her life. A woman of God who is one of my good friends’ mother-in-law came to evangelize to my mother every Friday. This gone on for over six months and finally my mother was fully convicted of her sins and turned her life completely to Jesus. Life than had never been the same for her. After her conversion, I remembered that a temple worker called her to invite her to a festive celebration of one of the gods’ birthday, she told her that she had already given her life to Jesus and wanted nothing to do with the other gods. Christ truly had entered into her life. My mother died several years’ ago and I know she is now safe in the loving care of our Heaven Father.

When we believe in Christ, Christ works a miracle in us. We are permanently purified and empowered by God himself. The message of Jesus to the religious person is simple: It's not what you do. It's what I do. I have moved in. And in time I can say with Paul, "I myself no longer live, but Christ lives in me" (Galations 2:20).

Being a Christian is not a bed of roses as we all know. We fell again and again and we struggle hard to lead a holy life. For example, sometime because of our uncontrolled anger, we started to question why we are still like the ‘old self’ and in extreme case, we even question our salvation, “Am I really saved”. Whether we are a new Christian learning to walk in holiness (like those babies learning to walk) or as mature Christian that we should be feeding on solid spiritual food and lead others to Christ (like the experienced sportsmen who are fit to be coaches), we often fell. When babies stumble and fall, they stand up and try to walk again. When a committed athletic had lost a race, he would practice harder and try to win the next race. In fact, we can be hurt more seriously when we run and fell compared to injury sustained when we walk and fell. Hence, even the most mature Christians including those in the leadership positions are vulnerable to temptations. Temptation is not a sin. It only becomes sin when we give way to temptation. But God is faithful and just, when tempted God will also give us a way to escape it (1 Corinthians 10:13). Christ lives in us. We have His power, His spirit, His loving care. If we keep to our faith, if we don’t forsake Him, He will never forsake us; this is an everlasting covenant that God has with His children (Jeremiah 32:40). Frequent reading of His Word is the best way to live a holy life and also the most effective weapon to defeat temptations. As one author has written, "Sins will keep you away from the Bible or the Bible will keep you away from sin."

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 17, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn. [Matthew 13: 24-30]

In all communities, the problem of evil intermingled with good is always present. This is no exception even in churches which have both truly converted Christians and as well carnal Christians. We must be mindful, however, not to judge others as only God can judge who is fit and who is not fit to be in His Kingdom.

As we can read in Matthew 13:24-30, Jesus has prophesied that the church of God on earth will be imperfect. All of us are imperfect human being but the great difference is whether we recognize the truth and allow the Holy Spirit to minister to us. If we allowed the Holy Spirit to minister to us, we will truly repent, we will turn away from sin, and we will only enjoy association and fellowship with God’s people. It is not our job to expose the tares, that is, the unbelievers who may be in our church. God will root out the bad seed but He will do it when the seed has matured. God has warned the true Christians because Satan’s attack is ferocious like a roaring lion looking to devour His children (1 Peter 5:8).

It is God's will that Jesus Christ the Redeemer sow His redeemed ones in this world of sin and misery for the purpose of training and testing them to become true witnesses for Him in preparation for the Kingdom. Therefore, He has placed Christians where He wants them. Jesus tells Peter in Luke 22:31 that he was wheat, and as such, he was to be sifted by Satan. All of God's saints should heed this warning to watch and pray that the field of our heart not be sown with tares by the enemy. God has bought us with a price and given us His Spirit, making us new creations in Him and heirs of His Family and eternal life. He expects us to bear fruit in our corner of the field of this world in which He has sowed us. The key is for us to put on the whole armour of God so that when we are being deceived by the devil we can stand against all his deceptions (Ephesians 6:11).

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 18, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil. [Psalm 37:8]

Anger is one of the worst enemies that can be a stumbling block for us to maintain relationship with others whether this is between friends, brothers, spouses or a father and his child. We all know that when words are spoken, they are impossible to take back. Angry words produce resentment not just to the hearers but also to the speakers themselves, and resentment creates more anger between parties. Anger has great devastating effect and wreaking havoc on our life. The bible has many references that warn us about anger (Leviticus 19:17, Psalm 37:8; Proverbs 14:17; Proverbs 22:24; Proverbs 29:11; Proverbs 29:22; Matthew 5:22; Ephesians 4:26; Colosians 3:8; James 1:19-20). Quite unfortunately, we all get angry very easily and hardly a day goes by that we don’t get over one or two things. The danger is when our anger is expressed out by the outpouring of unwholesome words or by physical abuse and violence such as smashing of things, slamming of door, getting into a fight, or both.

True anger management comes from the heart. We must seek to live our lives under the control of the Holy Spirit otherwise we may let the sinful nature of our flesh have its way. It's a choice we make every day. We can either turn to the Lord for patience and strength or we can allow potentially destructive emotions like anger to run unchecked. If we choose to let anger left unchecked, God's Word cautions us over the consequences.

We can be angry, but our anger must be righteous anger. When Jesus got angry – at the moneychangers in the temple or the self-serving Pharisees – it was because they were exploiting religion instead of using it to bring people closer to God. Jesus taught the truth but they refused to listen. Hence, we can be angry and when we do, it must be for the right reasons like getting angry at injustice such as killing the unborn babies, human trafficking, selling illegal drugs, maltreating workers, polluting the environment and the list goes on and on. More importantly, we need to always angry at ourselves for doing things that are detestable to God. This righteous anger is a reflection that we are living under the control of the Holy Spirit. We must take every effort not to repeat the sins. God wants us to use our anger constructively, to combat wrongdoings and to repent of our sins.

Bible doesn’t just tell us not to be angry (or when we angry we must be angry for the right reasons and we must not be quick in our anger), it also teaches us how to control our anger. Those references quoted above tell us God's way of dealing with anger. God will honour His words. He doesn’t want us to commit the sin of anger.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 19, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Vanity of vanities, saith the Preacher, vanity of vanities; all is vanity. [Ecclesiastes 1:2]

King Solomon was not just the wisest man that we ever known, he was one of the greatest kings. He had everything that any man would ever dream of – fabulous power, wealth and pleasures. Yet, he found life completely meaningless. Writing from his experience, he was extremely stressed because nothing could satisfy him. Man he said just wanted more and more (Ecclesiastes 1:8). Because of his own unsatisfying and unfulfilling desires in spite of all that he already had, he hated life (Ecclesiastes 2:17). We can say quite honestly that he was suicidal because life-hating thought is one of the telltale signs of a suicide person.

If we focus only on the physical, we too can be very unsatisfied because our eyes will never be satisfied with what we see neither our ears be satisfied with what we hear (Ecclesiastes 2:8). If we continue to let this unsatifying of things crept into the very essence of our life, we could be driven to mental institution or we could even become suicidal.

But our life is not futile. In fact, great glorious day is waiting for us. Our life is part of God’s great plan for all mankind. A day will come when the last heavenly trumpet sounded and in the twinkling of an eye, our present corrupt bodies will be changed into immortal and incorruptible bodies and we will reign with our Lord Jesus forever (1 Corinthians 15:51-55). Some people are skeptical about how could it happen – how could corrupt bodies will be changed to incorruptible bodies? Have you witnessed how an ugly caterpillar-pupa is transformed into a beautiful butterfly? It is done through the process of metamorphosis (which scientists up to now have no idea how the actual process works). Our transformation will be just like this mysterious metamorphosis. It will not be a slow process of transformation like from a tadpole to an ugly frog!

We have every reason to live. We have every reason to wait. We have every reason to endure. This is because our glorious day will come when both the dead in Christ and the living who are faithful servants of Christ will be transformed into glorious bodies to meet and reign with Him. This is imminent. It can happen tomorrow; it can happen today, or it can happen even the next hour. And it can only happen once and will never be repeated. So, come to Jesus and wait upon Him.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 20, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. [Galatians 1:6-7]

In almost all evangelistic meetings, we can witness that at the end of the preaching, the preacher would conduct an alter-call and would invite unbelievers to come forward to accept Jesus. When these unbelievers came forward to the front of the podium, many well-intended Christian counselors would attend to them. Typically, they would ask them questions like, “Do you believe you are a sinner? Do you want to accept Jesus as Your Saviour?” plus perhaps another 3 or 4 more other questions to ‘test’ or ‘confirm’ their faith. If they answered “yes” to all those questions, the counselors would then pray with them the sinners’ prayer and pronounce to them that they are now ‘saved’. The question is: Is a person really saved after this Q & A session?

I admire these preachers and counselors. They have the burning desires to bring people to Christ. But we must understand that we are saved not because of the result of the altar-call. We are saved because of the result of the gospel. We must all run to Jesus to be saved. Typical question like, “Do you believe you are a sinner?” means nothing to Jesus. We are, period. Whether we believe it or not is not important because God says for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). Of course, we need to ackowledge we are sinners (whether as a first time believer or as 'seasoned' believer), but for the new converts who confessed at the evangelistic meeting this is but only a beginning to his/her faith. There’s much more to it to be saved.

The gospel is about the redeeming love of Jesus; of His sacrifice; of His precious blood; of His victory over death. We need to run to Him to be saved. We are justified by faith alone, saved by grace alone, and redeemed from our sin by Christ alone. Earthly man, no matter how pious they are, cannot and must not make a pronouncement to another that ‘he is saved’. Even for the most committed Christians, in order to be saved, they must continue to obey Jesus’ commandments, set apart from this world and live in holiness. By signing a pledge card at the end of an evangelistic meeting to declare that we believe in Jesus is just not good enough to be a child of God. Jesus and His apostles had never requested any new converts to sign any declaration. Believing is one thing, but does our life-style reflects what we really believe in. God says that we will always be His children provided we don’t depart from Him (Jeremiah 32:40). In addition to our confession, we must repent for Jesus says, “Unless you repent, you will likewise be perished (Luke 13:5).” We can congratulate people for taking their first step toward believing the gospel but we must be careful in our pronouncement especially regarding their salvation.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 21, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

And when we cried unto the LORD God of our fathers, the LORD heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labor, and our oppression: And the LORD brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders: And he hath brought us into this place, and hath given us this land, even a land that floweth with milk and honey. [Deuteronomy 26:7-9]

When we are not facing any calamities and our daily life goes on like any other day, we seldom see the need for God. We may thank or praise Him but quite sadly at a superficial level. We sing songs of praises and hymns at our weekly church worship service and some of those words may not really mean much to us.

On the other hand, when we are diagnosed with sickness quite often our first reaction is to ask our friends to recommend to us the ‘best’ doctor or when we face some financial problem, we are very likely to call our bank first to see whether they could help by lending to us more money. How many of us will go to the Lord first and cry before Him for help. We seek man first and if everything fails, then we come to God. I must admit I used to be one of the culprits.

Let us learn to reverse the order when calling for help. We must go to God first. Our God is every ready to listen to us. Our daily labour of loving Him, of trusting Him, of praising Him, of serving Him, of doing His will, will never go in vain. God keeps a record of all our activities especially our thoughts and our heart’s desires. We must continuously delight in Him and He will give us the desires of our heart (Psalm 37:4). Jesus is here to hear our cry no matter how soft our cry is. Humble ourselves before our Lord Jesus. Only He and He alone can deliver us not just the problems and challenges we face in this life but He will deliver us to reconcile with our Heavenly Father.

Frances Jane Crosby, a famous hymn writer who became blind at the age of six weeks, had penned the hymn, “Pass Me Not” which has brought comfort to Christian hearts and stirred up inspiration.

PASS ME NOT

Pass me not, O gentle Savior,
Hear my humble cry;
While on others Thou art calling,
Do not pass me by.

Refrain:
Savior, Savior,
Hear my humble cry,
While on others Thou are calling,
Do not pass me by.

Let me at a throne of mercy
Find a sweet relief;
Kneeling there in deep contrition,
Help my unbelief.

Trusting only in Thy merit,
Would I seek Thy face;
Heal my wounded, broken spirit,
Save me by Thy grace.

Thou the spring of all my comfort,
More than life to me,
Whom have I on earth beside Thee,
Whom in Heav’n but Thee.​

 

[Muthukali]

Happy Hari Raya..........

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 22, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. [2 Corinthians 1:3-4]

In our daily struggle, we always wish someone understands us and is able to comfort us. This need of companionship is even more apparent when we are facing with a serious life crisis such as being diagnosed with an incurable disease, or confronted with a loss of a close relative who is very dear to us.

Some may consider themselves ‘lucky’ because they are yet to face any of major setbacks but for some, major setbacks came like endless tidal waves, one after another. Sometimes, it’s only through the rough times that we truly learn to trust in God and turn to Him for Comfort. It may seem cruel to say this but my personal experience can testify this is true.

When Jesus ascended to heaven, He promised to send the Holy Spirit to comfort us and He Himself will sit at the right hand of God to be our Advocate pleading our case to the Father day and night. Our great God is also known as our Comforter. We can therefore confidently leave the work of comforting to our Comforter, the Holy Spirit. In fact, we have now two Comforters, Jesus Himself and the Holy Spirit. We are comforted through Jesus’ pleading in heaven and on earth we have the Holy Spirit to comfort us.

Our body is the temple of God and the Spirit of God lives within us (1 Corinthians 3:16). He is already inside us and He knows when we need His comforting. Our seeking of Him is our faithful expression that we truly trust Him.

If our earthly father who is evil and yet knows how to give good gift to us (Matthew 7:11) which include comforting us in times of sorrow, how much good things our Heavenly Father with His all-loving attributes will give us. Jesus told us to go to Him when we are in heavy burden, and He will gives us rest for His yoke is easy and His burden is light (Matthew 11:28-30). We too are told to comfort one another in times of trial, uphold the weak and be patient with our brothers and sisters (1 Thessalonians 5:11 – 14). Humanly, we know we are not able to do all these things but the Holy Spirit will give us strength to ensure we succeed. God will never withhold anything from us if our actions and heart’s intent are right with Him.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 23, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it. [Psalm 34:14]
The world has just commemorated its 27th annual International Day of Peace which started on September 21, 2009. This United Nation-sponsored event attempts to seek world peace and it’s laudable. But can it succeed in bringing peace to the world? I think you know the answer better than I do!

Since the fall of Adam, mankind has never been at peace with one another. At anyone time, there are several wars taking place concurrently. These wars are due to ethnic, religious, tribal or regional conflicts. The present civil unrest in China’s Xinjiang province, the recent unrest in the state of Orissa, India and the war in Afghanistan are perfect examples of these conflicts. Whether its civil war or regional wars, one thing we are extremely sure of – many lives will be lost or be permanently disabled because of serious war injuries. History has shown that mankind has never learnt to be at peace with one another. Countless so-called ‘Peace Treaties” were signed by national leaders but some were broken as quickly as they had signed. At best these ‘Peace Treaties’ are historical documents and at worst they are just toilet papers. World War I was dubbed as the “War of Wars” which was supposed to end all wars but not too long after the ‘peace-treaty’, the world saw another war, World War II which brought monstrous destructions. We hope (and it’s a wishful hope) that the two atomic bombs used in the World War II is the first and the last to be used.

We know from history, it takes a long time to heal nations which are in conflict. The Korean War which started in 1950 it is never been officially ended even until today. Both North and South Koreas are still technically at war. When the World War 2 ended in 1945, North and South Vietnam were still at fighting. It only came to an end in 1975 when South Vietnam fell into the hand of the North Vietnam. Many older people in South East Asia will never forget the suffering they had to endure during the Japanese occupation in their countries. Many older Vietnamese, especially the North Vietnamese, will never forget the bombing by Amercians during the Vietnam war.

It’s a wishful thinking that the world can be a peace. Only God can bring everlasting peace. In the bible, we are told that Jesus will come to establish His Divine Kingdom here (Matthew 24:29-31; Mark 13:24-37; Luke 21:25-28) and He will reign with His children forever and ever (Revelation 11:15). The following excerpt from the Tomorrow’s World tells us that peace can only be accomplished when we all fear God. Sadly, this is totally impossible as man has chosen his own ways and will continue to do what is right in his own eyes (Proverbs 21:2).

EXCERPT FROM TOMORROW’S WORLD SEPTEMBER 21, 2009​

"The way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes" (Romans 3:17-18).

Peace and the fear of God - that is, the irresistibly motivating awe and compelling respect of God - go hand in hand. The Christian scriptures, the Holy Bible, discuss it in many, many places, associating it with obedience to God’s laws and ways (Ecclesiastes 12:13) and making clear that real knowledge and wisdom is only attainable if we start with that fundamental respect for our awesome Creator as a foundation (Proverbs 1:7, 9:10, et al.). Without it, efforts to establish a “permanent peace” will always be an exercise in futility.

If anyone wishes to do something on the International Day of Peace that actually advances the cause of real peace, then I highly recommend that he dedicate himself to developing and embracing the proper fear of God and to praying all the more that His Kingdom would be established here soon.

In a real sense, beginning on the evening of October 2 and continuing through October 10, people from all over the world will be gathering at various locations to celebrate God’s "International Days of Peace" - the biblical Feast of Tabernacles, picturing a near-but-yet-future time when Christ and His saints will rule the world, giving it true peace, at last. Those who will be gathering at those locations will do more than celebrate; they will learn how to more fully live God’s laws of peace, themselves.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 24, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

For every one that useth milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. [Hebrews 5:13-14]

We all know that milk is the stable food for babies. Typically, new born babies will only drink milk for up to six months after which they will be given semi-solid food and progressively replaced with solid food when their digestive system is more developed.

If you have encountered an adult that can only be fed with milk and not solid food, the chance is that he is not normal, something must have had happened to him/her. This was exactly what happened to my father. During his last few months before he was called to be with the Lord, he could only be tube-fed with milk (plus some water). Besides unable to swallow solid food, his digestive system was functioning very poorly. Like all milk-feeding patients, he had to be fed with strict time-schedule. We all know also that babies who are still feeding on milk need to observe strict time-schedule.

As mature Christians, we will need to be fed on solid spiritual food. This means that we cannot just rely listening to the church sermon once a week and then go into our ‘spiritual fasting’ for the next six days until the next worship service. Spiritual fasting will lead to spiritual starvation. We need to be fed on solid spiritual food by reading the Word of God every day to avoid spiritual starvation. While fasting of food is biblical and every one of us should be encouraged to fast (and pray) frequently, we must not embark on spiritual fasting by denying ourselves the Word of God. If we deny the Word of God we will be deprived the spiritual vitamins that are so essential for our soul. Jesus has said that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4). Do not be over-dependent on our church ministers to deliver to us the weekly message because at best it is just the spiritual milk and it will not give us sufficient spiritual energy. Do not live on strict time-schedule that our spiritual food is fed to us only once a week. We need to depend on ourselves daily to the Word of God and by God’s grace, He will give us the wisdom to search, to meditate and to understand His Word which is our spiritual solid food.

If you have not opened your bible for a long time, it's time now you open your bible and go to the Word of God. There are 31 Psalms in the Book of Psalms. A good starting point is to read one Psalm each day and you would have finished reading the whole Book of Psalms every month. (You should also supplement this with reading from other books like the Proverbs and the four Gospels). God is very faithful. When we pray for His wisdom and when we ask Him to open our ears, He will never fail us. He just want to listen to Him, to delight in Him and to do His will.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 25, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

But none saith, Where is God my maker, who giveth songs in the night. [Job 35:10]

When we are alone a night in a deserted place it can be very frightening and intimidating. The fear of being robbed for example can send a chill into our spine. But we should not be afraid when we are alone because it is in quietness and in stillness that we can really sense the presence of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus and know that He is God (Psalm 46:10).

C H Spurgeon, in one of his sermons, has said that night is one of the greatest blessings men enjoy. He continued, we have many reasons to thank God for it. Yet night is to many a gloomy season. There is "the pestilence that walketh in darkness;" there is "the terror by night;" there is the dread of robbers and of fell disease, with all those fears that the timorous know, when they have no light wherewith they can discern objects. It is then they fancy that spiritual creatures walk the earth; though, if they knew rightly, they would find it to be true, that –

"Millions of spiritual creatures walk this earth,
Unseen, both when we sleep and when we wake,"​

and that at all times they are round about us - not more by night than by day. Night is the season of terror and alarm to most men. Yet even night hath its songs. Have you never stood by the seaside at night, and heard the pebbles sing, and the waves chant God's glories? Or have you never risen from your couch, and thrown up the window of your chamber, and listened there? Listened to what? Silence - save now and then a murmuring sound, which seems sweet music then. And have you not fancied that you heard the harp of God playing in heaven? Did you not conceive, that yon stars, that those eyes of God, looking down on you, were also mouths of song - that every star was singing God's glory, singing, as it shone, its mighty Maker, and his lawful, well-deserved praise? Night hath its Man, too, like the great world in which he lives, must have his night. For it is true that man is like the world around him; he is a little world; he resembles the world in almost every thing; and if the world has its night, so hath man. And many a night do we have - nights of sorrow, nights of persecution, nights of doubt, nights of bewilderment, nights of anxiety, nights of oppression, nights of ignorance - nights of all kinds, which press upon our spirits and terrify our souls. But, blessed be God, the Christian man can say, “My God giveth me songs in the night” (Psalm 35:10).

So each time when we are in solitude for whatever reason and when we look into the sky at night remember the songs and praises that radiated out from the stars, though inaudible to our human ears, they are one of the greatest songs supernaturally composed to bring glory to God and to bring calmness to our soul.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 26, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. [Romans 3:23]

I was once told of a very committed Christian who tried to share Gospel with his father who was an idol-worshipper. When he told his father that all men are sinners, his father almost threw a cup of hot coffee onto his face! He father just couldn’t except that he had sinned against God. [I was told that his father did eventually accepted Christ as his Lord and Saviour. Thank you Jesus for Your grace and mercy; all glory to You!]

You see, although SIN is a little word but an often misunderstood one. People tend to think of sin as one specific kind of obvious immorality. They think, I don’t rob the bank. I have never killed any one. I don’t do drugs. I am quite faithful to my wife. So how can I a sinner? But God’s standard of measuring sin is very different from the world and the Bible is very specific on what sin is. We don’t need to do any specific sinful act because the Bible tells us that just when our thoughts are wayward and not right with Him, we have already sinned against Him. Jesus said anyone who stares at a woman and lust after her has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:28) and by committing adultery we have broken one of the Ten Commandments.

If you are not convinced that your thoughts are wayward, take up this challenge: make a video on those things that you have been in your thoughts over the last 12 months and show that video to your friends. I can assure you that even your best friends are going to be your enemies after they have viewed your video. Your best friends would not have believed what you have thought of them! For example, you might have the thought of how could they have done so much better than you (in their careers, in their marriages, their finances, etc) when you are so much smarter than them – your heart just screamed out “they don’t deserve all these, I should be the one!” This is just a small example of the wayward thoughts harboring in our mind and I am sure there are even more awful ones which we are too ashamed to share with others. Frankly, I would never have the courage to put my thoughts into a video and show it to my friends! Who would?

All of us sin both by nature and by choice. That is what keeps us from what we need most - a personal relationship with God like the one Adam and Eve enjoyed before they committed their sins against God. After Adam and Eve sinned, they hid themselves. They could not face God. But God called out to them and the call from God continues every minute of our life on earth. We need to heed His voice, to come back to Him and to obey His commandments so that our relationship with Him can be restored. Once our relationship is restored with Him though our sins can be as scarlet, they will be as white as snow, though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool (Isaiah 18:1). Please come to Jesus who is the way, the truth and the life; no one can come to the Heavenly Father except through Him (John 14:6)

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 27, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. [Matthew 23:11]

The greatness of men as measured by worldly yardstick is how rich or powerful the person is. So, every year there are international business and financial magazines that rank people their ‘net worth’. If you have a net worth (that is all assets that you owned less all the debts that you owed) of over US$ 1 billion, it is very likely that your name will appear in one of these magazines. Concurrently, there are also magazines that rank who are the most powerful and influential people on earth. Thus, if you are holding a very important position in a mega-corporation or holding a very powerful political post in a big country, your name is also likely to appear in one of these magazines. In some local newspapers, they have special column or news corner dedicated to people who have 'made it to the top'. They have fanciful column title like 'People On The Move'. When someone is appointed to be a chairman of a big bank, his name together with his 'great achievements' will be prominently displayed. The big question for us as Christians is: Where Are We Heading To? Is heading towards the Kingdom of God our only goal or are we, like those 'People On The Move', trying to get to the top of the world?

Jesus has a radically different approach to greatness. Great people are those who served others instead of being served. They are the ones who place others’ interests ahead of their own (Mark 9:35); who served others even their enemies without any expectations of how they will be rewarded (Luke 6:35); who have child-like faith and are humble (Matthew 18:3-4). They are the ones who follow Jesus, and not the world.

I was told of a real story of a theological college that was in the final stage of appointing a new president. There were several eminently qualified candidates. Somebody in the Board of Committee came out with a noble idea. They sent a person to interview a janitor who would be the best candidate to be the new president. The janitor gave such a glowing appraisal of one of the candidates that the Board of Committee selected him as the new president. Somebody on that committee understood that those who live close to Christ become so secure in his love that they no longer relate to other people according to rank or power or money or prestige. They treat janitors and governors with equal dignity. They regard everybody as a VIP. Children seem to do this intuitively; adult Christians have to relearn it.

We must do to grow to the point that we stop measuring people by their worldly successes and start regarding people for their service, for their sacrifices regardless of their status.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 28, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

And the LORD said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves. [Exodus 32:7]

We are living in a very competitive world. We compete for and in everything (and anything) - businesses compete in launching the products that use the latest state-of-the-art technology to boost their sales; banks compete for having the biggest asset portfolio managed; diamond mining companies compete for mining the biggest diamond; for arduous mountaineers, they compete to climb the highest or the most dangerous mountains. and even churches compete for membership size or the amount of tithes and gifts collected.

Competition in itself is not bad. It is even biblical. In fact, Paul instructed us to endure all hardship, to run and to complete the race for Jesus and His Kingdom (Hebrews 12:1, 1 Corinthians 9:24).

The problem comes when we aim at the earthly rewards. We let competition turns us into greed, into jealousy, into envy, into pride. We disregard the true teaching from God and we want to build earthly empire that glorifies ourselves rather than God. It is not uncommon to have headlines like: “Pastor so-and-so has raised 10 million dollars in less than 1 month for 'his' church” or this or that church has attained a member of 2,000 in less than 1 year and it’s all due to the efforts of this pastor or that pastor. Sound familiar!

All too often well-intended mission can become corrupt once the focus is switched to money or self-gratification or self-glorification. This was what happened in Moses’ time. After God delivered His children out of Egypt and instead of worshipping the true God, the people made a calf out of gold and started to worship the golden calf. It was a blatant disregard to the Holy God. They had broken the first two of the Ten Commandments. God had had enough and so instructed Moses to destroy the golden calf.

We too must be careful not to let the prosperity preaching to carry us overboard to the point that we start to worship those godless numbers. Achieving a church membership of 10,000 means nothing to Jesus if 99% are not truly born-again Christians and when they are still walking like all carnal men. Building a physical church building the size of a sports stadium means nothing to Jesus if all that the members do is to just listening to the sermon once a week and watch soap operas and TV drama for the rest of week. They know more about their favourite celebrities than about Jesus. They are more concern whether their favourite pregnant female celebrities will be given birth to a baby boy or a baby girl. They queue overnight just to purchase a concert ticket to watch their favourite singers.

Let us spend more time knowing Him. Let us prepare ourselves for His Kingdom. While giving of tithes and supporting missionaries through our love gifts are all biblical and essential, more importantly, Jesus wants our faithfulness, our hearts and our mind more than anything else. Do not be deceived by those worldly godless numbers achieved by business leaders or prosperity preachers.

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 29, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. [John 14:26]

“I will never forsake you nor leave you”; “Surely goodness and mercy will follow you all the days of my life”; “I am with you always”. These are familiar comforting words that we can find in the Bible. Jesus Himself has said some of these words personally, for example in Matthew 28: 20, he has said, “Surely I am with you always, until the end of the world.” In the Bible, there are many more of these words and teachings if we bother to go and discover further.

When we place our faith in Christ, Christ places his Spirit before, behind, and within us. Everything that Jesus did for His followers, His Spirit will also do for you. Jesus taught: the Spirit teaches; Jesus healed; the Spirit heals. Jesus comforted; His Spirit comforts. As Jesus sends us into new sessions, new ventures, He sends His Counselor to go with us. Nothing will stop Him from doing these teaching, healing and comforting because He wants His children to succeed. He will never send us out alone. His Kingdom’s message is clear: when everything else changes, Jesus presence never does. Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever more (Hebrews 13:8).

In this period of great uncertainty, it is not easy to be optimistic. In fact, we will be labeled as crazy if we tell people we are optimistic about the world’s future! From political tension to economic failure to social immorality, everyone – even the most optimistic person – is saying the world is getting from bad to worse. "The worst is yet to come" is a very familiar words we often hear. We see the gross perversion of morality; we can’t trust the politicians; we can’t trust our business partners; we can’t trust our financial advisers; we can’t trust our employers; employers can’t trust their employees; and sadly we can’t even place full confidence and trust in our family members. But our Lord Jesus will never fail us and only in Him that we can fully place our trust and confidence (Psalm 118:8). So, let us go boldly and keep pressing on the new sessions and the new ventures that He has given us. Let’s us be obedient to His laws; let us repent of our sins and let us focus all of our resources on building His Kingdom that will last forever and ever. Our hope is in only in Him and in Him we will dwell (Psalms 90:1; 91:1-2,9; Ephesians 2:22; 3:17; Revelation 21:3).

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [September 30, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God. [Romans 3:23]

I was once told of a very committed Christian trying to share Gospel with his father who was an idol-worshipper. When he told his father that all men are sinners (and that also implied his father a sinner), his father almost threw a cup of hot coffee onto his face! He father just could not accept that he has sinned. (I was told that his father did eventually come to Christ. He was taken home to be with the Lord several years ago. Thank you Jesus. All glory to You!)

You see, although SIN is a little word but an often misunderstood one. People tend to think of sin as one specific kind of obvious immorality. They think, I don’t rob the bank. I have never killed any one. I don’t do drugs. I am quite faithful to my wife. So how can I a sinner? But God’s standard of measuring sin is very different from the world and the Bible is very specific on what sin is. We don’t need to do any specific sinful act because the Bible tells us that just when our thoughts are wayward and not right with Him, we have already sinned against God. Jesus said anyone who stares at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart (Matthew 5:28) and by committing adultery we have broken one of the Ten Commandments. Sin is any good thoughts, unthought, any good deeds, undone, any good words, unsaid. It is not just our evil and wicked actions that cause harms or injuries to other people.

If you are not convinced that your thoughts are wayward, take up this challenge: Make a video of your thoughts on those things that you were thinking about just over the last one year and show that video to your friends. I can assure you that even your best friend is going to be your enemy after he has viewed it. You will have the thoughts of envy, perhaps, of his big house he owned and you wish that it is yours instead of his, or you might lust after his beautiful wife. You might also be thinking how could he have done so much better than you, in finance, in career, in family, when you are so much smarter than him – your heart just screamed out “he doesn’t deserve all these, I should be the one!” These are examples of the wayward thoughts harboring in our mind and I am sure there are even more awful ones. Frankly, I would never have had the courage to put my thoughts into a video and share with my friends! Who would?

All of us sin both by nature and by choice. That is what keeps us from what we need most - a personal relationship with God like the one Adam and Eve enjoyed before they sinned against God. After they have sinned, they hid themselves. They could not face God. However, God called out to them and the call from God continues every minutes of our life. We need to heed His voice, to come back to Him and to obey His Commandments so that our relationship with Him can be restored. Once our relationship is restored with Him though our sins can be as scarlet, they will be as white as snow, though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool (Isaiah 18:1).

 

[Psalm23]

Today’s Scripture Reading [October 1, 2009]
[All Scripture references are from King James Version]

And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. [Luke 2:16]

In exactly 3 months, the year 2009 will come to a close. Like all other years, the month of December is usually the time when many people celebrate. Some celebrate because they have good year-end bonuses; some attend parties organized by their companies; some parents take their children for holidays because many schools’ vacation also fall in December. To attract shoppers, shopping malls and restaurants step up their promotional activities with the key message: “Be Happy and Be Merry. It’s time to celebrate!”

Another reason why people celebrate in December is because of Christmas. In fact, there is a lot of ugliness during this month. Police reminds people not to drink and drive at the same time because historically this is the month with the highest road accidents, many of them are fatal ones. The crime rate is also one of highest in December because of drunkenness, robbery, theft, cheating and fighting among party-goers.

Many non-Christians are not aware that the event of Christmas to mark the birth of our Lord and Saviour was indeed a very sad and tragic one. Many (including Christians) do not know that no one really knows the exact date of Jesus’ birth. Fortunately, many churches do not celebrate Christmas as they have correctly alleged that it’s a pagan festive event. They prefer to let the season pass by like any other season (except perhaps more hymns on Christ’s birth are sung). But sadly, children are taught by their teachers and parents that this was the day Jesus born.

The sad fact is that Jesus was born in a manger where all kinds of domestic animals like goats, sheep, chickens, ducks, etc., lived. The birth of Jesus was witnessed by animals and then followed by the shepherds. Shepherds in the biblical days were people from the poor of the poorest. They were despised by others and nobody trusted what they said because of their low social status. They were prohibited from testifying in the court of law. But God used humble shepherds to witness His birth on earth. The third group of people who had witnessed the birth of Christ was the angels. His birth was only witnessed by two human beings (other than Joseph and of course Mary herself), an 80-year old righteous prophetess, Anna, who served God day and night through fasting and praying and another temple worker, a just and pious Simeon. The birth of our King of kings and Lord of lords points to His humility that He so desired for us to imitate.

Quite contrary to what depicted in the advertisements, Christmas cards, those nicely wrapped presents hanging on Christmas trees, the birth of Christ was marked by tragic event. King Herod felt his throne, his kingship and his heritage were threatened because of a promise in the Hebrew scripture of a Messiah, a Saviour, would rule the throne of David. The birth of Christ was the fulfillment of this prophecy which King Herod well knew. He then ordered all new born male babies were to be killed. Imagine the agonies of the parents of these new born babies!

Christmas is not the time for us to be “happy and merry”. Rather, it’s a time for us to reflect on the love of God and a time for us to tell the real story of Jesus. Let us not let the world of commerce camouflage the truth of Jesus’ birth. Like any other months in our calendar, December should not influence our Christian belief and our walk with our Saviour. We should remember as often the birth of our Saviour, His cruxifixion, His resurrection and His ascension to heaven. They were greatest earth-shaking events in human history. Let’s us look forward to yet another great and final earth-shaking event – His return to be the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings; to reign over the earth and when He comes and on seeing Him every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (Philippians 2:10-11). We will then celebrate with Him throughout eternity.