as iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another

Apologetics

2008-04-29T04:36:00.000-07:00

Ian writes on the topic of apologetics, and his thoughts on the subject from Devonshire, England.

http://www.kwanian.blogspot.com/2008/02/apologetics.html or click here

The Back and Forth on the Doctrine of Election

2008-04-29T04:30:00.000-07:00

A dialogue between Caleb and Luke on the Doctrine of Election, Calvinism, and some other matters.

The first essay by Luke:

http://www.thinkingsoldier.blogspot.com/2008/04/doctrine-of-election.html or click here

The second essay by Caleb:

http://calebyap.tumblr.com/post/32160114 or click here

Urban Missions

2008-01-02T03:16:00.000-08:00

I've ranted about this before, but I think I'll put it out in a more coherent, written form.

Missions.

Jesus commanded His disciples to "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matthew 28:19-20. In commemoration of this final instruction from Him before He ascended into heaven, Evangelicals today call this last word the Great Commission. Evidently, this is not a word of advice, or random teaching. Rather, it is, as the name suggests, a "commission", or a charge, a duty that has been laid out. Furthermore, since it is "great" it merits attention, effort, resources and obedience for it to be attended to. As a result of this, churches all over the world, and CHristians who form those churches all consider Evangelism an important responsibility. It is not optional.

However, as a sociological experiment, I invite you to consider what most churches (especially in Singapore) would describe as their Evangelism ministry. More often than not, it involves 3 things. Money, prayer and youths sent out. By this I mean, they consist of budgets to support certain missionaries, sent out or adopted by the church; prayer devoted to support and encourage and strengthen the ministries of these adopted missionaries, and finally, sending out our young people to 3rd world countries to try and reach the lost. In the last case, more often than not, just think about what happpens in these "mission trips". We send our 13-25 year olds to _____(usually Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China usually) and they teach English, play with kids, paint houses, bring medicine, food, sing songs, put up plays, etc- but it's usually the same set of activities and resources that we're bringing them. Teaching English is the most common one. Of course, the assumption is that when we head for these 3rd world countries, we're talking about a shortage of medicine, food, clothing, and other necessities. When we teach English, we're giving them education, empowering them to pursue employment and perhaps contribute to some other kind of economic solution to their ills. As the proverb goes, "it is better to teach a man to fish than to give a man a fish." These are useful.

But let me ask something. How often have you heard of a missionary going to... Bukit Panjang. Or Orchard Road. It's all nice and dandy to ease our evangelistic conscience by sending missionaries and our young people to foreign countries where English- the language of trade and commerce, as well as food and other necessities are in shortage. But who's going to reach my neighbor? Who's going to take the light of the Gospel and shine it in the hearts of those who are richer than I am, or more privileged, or more educated or more HAPPY? Do we bring these people the gospel because we want them to be affluent and happy and economically well off? OR do we believe that the gospel meets SPIRITUAL needs and all things necessary for joy and meaningful existence? I think that many of our churches today are shortchanging themselves by focussing on these countries. Don't get me wrong. THese ministries are necessary. But we're not working hard enough on reaching our friends, our neighbors or those we consider to be our direct mission field, and I believe that our mindset when it comes to missions is a crippling factor more than anything else.

THe time tested formula of "money, food English and aid" to these impoverished nations has served us well, and is doubtlessly expanding the Kingdom of God. I say Amen and Praise God to that. But let's also think about URBAN MISSIONS. How are we going to reach the people in the cities? When they (sometimes) speak better English than we do, are more intelligent, with more degrees, or more affluent etc, how do we say that Jesus has come to bring you life and life abundant (Jn 10:10)? Do we even have that conviction?

Sadly, (and I know that I might be shooting myself in the foot) I think the evangelical churches fail in this regard. THe churches (and I commend them) for having devised an intelligent and effective way of reaching these cities are the megachurches, whose formulae of street evangelism, using the arts/music/drama, campus ministries, large scale evangelistic events and other means of community penetration have proven deeply powerful. That's why they're MEGA churches.

WHen corporations sell a product, they do incredible amounts of market research. Lately, a BBC show featured a rising industry of market researchers who dig through consumer's trash, study surveillance cameras in supermarkets, ethnovideographers conducting interviews etc just to find out how and why consumers consume. Surveys are done regularly, as are focus groups because the underlying obsession is profit and sales. They want their product to get sold, so they'll do anything to get it packaged the right way, presented the way etc. How about CHristians? I"m not saying we're SELLING Christ, but we need to have a similar attitude- we want the world to know Him, so let's minimize the obstacles in the way!

In conclusion, I think evangelicals need to pull up their socks, and learn from the megachurches. Especially since we believe that our message and teaching is Biblical and truthful, then let's get it out there! Or maybe we don't want our churches to grow. Maybe we want to retain our little family churches, and our doctrinal purity. Maybe we're content with our mediocrity. Regardless, what about the Great COmmission? None of us are absolved from it!

Whether it's music, arts, drama, relevant cultural apologetics, Christian surveys, presentation, cell group organizational strucure, and other tools, we need to reconsider Urban Missions and stop stroking our little evangelical conscience with our paltry contributions to missionaries and youth mission trips. We need to stop being pew warmers and become Urban Missionaries.

King Tut Versus 秦始皇

2007-11-07T17:28:00.000-08:00

I remember walking, in the spring of 2006, past my usual route over Walnut Street bridge and gazing occasionally at the King Tut exhibition banner that hung opposite the yellow gym on Walnut Street. One of weeks where the exhibition was in Philly, at the Franklin Museum, Rev. Ryken chose, for his regular "Window on the World" series, to look at the King Tut exhibition and contemplate the grandeur and extravagance of King Tut's obsession with immortality. Rev. Ryken pointed out that like all men, King Tutankhamun, who ruled ancient Egypt from 1333-1322 B.C. was afraid of death. Mortality is an issue that addresses all of, regardless of how we don't like to think about it, and someone pointed out (I can't remember who it was) that death comes to all, whether early or late - the great eventuality. The highlight of the exhibition as Rev Ryken reminded us, was the sheer luxury with which King Tut was going to approach the afterlife.

With his lush and opulent trappings, artifacts, embalmings and coffinage, King Tut was all set to face death head on, because, like the Chinese, he aspired to transfer his earthly wealth from one reality to the next. When I was young, I always wondered why people would spend so much time burning paper money for their dead relatives - did they actually believe they were TTing the cash over through the ATMs of hell? And the extravagance of the paper houses, cars, mansions, complete with maids and servants - did people really believe that those translated into some kind of spiritual reality? King Tut clearly did, and he planned to take his wealth and riches with him into eternity, into a kind of immortality through a kind of material preservation. Unfortunately, I didn't go to the exhibition, which I kind of regret- but, hey! It cost 40 bucks!

Now, in 2007, I've been walking past alot of British Museum advertisments, in particular when I pass through the tube station at Borough station on the Northern line, where I live. The current ongoing exhibition, installed till June 2008, features the First Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, and his legendary terracotta warriors. Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China, ruled from 247-221 B.C. Wikipedia (my ever handy source) has this to say about Qin Shi Huang's mausoleum:

"Qin Shi Huangdi’s necropolis complex was constructed to serve as an imperial compound or palace. It comprises several offices, halls and other structures and is surrounded by a wall with gateway entrances. The remains of the craftsmen working in the tomb may also be found within its confines, as it is believed they were sealed inside alive to keep them from divulging any secrets about its riches or entrance. It was only fitting, therefore, to have this compound protected by the massive terracotta army interred nearby. In July 2007 it was determined, using remote sensing technology, that the mausoleum contains a 90-foot tall building built above the tomb, with four stepped walls, each having nine steps. Researchers theorized it was built "for the soul of the emperor to depart." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terracotta_warriors

Like King Tut, Qin Shi Huang had an obsession fear the afterlife. After all, if you were the lord of a region, with absolute power over all the affairs of your nation, what more did you have to worry about? That kind of life would have just been a daily extravagance of sampling the best cheeses of the day, enjoying the very best of music, arts, literature, theater - the high life! I suppose, your only concern then, would be to prolong this state of enjoyment and pleasure - and immortality would be your next goal. Perhaps then, it is no surprise that Qin Shi Huang had a deep obsession with the cultivation of an elixir that would give him immortality and allow him to be, not only the First Emperor of China, but the last one too. Maybe that's what his stunning mausoleum was, then - a final recognition of his inability to attain immortality, and in a last burst of desperation, trying to retain his political power and wealth by recreating a masterpiece to accompany his soul in death. At some point, I'll have to visit the British Museum and this current exhibition then, exploring Qin Shi Huang's preoccupation with the afterlife. Alternatively, Tan Dun wrote an opera starring Placido Domingo of the same title, "THe First Emperor". Maybe I'll watch that instead. =)

Isn't it amazing, how two incredible rulers from such different cultural backgrounds all reflect the same kind of fixation with concerns of mortality? Egypt and China aren't exactly neighbors. And what about other great rulers and kings who concerned themselves with the state of their soul and death?

And perhaps we're not so different from our ancient predecessors after all?

But what does the Bible say? Mark 8:36 says, "What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world, but loses his soul?" And in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16 19-31):

"There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. 20At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores 21and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores.

22"The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried. 23In hell,^[a] where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. 24So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.'

25"But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony. 26And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor can anyone cross over from there to us.'

27"He answered, 'Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my father's house, 28for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.'

29"Abraham replied, 'They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.'

30" 'No, father Abraham,' he said, 'but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.'

31"He said to him, 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.' "

And today, we have One who has indeed, come back from the dead. Perhaps we should listen to His teaching closer than anyone else's. It really doesn't matter how rich, or how famous you are when you're alive - all that matters is where you're going after you die.

Precious

2007-10-24T15:38:00.000-07:00

When was the last time you thanked God for Jesus? And for His precious gift of salvation. I was reminded recently, that having Jesus in my life is the most precious thing in this world. In the era that we live in, bombarded with sensationalist hyperbole and words that don't really mean anything, it's easy to forget what the word precious means.

Jesus describes, in Matthew 13:44, the kingdom of heaven, which is like a man who finds treasure and in his joy, reburies it in a field, and then sells all he has to buy that field again. How have we taken the word of God and turned it into something common and trashy? When was the last time I saw the kingdom of heaven as a precious treasure?

I was just thinking about that today as I walked from Waterloo to Westminster Abbey. Imagine that man's excitement and joy, the Bible says, in selling all his possessions. To him, there must not have been a better setting for getting rid of all his stuff. What did it all count for, his pittance, compared to that glorious treasure he had exchanged it for?

When was the last time I felt that way about being a Christian, a child of God?

How precious is my Jesus to me?

And then after that, at SWOT, we looked at Romans 1, and how all man has sinned, and the extent of our sin. In our study, we learnt that sin, as Romans 1:23 describes it, meant exchanging the glory of the immortal God for the mere images of Man and animals - desiring to BE God, and to lust after the glory and authority and honor due Him. And the reasonable punishment for that, is being given up to our sin, or as the Bible says in Romans, being given up to our own sins by God. C.S. Lewis puts it this way, that there are two kinds of people, those who bow the knee to God and say "Thy will be done" and those who God turns to and says, "then thy will be done". And as James says, being given up to sin gives birth then, to death, and separation from God.

And yet, in Christ, we are spared from that death - how precious!

And it's best described in Isaiah 35:10

"And the ransomed of the LORD will return.
They will enter Zion with singing;
everlasting joy will crown their heads.
Gladness and joy will overtake them,
and sorrow and sighing will flee away."

Christian Liberty: Part II

2007-10-16T15:03:00.000-07:00

Copied nearly wholesale from http://www.eskimo.com/~johnnyb/spiritual/Decisions.xml

Christian Decision Making
A Study in the Book Decision Making by the Book, by Haddon W. Robinson

Jonathan
Bartlett

08/25/2000

Proactive and Reactive Living

Decisions surround us every day. The problem is, we often forget that
we have a choice on how to live our lives. Most people live reactionary
lives. Life happens, and we just do what comes naturally to us. We
don't think about it too much, we just do it. However, as Christians,
we should not live reactively, but proactively. This means that each
situation we are in brings us to a decision. There is more than one
way to react in every situation. Some actions are appropriate, some
aren't. We need to assess each situation we find ourselves in, and
make proactive decisions on how to handle them, based on Christian
decision-making principles. This way, we can live dynamic lives, and
can be used by the Lord for His work. If we just do what comes naturally,
we will be blown around like dust in the wind, going whatever way the
wind takes us. Christ died for us, we must decide at each moment to
follow Him.

Let me give you some example of this proactive/reactive dichotomy.
I work as a webmaster for a company that has a significant
amount of traffic to their website. In my job, I have to carry
a pager. We have an automatic paging system that pages me and a few
other people whenever a machine goes down. Having never carried a pager
before, I tended to forget mine and leave it at work. I had missed
several pages this way, with other co-workers having to pick up the
slack. One time, this happened at two-o'clock in the morning. The
next day, I was embarrassed about what happened. When my co-workers
asked my what happened, I lied about it saying that I just slept
through it. My decision was reactive. I wasn't thinking about what
I was doing, so my first reaction (which was obviously wrong) is
what I did. Had I been proactive, I would have considered my options,
and chosen a better one.

Jesus was always proactive in His ministry. Even when He was angry,
His actions were well thought out and well planned. Consider the time
when Jesus cleared out the temple. Obviously, He was very angry.
However, don't think that Jesus went into the temple, and then after
seeing the merchants, He flew off the handle and went into a rage.
Actually, He had the whole thing planned. If you look in John 2:15,
you see that Jesus made a whip of chords. I could be wrong, but it
seems to me that making a whip was not something one does on impulse.
Instead, I would say that this move was likely planned, and he made
the whip to help Him carry out His purpose.
So, as
you can see, even when Jesus was angry, His actions were planned,
proactive choices.

Componenets of a Decision

Every decision is composed of these things:

Context

The context is the situation surrounding the decision. No decision
is ever made in isolation. Decisions involve previous choices, other
people, and other decisions.

Courses of Action

A decision entails specific courses of action. It is important to
the decision-making process that a good number of alternatives be
sought out, so the best decision can be made. What may look like
a poor alternative at first may later show itself to be the best choice,
so it is best not to rule out too many options too soon

Benefit Analysis

This is the heart of decision-making. This involves taking each
possible alternative, and weighing the pros and cons to make the
best possible decision. This document is mainly concerned with
helping you weigh the pros and cons in a manner consistent with
the Christian life.

Reactive living is what happens when a person does not spend as much
time looking at the courses of action or analysing the benefits as
they need to. Someone who lives proactively will be constantly weighing
each course of action against Christian guidelines

Let's examine my decision at Wolfram. What did I do wrong? First,
I did not explore all of my options. I did not even consider simply
telling the truth and apologizing. If I had, when I weighed my options
I would have realized that telling the truth is the only valid Biblical
way to go. Later I did realize this, and decided to email an apology
both for my actions and for my lie.

Purpose of this Document

The aim of this document is to acquaint you with some of the proper methods
Christians should use when making decisions, whether the decision is a
large, life-changing one, like what career to take, or whether it is one
of the many daily decisions we must make when we live as proactive Christians.
It also should acquaint
you with many common mistakes and misconceptions most Christians have
about decision making. There are many decision-making methods available
that non-Christians use. However, as Christians, our lives are orientated
around loving and serving the Lord, and our decision-making process should
reflect that. Also, as Christians, we also not to fear the
decisions we have to make, but should be confident that the Lord will
both show us the way and give us what we need.

Decision Making and God's Will

One of the main problems in Christianity is that we don't know what
God wants us to do. We wait and wait and let life pass us by. What
are we waiting for? For God to show us what His will is. Instead
of waiting around, we should be seeking out His will. Indeed, there
are times when it is appropriate to wait, but by default we should
seek the Lord and His will, and only wait when specifically asked.
However, do not be fooled into thinking that seeking the Lord's will
is an easy task. On the contrary, it takes lots of prayer, study,
and time. Be patient and perservere. You'll be glad you did.

One of the most common questions any human asks is "why am I here?".
The Christian's life is oriented around serving God, so the Christian
instead asks, "what does God want me to do?" or "what is God's
will for my life?" The problem is that many Christians know the
question, but they have no idea how to find out the answer. This
has a profound effect on decision-making, because when you know
the direction that God wants you to go, it gives you a guideline
to decision-making. For example, Olympic athletes know that they
are going to compete in the Olympics. Knowing that, they make
decisions on eating, daily routines, lifestyle choices, and all
sorts of other decisions based on where they are going. As
Christians, if we know where God is taking us, we can use that
information to help us make decisions in many areas of life.

The Bible has been regarded as the definitive source of faith and
practice for Christians throughout the centuries. Therefore, we
will follow its lead on finding out how God wants us to make
decisions, and what His will is for our lives.
In the Bible, God makes many statements concerning His will.
It is useful to divide these up into general categories, and see how
they apply to us. These categories are:

God's sovereign will
God's moral will
God's will for you

God's Sovereign Will

God makes many statements throughout the Bible that tells us His
general plan. This general plan is often referred to as God's
sovereign will. It is called this because God assures us that
this is what He wants, and He will be make it happen.
Make no mistake - God will be faithful in executing
His plan, and He wants your help. God's plan
includes, among other things

the salvation of every nation
His kingdom being established on Earth
for the whole world to glorify Him

So, when making decisions,
your first question should be, "Is this in line with God's overall
plan for the world?" There are many decisions where this question
doesn't give you any helpful guidance, such as "who should I be
friends with?". However, this affects many others, such as "how
should I act at work?", "what should I do with my free time?", and
"how should I spend my money?". Although this doesn't give you a
specific answer, it gives you a direction to look in.

If you are stuck trying to find God's will, maybe the best way to go
about it is to look at God's overall plan, and see where you
want to help out in (your church leaders will
probably be able to tell you possible avenues in which you can serve
God). Start there. If later you find out that God wants you somewhere
else, then change direction. But if you don't do anything, you
definitely aren't following His plan.

God's Moral Will

So, God's sovereign will tells us the general direction in which we
need to go. How about more specific issues?
What about questions that not only guide our lives in the long run,
but those that affect us day to day? Questions like, what do I
do about my meddlesome boss? How do I handle my children who
are out of control? How do I choose my friends?

As you can see, God gives us a great amount of moral direction in
the bible. This is one of the best sources of council in decision
making. You will find that the most hard decisions of life are
answered clearly within the moral teachings of the Bible. That
doesn't make the decisions easy to make, nor does it guarantee
a good outcome. However, as Christians, we are here to make decisions
according to God's will, not our own gain.

The Bible's answer to moral questions is known as God's moral will.
God's moral will, like His sovereign will, does not change.
However, how it is performed does vary with circumstance. Knowing
how to apply the Bible's moral principle's is a complex subject,
which will be dealt with later. In
order to make Christian decisions effectively, you must be very
familiar with both what the Bible says, and the proper methods to
apply it.

God's Will For You

God's will for you (known in theological circles as His
individual will) is comprised of the specific things that God wants
you to do. God has a specific plan for
you. Please take note, however, that this plan will not violate
either His moral or His sovereign wills. His plan for you is
fully in line with both. So, if you are trying to make a decision,
often times looking at God's sovereign and moral wills will leave
only one option. In such a case, there is no need to find out
what God's will is, you already have!

God's individual will is probably the hardest to decipher. This
is because the Bible offers no help whatsoever! If you read a
verse and apply it as a message to yourself, and that message
wouldn't make sense to anyone else, you are misinterpretting the
Bible.
In the Bible, there are many examples of God showing His
individual will to people, but we shouldn't confuse what God layed
out for them with what God has planned for us. So how do we
know God's individual will for our lives? There are many ways,
but I've found the most effective way is keeping the communication
lines open with God. The more you have meaningful time with God,
the better you can understand His voice. Anyway, any of the
following can show you God's individual will:

Advice of a trusted friend/pastor/family member
Word of knowledge or prophecy
Personal prayer time
Situations

Be careful about looking at situations for God's will. Even though He
sometimes speaks through them, it is the trickiest of all. God doesn't
always take us down the easiest or most obvious route. We are not
supposed to go through every door that opens. Be sure that before
taking any counsel about God's will for your life, that you weed
out those options that violate His moral or His sovereign will.

Christian Freedom

Of course, in all this trying to figure out what God wants for us, we
often forget about the incredible freedom that God gives us. God
gives us freedom in two main ways - forgiveness and choice.
We have freedom in forgiveness because we know that even if we make
the wrong choice, God will forgive us and we can move on. This is
one of the most exciting things about the gospel for the apostle
Paul. Before Jesus, we had to busy ourselves poring over scripture
after scripture making sure that whatever we did was exactly in line
with what God's commands are. In fact, so much effort was put into
worrying about not doing anything wrong that hardly anything was
done right! In Jesus, we can leave our worrying behind. If we focus
on Jesus and try to do what's right, we don't have to worry if we
miss the mark, because we have complete forgiveness. It doesn't mean
that we should ignore God's words and commands, but we don't need
to live in fear of breaking them. Instead, we can concentrate on
glorifying the Lord, and accomplishing His perfect plan.

However, that is only one kind of freedom God gives us. God also gives
us a great deal of choice. God cares about what we
want! Within the bounds of His sovereign, moral, and individual wills,
He gives us a tremendous amount of freedom to operate. In 1 Corinthians
7:39, Paul says to the widows that they can marry
anyone they want (as long as that person is a believer)! In one
of life's biggest decisions, marriage, God gives us freedom to choose
within His boundaries. God's moral will prevents us from marrying
non-believers, but other than that, the instructions are to marry
(or don't marry) whomever we wish. Now, God does choose wives
for some, and for others there may be a best
choice of a wife. However, for the general case, the choice is
entirely up to you! Now, in the case where God gives no direction
as to His individual will, and His sovereign and moral wills leave
several options open, you should employ good decision-making skills.
God has left the choice to you, so you should choose wisely. Although
there is no "wrong" decision in these cases, some have more desirable
consequences than others. When the choice is yours, be sure to make a
good decision!

A Strong Sense of If

When making any plans, whether you believe them to be according to
God's will or part of the free choice that God gives us, we must
always remember what James says - God may change our plans at any
moment. James 4:13-15 explains that it is stupid to say tomorrow
we will do something, instead we should say that
if the Lord allows it, we will do whatever it is we were planning.
There is nothing wrong with planning, but always remember that even
the most definite of outcomes can be changed by God. He may move in
any situation to our benefit or detriment. As James says, we should
not say "tomorrow we will do thus and such," but instead, "if the Lord
wills, tomorrow we will do thus and such." It's not a matter of words
- anyone can incorporate this into their language - but whether or not
you acknowledge that God has control of the situation, not you. God
has a full understanding of what's going on, but you don't. In
1 Corinthians 13:0 Paul says that we currently only know and prophesy
in part (later we will know the whole picture). In the Old Testament,
Joseph had the vision that his brothers would bow before Him. However,
even with this knowledge straight from God, He did not know that He
would spend decades in bondage before that. If He was expecting God to
follow his own way, Joseph would probably have forsaken God a long time
before God could fulfill His promises.

Resources for Decision Making

The Bible

The Bible is the obvious first place for a Cristian to look
for God's will. However, it is very easy to misuse what God
says, and thus render it ineffective. If you do not properly
interpret the Bible, you can read anything into it that you
want to, and therefore, it is no more helpful than your own
opinion. If you just want your own opinion, there is no reason
to consult the Bible for it.

You can spend your life learning Bible-study methods. You may
wonder - how many do I need to know until I'm ready to study?
Well, you will never know everything about biblical interpretation,
and you'll never know everything about the Bible. However, you
should always try to learn more of both, and they will each help
the other. As you learn better interpretation, it may cause you
to re-examine previous scriptures, and come to a new understanding.
Your old beliefs may have been based on a faulty reading of scripture -
be prepared for that. Also, be willing to be corrected by those who
are better at interpretation than you are, but you should also examine
what they have to say for yourself to make sure it makes sense
(many heretics are also bible scholars). Don't be afraid to ask others
when you face difficulties, you may learn something new.

This paper does not intend to give even a thorough introduction to
Biblical interpretation. If you are new to Biblical interpretation,
you should read the book How to Read the Bible for All its
Worth. It is definitely worth it.

Examining the Context

The Bible has many, many verses. You might not know this hearing
some people quote it. Before even attempting to interpret a
passage of scripture, you need to understand the context it is
placed in. The context consists of two parts

The historical context
The scriptural context

The historical context consists of things like historical background and
cultural customs. Take for instance Simon. He was called "the zealot".
Just reading that, you may think that it means that he was very
enthusiastic. However, knowing the history of that time, you find that
the there was a group of people who called themselves "the zealots",
who were militant in wanting Jerusalem out of Roman control. It is
not certain that Simon was a part of this group, but knowing that
he might be will help understand his actions as portrayed in the
Bible. The Bible was first written to the people of its time. Paul
wrote his letters to his churches, not to us. Therefore, it is
important not to ask, "what does this mean to me and my situation", but
instead ask "what did this mean to them and their situation?" Only
after that question is answered can you then extract a meaning for
your situation today. For example, Paul once said "greet one another
with a kiss". If he were to have said that to our churches today, then
we should all be going around kissing each other all the time. But he
didn't. He wrote it to a Greek church where kissing is a common greeting.
A proper interpretation for today's world is "greet each other with
a warm hug or handshake." Now, this does not give us license to
declare parts of the Bible not applicable to today because of the context.
You should never say "that doesn't apply to us". The only revelant
question is "how does that apply to us". Sometimes it will apply
differently in our culture than it did then. However, to find that out,
you must first discover how it applied to their culture.

The scriptural context basically says where this passage fits in
with the rest of the Bible. It consists of

How long is this passage?
How does this passage relate to the rest of the book?
How does this passage relate to the rest of the Bible?

Now, I can't possible tell you everything you need to know about these
questions, except alert you to their presence and necessity, and give
you a few examples of what to do. First of all, lets take the length
of a passage. When looking at a passage, you need to decide how long
of a section constitues the main idea. For example, when studying
the Good Samaritan story, you can't just read the story, you also have
to read the verses before it. If you were just to read the story, you
might not understand what it's about. However, if you look a few verses
before, you find out that the whole story is an answer to the question,
"Who is my neighbor?" Many people have read that and come up with
some really strange interpretations. However, the meaning is clear if
you read it with the question "who is my neighbor" in mind. Now, there
is no cut and clear way to determine what the absolute length of a
passage is. However, when you read verses, be sure to look both before
and after the given verse until you come to what seems to you like a
section break. Find out the main point of the section, and then
read the meaning of a verse based on the main point of the section.

Next, you need to look at that passage in the context of the whole
book. This isn't something you can do easily - you must have a good
background on the purpose of the books of the Bible as well as the
style in which they were written. You can find this information from
a good study bible or commentary. The book How to Read
the Bible for All it's Worth has a good reference to much
of this information. Basically, you have to ask yourself:

Why was this book written?
To whome was this book written?
What style was this book written in?
How does this passage fit in with the book as a whole?

The first two questions can give you a background for reading the book.
Knowing why something is written can give you
a better knowledge of what it is about. However,
the question that affects interpretation the most is the style question.
The Bible was written like everything else is written. It was written
for a reason, and in a specific style. When I write poetry, I write
differently than when I write prose. I use different words. When I'm
arguing, I might exaggerate to make a point (note that exaggerate is
not lying - its purpose is to clarify your point by making it bigger).
Each type of writing makes its point in different ways. In the Bible,
if you are reading poetry, don't use the words of a poem as an exact,
literal truth. They are not even meant that way. When reading a
parable, don't look for any deeper truth than what answers the
question Jesus was being asked or discussing. When reading a
narrative, don't assume that the main character does everything right -
its just an account of what happened, not necessarily what should
have happened. The Bible was written in a number of different styles,
and it is important to interpretation to both know what the style was,
and also how that style affects the meaning.

Finally, you need to read the passage in relation to the whole Bible.
Basically, ask yourself, "how is this part of God's message to
humanity?" If you can't find the answer, re-examine the verse, look
at more resources, and ask others.

Examining the text

Whenever reading the Bible, it is always a good idea to check several
translations to make sure you have an accurate reading. I think it
is good to always include the King James version. Why? It's not
because I think it is more holy or anything. Rather, there are many
words in the Bible whose translation is uncertain. In most modern
translations, the translators almost always make a guess as to what
it means. The King James, on the other hand, usually leaves it
vague and uncertain. People complain about the King James being
difficult to understand, but that is often because the meaning of
the original Greek or Hebrew is unclear. Anyway, by reading several
versions, you get a better idea of what the passage really means.

Why do translations differ?

Many people wonder why translations differ so much from each other.
There are two main reasons - textual criticism and translation style.
Textual criticism is simply the examining of the various copies of the
Bible and determining which copy contains the most accurate rendering.
There are thousands of ancient manuscripts for each book in the Bible,
but we have no original versions. On top of that, each manuscript is
different (usually not by much, though). So, many translations differ
in which set of manuscripts they base their translation on (the process
of determining this is way outside the scope of
this study). Also, there are differnt styles of translation. The
literal style basically takes each word in the original language, and
finds a matching word in English. This usually renders a very dry
translation, and it requires the reader to know many greek idioms.

Interpreting the Text

After learning about and studying the text, you are ready to interpret.
There are actually two parts to interpretation:

Finding out what the passage meant then
Discovering how it applies today

You might wonder how these two things differ. Shouldn't the Bible mean
the same thing yesterday, today, and forever? Yes, of course. However,
people change. Culture changes. Therefore, the means of living the
Christian life today is different from the past. Some things are
explicitly meant to be true forever, but others vary according to
culture. However, you should say that a verse doesn't apply to today.
All scripture applies, but it may apply differently today than before.
For example, I follow Paul's recommendation of greeting each other
with a holy kiss by greeting others with a warm handshake. I am
carrying out the idea presented in the verse according to the culture
at hand.

The Bible and decision making

These tools I've presented for Bible study should enable you to
more accurately study the Bible, and therefore make better
decisions. If you have God's word in your heart, you are well
on your way to good decision-making. However, if you misinterpret
the Bible, you may accidentally break God's will. That is why
learning biblical interpretation is so important. However, don't
let the fear of misunderstanding or accidental misinterpretation
prevent you from acting on God's word. Do your best. If you are
wrong, allow yourself to be corrected, and let Jesus' forgiveness
do its thing. We don't have to get it all right before we go out
and live it. We just need to go, and if we screw up along the way
we'll be forgiven.

Remember, the Bible will help you out with learning God's sovereign
will and His moral will. Thus, it will give you guidelines on what
are acceptable courses of action in a given situation. However,
it does not offer any specific guidance (unless it rules out all choices
but one). The following are improper uses of the Bible:

You should not use the Bible as a Ouiji board. Don't make decisions
based on a coincidence in a Bible reading. That is a misuse. For
example, if you are trying to decide which college to go to, and you
read a passage about Moses travelling East, do not take
that as an instruction for you to go to an eastern school.
That is a misuse of the Bible.

You should not take any statement as overly literal, overly exact,
or overly encompassing. Remember that the Bible is written in
regular language, which is often inexact. A writer may say "all"
when they mean "all the things I've been talking about". Be aware
that in regular language, things can be vague. Things can be
exaggerated. Noone is being false, they are just using language -
and imperfect tool.

If you use the Bible properly, it will be a valuable tool for decision
making

Prayer

Prayer is one of the best and most underused tools Christians have
at their disposal. God has given us an amazing power through prayer,
yet only very few people make good use of it. I'm sure its possible
to pray too much, but I've never seen it happen.

Christian Liberty: Part I

2007-10-16T15:02:00.000-07:00

Copying wholesale from Luke's blog on the 25th September 2007:

discernment in Christian liberty

expedience - will it be to my spiritual advantage?
edification - will it build me up?
excess - will it slow me down in the race?
enslavement - will it bring me to bondage?
equivocation - will it be covering for my sin?
encroachment - will it go against what i understand to be the lordship of Christ?
example - will it set a helpful pattern for others to follow?
evangelism - will it lead others to Christ?
emulation - will it be like Christ?
exaltation - will it glorify God?

- john macarthur, thinking through grey areas

Near Future

2007-10-16T14:58:00.000-07:00

I realised that for a long time, this blog has been quite dormant. Nonetheless, apart from urging my -achem- fellow contributors to write more, I would like to plan a set of list for study in the near future. Apart from quoting some excellent resources and -stealing- their material wholly, I'd like to touch on some rather touchy topics that some people have raised of late, and I feel very compelled to investigate.

1.) What does the Bible say about women and their role in the church? In other words, is the Bible sexist?

2.) What does the Bible say about itself? How can we know the Bible is true?

3.) Christian liberty

4.) How can I know God's will for my life.

5.) The Bible and aesthetics

6.) The Apostle Paul

On Hell

2007-10-12T17:39:00.000-07:00

It's been a long time since I last posted anything, but I really wanted to share some thoughts on Hell. Without doing a lengthy study on purgatory and what happens to the dead immediately after they die, I think it's interesting to consider notions of Hell. For this study, I've divided the sections up with headings, so hopefully it helps you with understanding what I'm trying to say.

We don't like to talk about Hell.
Hell usually is an uncomfortable idea for most people, because it usually leads them to start thinking about how unfair and unjust God is for sending all these people to damnation. After all, the Bible's description of this place for non-believers is highly controversial, and charged with a vindictive air of violence and barbarism. Lake of fire? Eternal torment? Weeping and gnashing of teeth?

Popular imagination and pictures of Hell
Alot of our contemporary understandings of Hell come from popular cultural sources. This is a fact. Whether it's Dante's Inferno, or the 18 levels of Hell from Chinese cultural sources, hell is often associated with a place of torment and intense physical pain and agony. Is this true? I'm suggesting that this is little more than our own imposition of non-Biblical ideas of hell on the text, and making God out to be this incredible tormentor of the human soul, an unkind tyrant who delights in the suffering of others. This of course, is untrue. God clearly states, "The Lord is...not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. (2 Peter 3:9)" INdicating that He doesn't want ANYONE to suffer. Nonetheless, hell is a reality for those who reject the free gift of God's grace through Jesus. But maybe our picture of Hell isn't an accurate one.

Hell as a place of spiritual suffering
The Bible teaches us that Hell is a place where souls end up. In the book, Case for Faith, under claim #6 (my source for this argument), the suggestion is made that hell is a place of spiritual suffering, marked by eternal separation from God, and this is the ultimate torment.

If you think about James 1:17a "Every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from above, from the Father of lights," our God is a God of delight and pleasure, from whom all of life's delights stream from. This doesn't mean that our GOd is a God who's concerned with all pleasures, moral and immoral, but John Piper, in his book "Desiring God" suggests that Christians should be Christian Hedonists because our God is the GOd of ultimate pleasure- Himself.

Logically speaking, if God is the embodiment of all truth, blessing, power, pleasure, glory, beauty and delight, then He is the greatest treasure of all. A life knowing then, that you missed out on that greatest pleasure/treasure for all eternity because you missed Jesus, is one marked by immense regret. For a person who plays the stock market, knowing that you sold your stock too early and missed out on the windfall, you feel an immense sense of loss and regret knowing what you missed out on. This is the same with God.

Remember also, that the Bible makes it clear that one day, the truth will come to light, and all heaven and hell, angels and demons and all of mankind will have to confess Jesus as Lord, because His authority and divinity will be made plain for allthe world to see. Until that day comes, we're kind of living in a state where we're dependent on faith. We know that Jesus is Lord, but by faith we make that claim. ON that day, when we've been sorted into hell-bound and those not, all willl know, and that day will be the day of the greatest spiritual suffering because you know you missed out. Your brokenness will be made plain, and the sense of regret will overwhelm and frustrate for all eternity. Is there any kind of worse suffering?

Conversely, I believe that heaven is only beautiful because of Jesus. Are the streets paved with gold? Is there gold in heaven? Where spirits and souls live, how can there by a physical item like gold? And why would it be precious? The gold, then, is a symbol for something else, something precious and valuable. Something like that precious relationship formed with Him, makes Heaven a place of endless delight and pleasure. In other words, heaven would only be heaven for those who love Him- the more you love Him, the greater your 'reward'. If you didn't love Him, heaven wouldn't be heaven for you. But because you know what you missed out on, hell becomes a place of eternal regret and spiritual torment.

Bible quotes on Hell (underlines and caps from website)
I was trying to do a little search on what the Bible says about hell, and where- and I came across this website so I'm using their quotations from Scripture. Here they are, with my interpretation to them in italics:

Matthew 25:41 (Jesus speaking to people at final judgment), ...Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.
Just as how gold doesn't exist in heaven, fire won't hurt a spiritual form. It just doesn't make sense. In the Case for Faith, the expert suggests that the impossibility of a "eternal fire" (since all combustion is depndent on oxygen and physical matter) is a metaphor for something else. Fire is associated with judgment, and GOd's righteous wrath against sin for the individual who isn't clothed with the righteousness of Christ.
Revelation 14:11, And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night...
(sorry I don't know how to get rid of the underline) "No rest day or night" is another way of saying eternal suffering, with no relief or vindication for suffering. THis plays into the idea of a eternal truth being revealed (i.e. Jesus is Lord!) and the sense of eternal regret goes on forever.
Revelation 20:12, 15, And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life...And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.
As Strobel's expert (I forget who,) suggests, the "lake" of "fire" is primarily, an oxymoron. A lake is a body of water, and fire is a source of physical combustion. It's clearly a metaphor for a large expanse, or plain of judgement- i.e. associated with fire and heat. To the unbeliever whose sin is not cleansed by Christ, the wrath of God is imminent.
Matthew 10:28, And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
This verse suggests that God has the power to destroy the physical and the spiritual. If GOd is omnipotent, He is surely able to do both. Physical destruction is easy- death and decomposition. Spiritual destruction is also synonymous with spiritual death and separation from God. THe Bible uses this phrase quite often to suggest someone who is cut off from the LIFE, hope and sustenance found in Jesus. Does this verse mean that in hell, a person is annihilated (wiped out of existence)? This is impossible, since elsewhere, the Bible suggests that the souls of man will last through eternity- both in spiritual life and death. They'll be around for a long time. Just in spiritual separation.
Luke 12:5, But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which AFTER he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him.
This verse demonstrates that hell is a place to be feared, even more than causing physical death. Yes, the spiritual consequences of a Christless eternity should be feared more than death itself.
Matthew 18:8, 9 Wherefore if thy hand or thy foot offend thee, cut them off, and cast them from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life halt or maimed, rather than having two hands or feet to be cast into everlasting fire. And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: it is better for thee to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into hell's fire.
This verse tells us that self-mutilation and extreme measures are better than the consequence of going to hell. Nothing could be worse than hell, Jesus says! See other verses on fire as a metaphor for judgment (above). Literal fire probably doesn't exist on a spiritual level.
Matthew 25:46, And these shall go away into EVERLASTING punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.
This verse teaches us about the eternal implications of our decisions. There is no end to pain of regret and missed opportunity. Not even time will heal these wounds.

II Thessalonians 1:9 Who shall be punished with EVERLASTING destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power.
This explains the notion of the naked sinner unable to withstand the holiness of God's presence. Those not clothed in the righteousness of the Lamb will suffer eternal destruction aka eternal separation from Jesus, the source of Life eternal.
Isaiah 66:24, And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be abhorring unto all flesh.
Mark 9:44 (speaking of hell), Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.
The "worm" here could suggest the inner sense of regret and suffering that stems from that inner boring into the soul. The "fire" unquenchable could equally suggest a picture of God's wrath which will never be appeased.
Jude 7, Sodom and Gomorrha...are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire.

Clearly, Sodom and Gomorrah are classic examples of God's wrath and judgment. Their time on earth was marked by physical punishment. But how much worse the spiritual judgment. Likewise, eternal fire or righteous judgment awaits those who don't know Christ.
Matthew 22:13, ...Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
As suggested in the Case for Faith- weeping symbolizes sorrow and sadness, mourning for self. Gnashing of teeth is synonymous with intense regret and embitterment.
Matthew 13:41-42, The Son of man (Jesus) shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
Fire-judgment. Weeping and gnashing of teeth (see above)
Revelation 21:8, But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
A very intensively descriptive verse. Nonetheless, appearing in Revelations, a book of prophecy and metaphorical language typical of prophecy books (like Daniel and Ezekiel). This verse suggests that hell is a place of punishment for the unbelieving, and the heat of the judgment- not physical heat, but the scathing pain and spiritual anguish implied. Furthermore, the text makes it clear- this is a second death. A separation that mirrors the first- this time, not just cut off from the land of the living, but cut off eternally from Life itself.
Psalm 9:17, The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.
Yes, hell is a place for those who disregard God and His righteous standards. These then, are wicked in their stubbornness not to acknowledge Christ, and His atonement.
Isaiah 14:99-11, 15 (referring to Lucifer), Hell from beneath is moved for thee to meet thee at thy coming: it stirreth up the dead for thee...all they shall speak and say unto thee, Art thou also become weak as we? art thou become like unto us? Thy pomp is brought down to the grave, and the noise of thy viols: the worm is spread under thee, and the worms cover thee...thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit.
Again, the language of the "worm" a synonym for regret, remorse, and an internal eating away of the soul, a gnawing at the core of our hearts. Surely there are no worms in hell?
Daniel 12:2, And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and EVERLASTING contempt.
This makes it very clear.

The following is a true story as told by the Lord Jesus in Luke 16:19-31:

19. There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day:
20. And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores,
21. And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.
22. And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried;
23. And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
24. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.
25. But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented.
26. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
27. Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house:
28. For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment.
29. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.
30. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent.
31. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead.
This verse talks about "a place of torment" and associates it with "fire" which can be cooled by a "drop of water". THis possibly suggests the repeated image of judgment and spiritual pain from God's righteous wrath and anger against the kind of relief that water represents. Life-giving sustenance, cooling and refreshing, and of course, associated with the idea of Jesus being the Water from which if you drink, you will never thirst again.
Conclusion
I don't know if you find the argument convincing, but I am persuaded that God is not an unfair God, neither is He a GOd who delights in our suffering. But let's not confuse OUR ideas of hell with what we think Hell really IS. Let's put our faith in Him, and not put Him on trial, even though He is our judge. But what a joy to have a righteous judge who rewards and punishes according to His perfect justice!

The Three Atheists

2007-09-26T08:24:00.000-07:00

Annoyed with recent rants from New Atheists? I am! Milton specialist Stanley Fish puts it well.

Source: http://fish.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/06/10/the-three-atheists/

June 10, 2007, 7:16 pm

The Three Atheists

Tags: atheism

Writings against God and religion have been around as long as God and religion have been around. But every so often an epidemic of the genre breaks out and a spate of such writings achieves the status of notoriety (which is what their authors had been aiming for). This has now happened to three books published in the last three years: Sam Harris’s “The End of Faith: Religion, Terror and The Future of Reason” (2004, 2005), Richard Dawkins’s “The God Delusion” (2006) and Christopher Hitchens’s “God is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything” (2007). (Were this the kind of analysis performed in Lancelot Andrewes’s sermons, I would note the fact that the names of all three authors end in “s,” signifying, no doubt, the presence of Sin and Satan.)

The books differ in tone and emphasis.

Harris is sounding a warning against the threat of Islam and inveighing against what he regards as the false hope of religious moderation. “We are at war with Islam,” he announces, and he decides that, given the nature of the enemy — religious zealots informed by an absolute and terrifying faith — torture “in certain circumstances would seem to be not only permissible but necessary.” (This from someone who denounces religion because it is used as a rationalization for inhumane deeds!)

Dawkins doesn’t single out Islam for particular negative intention; in his eyes all religions are equally bad and equally absurd; and he wonders why obviously intelligent men and women can’t see through the nonsense, especially given that so many of the questions religion can’t answer have clearly been answered by the theory of natural selection.

Hitchens, the wittiest and most literate of the three, is a world traveler and will often recount the devastating arguments against religion he has made while lunching with a very important person in Belgrade, Bombay, Belfast, Beirut, the Vatican, North Korea and Washington, D.C., among other places.

Still, as distinct as the personalities and styles of the three are, they share a set of core arguments. (And they toss little bouquets to one another along the way.)

First, religion is man-made: its sacred texts, rather than being the word of God, are the “manufactured” words of fallible men.

Moreover (and this is the second shared point), these words have been cobbled together from miscellaneous sources, all of which are far removed in time from the events they purport to describe.

Third, it is in the name of these corrupt, garbled and contradictory texts, that men (and occasionally women) have been moved to do terrible things.

Fourth (and this is the big one), the commission of these horrible acts – “trafficking in humans…ethnic cleansing… slavery… indiscriminate massacre” (Hitchens) – is justified not by arguments, reasons or evidence, but by something called faith, which is scornfully dismissed by all three: “Faith is what credulity becomes when it finally achieves escape velocity from the constraints of terrestrial discourse – constraints like reasonableness., internal coherence, civility and candor” ( Harris). “Faith is an evil precisely because it requires no justification and brooks no argument” (Dawkins). “If one must have faith in order to believe something,…then the likelihood of that something having any truth or value is considerably diminished” (Hitchens).

It’s time for an example of the kind of thinking Harris, Dawkins and Hitchens find so contemptible. At the beginning of Bunyans’s “The Pilgrim’s Progress,” the hero, named simply Christian, becomes aware of a great burden on his back (it is Original Sin) and is desperate to rid himself of it. Distraught , he consults one named Evangelist who tells him to flee “the wrath to come.”

Flee where, he asks.

Pointing in the direction of a vast expanse, Evangelist says, Do you see the Wicket Gate out there?

No, replies Christian.

Do you see a shining light?

Christian is not sure (“I think I do”), but at Evangelist’s urging he begins to run in the direction of the light he cannot quite make out. Then comes the chilling part: “Now he had not run far from his own door, but his Wife and Children perceiving it, began to cry after him to return, but the man put his fingers in his ears and ran on, crying Life! Life! Eternal Life.”

So what we have here is a man abandoning his responsibilities and resisting the entreaties of those who love and depend on him, and all for something of whose existence he is not even sure. And, even worse, he does this in the absence of reason, argument or evidence. (Mark Twain’s Huck Finn said of “The Pilgrim’s Progress”: “About a man who left his family; it didn’t say why.”) At this point, Harris, Dawkins and Hitchens would exclaim, See what these nuts do at the behest of religion – child abandonment justified by nothing more substantial than some crazy inner impulse; remember Abraham was going to kill his son because he thought the blood-thirsty god he had invented wanted him to.

I have imagined this criticism coming from outside the narrative, but in fact it is right there on the inside, in the cries of Christian’s wife and children, in the reactions of his friends (“they thought that some frenzy distemper had gotten into his head”), and in the analysis they give of his irrational actions: he, they conclude, is one of those who “are wiser in their own eyes than seven men that can render a Reason.” What this shows is that the objections Harris, Dawkins and Hitchens make to religious thinking are themselves part of religious thinking; rather than being swept under the rug of a seamless discourse, they are the very motor of that discourse, impelling the conflicted questioning of theologians and poets (not to mention the Jesus who cried, “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?” and every verse of the Book of Job).

Dawkins asks why Adam and Eve (and all their descendants) were punished so harshly, given that their “sin” – eating an apple after having been told not to – “seems mild enough to merit a mere reprimand.” (We might now call this the Scooter Libby defense.) This is a good question, but it is one that has been asked and answered many times, not by atheists and scoffers, but by believers trying to work though the dilemmas presented by their faith. An answer often given is that it is important that the forbidden act be a trivial one; for were it an act that was on its face either moral or immoral, committing it or declining to commit it would follow from the powers of judgment men naturally have. It is because there is no reason, in nature, either to eat the apple or to refrain from eating it, that the prohibition can serve as a test of faith; otherwise, as John Webster explained (“The Examination of Academies,” 1654), faith would rest “upon the rotten basis of humane authority.”

Hitchens asks, “Why, if God is the creator of all things, were we supposed to ‘praise’ him incessantly for doing what comes naturally?” The usual answer (again given by theologians and religious poets) is, what else could we do in the face of his omnipotence and omnipresence? God is the epitome of the rich relative who has everything; thanks and gratitude are the only coin we can tender.

Or can we? The poet George Herbert reasons (and that is the word) that if it is only by the infusion of grace that we do anything admirable, praising God is an action for which we cannot take credit; for even that act is His. “Who hath praise enough?”, he asks, but then immediately (in the same line) corrects himself: “Nay, who hath any?” (“Providence”) Even something so minimal as praising God becomes a sin if it is done pridefully . Where does that leave us, Herbert implicitly asks, a question more severe and daunting than any posed by the three atheists.

Harris wonders why the Holocaust didn’t “lead most Jews to doubt the existence of an omnipotent and benevolent God?” Behind this question is another one: where does evil come from, and if God is all-powerful and has created everything, doesn’t it come from Him? Again there is a standard answer (which does not mean that it is a satisfying one): evil proceeds from the will of a creature who was created just and upright, but who corrupted himself by an act of disobedience that forever infects his actions and the actions of his descendants. It is what Milton’s God calls “man’s polluting sin” (“Paradise Lost,” X, 631) that produces generations of evil, including the generation of the Holocaust, for, as Milton’s Adam himself acknowledges, “from me what can proceed, / But all corrupt, both mind and will deprav’d?” (825).

But, Harris , Dawkins and Hitchens object, if God is so powerful, why didn’t he just step in and prevent evil before it occurred? Not judge slavery, but nip it in the bud; not cure a blind man, but cure blindness; not send his only begotten son to redeem a sinful mankind, but create a mankind that could not sin? And besides, if God had really wanted man to refrain from evil acts and thoughts, like the act and thought of disobedience, then, says Hitchens, “he should have taken more care to invent a different species.”

But if he had done that, if Adam and Eve were faithful because they were programmed to be so, then the act of obedience (had they performed it) would not in any sense have been theirs. For what they do or don’t do to be meaningful, it must be free: “Freely they stood who stood and fell who fell / Not free, what proof could they have given sincere/ Of true allegiance?” (“Paradise Lost,” III, 102-104).

I have drawn these arguments out of my small store of theological knowledge not because they are conclusive (although they may be to some), but because they are there – in the very texts and traditions Harris, Dawkins and Hitchens dismiss as naive, simpleminded and ignorant. Suppose, says Hitchens, you were a religious believer; you would then be persuaded that a benign and all-powerful creator supervises everything, and that “if you obey the rules and commandments that he has lovingly prescribed, you will qualify for an eternity of bliss and repose.”

I know of no religious framework that offers such a complacent picture of the life of faith, a life that is always presented as a minefield of the difficulties, obstacles and temptations that must be negotiated by a limited creature in his or her efforts to become aligned (and allied) with the Infinite. St Paul’s lament can stand in for many: “The good that I would, I do not; but the evil which I would not, I do…. Who shall deliver me?” (Romans, 7: 19,24). The anguish of this question and the incredibly nuanced and elegant writings of those who have tried to answer it are what the three atheists miss; and it is by missing so much that they are able to produce such a jolly debunking of a way of thinking they do not begin to understand.

But I have not yet considered their prime objection to religious faith: that it leaves argument, reason and evidence in the dust, and proceeds directly to the commission of wholly unjustified (and often horrific) acts. It is that issue that I will take up in the next column.

Apologies and Announcement

2007-08-04T08:16:00.000-07:00

Apologies for the long hiatus- the months of June and July have been long breaks for me as I recharge in Singapore and meet up with the Fellowship.

On a side note, we're opening our Fellowship to anyone who would like to join us! We're a group of young men (and now women) who meet to share and encourage each other in the Word to live for Jesus and explore what that means. We're all around 19-21 at this point, and we would love for visitors to come and join us. We meet on Tuesday nights 8pm at Sutton Place, Farrer Road, Singapore. Do contact me via email if you're keen. My email address is calebyap@gmail.com

More posts and meditations coming soon.

Encouragement

2007-05-15T13:04:00.001-07:00

Taken from Yina's blog

On a sudden whim, or perhaps a nudging from the Spirit, I asked Mich Lee if I could visit her church today. (Thanks Mich!) The Bible Church is an hour away in Clementi by bike+train+bus compared to the convenient 15 min bike ride to Woodlands EFC, but well worth it today. We sang 6 very powerful hymns, including the classics "To God be the Glory" and "How Great Thou Art", and it was quite an experience to hear the congregation's collective voice swell to a great volume. I was very moved by the music - could imagine my soul lifted up and reaching upwards to God. The worship leader said: "As you sing this hymn [How Great Thou Art], ask yourselves what makes your soul sing.."

Right before confession time we sang this particular hymn, and by the time we reach the second chorus, all of a sudden I knew that God had placed me right there in that santuary for this moment, for Him to speak gently and encouragingly in my ear.

Be Still my Soul
Verse 1:
Be still my soul, be still my soul
Cease from the labor and the toil
Refreshing springs of peace await
To troubled minds and hearts that ache

Chorus 1:
Be still my soul God knows your way
And He will guide for His name's sake
Plunge in the rivers of His grace
Rest in the arms of His embrace

Verse 2:
Be still my soul be still my soul
Though battles 'round you rage and roar
One thing you need and nothing more
To hear the whisper of your Lord

Chorus 2:
Be still My child I know your way
And I will guide for My name's sake
Plunge in the rivers of My grace
Rest in the arms of My embrace

Even though I feel unceremoniously tossed from country to country, uprooted and flung about like a weed in a monsoon thunderstorm; even though family troubles weigh me down like the muggy air that does not go away; even though the future seems impossible and uncertain, God reassures me that he "knows the way", He "will guide" despite my bumbling fumbling manners.

And yet it's not in the words of the song, nor the words of Scripture that we've heard a thousand times: "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." (Jesus) But the living Spirit that moves in those words and in the intangible chords of the music melts our hearts and gives us peace. In that moment God poured refreshing life into me, and my soul listened to Him.

And then this very bombastic and exuberant preacher named Mr. Peter Chao came and gave an amazing message about the "components of worship". Towards the end he said (something to the effect of): "Let us stop having such august faces, as though we're having a funeral service, as though God is dead. Our God is alive! And He breathes life into every hopeless situation." :) So even though my heart aches for a million things right now, and I'm painfully aware of a mugginess of life here in Singapore, I am humbly and joyfully thankful for the hope that Jesus brings.

Good ol' bumbling Samwise says in the Lord of the Rings (movie): "This shadow, even darkness, must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines, it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you, that meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, i do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn't. They kept going because they were holding on to something. "

Frodo: "What are we holding on to, Sam?"

Sam: "That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, and it's worth fighting for."

Preparing for Goliath

2007-05-08T21:00:00.000-07:00

1 Sam 17:34
"But David said to Saul, "Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."
Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you."'

---

David had been prepared for greatness by his experiences as a shepherd boy, faithfully discharging his duties and responsibilities to his family. God had been at work, preparing his heart and his spirit for the task ahead. God does not thrust us into places that we are not prepared for, especially when we are called to do His work. The principle from David's life is fairly clear- having been accustomed to do the little things in life - guarding the flock - he had to deal with the lion and the bear. As a result, when it came to the big things, he was more than adequately prepared, physically and emotionally. He was strong, and he could keep his cool. Perhaps more importantly, David was fully confident about where his strength came from and who his boss was. David knew that GOd would be faithful, and that He would deliver Him from the most deadly of circumstances.

For us today, GOd is preparing us for work to do. He does not thrust into places we cannot deal with. Perhaps that is how we should approach our current sufferings, difficulties and struggles. Whilst others may fold over and lapse into self pity, let's remind ourselves that GOd might be preparing us for big things ahead. This is not to say that everything is predestined and predetermined then- it's simply a way of approaching the difficulties, which we are told, will produce perseverance and character.

When GOd wants you to face your Goliaths, He will have prepared you with lions and bears first.

Thought of the Day: What is God preparing you for today?

Quotable Quotes by Donald A. Carson

2007-04-29T10:20:00.000-07:00

How do you measure God's love?

How your life is working out at the moment, or the Cross?

The Sower

2007-04-26T21:04:00.000-07:00

What happens to the seeds sown in your heart? (Matthew 13)

Birds, shallow soil, thorns, fertile soil.

2007-04-26T21:01:00.000-07:00

A long time ago, four boys went to a revival meeting. The four of them were equally skeptical and equally intelligent, with no real need for religion or God, and approached the event with a great deal of apprehension and uncertainty.

At the event, they found themselves unexpectedly moved to tears as they acknowledged their feelings of guilt and wretchedness. They recognized their "sin", and were touched by the story of Christ's perfect sacrifice for them on the Cross. They went to the front of the stage when the preacher called for responses, and gave their lives to Jesus, weeping as they knelt, and invited this Jesus into their lives.

Then, they went home, drying their tears from their eyes. They all slept well that night.

The next day, one boy went for his classes and heard his Biology professor launch an irate polemic against the pitifully primitive Young Earth theorists, and their 'pals', the ignorant Creationists. Then, he walked into a Finance lecture where he rigorously took down everything his lecturer said, and daydreamed about investment banking. After that, he sat in the second row of a Philosophy lecture where his instructor challenged his auditorium-packed crowd if anyone believed in absolute truth or moral absolutism. He left the lecture fifteen minutes early so that he could put the finishing touches on a paper critiquing Richard Dawkins. He likes Dawkins much more now. Then, he goes home.

The same day, another boy woke up feeling full of life and excitement for the new day and the new life that the preacher had talked about the night before. He gripped his newly-bound leather Bible and rushed to catch the bus to school. On the bus, a man in a well-pressed suit scoffs at his naivety. A girl giggles and calls him old-fashioned before scurrying off. In his History class, his lecturer noticed his ornament and from his elevated podium, and challenged the historical authenticity of the boy's Bible. Embarrassed, the boy blushed, and put his book back in his bag. He tries not to be seen.

Another boy spent the first fifteen minutes of his morning reading the material the preacher's assistant handed out. He tried to do his "quiet time" and read about "word becoming flesh". He was confused. He tried to follow along with the ancient text, and was just enthralled by its spirituality. He repeated his routine all week long, starting his day this way. He read about sharing his faith with others, and telling the world about the change in his life, about being a "new creation", but he was afraid. Now, he reads his Bible in between classes, but always under the table. He never talks about what he knows he should. Sometimes he forgets to pray. Every now and then, he forgets to be quiet in his "quiet time". Yesterday, he decided to leave his Facebook description for religion blank.

The last boy felt absolutely nothing different the next day, and got out of bed. He read the material the preacher's assistant had handed out, and tried to do his "quiet time". He didn't understand about the "word becoming flesh", but was happy to learn something new. A quiet joy was burning in his heart, and he alone knew why. He was in love. On the bus, he told his girlfriend that he had become a Christian. She was worried that he would become political, or even a fanatic, one of those Jesus freaks. He told her that he was spiritual, not religious, and that Jesus was his best friend. She wants to know what this means. He tells her. She is impressed and wants to know more. In his heart, he prays, "Jesus, make me brave, make me bold. Help me to love the way you do. I want to love, and share the greatest thing that ever happened to me, but I'm scared. I'm just a kid, you are so much more. Help me please." Best friends don't let each other down.

Christians are Active!

2007-04-25T13:43:00.000-07:00

To all who thought that being a Christian meant just going to church and living right with God on your own- think again! Some brothers and sisters at Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois are trying to change just that mindset- that Christians are active! A dear friend, Barnabas Lin pseudo-Singaporean and onetime fellow GBC youth is part of the leadership that leads this movement organized by Northwestern's MEIV (Muti-Ethnic Intervarsity Fellowship). The blog for the event, is Engage NU: What the hell, God?

In addition, they've also been featured on the their campus newspaper, the Daily Northwestern HERE. The title of the article is: "Evangelicals Push For Social Change". Read more!

This is a letter from Barnabas, asking for prayer:

Dear beloved family across the world, and dearest Singapore friends,

As some of you know I've been the Outreach Coordinator of my
fellowship this year, and we've been planning towards this HUGE week
of engaging our campus called "Engage NU: What the Hell, God?!" I've
gotten together with the Asian American Intervarsity Chapter, Greek
Intervarsity Chapter and House on The Rock (Black Chapter) and we
have been planning since February for this. AND THIS IS THE WEEK. It
has been a crazy week, but God has been so good! We've been taking
our campus by storm, and this morning, our president appeared on the
front page of the school's Daily Northwestern Newspaper. There is
much warfare going on, and I implore you to pray. For those of you
that I still need to return calls to, I will do so very soon tonight,
I have just been running around for the past 3 days making sure our
stations don't fall apart (we have stations that rotate through all
the major hotspots on campus, engaging people on the 5 issues of
Race, Justice, Sex, Ambition and Science) and our first two big
outreach events are happening tonight.

There's so much going on, I have set up a blog, that has already
(since its launching yesterday morning) already hit 250 or so web
views with people from all over the nation (our staff have been
sending out the link to a lot of Northwestern IV alumni. Oh by the
way, I am a part of the Multiethnic Intervarsity Chapter at
Northwestern, just in case you didn't know).

Please keep me and the whole campus in prayer, you can access our
blog here: http://engagenu.blogspot.com

Love,

Barnabas

Praying!

The Shepherd's Song

2007-04-11T10:04:00.000-07:00

Let me just share with you what I read this morning for QT- this morning I was in Matthew, and there was a particular verse that stood out to me: "When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd." Matthew 9:36.

A long time ago, I wrote this song called "The Shepherd's Song" and one line from the song reads "lost and forsaken, like sheep blind and misguided, without a shepherd who would guide us" and I NEVER knew that it was a direct quote/idea from the Bible. I was pretty struck by it just because it's another one of those "Only God Moments". What are those? When God does cool things and makes the right connections that seem like impossible if not unlikely coincidences.

I wrote the song in 2001 (woahhh- 6 years ago) and recently, got in touch with the friend who cowrote it with me (Jaehyeon- he's in Korea, and I haven't seen him since we graduated from JC in 2004,) My first msg to him was "happy birthday- I finally got the guts to record that song that we wrote in 2001- here it is!" He replied, "Yea its been so long- i really like the recording. really surprised haha just listening to it was a gd birthday present :) thanks man" That was yesterday, and today, here I am in Matthew 9. I suppose it could be coincidental, but it seems somewhat... unlikely and too striking.

I find it amazing that this same idea can just loop on me and come back to hit me smack in the head, reminding me of how lost, how helpless we are without Jesus. More than that, the verse describes His response- He had compassion on us, and that means so much, knowing that God sees me in my struggles and lostness and wants to help me, to love me, to be my father. It's kind of like when you see a person in need, a person struggling with some difficulty, you feel "aww so sad" but it usually just stops there- Jesus didn't stop there, His compassion and love just overflowed, and He taught the crowds, healed them, and eventually died on the cross for them- all because we were sheep, without a shepherd.

The Shepherd's Sacrifice

Verse 1:
Lost and mistaken
Like sheep blind and misguided
Without a shepherd who would guide us

We wandered through life dark as night
Unable to tell dark from light
Without our sight we muddled through
In longing for a Shepherd who

Verse 2:
Was scoffed at, forsaken
He came to earth born in a manger
Despised and cursed- a stranger
He denied himself Heaven’s delights
And chose to share in human plight
To earth the King of Kings came to
To bring God’s love to me and you

Chorus:
The Shepherd of the Earth
Came down to be a lamb,
The Master now a sacrifice
For the sinner that I am
(Repeat)

Copyright Caleb Yap 2001

I Am Your Father Who Loves You

2007-03-31T21:51:00.000-07:00

I just watched Blood Diamond, and there was a particular scene in the film which really took hold of me. In the scene, Dijimon Hounsou, as Solomon Vandy says to his son,

"I know you have done many wrong things.
And I am your father who loves you.
And you will go home with me, and be my son."

How beautiful it is to have a father who can say that to us. Even the hardest, most cynical heart has within the hope for redemption, for renewal, and God's arms stretch out long and wide to His children. No matter what sin or crime we have committed, no matter how evil or how vile, God wants to be your father, because He loves you.

In Jeremiah 31:3, the Bible says, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness." And further in verse 20, "Is not Ephraim my dear son, the child in whom I delight? Though I often speak against him, I still remember him. Therefore my heart yearns for him; I have great compassion for him,' declares the LORD." (Jer 31:20)

Maybe God is knocking on the door of your heart, asking you to come back to Him, to be His son. And maybe in spite of all the turmoil, the chaos, the lies, deceit, evil, and empty promises of this world, when it all passes away into nothingness from which it all came, God is there, offering Himself through His son who died for us. Jesus says in Revelations 3:20, "Behold! I stand at the door and knock! If anyone would hear my voice and open the door, I will go in and eat with him, and he with Me."

Quoting Luke Leong

2007-03-26T21:17:00.000-07:00

heh heh... pirated from luke leong:

"faith and deeds

i originally intended to blog about something else, but i learnt a lot from discussing the following passage and just sharing at fellowship this evening. it was great to meet up with the rest of the guys once again and find out how everyone has been coping with ~~post-traumatic stress disorder~~ post-ord syndrome. our band of brothers was actually established as an ns support group but we've since transcended the boundaries of our ns cycle and i feel truly privileged to remain part of its continued existence.

what good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? can such faith save him? suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. if one of you says to him, "go, i wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? in the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

but someone will say, "you have faith; i have deeds."

show me your faith without deeds, and i will show you my faith by what i do. you believe that there is one God. good! even the demons believe that - and shudder.

you foolish man, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? was not our ancestor abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son isaac on the altar? you see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. and the scripture was fulfilled that says, "abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God's friend. you see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.

in the same way, was not even rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

james 2:14-26 (niv)

without going into too many details (our fellowship is top secret!), suffice to say that we all face numerous different struggles in life with no obvious solution (none that we easily accept anyway). while our faith is clear, living by it is sometimes another thing altogether. nevertheless, there's no denying the way, the truth and the life.

rehab, renew, restart

with driving fast coming to an end (test next tuesday!), i've decided to tweak my weekly schedule a bit. beginning this week, i'm going to reintegrate into fellowship at our all new time slot on tuesday evenings (been away for a while...) and start attending prayer meeting in church on fridays. important commitments indeed - time to take action!

posted by luke leong @ 1:39 AM 0 comments"

Making

2007-03-11T20:53:00.001-07:00

Matthew 4:19"Come," Jesus said, "and I will make you fishers of men."This was my memory verse for the day, and I was quite irritated by it.I was irritated simply because it was so easy, and it seemed to simple, too flat, and I wondered if there was anything truly worthwhile I could glean off of it. Turns out, there was. And when I thought about it, it just blew my mind wide open.THe focus of the sentence for me became on the word "make" which really means to take artistry, creativity, and active effort to create, render, achieve and complete something. For Christ to say I will "make" you anything, is an incredible thought. It underscores not only just His authority and power, but His POWER. THe word "make" implies a change, a before and an after.

THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF FISHING AND ITS SPIRITUAL IMPLICATIONS

Before that, perhaps Peter, Andrew, James, and John thought that they were fishers. Maybe they hated their jobs, maybe they thought they found purpose and meaning through providing food for others. Maybe they just wanted money, capitalist minded. But for Christ to say, I will MAKE you, it meant that He would change their lives, He would turn their profession upside down, inside out, and they would catch men, not just mere fish. Where they previously imagined providing sustenance, they would now provide spiritual food through their roles as fishermen. Caleb's food chain describes it this way: plants are primary producers, primary consumers are fish and fishermen, secondary consumers who also become secondary producers. THey catch, and produce for others to consume as per the market mechanism- part of the benefits of organised society (Adam Smith 4 Stages of Development) In God's hierarchy, they were to become just that- secondary consumers and producers too. By catching other men for GOd, they would be consuming on a secondary level. However, those men would become fishers of men too, just like them, and thus be producers too. The chain goes both ways in God's kingdom, and it's all because Christ was going to MAKE them something that they were not.

HOW DOES ONE MAKE A FISHER-OF-MEN? AGAINST ALL ODDS

How was He going to MAKE them something they were not? The confidence of Christ in that simple sentence was surely unfounded- to be a fisher of men, He would have to plant the desire to catch and witness in them, He would have to equip them, and He would have to establish a system in which they could survive (much like the fish market system that a fisherman would be a partcipant of). They would resist His desire to plant His passion and His drive in their hearts surely, and they would prove to be incompetent and too dull to understand the complexity of all He was teaching them. And the church that they would lead and serve in would simply be too self-centred, and filled with problems, and ridden with wrong doctrine etc. But nonetheless, all Jesus said was, I WILL MAKE YOU FISHERS OF MEN., note the imperative form. Against all odds, Christ would do it.MAKINGTHe Lord Jesus Christ, who was there at the beginning of time and watched the universe created, would have no problems saying, I will MAKE you ____. The sentence alone seems to imply no free will - if I'm going to be MADE something, I don't really have a choice. If I'm made a fool, I can't change facts and not be a fool. ANd God alone has the authority to makership, to creation c.f. "Maker of heaven and earth". We try and make things all the time. BUt in reality, we can't MAKE anything happen, we only innovate, and capitalise on the appearance of things made. No one made electricity, we only figured out how it works. God made electricity. Similarly, only Christ could say taht He would plant His gospel in those fishermen's hearts and make them something they were not. Like them, GOd is making us today, and once He starts, He won't stop. The Bible says in Phil 1:6 "He who has begun a good work in you will complete on the day of Jesus Christ." God will make us complete one day, even as we ask Him to make us___. What does HE require for this to happen? He requires us to come, to make the free choice to come and let Him make us something beautiful. Making requires free will to subject ourselves to taht work and construction, that sanctification. ONce it begins, nothing can be reversed or changed. God is in the business of making us, and He will finish us all, one day.

A GOSPEL OF MAKING

THe word "making" holds so much depth, really. As God is making us perfect, as He makes us fishers of men, it reminds me that by nature, we are not meant to be these things. This is a form of intervention on God's part, His making makes us complete when our making of things just made it a big mess. Sin, the Fall were results of man's making, and only God's act of making things new, making things different, holds any hope for you and me today. The word "making" means gospel, because it offers us a chance to change and be saved, and for us to have a part to play in His evangelistic ministry. The next time we pray, let's ask God to make us more like Him, to make us fishers of men. ANd as we Come, Jesus will make us better.Lord, Make me an instrument of the peace. Amen.

Nelson Mendela on Fear

2007-02-25T11:47:00.001-08:00

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.”

A Channel of Blessing

2007-02-16T21:53:00.000-08:00

This is going to be very brief, and somewhat surface.

Part of the Abrahamic Covenant in Genesis 12, or the heart of the Old Testament was God's promise to make Abraham's descendants a great nation, and that all the peoples of the earth would be blessed through him. In return, Abraham's descendants would have to serve and worship the LORD, the God of Israel, and Him alone, thus setting them apart from the pagan tribes and indigenous peoples around Abraham's convoy. These 'others' practiced other forms of ancestral worship and mysticism, giving up their children as child sacrifices and performing other rituals and rites of worship in servitude of a pantheon of naturalistic and ancestral pagan deities. Through Abraham and his children, the whole world would receive blessing, simply because of their faith and of their covenant with God. That was the agreement.

Today, we who are under the new covenant of Christ's blood are not that different. Through us, the spiritual children of Abraham, the 'father of faith', we still can receive and channel His blessing - not through some kind of vague mystic ephemerality, but by being real, day-to-day forms of encouragement and spiritual support for those around us. St. Francis of Assisi, who pledged his life and his order to the servitude and ministry to the poor, wrote this prayer:

"Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, your pardon Lord;
Where there is doubt, let there be faith;
Where there is despair let there be hope;
Where there is darkness let there be light;
And where there is sadness, let there be joy.
O, Divine Master,
Grant that I may not so much seek
To be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand;
To be loved as to love;
For it is in giving that we receive;
And it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
And it is in dying that we are born to eternal life."

~ Prayer of St. Francis

Today, you and I can still channel that same spirit of blessing to the world around us. "I will make you a great nation, and all the peoples of the earth will be blessed through you." Let us continue to bless this world around us, not because we can, but because the God of all grace empowers us to. A kind word, a gentle touch, a warm hug, a true smile, a patient heart, and a forgiving spirit are all blessings that money cannot buy. On the other hand, material blessings too, can be part of the Abrahamic blessing. Do you have another tunic? Give to him who has none. And so, "let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven".

Will you pray that the Lord make you "an instrument of His peace"?

Selection from the Sermon on the Mount (Matt 5:38-42)

2007-02-13T22:59:00.000-08:00

In the early chapters of Matthew, Jesus goes to a mountainside to teach the crowds which had gathered to hear HIm. After pronouncing the revolutionary Beautitudes, or "beautiful attitudes", Jesus then proceeds to invert the priorities and modes of thinking of the day, presenting the astonished people with a new moral code to live by, and for His disciples to emulate.

In Matthew 5: 38, Jesus quotes the teaching of the Pentateuch and its straightforward model of justice which accepted an "eye for an eye" (Exodus 21:24, Lev 24:20, Deut 19:21). According to this system of moral justice, the victim was entitled to inflict equal pain or loss to his oppressor or enemy. Retaliation, and swiftly so, was key and emphasised under this Law.

Jesus makes it clear though when He says, "But," indicating a contrasting thought or departure from the preceding statement. "But I tell you, Do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes on the right cheek, turn to him the other also...If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles." (Matthew 5: 40-41) It's interesting to note that Jesus uses the same opening phrase "But I tell you" the same way He does throughout the Sermon on the Mount (e.g. Matt 518, 22, 26, 28, 32, 34, 39, 44, 6:2b, 5b) and uses that phrase to distinguish His teaching and His prophetic voice from other rabbinical teachings and prophecies. The rabbinical law system was designed to accumulate interpretative teachings and readings of the Scripture, and it became difficult to completely understand the contrived and complicated intellectualism of the rabbinical scholars. When Jesus says, "I tell you the truth", He underscores His personal message and the weight of His name on the teaching. In other words, Jesus delights personally if you heed His personal teachings, which call for submission to God even in circumstances of violence, suffering or oppression, and even surrendering one's rights.

The IBLP (Institute of Basic Life Principles) run by Dr. Bill Gothard stresses this principle of basic living, 'surrendering our rights' and releasing them into God's hands. (http://iblp.org/iblp/) In Matthew 5:40-41, Jesus uses the analogy of Roman law's oppressive force upon the Jews to illustrate this very point. According to Roman law under Caesar, any Roman soldier had the power to take hold of a Jew and force him to carry his heavy standard-issue backpack and supplies, up to a distance of a mile before he was free to go about his business - this was customary Roman law. Jesus taught that if one of His disciples were to be faced with this kind of injustice and oppression, they were to be cheerful, and even offer to 'go the second mile.' That's where we get the phrase from today, typicalising cheerful service and going beyond the 'call of duty' - another phrase we trace to Christ's teachings. Similarly, when one was slapped - a sign of grave physical insult and disrespect, Christ's followers were to hold in their rage, and even offer the other side for chastisement and humiliation.

What kind of people did Christ expect to follow Him - long-suffering, patient, supernaturally-gifted and tolerant believers who find it easy to get along with others? No, Christ's followers were like me and you - intolerant, impatient, selfish, proud, busy, cosmpolitan, quick-tempered, sensitive and petty men and women. Peter, in particular was known for his rage and quick-tempered, retaliatory ways, going so far as to slice off a Roman soldier's ear when in a fit. Likewise, Paul, otherwise known as Saul was legendary for his enmity and hatred of heretic followers of the 'Way'. In that sense then, we are all to learn waht it means to adopt this revolutionary 'turning of cheek' and self-sacrifice. At the heart of Christ's teaching was humility and meekness, which entitled you to 'inherit the earth'. Be as meek as lambs.

Application:
Can you surrender your rights today? What things in your life do you have particular problems letting go of? Your pride, ego, position, money, or power? Do you think God is calling you to revolutionarily let go of the precious things? If you put the King on His throne in your heart, will He have full ownership of all your property, resources and time? Your face, reputation and profile are not your own, neither is your time. Christ bought it all with His blood - it belongs to Him, leased out to you and me.

Works in Progress

2007-02-08T21:46:00.000-08:00

I was encouraged by something someone said to me today. She told me not to give up hope in Him, and instead to keep praying in all circumstances, never giving up. Jesus is the author and perfector of our faith, she said, quoting Scripture to me.

Hebrews 12:1-2 reads, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."

Jesus, the "author and perfecter of our faith". The Greek word for "author" is archegos, or chief, leader, author, captain, prince; derived from ago which means to lead; by implication, to bring, drive, (reflexively) go, or induce. The Greek for "perfecter" is teleoites or a completer, a consummator, a finisher; derived from teleioo which means to complete, accomplish, consummate. Jesus is the one who induces our faith, begins it, and gives it a beginning. Similarly, just as Philipians 1:6 says, "He who has begun a good work in you will complete it till the day of Jesus Christ." He will bring it to completion.

What does this mean? Does it suggest that my faith now is imperfect, and that I need to wait to make it completely good? Well, simply for an exhortative point of view, we're all works in progress and need grace to wash us over. Just because you're a Christian doesn't mean you can't sin, can't be depressed, can't feel down, can't feel out of it - we're not immune to all these things because our spirit still resides in this body, and the imperfections of the fallen world are going to be with us until we return to Him.

But it makes good sense that Hebrews encourages us to remember that He is the beginning and the end of it all, putting our temporary here and now in the perspective of then and there. We may not be perfect now, but we are perfect through Him who made no mistakes. We aren't immune, but we have an eternal hope in Him, because He paid it all for us. One day, we'll be completed.

In Prince of Egypt, Jethro sings, "a single thread in a tapestry can never see its purpose, in the pattern of the grand design". It's true, isn't it? One day, we will be finished, completed, pots of clay made beautiful by the Potter's loving hand.

So if you're down and out, like I was, let's look to Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith. We're works in progress, but we will be completed eventually, and it'll all be beautiful.

Beautiful, beautiful
Jesus is beautiful
Jesus makes beautiful
Things of my life

Carefully touching me,
Causing my eyes to see
That Jesus makes beautiful
Things of my life.

Thoughts for the Week

2007-01-28T08:39:00.000-08:00

I hate fights with the people that I love. BUt everyone now and then, one pops up. Sometimes for the most ridiculous of reasons. Somehow, when that happens, I just feel this burning feeling in my heart, and it really feels so acidic it tears its way right through me and eats everything up inside. I suppose that's what pain and hurt feel like. It's usually accompanied by feelings of deep bitterness, "why mes" and "what nows". Sometimes, it ends up with me feeling like the world is collapsing in around me, despite the fact that I'm desperately trying to prop it up with little maxims of faith and Scripture. Those support beams don't hold, and everything comes crashing down. A good night's sleep, even amidst the chaos, tends to be the best remedy, because the next day, even though you still feel shitty, is still another day.

But still it's funny that in the midst of this rubble, a thought struck me- God really does use disasters to draw us closer to Him. Sometimes, no matter how we discipline and regulate ourselves according to 'spiritual regimes' during the good times, we always end up with some form of complacency and self-reliance. When disasters strike, all we have left is really to pray and beg for His mercy. I went to mass last night, and the priest said, over and over again, "Lord have mercy upon us." When things go wrong, and people look untrustworthy and doubtful, only God remains constant and consistent. His word assures us of His promises and His character, which will never change. He is totally trustworthy. And there's something about His house, and the gathering of people seeking Him, that is equally assuring. I'm praying for disaster to go away, for crisis to be resolved, yes. But I'm also praying for a touch of His presence, and I'm thanking Him for drawing me near amidst the problems of my life, and that in those, He doesn't reject me or push me away even though I have so very often, turned away from Him in my moments of self-confidence and complacency. Instead, His arms are wide open, inviting and welcoming, just like the arms of the prodigal son's father who saw his son at a distance and ran to him.

When all we have is gone and we're left bankrupt, and the fair-weathered friends we make have deserted us, and all we can do is plea with our father for mercy, what a surprise to find Him waiting and holding out His arms of love to receive us. How unworthy I am, to dare to approach someone so generous, beautiful, kind and forgiving! And my unworthiness makes His grace all the more praiseworthy and magnificent.

I know that God will make a way out of this situation, however hopeless and seemingly impossible. I believe that God can heal invidivuals and relationships, immeasurably beyond what we ask and hope for. Yes, He can do all these things. And even out of this mess, God can bring something beautiful to pass.

Growing Up

2007-01-18T13:40:00.000-08:00

Here's a blogpost written by my sister on her blog, which I really enjoyed, and thought makes good sense, because it's grounded in a confidence and faith in our best friend. At the same time, it's written with a girl's voice, one that is distinctly hers, and in many ways, unimitable. This is also a piece of shamless publicity for her blog. Nonetheless, I hope it speaks and ministers to your heart like it has, mine.

today i learnt that i actually have grown up. as much as when each year passes and birthdays come (or maybe not, in my case) and go, i've never really felt any sharp transition from a state of youth into young adulthood or adolescence or whatever. every year was just another year. but something that i've learnt over these many 'another years' is that i truly have grown into a different person. not different as in a 360 degree turnaround of course, because no matter what essentially i still am who i am, but its more of the way i perceive things, the way i handle things, the way i react to things - these have changed over the years. and thats why i realise that i have indeed grown. im no longer the girl that used to think of fun and play and friends and disney and nice stationery and having my prince charming ride a white horse to come find me - sure, all of that is still somewhere in me, but right now im no longer that girl because now i know that fun and play come hand in hand with the right timing and the right attitude, that disney will always bring out the child in me but i can appreciate it for so much more than i used to, that nice stationery is no longer at the top of my impulse buy list because i know that money is hard earned and not dropped from the sky, and that prince charming - well, now i know if God does have a prince charming for me he will be the most charming of all, whether he comes riding on a white horse or not.

when people say that i am idealistic, i dont reject that because i know myself that i am. but perhaps the change over the years is that i am no longer an idealist with no sense of where my feet is upon the ground, with no sense of practicality nor awareness. right now i am an idealist who knows this world, and its evils and its twisted, sick ways. i am an idealist who has seen and experienced things that have hurt me and have brought me to the ground. i am an idealist who has been disappointed and had my dreams smashed into a million pieces over and over again. but no matter what, i am an idealist because i believe in the good in everyone because of the love that God has poured forth so majestically from His gates in heaven. i stick to my principles because i believe that imperfect beings can show perfect love because our God can empower us in ways that no one can fathom. and i try and try again because i believe that our God is a God of second chances.

so we're not perfect - but does that matter? what matters is we try to strive with what we can, with all our might, towards perfection, because God has promised that He will give us perfection the day we enter His gates. while we are on this earth, what is the point in being disillusioned and blinding yourself with hurt and sorrow and pain? what is the point of being bitter and thinking day after day, that no one cares about you and the world is a selfish place? the negative thoughts pervade our minds but we have the choice to thrash them into the recycle bins of our being. we have the choice to choose between to love or to hate, to try or to give up.

i admit i used to judge alot. inside my head of course, so that no one would know and judge ME for judging. haha ironic isnt it. i used to blame people for certain decisions they make, because i expected them to know better, to know what is right, to do what i thought was the right thing to do. but maybe its one thing that jc has taught me. to see things from other people's perspectives. or rather, to understand that other people DO have their right to their choices and points of view, and not everything i say is the gospel truth - not even close to that. nowadays when i encounter those situations, its no longer that indignant judging that surges up inside of me, but rather a quiet and silent prayer to God, to assure myself that He does know best and that He wants people to learn through different experiences. and a silent note to myself to remember to pray for that person. to be honest, i am pleased with this new found sense of maturity. thinking back on my past actions, it was thoroughly childish and unchristianlike. even though once in awhile, the judgemental mini me does find its way into my head, now i know that i have the ability, the choice, to squash her back down where she belongs.

from time to time when people make random statements about me, i tend to ignore most of them because most of them just reflect how little those people understand who i truly am. maybe no one knows. maybe its a secret between God and i, who i really am. maybe it is even a mystery to me, because God's plan to mould me is still unknown to everyone but Himself. meanwhile, perhaps i am still searching for who i really am. but in the midst of searching, i have found bits and pieces of that person that i am to be. small steps of maturity toward a dark tunnel that i am to step toward. its the small things that keep me going, and piece bits of myself together.

small things like the experience of working, like family, like friends, like music, like the still small voice inside of me that only i can hear.

and slowly, step by step, i am inching towards heaven being on the inside of me.

My Dad

2007-01-13T23:34:00.000-08:00

Today, I want to talk about my dad.

My dad is a full time staff with the Singapore Navigators, and has been for the past 25-26 years I estimate. When I was a kid, I vividly remember our little 5 room HDB flat being packed full of korkors and jiejies who would sit all over the floor of our house, with pens furiously jotting away as the listened transfixed to my dad teaching the Bible from the middle of the living room. I would be seated in someone's lap, the designated 'babysitter' for the evening, listening to my dad machine-gun rapid fire his way through a session on Psalms or Matthew and marvel at how he captured everyone's attention. As a younger man, my dad led the now-defunct Military Navigators, of which I don't have very strong memories. Subsequently, he and my mom, upon returning from further studies in South Carolina, led the student ministry at the Singapore Polytechnic. There, Saturday mornings were spent at large group sessions where the Bible was taught in conjunction with worship, small group prayer, and then long long sessions of basketball, captain's ball and soccer. Somehow, the afternoons would fade ever so quickly, and time just faded away on Saturdays.

As I grew through secondary school, I watched as my parents did marriage counselling, consulting with couples and groups of couples who met with them to pray and do Bible study, and as my dad stopped doing student ministry, I realised how much I missed having our house full of students eager to fellowship with each other, and hear the teaching of the Word. In addition, Dad started to write his series of DIY books and devotionals. They started as little memoirs of lessons he'd learnt over the years, but they quickly grew into a respectable collection of literature, which I fondly call 'toilet literature' since they were lined up for personal meditation whilst seated upon the throne. Although I never said it, and more often than not, voiced my frustration with my dad for his bad grammar and problematic sentences, I admired him for his courage and his willingness to share his life experiences and Bible knowledge. He possessed an innovative and entrepreneurial streak that I had not seen in many people - once, he even published a book of memoirs of his friend's lives and experiences in the faith, documenting their struggles and triumphs if only to encourage others to persevere in the faith. Indeed, he was "consider[ing] how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds" (Hebrews 10:24)

My dad is also a champion of books. He loves to read, and is always buying more books. Visitors to our place always comment on the soaring bookshelf that towers against the staircase to the second floor of our home, and it really is a testament of my dad's love for reading and learning. ONe legendary story records that he once found this book he really liked, and in his own quirky fashion, he went to all the LIFE bookstores in Singapore and bought the few copies of the book that remained in stock so as to give them away as gifts for others to read (since it was quite an old book,). LIFE bookstore, thinking that the book had resurged in popularity or something, ordered more copies. However, as it was an old work, it didn't sell as well, and the book's price fell steadily. My dad then gleefully bought more of the same book to give away. In any of my dad's sermons, you can be sure to see him flash a list of "recommended readings" before or after the sermon if only to publicise for good Christian literature. As it stands, his book of the month, I believe is Philip Yancey's latest book on prayer.

Through the years, my dad got involved with other things: taking on a leadership role with the Navigators serving as a senior staff, taking on the portfolio of the missions director and pioneering his idea of "missions as a second career", taking on an eldership in the church and being a strong support for our newly installed pastor, mentoring younger Nav staff, leading the church care group ministry and being responsible for a new service, developing his niche trait for training Christian mentoring, developing discipleship programs for churches and pastors as a consultant, writing more books, preaching different sunday engagements, being a dad to 4 very different children at different stages in life, being a faithful and loving husband, a fillial son, and even just faithfully leading a discipleship group of cancer patients and taxi drivers.

I see in my dad a man who had the humility to let go and trust God for his life. In my eyes, I see him as someone who wasn't afraid to recognise that our little dreams count for absolutely nothing, and the good deeds we do are but "filthy rags" in His sight. My dad likes to boast that "no other job is worth it" than doing God's work, and that even at his age, there're still so many things he's learning about his own walk.

I could go on with more anecdotes and stories about my dad, but I should stop somewhere. So I'll stop here. But let me say that my dad has been a real example for me to follow - not because he pursues success or achievements in the eyes of man, but in God's eyes. And for that, I'm immensely grateful for his life and his legacy upon mine.

Grace

2007-01-13T03:44:00.000-08:00

Grace:

1.
that which affords joy, pleasure, delight, charm, sweetness, loveliness
2.
good will, loving-kindness, mercy, etc.
3.
kindness of a master towards a slave, by analogy, comes to signify the kindness of God to man
4.
kindness bestowed upon someone undeserving; undeserved favour

Dryness of the Holy Spirit

2007-01-12T08:31:00.000-08:00

According to Jim Cymbala, pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle, an untrained pastor who now leads a highly successful and GOd-centred church in the inner city portion of New York's Brooklyn, churches today severely lack the distinguishing feature that makes them pleasing to God - the presence of the Holy Spirit. Today, his wife conducts the immensely popular, Grammy-award, Dove-award winning choir, the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir in spite of not being trained formally. Jim Cymbala is author of "Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire" and "Fresh Faith".

Cymbala says that "technicians have invaded the church" with more methodologies, organisational management strategies, doctrinal statements, creeds and worthless theological specifities when what we really need is the Holy Spirit to do a work in our churches and lives. Do we really need another bible translation or another worship style? Do we really need more concordances, more youth programs and other methods? The early church, the Welsh Revival, the Great Awakening, the Second Great Awakening, the New York revivals by Moody and other crusade movements weren't brought about whilst someone was preaching, whilst someone was worshipping, or when some band was playing. Rather, it was born when God's people were praying.

Amen to that, let us start there then, with more prayer so that the Holy Spirit will rise and move in our churches.

An Ever Present Help In Trouble.

2006-12-15T10:08:00.000-08:00

Dear Lord,

it's one of those days where things just seem to fall down on me over and over again. Please, get me through the week. I know you can, you got the Israelites out. Lord, help my unbelief.

Amen.

living congruently

2006-12-03T04:37:00.000-08:00

i originally shared the following personal development article with the guys at fellowship yesterday, but since i think it's worth a further look i'll just add a few more comments of my own.

i came across this article, living congruently, while blogsurfing one day. the author, a certain steve pavlina, was once arrested for grand theft and faced the prospect of a two year jail sentence (or thereabouts). since that experience though, he's become - in his own words - 'one of the most intensely growth-oriented individuals you'll ever know'. if you visit his website and spend some time browsing through his archives you'll realise his journey's been pretty interesting, among other things maintaining a 100% vegan diet and graduating in three semesters with a double major in computer science and mathematics along the way.

anyway, according to the article the whole idea behind living congruently is to align your desires, abilities, purposes and needs with universal principles. history has shown that states riddled with internal contradictions (eg. the soviet union) rarely, if ever, last longer than a generation. a lawyer who knowingly defends a guilty client of his will end up wrestling repeatedly with his conscience. likewise a soldier like siegfried sassoon in regeneration who believes that 'this war, upon which i entered as a war of defence and liberation, has now become a war of aggression and conquest' is unlikely to fully dedicate himself to the military campaign. (compare this to our loyal, leader-like, disciplined, professional, fighting spirit-full, ethical and caring nsfs... drinkkk up!)

just in case, i thought i'd mention that the author isn't a christian, and has in fact examined christianity before and found it to be incongruent with his beliefs (haha). however, i think the whole idea behind living congruently actually lends itself to living in accordance with christian principles - which really are natural extensions of universal principles - ie. the objective moral standards which we recognise exist (or at least act as though they exist) point towards God. this argument goes along the lines of christian theism, something i picked up while reading can we be good without God?: a conversation about truth, morality, culture & a few other things that matter by paul chamberlain.

personally, i find that understanding our desires, abilities, purposes and needs have to be aligned with universal, but more importantly christian principles is tremendously empowering (that's why i joined prisons =)). i hope you do too!

a highly congruent individual

Kumbaya (Come By Here)

2006-11-26T21:25:00.000-08:00

Kumbaya, my Lord, kumbaya!
Kumbaya, my Lord, kumbaya!
Kumbaya, my Lord, kumbaya!
O Lord, kumbaya!

Someone’s laughing, Lord, kumbaya!
Someone’s laughing, Lord, kumbaya!
Someone’s laughing, Lord, kumbaya!
O Lord, kumbaya!

Someone’s crying, Lord, kumbaya!
Someone’s crying, Lord, kumbaya!
Someone’s crying, Lord, kumbaya!
O Lord, kumbaya!

Someone’s praying, Lord, kumbaya!
Someone’s praying, Lord, kumbaya!
Someone’s praying, Lord, kumbaya!
O Lord, kumbaya!

Someone’s singing, Lord, kumbaya!
Someone’s singing, Lord, kumbaya!
Someone’s singing, Lord, kumbaya!
O Lord, kumbaya!

Kumbaya, my Lord, kumbaya!
Kumbaya, my Lord, kumbaya!
Kumbaya, my Lord, kumbaya!
O Lord, kumbaya!

Give Me Oil In My Lamp, Keep Me Burning

2006-11-26T21:10:00.000-08:00

Give me oil in my lamp
Keep me burning,
Give me oil in my lamp
I pray, (I pray)
Give my oil in my lamp
Keep me burning,
Keep my burning till the break of day.

Sing 'Hosanna'
Sing 'Hosanna'
Sing 'Hosanna' to the King of Kings

Sing 'Hosanna'
Sing 'Hosanna'
Sing 'Hosanna' to the King of Kings!

I never realised that this kiddy kiddy song would have such a profound meaning now that I'm older. We used to chant the chorus and sing it loudly with gusto, not really understanding what it's about. I suppose I should really check up the passage and the references to the parable of the virgins and the lamp waiting for the bridegroom, but tis getting late. =)

How we need Him to give us oil in our lamps and keep us burning! The metaphor of the lamp functions on a few different levels, I expect.

On one hand, lamps provide a source of illumination and light in order for one to see-- it serves a self-serving purpose of facilitating vision. Without light, the person holding the lamp wouldn't know where he's putting his foot, and it probably wouldn't make a difference since he would only be tripping and stumbling all over the shop. Psalm 119: 9,11 says "How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to Your Word... I have hidden Your Word in my heart, that I might not sin against You."

Secondly, light from a lamp provides light for others, and works as a means of illuminating someone else's path. A passerby may not have a light of their own, but because of your light, they may see clearer and thus journey safer. Lights from lamp serve the purpose of illuminating the pathways of others. This is what Jesus meant when He said, "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden," in Matthew.

Thirdly, light from a lamp provides a means of being spotted from a distance by a distant traveller, and functions as a beacon similar to a lighthouse. Because of our light, we are able to mark our identification and association with the traveller, and one day when He arrives, He'll know that we are His if our light is burning for HIm to recognise us. Christ talked about the tragedy of coming to Him when HE comes again, and saying, "Lord, Lord," but He will say to them, "Depart from me! I never knew you!" Let us not be one of them whose lights grew dim-- our lamps should always burn brightly for Christ.

Let us pray that our lights will keep burning, for Him. Even as we were called out of darkness to be a people of light, we who once wondered in shadows and night have seen a great light, and our eyes are now transfixed and living in the glory of that same wonderful illumination. And today, we ask GOd, who gives all good things, to keep our lamps burning with the oil that He provides-- may He give us what we need to burn for Him and His glory. Hosanna, My God Saves!

here we go

2006-11-17T18:07:00.000-08:00

i've just completed my first week of attachment at cluster a (the only cluster located at changi prison complex at the present moment) and from what i've seen so far, i think i'll find the next couple of months time well spent. clusters b (which i'll be joining next week) and c still comprise of islandwide stand alone institutions but are preparing to shift as soon as construction of their new state of the art premises is complete. under the cluster concept, a cluster comprises of several institutions, which in turn are made up of a number of housing units - somewhat resembling the division-brigade-battalion setup in the army. i spent most of my time on the ground finding out more about the unique features of each housing unit. for example, they have a range of security classifications and different rehabilitative initiatives to tailor to the inmates' personal route maps.

while i found my entire tour of cluster a both interesting and informative, the highlight of my week was undoubtedly the opportunity to sit in on a heartfelt talk to the inmates by dr wong meng ee, recipient of the president's social service award in 2002, and later slip in a short chat with him as well as several of the inmates. incidentally, the whole programme was part of the filming process for the 8th episode of the upcoming channel 5 production against all odds. (dr wong gave a similar group of inmates a motivational speech during his first prison visit earlier in the year and decided the experience was so worthwhile he wanted to feature his interaction with them in his life story.) two exemplary inmates were also interviewed by the media team, so the entire project really falls in line with the current focus of the singapore prison service.

for once, it's a great feeling to be part of an edifying environment where everyone is pulling together in the right direction. the nature of prison work is such that for all its inherent meaning, those who are unable to discern it (or discern it but are unable to sustain it in the face of numerous challenges) would tend to reflect upon their priorities, ultimately ensuring that the staff who do stay in it for the long run are the ones who truly identify with the organisation's mission and vision.

On Christ The Solid Rock I Stand, All Other Ground Is Sinking Sand!

2006-11-17T06:52:00.000-08:00

I love this hymn--the refrain is amazingly simple, yet illustrative of a tremendous biblical story.

On Christ the solid Rock I stand
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand.

And when we were children, there was this version (which I can't completely remember.)

The foolish man built his house upon the sand. The rain came up and the house went down.
The wise man built his house upon a rock. The rain came up and the house stood firm.

The symbolism is fairly straightforward, since we are called to build our "houses" on the firm foundation of Christ Himself, and His word. Anything else is bound to fail. After all, "all may change but Jesus never--Jesus is the same!"

And there are countless more songs I can use to describe the point. Go on, sing along! "Jesus, you're my firm foundation, I know I can stand secure! Jesus, you're my firm foundation, I put my hope in Your holy Word, I put my hope in Your holy Word." And more recently, "Jesus, Lover of my soul, Jesus I will never let you go. You've taken me from the miry clay, set my feet upon the Rock, and now I know,"

Jesus is a firm foundation upon which to build your life. He will never shift or move or turn on you. Instead, the psalmist says, "I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust" in Psalm 91:2.

Psalm 27:1,5 also makes it clear that Jesus is a Rock upon which we have a secure hope and future. "The LORD is my light and my salvation-whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life-of whom shall I be afraid? For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock."

Nothing less than Jesus can give you the kind of security you long for. Money, a spouse/partner, love, power, prestige, family, civil security, national defense, nuclear deterrence, diplomacy, friendship--yes, all these things will one day pass away. But Jesus is a Firm Foundation.

Why Is There Suffering?

2006-11-12T18:28:00.000-08:00

Today in church, I heard a very powerful sermon by The Reverend Michael Y. Oh, President of Christ Bible Seminary, Japan.

His passage was on Psalms 22, and it was much longer than this, but I was struck by his words on why suffering exists.

It disturbs us to think that a God like ours would allow suffering, and befuddles us even more to think that our God would ORDAIN suffering, but He does. Why?

God ordained suffering so that Christ could suffer -- for us. Suffering exists simply because Christ, the Exalted One of Heaven, who knew perfect pleasure and satisfaction, would take up the utmost physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual suffering so that the whole world would be silenced and that He would be worthy of worship and praise. Because Christ suffered, He is proved to be worthy, and no one's suffering can compare to His.

Amen.

Love and Grace, Not Hate and Revenge

2006-11-12T18:26:00.000-08:00

Hello! This is from the writing of one of seniors from AC who recently graduated from Oxford. His name is Peter Ho, and I was very touched by his writing on the topic of Grace as opposed to seeking out revenge. Enjoy!
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"While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, 'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.' Then he fell on his knees and cried out, 'Lord, do not hold this sin against them.' When he had said this, he fell asleep." - Acts 7:59-60

Not that Stephen survived his stoning. There was neither justice nor humour in this summary trial and execution. Would one laugh or satirise an innocent man's execution? It would be tasteless. There was, instead, plenty of self-righteous hate and anger from the religious hierarchy that was comfortable in its rituals, thinking that that was all was needed to be moral and ethical and, thus, deserving of heaven.

How difficult would it have been to forgive and to love those who cursed one and were sending one to a slow and painful death? Stephen was obedient to his master who said:

"You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbour and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." - Matthew 5:43-46

But how hard it is for man to love instead of hate? How hard is it to see that we are usually wrong when we listen to our imperfect hearts? How hard is it then to break the chain of self-seeking ambition and revenge, and of using God's name to further our own intents and purposes, and of, thus, blaspheming against His name? I, too, find it difficult to love instead of hate.

"Isn't it my right to feel angry?"

Well not all rights are absolute are they? I wonder if one may often mistake one's ABILITY to feel angry for one's RIGHT to do so. Shouldn't we balance these rights with more significant objectives?

"If God wanted us all to be peace-loving then He would have made us incapable of anger."

Perhaps if one had the power one might do that. That would be a world of automatons rather than people though. But that's a hypothetical world. The Bible's full of teachings to love one's enemy and to forgive and to let go of anger (yes both the Old Testament - which has been irrationally villified by society - and the New Testament).

Why this 'outburst'? This is because I have been approached to promote another partisan cause that might be more incendiary than helpful. Is it helpful to spread hate and anger? It might be. In my very limited opinion it is, however, rare that one may utterly destroy one's enemies and all who love them. Then what's the good of that? How amazing would it be to be able to forgive? How much easier would it be to approach the negotiating table when one's controlled? How dangerous it would be to approach extremism and partisanship?

I speak from a position of weakness and experience: I am a man who has had a history of anger and fierce confrontations in my past - this is a past that I am ashamed of and I wish that I could erase. However, I now live by God's grace and must show mercy to everyone because I have been the beneficiary of so much mercy myself. For all these things I thank God.

http://oxford.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=2218670165

Jesus And The Little Children

2006-11-09T21:45:00.000-08:00

Matthew 19:13-14

13Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them.

14Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." 15When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there.
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Why does Jesus want us to be like children?

The kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.

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"Dear God, teach me to be like a little child and trust completely in you. Trying but never striving, crying but never weeping, stumbling but never falling, bleeding but never hurting. Jesus, you love even the littlest ones, who have nothing of their own, no boasts to make, no claims to assert, no ambition to pursue, no wound to scar -- and you call us to be as children, and have that kind of faith. Lord, help me to be a child in you -- to put aside the pains and cares of this world and just rest in you. Lord, I long to rest in your arms, and not have to wrry about anything anymore. Help me to be that trusting of you, to let go and just fall, and sleep knowing that tomorrow, you will make all things new. In Jesus, name, I pray, Amen."

ORD LORH!

2006-11-04T22:27:00.000-08:00

ORD LORH!! =)

Selling My Own Goyok

2006-10-31T12:13:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone,

Just as a little sidenote- I've just set up a website to make available the music that I've been writing. Most of the songs are Christian themed and have to do with my personal walk with God. There's stuff by the North Lodge from our JC days, as well as new songs that I'm working on. Lyrics and other things are also up there.

At certain request, I just thought I'd put the songs up online to edify people and hopefully the music will build you up too.

Of course, feedback and comments are always welcome! =)

The website is available if you click here.

The Navigators: TMS (Topical Memory System) Pack B- Relying On Christ's Resources

2006-10-31T12:12:00.000-08:00

Have you ever felt dissatisfied with your life? Maybe it happens to you when you look around at your friends, or someone that you know remotely- and you wish you could BE the person, or be LIKE the person. I think it happens often, especially to people who are insecure (like me)!

I think I need to be reminded of this- that I am a son of God, and how blessed I am for it! "But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, Abba, Father. So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir." Gal 4:4-7

How blessed we are to be called sons of God, when once we were in sin and spiritual poverty. Galations teaches that part of the induction into Christ's family is the process of being included in His inheritance. This spiritual inheritance is both abundant and overflowing with valuable resources that will nourish and enrich our lives- both in this earth and the world beyond.

What are these resources? The Navigators TMS Series (Topical Memory System) points out 6 areas of Christ's resources that we can rely on and use; accompanying these 6 aspects, there are 2 verses for each area that are good for memorisation and internalising:

1.) His Spirit (1 Corinthians 3:16, 1 Corinthians 2:12)
2.) His Strength (Isaiah 46:10, Philipians 4:13)
3.) His Faithfulness (Lamentations 3:22-23, Numbers 23:19)
4.) His Provision (Romans 8:32, Philipians 4:19)
5.) His Peace (Isaiah 26:3, 1 Peter 5:7)
6.) His Help Against Temptation (Hebrews 12:3,Psalms 119:9,11)

You might also want to download the memory flash cards to help with the memorising process- those are available here

Why Pray?

2006-10-17T14:36:00.000-07:00

Excerpts from my response to a question that someone left as a comment, on prayer!

<<
a.) praying is an act of OBEDIENCE. by committing ourselves to prayer, it may seem at first foolish and pointless, since god is omniscient and knows all things right? so why should we tell him anything? well, god Himself laid down prayer as an unseparable part of our Christian lives. (1 Thessalonians 5:17, Matt 7:7, and in the example of Daniel's refusal to NOT pray) in praying, we are acting out of obedience to our God. and do otherwise would be disobedience and rebellion.

b.) prayer performs a pragmatic function of helping us with SUBMISSION to His Lordship. by praying, we take the focus OFF ourselves and the circumstances in our life, and recognise that there IS a higher being and HE is in charge of the world. even when we complain to Him and rant at Him (as some of the Psalmists do, as well as Jeremiah in Lamentations) we recognise His existence and His Lordship in the world. and in doing so, even subconsciously, it helps us deal with our frail humanity. in Philipians 4:6-7, a verse that is often misquoted- the Bible teaches that prayer is promises to be reciprocated with the 'peace that passeth understanding'. this is promised us when we pray- God may not answer all our doubts or grant all our requests immediately- and yet, His peace is guaranteed. try it.

c.) since Christianity is a relationship, and not merely a religious position- how does one sustain a relationship without two COMMUNICATION? the Navigators wheel illustration demonstrates that GOd communicates to us through His Word, and we communicate to Him through prayer. talking to God IS prayer- and we have free access to Him through Jesus- that's why we pray 'in Jesus' name' amen. in the past, the israelites had to consecrate themselves and offer offering after offering in order to access God- today, we have the benefit and the esteemed privilege of coming into His presence directly through Jesus in prayer. what a blessing!

d.) prayer gives us access to His power and allows us to offer requests for others- INTERCESSION. God delights when we make intercessions for others- it gives Him great pleasure, especially when we pray for each other often, because we are loving each other in the most intelligent and wise manner. i believe stephen curtis chapman wrote the song- 'i will carry you to jesus on my knees'. in praying, we may not be able to change God's appointment for some of the things in our lives, but we can submit our requests to Him, and He has promised to listen.

i'm sorry- these are only some of the things i thought of on the spot. =) i apologise if it's too lengthy or too much of a generalisation.>>>
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How should we pray then, I guess it the next question. Jesus taught his disciples to pray the Lord's Prayer which reads,

Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation. But deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

The key ideas of the Lord's prayer are as follows: a.) the prime focus is on glorifying God and giving Him praise, hence 'hallowed be thy name b.) submitting to His will and His desires, not our own c.) requests and petitions, hence 'give us this day our daily bread' d.) forgiveness- recognising our sinful nature before Him and the need for daily cleansing of our hearts and turning to Him for forgiveness. Yes, our sins have already been cleansed with the blood of Christ once for all, but the act of asking for forgiveness emphasises the real and active relationship we have with Him, and reminds us on a daily basis (since we are forgetful beings,) that we are imperfect and flawed. this includes forgiving others too e.)protection and deliverance from sin and temptation. f.) ascribing praise and glory to Him

ANother way of thinking of prayer is this:
A: Adoration- focusing on the Character of God and Who He is
C: Confession- focusing on the character of man and how flawed we are
T: Thanksgiving- thanking GOd for what He has done
S: Supplication- requests and petition

To those who asked, I hope this was helpful!

Proverbs 3:5-6

2006-10-15T12:41:00.000-07:00

I was in Princeton, New Jersey today and I had a wonderful morning being reminded of the occasionally-cliched-verse, Proverbs 3:5-6 at my friend's church, Westerly Road Church. The pastor, Pastor Matt, presented the verse in both a wonderfully intelligent and applicable way.

Proverbs 3:5-6 reads, "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." In the sermon, Pastor pointed out that it would have been typical for a proverbial writer to compress complex meanings into carefully chosen words, since unlike us, Solomon was such a careful and concise teacher, using language like a carving knife instead of the chopper that we butcher English with.

The proverb works pretty simply and can be divided into three parts-
a.) the general exhortation that kind of works like a thesis statement or action
b.) the action itself
c.) the promised outcome

In the word "acknowledge", he pointed out that it had the synonymn of "know", the same usage as when "Adam knew Eve"- with intimate and personal knowledge or experience of the other person. But what does it mean to 'lean not on your own understanding' and instead 'acknowledge Him in all your ways"? Just what does it mean?

Pastor Matt suggested this as a very practical tool to use- before each day begins or ends, take just one minute to perform an exercise. Let it be the FIRST THING you do each day, or even at the end of each day:

Imagine yourself in a house, and moving from each room to another. When in each room, summarise the responsibilities and roles and issues that are at the heart of it, and surrender them to God, recognising His authority and ownership over the room. Starting at the living room- it's a social place where you host guests and friends- well, commit your friendships to Him and surrender them over. Moving to the bedroom, surrender your sexuality and your romantic relationships/marriages (?), your personal sins, lust etc. Moving to the bathroom, surrender your vulnerabilities, your physical defects and ailments, your health to Him. Moving to the den, surrender your family and your leisure, your hobbies, passions and interests. Moving to through the doorway and garage, surrender your work and your professional life over to Him. You get the idea- but the essence is to cycle through the aspects of your life and picture CHrist as owning them, thereby freeing yourself up to His authority.

Another way of thinking about it may be in the area of relationships. Starting with your most intimate relationship- your role as a child of God in this earth. THen your role as a husband. Then your role as a father. Then as a son. Then as a minister in some capacity of service of God. Then as friend. Then as a worker in whatever profession. Then as a soldier. THen as a citizen. You get the drift.

One final closing point- the heart of Proverbs 3:5-6 is that it is not a command, but an invitation to enjoy His peace and "straight paths". Sometimes we overmilitarise or demonise the words of God as His demands and pressures on us. This could not be further than the truth. He invites us to trust Him and exhorts us to have faith and take heart in His words.

The story that Pastor Matt told, borrowed from our dear friend John Stott went something like this- an Eastern European couple moved to Western Europe and received their first wedding invitation. It read, "You ar cordially invited to the wedding of so and so, at such and such a time. Pls RSVP." The couple fretted for a long time and the husband asked his wife, "Vife, vat is dis RSVP?" "I dont know husbvand." After a long time of pondering and code-breaking, the husband threw his hands up in the air and proclaimed his epiphany. "I know vat it means! REMEMBER SOME VEDDING PRESENTS."

The couple had confused the invitation with a demand/command. As it with us and God, let us not take His gracious invitation as an impersonal order from a commanding officer. That is not who our God is, since it was from that cross that He called us to "trust Him".

Apologetics I

2006-10-13T23:50:00.000-07:00

I'm supposed to help out with the Apologetics side of Fellowship, I think. Hence, I shall post some good things to read, and some ways of thinking about Apologetics. What IS apologetics? Apologetics is not the use of intellect to justify your faith. Rather, it takes its basis from the verse in 1 Peter 3:15 "But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect," In the verse, the idea stems not from arguing to win, but gently presenting a counterperspective to ppl who might think Christianity as a groundless or pointless joke. In fact, 2 Timothy 2:23-24 urges us "23Don't have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels. 24And the Lord's servant must not quarrel; instead, he must be kind to everyone, able to teach, not resentful."

There are a few different ways of thinking about Apologetics (or at least, the way I see it,)-

1.) historical arguments
- the accuracy of the Bible (canonisation)
- the person of Christ and His claims
- the 'vested interest' or agenda of the Apostles
- the fact of the Resurrection
- the 'appointment' of Christ's divinity through the medieval era
2.) philosophical arguments
- morality
- basis for God's existence
- truth and knowledge
- meaning of life
- existential arguments
3.) scientific arguments
- creation vs evolution
- Christ's death
- basis for the miraculous
4.) arguments of prophecy
- self-referenced Biblical prophecy
- post-Bible prophetic events
5.) comparative religion arguments
- comparing Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Taoism, atheism, agnosticism
6.) misc
- abuse of Christianity e.g. Crusades, witch-burning, etc
- existential arguments

Okay, more later- updates coming!

Till then, I'm Caleb!

The Resurrected Christ

2006-10-13T23:02:00.000-07:00

Today I had a real interesting conversation with a friend. My friend just got a job offer from a prestigous firm, and we went to celebrate, three of us. At dinner, (which they bought- I'm the only one in the public sector,) we ended up talking about- religion. And they rose the question of- what is at the heart of the Christian faith that makes it so different?

I thought about it for a while, before telling them about the person of Jesus, and how Christianity is not about power or hierarchy or systems or texts or creeds or laws or good works or popes or anything like that- it's about one man: Jesus Christ. It's only Jesus who was able to completely revolutionise the world the way He did, with His death and resurrection. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 15:14, "And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith." Indeed, if Jesus didn't die and didn't prove Himself alive just as He prophesied, He would not have been able to demonstrate His spiritual authority over death- just like any other man.

I thought about it for a while, and came to this conclusion- for that act alone, I'm in love with Jesus. I have never met Him in person, or put my hands in His hands, feet and sides, but for His act of self-sacrifice and His suffering upon that cross, what else can I offer but everything I am and own in return? And I owe Him so much more than just that, for He died and rose, giving us all hope in His promises and His ability to conquer death. And He's blessed us all innumerably beyond measure- how great is our God!

1 Corinthians 14 goes on to read in verse 17, "And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men." What if Christ never came back from the dead and fulfilled His promises? Paul says that we are wretched then- we are miserable and pitiful little things. But consider the opposite- if He did indeed rise, then what joy and immeasurable blessing we enjoy! There is hope for each new day, and for every moment we bless Him for His life, His death and His resurrection. Let us not fall into the trap of thinking of the empty tomb cliche or overrated, because it is that tomb that holds the hope for all Mankind, the redemption of our sins, personal access to Heaven, and restored relationship with the God of all grace! We really should be thanking Him, praising Him for His resurrection, and the hope it brings!
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A Word on Apologetics:

Did you know also, that the resurrection is documented outside of the Gospel- that is, there are other non-Christian historical sources that prove that Jesus existed, was crucified for His claims to divinity and that his tomb was indeed empty. These other sources include the writings of Flavius Josephus, Suetonius, Tactitus, Pliny, Thallus, the Talmud and the 'Acts of Pilate'. Also, http://www.themoorings.org/apologetics/resurrection/resur3.html provides us with insightful information about the nature of the Roman guard and the seal designed to 'keep Christ from resurrecting':

The guards used sophisticated methods. A Roman guard detail varied in size from four to sixteen men (3). When sixteen participated in overnight duty, each quaternion (group of four men) took the watch for about three hours (Acts 12:4), so that four men were awake at all times (4). The four on guard stood at the object to be secured, while the other twelve slept in a semicircle with their heads pointed inward (5). Each soldier was armed with a six-foot pike, a sword, and a dagger (6).

Dereliction of duty was punishable by death. Roman armies conquered the world in part because they were highly disciplined. The demands upon a soldier were rigorous, and if he failed to meet them, he could expect no mercy. Among the offenses punishable by death were striking an officer and disposing of arms (7). Another was failure in guard duty (8), which has been a capital offense even in modern armies. The punishment normally meted out to the offender was gruesome. He might be stripped naked and burned alive in his own garments (9). If a guard detail failed to carry out its mission, superior officers would, if possible, execute only those soldiers at fault. But if they could not identify the shirkers, they would pick one soldier by lot and execute him (10). The possibility that even an innocent member of a derelict detail might lose his life caused an uneasy sleep for all.

Professor Thomas Arnold, for 14 years a headmaster of Rugby, author of "History of Rome", and appointed to the chair of modern history at Oxford, said: "I have been used for many years to study the histories of other times, and to examine and weigh the evidence of those who have written about them, and I know of no one fact in the history of mankind which is proved by better and fuller evidence of every sort, to the understanding of a fair inquirer, than the great sign which God hath given us that Christ died and rose again from the dead." Brooke Foss Westcott, an English scholar, said: "raking all the evidence together, it is not too much to say that there is no historic incident better or more variously supported than the resurrection of Christ. Nothing but the antecedent assumption that it must be false could have suggested the idea of deficiency in the proof of it."

Fire and Peace

2006-10-08T22:38:00.000-07:00

2 Kings 1:9-15

Then he sent to Elijah a captain with his company of fifty men. The captain went up to Elijah, who was sitting on the top of a hill, and said to him, "Man of God, the king says, 'Come down!' "

Elijah answered the captain, "If I am a man of God, may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!" Then fire fell from heaven and consumed the captain and his men.

At this the king sent to Elijah another captain with his fifty men. The captain said to him, "Man of God, this is what the king says, 'Come down at once!' "

"If I am a man of God," Elijah replied, "may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men!" Then the fire of God fell from heaven and consumed him and his fifty men.

So the king sent a third captain with his fifty men. This third captain went up and fell on his knees before Elijah. "Man of God," he begged, "please have respect for my life and the lives of these fifty men, your servants! 14 See, fire has fallen from heaven and consumed the first two captains and all their men. But now have respect for my life!"

The angel of the LORD said to Elijah, "Go down with him; do not be afraid of him." So Elijah got up and went down with him to the king.
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Elijah has to be one of the coolest prophets ever. In my mind, he is literally, the 'fire and brimstone' prophet. Having called down fire from heaven on three different occasions, not to mention being swept up in a whirlwind- if anyone knew about dramatic moments with God- it was Elijah. You would think that having seen all the power of GOd manifested in His life and serving the Living God adn seeing just how mighty and incredible God is in His miracles, Elijah would be a man of iron clad faith.

And yet, we read in the Bible about Elijah's depression, when he sat under the broom-tree and asked to die. When he was hiding in the cave waiting for God to come and minister to him. Elijah too, had his down moments with God, demonstrating that even the man of the strongest faith too, can fall.

In this account, we see Elijah wielding the power of GOd in a truly scary way- with such authority and influence, no wonder the third captain and his men were so completely petrified and afraid of this wild man of GOd. But the thing that strikes me the most is the fact that Elijah was afraid of the captain and his fifty men. How do we know this? THe angel says to him, "do not be afraid of him,"- these words of comfort were directed randomly- they were meant to comfort a man afraid- why do you think he was on a hill- distancing himself sufficiently with a buffer area. In his own way, Elijah too, was afraid. In that sense, Elijah is truly like you and me, and must have been as human as anyone-despite seeing the work of God in his life, he was equally daunted the very real and physical threat. It was hard for ELijah to see beyond his physical eyes and see the armies of GOd protecting him.

But Elijah is equally admirable, for his complete obedience to the SPirit, something that distinguishes him as a true man of god. Despite being afraid, he was quick to obey and heed the angel's instruction- the bible seems to read that his response was immediate and without delay.

Isn't it comforting to know that GOd was sensitive and concerned enough to comfort Elijah first, reassuring him of his own personal safety before giving him instructions? I imagine that GOd could have said anything from "go!" to "trust my plans, and go!" or "i have a higher calling! go!' but he said, do not be afraid. I can only imagine the intimacy and calm and peace that must have filled elijah's heart with that word of assurance, before God commanded him to see the King.

And so it is with us, that when we are afraid, God displays His love in reassuring us that He is our GOD, and that we ahve nothing to be afraid of. What a contrast in this GOd of ours- the infinite power of fire from heaven, and the gentleness of a father's words of assurance.

Small Enough

2006-09-29T21:23:00.000-07:00

Hey guys,

I don't know if anyone still reads this, but I pray that this song will find the small and humble child within you, and strike a chord somewhere. It really met me this week when I was feeling so weak and helpless. We don't like to admit how desperately fragile we are sometimes when we're hiding behind our intellectualism and our pride. But this week as I really came down to it, I just want God to meet me at my moment of need- and He does. How great is our God, that He didn't mind not being big, if only to be small enough for me to see Him. Enjoy Nicole Nordeman's Small Enough- it's a truly wonderful song, and a truly wonderful songwriter/singer.

Oh great God
Be small enough
To hear me now
There were times when I was crying
From the dark of Daniel’s den
I had asked you once or twice
If you would part the sea again
Tonight I do not need a
Fiery pillar in the sky
Just want to know you’re gonna
Hold me if I start to cry

Oh great God
Be small enough to hear me now
Oh great God
Be close enough to feel you now
(Oh great god be close to me)
There have been moments when I could not face
Goliath on my own
And how could I forget we marched
Around our share of Jerichos
But I will not be setting out
A fleece for you tonight
Just wanna know that everything will be alright
Oh great god be close enough to feel me now

All praise and all the honor be
To the god of ancient mysteries
Whose every sign and wonder
Turn the pages of our history
But tonight my heart is heavy
And I cannot keep from whispering this prayer
Are you there?

And I know you could leave writing
On the wall that’s just for me
Or send wisdom while I’m sleeping
Like in Solomon’s sweet dreams
But I don’t need the strength of Sampson
Or a chariot in the end
Just wanna know that you still know how many
Hairs are on my head
Oh great God (Are you small enough)
Be small enough to hear
Me now

2006-09-28T20:51:00.000-07:00

Hey Guys,

I don't usually post, but i was a home today and decided to put something up. I happened to read Hosea today and listen to Steven Curtis Chapman, something i haven't done in a long time.
I even more rarely quote old testiment so maybe read abit.

I was struck how Israel left its former purpose. How its priests became corrupt 'you [the priestly nation] have rejected knowledge, i will also reject you' The spiritual leaders led the people astray. The people were lost in harlotry (sexual sin) and trusting in things of the world. Simply put, relying on military strength, aliances, while worshipping other Gods which gave very sensual benefits. (temple prostitutes). I don't really need to draw the parallels. In different ways, we go through the same thing today.

MY REALISATION.
They were '[intended to be] a watchman with my God [and a prophet to the surrounding nations]; but he that prophet, has become fowler's snare in all his ways. There is emnity, hostility and persecutution in the house of God' (Hosea 9:8) God will punish them.

THE REAL POINT
God is looking for people, 'I (God) found Israel like grapes in the wilderness' (Hosea 9:10) Searching for people to send forth his message to the world. How many times has the church disappointed him? Movements for his glory dissapated into strife, hypocracy, hobbled by secret sins, of jealosy, covertousness, exploiting the poor and most commonly secret sexual sins and addictions.

God still wants to forgive, he put Judah under a foreign ruler so they would learn 'it is time to seek the lord to inquire for and of him till he comes and teaches you righteousness and rains his righteous gift of salvation upon you' (Hosea 10:12)

MY REFLECTION
I don't want to be "infertile ground", half hearted or double minded. I want to someone given to a purpose and not get distracted by things that will only leave me thirsty and empty. I need to get to the point of life, and stand up as a beacon (which is the real purpose) to tell people of this great meaning. I've forgotten and fallen so many times. And because of that, people whom i know won't hear or see my Jesus, who is the answer to their lives, and is the answer i know myself and don't use because i'm a stubborn prig.

ABOUT US
Many of us are held back by similar struggles, I feel we've lost focus as a group, growing distant from God. We need to move forward together . We aren't alone in our struggles, we live under pretty much common temptation. We need to follow the command to 'confess your sins one to another' (if we are, are we following up to support one another in Christ?) We need to confess, pray, spend time with God and one another in Spiritual things.

QUEN's RESPONSE
I msg'd out my thoughts via SMS and just wanna put down quentin's reply. 'Many of us think that we are held back by sin, when God has lovingly forgiven us and redeemed us from guilt! Saul and David both made many mistakes, but what made David a man after God's own heart was that he picked himself up and prayed create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit within me.. We need to be able to draw closer to God after each mistake, not further, as we often allow ourselves to :) '

2006-09-12T07:29:00.000-07:00

I was listening to Corrinne May's cd and the lyrics from Journey struck me. Felt that they were very meaningful and related to me at this point of my own journey, so here goes:

It's a long, long journey
Till I know where I'm supposed to be
It's a long, long journey
and I don't know if I can believe
When shadows fall and block my eyes
I am lost and know that I must hide
It's a long, long journey
Till I find my way home to you

Many days I've spent
Drifting on through empty shores
Wondering what's my purpose
Wondering how to make me strong
I know I will falter
I know I will cry
I know you'll be standing by my side
It's a long, long journey
And I need to be close to you

Sometimes it seems no one understands
I don't even know why I do the things I do
When pride builds me up till I can't see my soul
Will you break down these walls and pull me through?

'Cause it's a long, long journey
Till I feel that I am worth the price
You paid for me on calvary
Beneath those stormy skies
When Satan mocks and friends turn to foes
It feels like everything is out to make me lose control

It's a long, long journey
Till I find my way home to you

Do listen to it. Highly recommended!

Tis Better To Trust In God Than In Anything

2006-09-12T05:29:00.000-07:00

Today during my quiet time, I came across Psalm 118: a psalm that really stresses the jubilant celebration and steadfast confidence that we, His children have in Him. Reading this psalm really reminded of the old hymn "What a friend we have in Jesus", and the line in it which reads, "O what needless pain we bear/all because we do not carry/everything to God in prayer". The Psalmist reminds us of His abounding goodness and love which never fails, and calls us to rejoice and take heart in His provision.

1.) Psalm 118:1
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Let Israel say: "His love endures forever."
Let the house of Aaron say: "His love endures forever."
Let those who fear the LORD say: "His love endures forever."

How good it is to know that as early as King David's rule, God had already set provision for the "aliens" in the land, the Gentiles who were around the nation of Israel. Notice that "Israel", "the house of Aaron" and "those who fear the Lord" are distinct? There was already a channel of access for the non-Jews to come to Him, as long as they "feared the Lord". God is so great for calling us, Gentiles lost in our sin, to the saving knowledge of Christ Jesus!

2.) PSA 118:5
In my anguish I cried to the LORD, and he answered by setting me free.
The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
The LORD is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies.
It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man.
It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes.

In the KJV, verse 5 reads, "I called upon the LORD in distress: the LORD answered me, and set me in a large place." God responds to our cry for deliverance in our dark moments by liberating us and freeing us from the constriction and tightness of our difficult moments. The image is almost that of us struggling to find space, before the Lord gives us that clear, open space, if only to breathe and find rest. God alone is our salvation and answer to life's problems. Yet, too often do we chase after our teachers, professors, superior officers, parents, legislators and authorities for the answer to our problems- no, the answer to all difficulties is really to take refuge in Him who has all the resources that we may require, and especially, rest for our tired souls. No wonder then the Pslamist exhorts us to find rest not in the pillars which hold us this world, but to Him who holds up all Creation.

3.) Psalm 118:11
All the nations surrounded me, but in the name of the LORD I cut them off.
They surrounded me on every side, but in the name of the LORD I cut them off.
They swarmed around me like bees, but they died out as quickly as burning thorns; in the name of the LORD I cut them off.
I was pushed back and about to fall, but the LORD helped me.

Returning to the image of verse 5- being "liberated" and put in a "large space", the ideas of constriction and tightness, being gripped by some kind of acute pressure return to the text, this time in the form of the "nations surrounding" us. The psalmist compares them to "bees" which pester and sting, poisoning and harrassing. The NIV calls them "cut off" whereas the KJV expresses it as "destroy". The Hebrew indicates the verb "mool" or "to cut short/curtail". And yet, even in this act of "self-deliverance", it is in the name and authority of the LORD that the Psalmist does this.

4.) Psalm 118:14
The LORD is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation.
Shouts of joy and victory resound in the tents of the righteous: "The LORD's right hand has done mighty things!
The LORD's right hand is lifted high; the LORD's right hand has done mighty things!"
I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the LORD has done.
The LORD has chastened me severely, but he has not given me over to death.
Open for me the gates of righteousness; I will enter and give thanks to the LORD.
This is the gate of the LORD through which the righteous may enter.

I love the tone of the Psalmist, whose jubilance and gratefulness really comes through the keen repetition. The few verses here just really echo the idea of the greatness of the Lord, for what He has done- for delivering us and for sustaining us through all the difficult times. Hasn't He done that for us? Bringing us through times when we thought it was all over- and yet, He never truly gave us up. No, the Lord will not abandon those He loves! The very fact that we are here to share and encourage each other in His name is a testament to how far He has brought us!

5.) Psalm 118:21
I will give you thanks, for you answered me; you have become my salvation.
The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone;
the LORD has done this, and it is marvelous in our eyes.
This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.
O LORD, save us; O LORD, grant us success.

Verse 22 has special meaning for me. It talks about the "habits" of the Lord in passing over what the world sees as the best and the elite and how he favours instead those He favours. This reference was even used in the description of Christ, who "has become the capstone". The capstone referred to the central stone that held all of the construction work together, upon which the foundations of a structure were laid. Similarly, Christ, who was rejected by many and scorned by all (including even us Christians when we sin,) has come to take that central place upon which the church of CHrist is built. But in the context of the passage, the Pslamist could also have been using the "capstone" as a conceit, implying duplicitly the selection of the nation of Israel for God's chosen race, a race that was and has always been, historically, scorned by her neighbours and counterparts. Alternatively, it could refer to individuals who in all likelihood, were never to survive the ordeals, both situational and spiritual. Yet God somehow came through for them. This verse holds multiple interpretations, and for me, I think of how unlikely a child of God I was. And yet, God drew me into His family and showed His love for me upon the cross. And today, I can be called a son of God, if only by His grace.

6.) Psalm 118:26
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD. From the house of the LORD we bless you.
The LORD is God, and he has made his light shine upon us. With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession up to the horns of the altar.
You are my God, and I will give you thanks; you are my God, and I will exalt you.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

How has the Lord been good to us? Take a moment to give thanks and praise for His boundless grace and mercy unto us. Give Him the thanks He deserves, and do not think for a moment that the security of life in the city is truly man-made. Through Him and in Him do all things hold together and find themselves coherent. Even the food on the table and the loved ones we embrace, are marks of His providence to us, His children. His love endures forever!

Dear God

2006-08-30T17:44:00.000-07:00

why do you never laugh?

was it lost in the edit, or do you just leave the rejoicing to us?

Are we to settle for a calm peace of inner joy without the swinging highs of life?

Is it to much for me to let go of the variety of living life for a sedate God?

Its safer, it feels better.

Its supposed to be right.

But who said so?

When Today Is Just Not My Day

2006-08-24T09:30:00.000-07:00

What do you do when today isn't my day? I ask this simply because- today is really not my day. If a bad day at work wasn't enough, an irritating kid not enough, a series of disappointments not enough, the first thing I read online about certain individuals and their respective partners is enough to make me pop an artery or two, and I need to pray for patience and calm, for love and joy.

I just shared with Joshua Nair tonight about how we have a misreading of the Bible, and a wrong outlook on Christian life- we take it as something to help us get through the week, through the month, through the season of our life. However, we seem to be sorely mistaken. The Christian life is about three key things- 1.) worshipping God in a love-relationship as we respond to Him 2.) having our hearts beat in line with His mission to reach the lost 3.) bearing the fruit of Christlikeness as we are the branches stemming from He who is the Vine. And yet, in spite of these things, I feel like I'm about to cave right now, and I need God to help me get through the next fifteen minutes. How hypocritical I feel right now for even saying and praying those things less than 2 hours ago.

The Bible says "though the fig tree does not bud, and there be no sheep in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord- I will glory in God my Father." It's extremely hard to adopt that kind of a consistently grateful and worshipful outlook in all situations in life. Sometimes, the tendency really is to grumble and say, "God, my life sucks- face it, I'm lonely, and You're not enough for me." I really need to pray for grace to get me through this, for GOd to change my heart, and give me a heart of worship.

SUre, there'll be up-days, and sure enough- there'll be down-days. Will Jesus be enough for the down-days as He is during the up days? "Lord, will you be enough for me?"

And in my heart, I know his reply, "My son, my son. I love you with all my heart, and I even received you when you squandered your inheritance on pigs. When you left and ran away, I stood here waiting and watching from a distance. And when I saw you coming back in repentance, I ran to you. I slayed the fattened calf and precious offerings to celebrate your return. I love you and always have. Yes, I am more than enough for you."

Jesus, help us to know that you are. Increase our faith, for it is weak.

My Theological Outlook

2006-08-22T17:57:00.000-07:00

You scored as Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan. You are an evangelical in the Wesleyan tradition. You believe that God's grace enables you to choose to believe in him, even though you yourself are totally depraved. The gift of the Holy Spirit gives you assurance of your salvation, and he also enables you to live the life of obedience to which God has called us. You are influenced heavly by John Wesley and the Methodists.

Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan

86%

Fundamentalist

64%

Neo orthodox

54%

Reformed Evangelical

54%

Emergent/Postmodern

46%

Roman Catholic

43%

Classical Liberal

36%

Charismatic/Pentecostal

32%

Modern Liberal

29%

What's your theological worldview?
created with QuizFarm.com

My House Shall Be Called A House of Prayer

2006-08-13T09:30:00.000-07:00

I Timothy 2:1-4

1I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; 2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. 3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; 4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

We don't pray enough, you and I. Paul exhorts Timothy, a young pastor in the making and his 'true son in the faith' to first and foremost, pray unceasingly for all things and for all men. Amongst the needs for prayer, he stresses the authority figures in power above us, pointing out that such acts of obedience are pleasing to our God, in whose veins beats the bloods of missions and evangelism. How often do we pray for all men, with a heart of desiring their salvation, that the good news go out into all the world?

If we fail to take the Gospel out ourselves, we have already failed once. If we fail to pray for their souls to be saved, then we fail twice. Jesus is in the work of changing hearts, and we are to be at the frontline with Him doing battle when the souls of Mankind hang in the balance. Overly dramatic? I think not. Why else would Paul stress to his protege the tremendous need for prayer and for spiritual wrestling? It is in authority that he commends his charge to take upon the prayer ministry as The Main Course rather than the side dish of the pastorate. Too often do we, in our churches imagine prayer as the backup and the support ministry. Rather, prayer is the basis for all ministry since it forces us to rely and trust and look to resources BEYOND our own.

I strongly encourage anyone with the time to listen to Jim Cymbala's video-message on "My House Shall Be Called A House of Prayer" here http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5015435750261664501&q=jim+cymbala and to 'lift holy hands in prayer' for our world, for all around us.

Building the Lord's Temple II

2006-08-12T10:14:00.000-07:00

II Corinthians 5:13-14
It came even to pass, as the trumpeters and singers were as one, to make one sound to be heard in praising and thanking the LORD; and when they lifted up their voice with the trumpets and cymbals and instruments of music, and praised the LORD, saying, "For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever!", that then the house was filled with a cloud, even the house of the LORD; So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.

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In thanksgiving, we want to thank the Lord for being with us even this week as we met to pray and share over John 4. Indeed, the house of the Lord, where His temples were gathered was filled with His presence and His glory.

Bearing in mind the lesson of the 'sowing and the reaping' from John's Gospel- it is the gracious work of the Lord that He set our hearts on fire even to serve those in greater need than we, and for us to turn our hearts away from ourselves and looking to reap the harvest of this generation. May He lead us to be both sowers and reapers as we obey His Great Commission and the work of discipleship- be it through showing His love at Crystallite Methodist Home, or harnessing the combined talents in apologetics, music and performance, the visual arts, sports, and above all things- the frontline war of prayer.

Dearest Lord, even as our hearts "were as one", singing and worshipping you with our lives- we thank you for dwelling amongst us, being Emmanuel- "God with us". How unworthy are we to behold your goodness in our lives, and thank you for all you've done and all you are about to do. We pray that you establish the work of our hands, yes, establish the work of our hands, for "unless the Lord builds the house, the labourers labour in vain". Bless all that we do, because we want to honour you and bring you glory- living and fulfilling your Great Commandment and Commission- "loving the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind", "loving your neighbour as yourself" as well as "going out into all the world, baptising them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey all that you have commanded us". In Jesus' name, Amen.

2006-08-04T06:52:00.000-07:00

I was clearing my clothes:

I have about 3 jackets 7tees 2shirts 5pants lots of boxers pairofshoes
i always wear.

Figured I shoould go shopping when the moolah came in.

then Colossians 3:12 states that 'therefore, as Gods chosen people, holy
and dearly loved, clothe yourself with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness
and patience.'

ok so maybe I don't need to shop.

:D

not despised

2006-07-31T01:17:00.000-07:00

'The sacrifices of the Lord are a broken spirit and a contrite heart,
O lord, you will not despise.'
- Psalm 51:17

o lord you will not despise this vunerable wreck.

when drive, strength and control are what i and my
pride value. when i am weary uncontrolled and weak
dear father you will not despise.

raising me up yet bringing me down, dear lord
you have not despised.

make broken humility intentional lord, my broken self pity
into your concerns

teach me to love as you love,to treasure as you treasure,
to forgive as you forgive,to give as you give,
to suffer as you suffer.

that i too may not despise.

written 30/07/06 joe

Simple Lessons for a New Day

2006-07-28T18:06:00.000-07:00

Keep falsehood and lies far away from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.
Otherwise I may have too much and disown you
and say 'who is the Lord?'
Or I may become poor and steal
and so dishonor the name of my God.

I was amazed at the simplicity but veracity of this simple thought, and it really lifted my heart to see such a sincere and uncomplicated prayer. Kudos to www.justalittlehigher.blogspot.com. Amen indeed.

The Gospel of Pushups

2006-06-26T03:00:00.000-07:00

There was a certain Professor of Religion named Dr. Christianson, a studious man who taught at a small college in the western United States. Dr. Christianson taught the required survey course in Christianity at this particular institution. Every student was required to take this course his or her freshman year, regardless of his or her major. Although Dr. Christianson tried hard to communicate the essence of the gospel in his class, he found that most of his students looked upon the course as nothing but required drudgery. Despite his best efforts, most students refused to take Christianity seriously.

This year, Dr. Christianson had a special student named Steve. Steve was only a freshman, but was studying with the intent of going onto seminary for the ministry. Steve was popular, he was well liked, and he was an imposing physical specimen. He was now the starting center on the school football team, and was the best student in the professor's class.

One day, Dr. Christianson asked Steve to stay after class so he could talk with him.

"How many push-ups can you do?"

Steve said, "I do about 200 every night."

"200? That's pretty good, Steve," Dr. Christianson said. "Do you think you could do 300?"

Steve replied, "I don't know... I've never done 300 at a time."

"Do you think you could?" again asked Dr. Christianson.

"Well, I can try," said Steve.

"Can you do 300 in sets of 10? I have a class project in mind and I need you to do about 300 push-ups in sets of ten for this to work. Can you do it? I need you to tell me you can do it," said the professor.

Steve said, "Well... I think I can...yeah, I can do it."

Dr. Christianson said, "Good. I need you to do this on Friday. Let me explain what I have in mind."

Friday came and Steve got to class early and sat in the front of the room. When class started, the professor pulled out a big box of donuts. No, these weren't the normal kinds of donuts, they were the extra fancy BIG kind, with cream centers and frosting swirls. Everyone was pretty excited it was Friday, the last class of the day, and they were going to get an early start on the weekend with a party in Dr. Christianson's class.

Dr. Christianson went to the first girl in the first row and asked, "Cynthia, do you want to have one of these donuts?"

Cynthia said, "Yes."

Dr. Christianson then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Cynthia can have a donut?"

"Sure." Steve jumped down from his desk to do a quick ten. Then Steve again sat in his desk. Dr. Christianson put a donut on Cynthia's desk.

Dr. Christianson then went to Joe, the next person, and asked, "Joe, do you want a donut?"

Joe said, "Yes." Dr. Christianson asked, "Steve would you do ten push-ups so Joe can have a donut?"

Steve did ten push-ups, Joe got a donut. And so it went, down the first aisle, Steve did ten pushups for every person before they got their donut.

Walking down the second aisle, Dr. Christianson came to Scott. Scott was on the basketball team, and in as good condition as Steve. He was very popular and never lacking for female companionship.

When the professor asked, "Scott do you want a donut?"

Scott's reply was, "Well, can I do my own pushups?"

Dr. Christianson said, "No, Steve has to do them."

Then Scott said, "Well, I don't want one then."

Dr. Christianson shrugged and then turned to Steve and asked, "Steve, would you do ten pushups so Scott can have a donut he doesn't want?"

With perfect obedience Steve started to do ten pushups.

Scott said, "Hey, I said I didn't want one."

Dr. Christianson said, "Look, this is my classroom, my class, my desks, and these are my donuts. Just leave it on the desk if you don't want it." And he put a donut on Scott's desk.

Now by this time, Steve had begun to slow down a little. He just stayed on the floor between sets because it took too much effort to be getting up and down. You could start to see a little perspiration coming out around his brow.

Dr. Christianson started down the third row. Now the students were beginning to get a little angry. Dr. Christianson asked Jenny, "Jenny, do you want a donut?"

Sternly, Jenny said, "No."

Then Dr. Christianson asked Steve, "Steve, would you do ten more push-ups so Jenny can have a donut that she doesn't want?" Steve did ten....Jenny got a donut.

By now, a growing sense of uneasiness filled the room. The students were beginning to say "No" and there were all these uneaten donuts on the desks. Steve also had to really put forth a lot of extra effort to get these pushups done for each donut. There began to be a small pool of sweat on the floor beneath his face, his arms and brow were beginning to get red because of the physical effort involved.

Dr. Christianson asked Robert, who was the most vocal unbeliever in the class, to watch Steve do each push up to make sure he did the full ten pushups in a set because he couldn't bear to watch all of Steve's work for all of those uneaten donuts. He sent Robert over to where Steve was so Robert could count the set and watch Steve closely.

Dr. Christianson started down the fourth row. During his class, however, some students from other classes had wandered in and sat down on the steps along the radiators that ran down the sides of the room.

When the professor realized this, he did a quick count and saw that now there were 34 students in the room. He started to worry if Steve would be able to make it.

Dr. Christianson went on to the next person and the next and the next. Near the end of that row, Steve was really having a rough time. He was taking a lot more time to complete each set.

Steve asked Dr. Christianson, "Do I have to make my nose touch on each one?"

Dr. Christianson thought for a moment, "Well, they're your pushups. You are in charge now. You can do them any way that you want." And Dr. Christianson went on.

A few moments later, Jason, a recent transfer student, came to the room and was about to come in when all the students yelled in one voice, "NO, don't come in Stay out!"

Jason didn't know what was going on. Steve picked up his head and said, "No, let him come."

Professor Christianson said, "You realize that if Jason comes in you will have to do ten pushups for him?"

Steve said, "Yes, let him come in. Give him a donut."

Dr. Christianson said, "Okay, Steve, I'll let you get Jason's out of the way right now. Jason, do you want a donut?"

Jason, new to the room, hardly knew what was going on. "Yes," he said, "give me a donut."

"Steve, will you do ten push-ups so that Jason can have a donut?" Steve did ten pushups very slowly and with great effort. Jason, bewildered, was handed a donut and sat down.

Dr. Christianson finished the fourth row, and then started on those visitors seated by the heaters. Steve's arms were now shaking with each push-up in a struggle to lift himself against the force of gravity. By this time sweat was profusely dropping off of his face, there was no sound except his heavy breathing; there was not a dry eye in the room.

The very last two students in the room were two young women, both cheerleaders, and very popular. Dr. Christianson went to Linda, the second to last, and asked, "Linda, do you want a doughnut?"

Linda said, very sadly, "No, thank you."

Professor Christianson quietly asked, "Steve, would you do ten push-ups so that Linda can have a donut she doesn't want?" Grunting from the effort, Steve did ten very slow pushups for Linda.

Then Dr. Christianson turned to the last girl, Susan. "Susan, do you want a donut?"

Susan, with tears flowing down her face, began to cry. "Dr. Christianson, why can't I help him?"

Dr. Christianson, with tears of his own, said, "No, Steve has to do it alone, I have given him this task and he is in charge of seeing that everyone has an opportunity for a donut whether they want it or not. When I decided to have a party this last day of class, I looked my grade book. Steve here is the only student with a perfect grade. Everyone else has failed a test, skipped class, or offered me inferior work. Steve told me that in football practice, when a player messes up he must do push-ups. I told Steve that none of you could come to my party unless he paid the price by doing your push ups. He and I made a deal for your sakes."

"Steve, would you do ten push-ups so Susan can have a donut?" As Steve very slowly finished his last pushup, with the understanding that he had accomplished all that was required of him, having done 350 pushups, his arms buckled beneath him and he fell to the floor.

Dr. Christianson turned to the room and said. "And so it was, that our Savior, Jesus Christ, on the cross, plead to the Father, 'into thy hands I commend my spirit.' With the understanding that He had done everything that was required of Him, He yielded up His life. And like some of those in this room, many of us leave the gift on the desk, uneaten."

Two students helped Steve up off the floor and to a seat, physically exhausted, but wearing a thin smile.

"Well done, good and faithful servant," said the professor, adding, "Not all sermons are preached in words."

Turning to his class, the professor said, "My wish is that you might understand and fully comprehend all the riches of grace and mercy that have been given to you through the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He spared not only His Begotten Son, but gave Him up for us all, for the whole Church, now and forever. Whether or not we choose to accept His gift to us, the price has been paid."

"Wouldn't you be foolish and ungrateful to leave it lying on the desk?"

Building the Lord's Temple I

2006-06-20T20:51:00.000-07:00

Context: King David took on the responsibility of charging his son to the construction of the temple, and in public address, commended unto his son the mammoth task. Until this point, the ethereal presence of the Lord's spirit resided upon the Ark of the Covenant, and did not have a fixed place of sanctuary. Just as the Israelites had established themselves in the promised land, it was now time for them to construct a place worthy of the God who had brought them out of Egypt and slavery.

1 Chronicles 28:8-10
"So now I charge you in the sight of all Israel and of the assembly of the LORD, and in the hearing of our God: Be careful to follow all the commands of the LORD your God, that you may possess this good land and pass it on as an inheritance to your descendants forever.
"And you, my son Solomon, acknowledge the God of your father, and serve him with wholehearted devotion and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches every heart and understands every motive behind the thoughts. If you seek him, he will be found by you; but if you forsake him, he will reject you forever.
Consider now, for the LORD has chosen you to build a temple as a sanctuary. Be strong and do the work."

David urges Solomon to do 3 things-
1.) acknowledge the God of your father
the KJV writes "know". The Hebrew word for acknowledge is "yada` yaw-dah' to know properly, to ascertain by seeing; used in a great variety of senses, figuratively, literally, euphemistically and inferentially (including observation, care, recognition; and causatively, instruction, designation, punishment)
2.) serve (Hebrew: abad 'aw-bad'; to work; by implication, to serve, till, enslave, be keep in bondage, be bondmen, bond-service, serve, servant, worshipper) him with wholehearted devotion/(KJV) perfect heart (Hebrew: halem 'shaw-lame'; complete; full, just, made ready, peaceable, perfect, quiet)
3.) with a willing mind (Hebrew: chaphets 'khaw-fates'; pleased with:--delight in, desire, favour, please, have pleasure, whosoever would, willing, wish)

For us who are spiritual children of God and recepients of His inheritance, like Solomon, we too have been exhorted to building the temple of God- the residing place of the Holy Spirit-- both our spiritual Man, as well as the church that Christ loves so much. Equally for us, we are called to "know and serve Him with perfect hearts and willing minds".

In 'knowing' Him, the Bible teaches that we are to know Him properly, where the idea relates to some kind of observation that we make of Him through His instructions, plans and punishment. Just like a child gets to 'know' his father by interacting with him directly through talking with him, as well as by forming opinions and points of understanding through watching his father at work or in situations, so it is for us. By reading His word and studying God's graceful action throughout history in the Gospel, and by learning more of who He is, we are 'knowing' Him through the Bible, as well as how He works in our lives.

The call to 'serve' Him, is unconventionally the idea of working, and working as a slave- being kept in bondage as though there were a contract that held us to His service. Perhaps not so felt in our times, in the French Revolution of 1789, the members of the working class and farmers stormed the mansions and manors of their lords and ladies, only to set their contracts on fire if only to be free men! How interesting it is that the Bible says exactly the opposite- that our service to the Lord is to be like contracted slaves. And yet, there is also an element of worship in the word, implying that this voluntary submission is our worship! No wonder Paul says in Romans 12:1 "Therefore I urge you brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to Him- this is your spiritual act of worship". Our voluntary service IS worship! Our very lives are worship! And yet, King David tells his son to not just serve GOd like a slave, but to be a 'wholehearted' slave, or one wiht a 'perfect heart'- suggesting that the FULL devotion,or singleminded fidelity is required in the service of God. Jesus Himself echoed this in Matthew when He taught that no man can serve two masters- only one! Equally for us, are we serving Him alonewith that full, perfect and singleminded devotion?

Finally, the King urges his son to serve with 'a willing mind'- or one that derives pleasure from service. The service of the Lord is surely joy, and and is surely delight. As a friend once said, the call to serve GOd in whatever capacity must surely not be 'God's sucky will for my life' but must be planned for our benefit, for our good. Jeremiah 29:11 again says that "for I know the plans I ahve for you, says the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you- plans to give you a hope and a future". FOr those of us called to serve Him- there may be times of disappointment and frustration, but we must approach His service willingly, and gladly and joyfully- with the idea that we derive joy and pleasure from serving the King! Is that your approach to the project of building the church and the people of God?

Dear Lord,

we struggle with building your temple on your terms. And yet, there is no other way to do that holy task which you have set us aside to do. We know that in this day and age, our calling is still to build a place for your dwelling- to build both the church as well as our own lives since our very bodies are your temple. Make us pure and help us to live up to the detail and design that you have designed and enshrined for the Christian life. we want to be temples that shine in this world of darkness, temples that are a place of refuge and show a difference in this world. And yet we cannot do this on our terms, with our own hands. Help us to know you Lord, to see your works up close and in detail- help us do this wiht wholehearted singlemindedness. We want to do this Lord, and surely this prayer and plea for our heart's desire shows that we are willing. Make us the men and women you want us to be. We want to make you happy, we want to give you glory, we want to be Yours and YOurs alone. Help us to do this Lord, for your glory and your pleasure. When the world rises up against us and the cynicism and bitterness sets in, give us grace to be strong and be our mighty King leading us to triumph over these things. Thank you Lord Jesus- in whose precious name we pray all these things, Amen.

Reflections

2006-06-04T20:34:00.000-07:00

"How great is our God,
Sing with me how great is our God!
And all will see how great, how great is our God!

Then sings my soul,
my Saviour, God to thee,
how great Thou art,
how great Thou art!"

God truly is amazing- reaching down from heaven to reconcile us to Himself in the person of Jesus, and then again and again to each one of us as we fall away from Him or get distracted byh the things of this world.

This week, I really felt like I was dealt the killer blow by those around me- the social floor on which I stood began to give way, and it felt like the waters were going to pull me under.

But it truly felt like Jesus reached out and picked me up and said "ye of little faith, know the fullness of my love" and helped me to stand on the waters again. In the most personal and private moments, His love shone through and reminded me of Psalm 16:2-3

"I said to the LORD, "You are my Lord;
apart from you I have no good thing.

As for the saints who are in the land,
they are the glorious ones in whom is all my delight."

Truly, Lord, who have I in heaven but you? What does my heart, broken and scarred by human hands matter- or my name, buried with filth and shame have anything to do with me? I am a sinner, nothing more. And you chose the foolish things of this world to shame the wise, and in my weakness, then I will trust in you. Lord, I'm sorry for doubting you as my Rock and my secure place. I'm sorry for wavering in my faith and like Peter, falling into that dark, cold water. Lord, as skeptical as I am of one off events, I want to use last night as a starting point of testimony for your work in my life. Let prayer and confession constantly be on my lips- help me to rely on you for more grace and more mercy. Thank you Lord- all these things I pray in the name of Jesus, Amen.

Philosophers Who Believe by Calvin College

2006-05-14T12:08:00.000-07:00

Philosophers Who Believe

INTRODUCTION: The Literature of Confession

In 1980, Time magazine reported a remarkable renaissance of religious belief among philosophers:

God? Wasn't he chased out of heaven by Marx, banished to the unconscious by Freud and announced by Nietzsche to be deceased? Did not Darwin drive him out of the empirical world? Well, not entirely. In a quiet revolution in thought and arguments that hardly anyone could have foreseen only two decades ago, God is making a comeback. Most intriguingly, this is happening not among theologians or ordinary believers ... but in the crisp, intellectual circles of academic philosophers, where the consensus had long banished the Almighty from fruitful discourse. Now it is more respectable among philosophers than it has been for a generation to talk about the possibility of God's existence. 1
These philosophers have developed their theories against the rising tide of strict empiricism, using "a kind of tough-minded intellectualism." Who are these tough-minded intellectuals, and what has led to their return to Christian belief and philosophy?

It would be difficult to overestimate the increase in anti-Christian sentiment among professional philosophers since the time of the Enlightenment. Yet in spite of the march of unbelief, a substantial number of prominent intellectuals has reclaimed intellectual ground for belief in God. This "quiet revolution" has been led by Alvin Plantinga, described in the Time article as "the leading Protestant philosopher of God." Battles have been fought and won at Oxford, Cambridge, Yale, Toronto and Calvin College by a mighty host of powerful and creative thinkers.

All of the contributors to this volume enjoy international reputations for their contributions to the discipline of philosophy and for their distinctly Christian approach to philosophy. A visit to any university library or bookstore will reveal the monumental and respected advancements that these thinkers have made. These distinguished scholars hold or have held positions of importance at the greatest institutions of higher learning in the world and have been accorded the prestige and honors that their significant contributions merit.

But the contributors to this volume are distinguished in more ways than one. They are distinguished not only as thinkers at the top of their discipline, but as robust Christians in a field that until recently was scarcely marked by religion of any sort. Those not of a Christian persuasion who read these autobiographical essays may be struck that such estimable intellectuals publicly confess faith in Jesus Christ. The Christian reader, on the other hand, will notice immediately that these writers represent a wide range of Christian thought (Protestant and Catholic) and many different points in the spiritual pilgrimage. As one might expect among philosophers, the writers don't always agree with one another. For that reason and others, the purpose of this book can hardly be to endorse everything said by every writer in the collection. The purpose of telling these stories is instead to demonstrate and exemplify the importance of basic Christian faith-what C. S. Lewis called "mere Christianity"-in the lives and work of several leading philosophers.

The contributors are Mortimer Adler of the Institute for Philosophical Research, Stephen Davis of Claremont McKenna College, Basil Mitchell of Oxford University, Terence Penelhum of the University of Calgary, Alvin Plantinga of the University of Notre Dame, Nicholas Rescher of the University of Pittsburgh, John Rist of the University of Toronto, Richard Swinburne of Oxford University, Frederick Suppe of the University of Maryland, Nicholas Wolterstorff of Yale University and Linda Zagzebski of Loyola Marymount University. 2

The rising tide of empiricism was thought to sound the death knell of religious belief. Some declared that a God beyond the sensible cannot be known, and others more radically claimed that any talk of God is just nonsense. Among intellectuals an increased dependence on science has seen the waning of religious belief. Nietzsche, Freud and Marx contended that religious belief is nothing but the product of subtle yet powerful processes of self-deception. These combined forces of modernism had put Christian philosophers on the defensive-virtually all of their efforts in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s went to the defense of the meaningfulness of religious language and the defense of belief in God-and sent most of them into silent retreat. But in this age of scientific imperialism the contributors to this volume have powerfully argued that God-talk is meaningful and that God can indeed be known. Yet beyond this, philosophy has seen a renaissance both of belief in God and of the development of a positive Christian philosophy. Why is it that Christianity has once again become a live intellectual option among philosophers?

One important influence on this revival was the founding of the Society of Christian Philosophers in April 1978 at the Western Divisional meeting of the American Philosophical Association in Cincinnati, Ohio. At the urging of William Alston of Syracuse University, a prominent philosopher of language who had recently returned to the Christian fold, a letter went out from Alvin Plantinga, Robert and Marilyn Adams of UCLA, Arthur Holmes of Wheaton College, George Mavrodes of the University of Michigan, and William Alston to spark interest in a society to provide fellowship and encouragement of philosophical reflection on issues of concern to the Christian community. The society has since grown to over one thousand members and is the largest single-interest group among American philosophers. It meets regularly at the three divisional meetings of the American Philosophical Association and supports annual regional meetings. In 1984 the society initiated its own scholarly journal of philosophical reflection on matters of Christian belief, Faith and Philosophy, which is prized for the analytical rigor, originality and diversity of its articles.

A second major factor in the revival of Christian philosophy was the presentation, publication and subsequent discussion of Plantinga's "Advice to Christian Philosophers," his inauguration speech at the assumption of the John A. O'Brien Professorship of Philosophy.3 Plantinga challenged philosophers not to be Christians who were incidentally philosophers, but to be Christian philosophers: to follow out their Christian commitment in all areas of philosophy. By this he meant that Christians were to develop Christian philosophy independently of the great secular bastions of philosophy; Christians must attempt to understand, develop, systematize and extend the beliefs of their own, Christian, community.

This radical call to independence suggests that Christians can carry out their own agenda and not have it set by philosophers with fundamentally different presuppositions. The Christian's calling is primarily to be faithful to the believing community and not to the problematic set by the programs of the secular university, which often are diametrically opposed to Christian belief. As Plantinga writes, "they fit in badly with a Christian or theistic way of looking at the world." The Christian has as much right to start from Christian assumptions as secular thinkers have to start from the assumption of naturalism. The Christian need not always be on the defensive, and may start with Christian beliefs and theorize on the basis of them. The philosophical and Christian boldness of Plantinga's address engendered an immense flowering of Christian philosophy in the subsequent decade. Significant and acclaimed work has been done on such diverse topics as prayer, God's suffering, the problem of evil, the Incarnation and atonement, the Trinity, Scripture studies, emotions and virtues, social theory, forgiveness, religious pluralism, the doctrines of heaven and hell, God and time, the nature of probability and mathematics, and the rationality of religious belief. Christian philosophers, no longer constrained merely to defend their use of religious language or to prove the existence of God, have boldly and powerfully expanded into significant areas of deeply Christian concern unfettered by the constraints of modern secular thought. Let me consider in some detail the accomplishments of three of the contributors: Basil Mitchell, Richard Swinburne and Alvin Plantinga.

Mitchell's philosophical career can be seen as a constant struggle against the reigning orthodoxy of logical positivism and linguistic analysis. Both of these philosophies limited themselves to the empirical world and considered meaningless any talk of worlds outside of the senses. Thus ethical talk, such as "Murder is wrong," and religious talk, such as "God loves us," were considered simply absurd or mere expressions of feelings. Logical positivism finds its roots in the philosophy of the great empiricist and skeptic, David Hume. Hume contended that all knowledge was limited to what can be learned either directly from the senses or by reflection on this sensory input. So if something cannot be sensed-like God-it cannot be known. Logical positivism goes beyond this by setting limits on what can be sensibly said, not merely on what can be known; it takes a position on what makes language meaningful. A statement is meaningful, the logical positivist claims, only if it can be verified by immediate sense experience. This, as one might imagine, greatly restricts the domain of meaningful assertions. Since God is by definition intangible, assertions about God cannot be verified by immediate sense experience and, therefore, are considered absurd utterances.

Logical positivism began in the early 1920s in an informal discussion group in Austria called the Vienna Circle. The original members, led by physicist Moritz Schlick, included mathematicians, physicists, sociologists and economists but no professional philosophers. United by their passionate dislike of the metaphysical-the realm beyond the experienceable, physical world-the group developed a unified philosophy that embraced science and attempted to destroy philosophy. Although there was a great deal of disagreement, there was an initial impulse to accept the verification theory of meaning, that a statement is meaningful only if it can be verified conclusively by immediate experience. This pivotal principle was simply unjustifiable philosophical imperialism that, in the end, could not survive critical scrutiny.

Although logical positivism would die a well-deserved death in the sixties and seventies, it swept Anglo-American philosophy and theology; indeed theologians capitalized upon the "discoveries" of logical positivism in the infamous Death of God movement (in reality, at least among philosophers, it was really logical positivism that was dead). It would be difficult to imagine an intellectual atmosphere more hostile to belief in God than that found at Oxford in the forties and fifties. And that is where Mitchell was trained and taught. His response was the courageous (because unfashionable) publication of The Justification of Religious Belief--a novel approach to the rational justification of belief in God. Mitchell argued that belief in God ought to be justified more like the accumulation of a variety of evidence when making a judgment about the meaning of a literary text or determining an event of history. Such "cumulative case" arguments are more like the judgments that we typically make in our lives-we carefully study the preponderance of available evidence and then make our best judgment concerning the best explanation of the evidence. This commonsensical yet rational approach to the justification of belief in God has influenced countless students of philosophy.

Richard Swinburne, the premier rational apologist of our era, developed, in a very formal fashion, a cumulative case argument for the existence of God. He felt it his calling to respond rationally and not retreat in unreason from the logical positivist attack on theism. Logical positivism was doomed from the outset. Its proponents proved incapable of stating the verification principle in any way that made itself meaningful. If the verification principle itself were true, for it to be meaningful it must be verifiable through sense experience. But it is a philosophical claim of the sort that it was intended to eliminate, and it cannot be verified by experience. By its own standard, then, it is a piece of gibberish; the verification principle is self-referentially inconsistent.

It also had a further troubling defect: it could not justify the essential claims of science that it so cherished. Think about those scientific entities that are central to science but cannot be conclusively verified by experience-protons, neutrons, quarks, the centers of stars, the DNA molecule and so forth. None of these theoretical entities can be observed. Thus, the verification principle would render meaningless any assertions concerning these entities.

Swinburne contends that a more tenable version of verificationism is possible-one that does not depend on conclusive verification by immediate observation. Rather, the proper method of rational inquiry is to support beliefs with evidence or arguments. This is the method of both science and metaphysics, according to Swinburne. Swinburne's unique contribution to the rational defense of theism is his attempt to bring the canons of scientific rationality to bear on religious belief. If belief in God is an explanatory hypothesis, then it can be justified rationally in much the same way as one would justify belief in electrons or gravity. Swinburne contends that science is incapable of explaining the existence and design of the universe, hence it is appropriate to seek a personal explanation-one in terms of the goals and powers of a person. Since God desires an arena for the significant moral and spiritual development of free human beings, he provides a perfectly adequate and rational (but not infallible) explanation of the existence and design of the universe. The existence of God is a simple hypothesis that leads us to expect these otherwise infinitely unexpected phenomena. Swinburne has also used his powerful intellect in much-discussed defenses of Scripture, the atonement, the nature of God and the existence of the soul.

Alvin Plantinga is perhaps best known among philosophers for his penetrating analyses of the problem of evil and the rationality of religious belief. From the time of the Ancients it has been alleged that there is an incompatibility between an omniscient, omnipotent and wholly good God and the fact of evil. Plantinga's "free will defense" demonstrates that this contradiction is only apparent and that the existence of evil does not logically disprove the existence of God. This project is virtually universally acknowledged as successful by theist and nontheist alike.

Plantinga constructs an argument from evil for the existence of God as well. Naturalism is the reigning philosophy that denies the existence of anything supernatural or beyond nature; all that exists is matter and energy in their many manifestations. In a naturalistic worldview there are no deep moral values; indeed the natural world (matter in motion) is the world of facts, and is indifferent to morality. Hence, the simple judgment that there is evil implies that there is some deep value that is being violated; but naturalism cannot countenance such values. If there is evil, Plantinga argues, there is an ultimate source of value. If the main alternative worldviews under consideration are theism and naturalism, evil weighs heavily in the direction of theism.

With respect to belief in God, Plantinga contends that one does not need arguments or evidence for that belief to be rational. You can imagine what a ruckus such a view has caused among philosophers who prize arguments above all else. Indeed, the reigning orthodoxy since the Enlightenment has been that in order for belief in God to be rational it must be supported by arguments or evidence. This demand for evidence, which Plantinga calls "evidentialism," has developed into the evidentialist objection to belief in God-the claim that belief in God must be supported by evidence to be rational and that there is not sufficient evidence for the existence of God. Plantinga rejects the evidentialist objection for four reasons. First, there is evidence for the existence of God. Second, this demand for evidence presumes a misguided theory of rationality that is self-referentially inconsistent (if one accepts it, one is irrational by its own standards) and that excludes cases of clearly rational beliefs. Third, belief in God is more like belief in other persons than belief in a scientific theory (for which there is clearly a demand for evidence). Finally, he has developed his own theory of rationality, or warrant, which is better suited to how human beings actually acquire beliefs. He recognizes how little we would be able to believe if we were under the tyranny of the demand for evidence; but since we have so many clearly justified beliefs, they must be acquired in some other manner. Plantinga argues that they are most often acquired by cognitive faculties that produce beliefs immediately, that is, without recourse to or need of arguments or evidence.4

All of the thinkers in this volume have made impressive contributions to their disciplines. Few graduate students in this country have not worked carefully through Suppe's history of the philosophy of science of the past century; Suppe's current work on scientific theories will be recounted in the history of the next century of philosophy of science. John Rist has focused on the long-neglected late Ancient and early Medieval periods of philosophy; Rist's writings have helped bring this important era, scorned and ignored because of its love of metaphysics, back into the modern era. Mortimer Adler's voluminous writings and tireless efforts on behalf of a classical education have helped revive the emphasis on the "Great Books" in higher education; his philosophical work is perhaps surpassed by his involvement in The Paideia Project, an educational reform program for the restoration of general liberal education in our schools and universities. Linda Zagzebski is a young philosopher whose recent work on divine foreknowledge and human freedom has been much discussed of late.

The work of Stephen Davis ranges from philosophy to theology. He has written on such diverse topics as the nature of God, the resurrection, hell and the inspiration of Scripture. Terence Penelhum's acclaimed writings in many ways parallel his journey toward faith; his research on skepticism, religious belief and faith in the Enlightenment and post-Enlightenment eras reveals a passionate struggle for rational faith. As a writer and an editor, Nicholas Rescher has made an indelible mark on philosophy; in addition to his many and diverse books on virtually every major area of philosophy, Rescher has long edited prestigious scholarly journals. Nicholas Wolterstorff is known for his uncanny ability to master a new discipline in a very short period of time and then to write about and make a genuine contribution to the discipline. His innovative work on philosophical theology has led to invitations to deliver the distinguished Wilde Lectures at Oxford and Gifford Lectures at the major universities of Scotland.

The grapplings with faith and reason in an accessible manner by people of prodigious intellect provide encouragement for those struggling with their faith-these intelligent people have struggled with belief in God and come out on the side of God. Given the general hostility to theism within academic philosophy, there is a tremendous opportunity for important witness by esteemed Christian philosophers. Within departments where there are Christian members, a different climate has been created wherein students who were repressing or hiding spiritual struggles, questions or concerns are welcome to discuss matters of faith with someone they respect. As Suppe notes in his essay, both students and professional philosophers have asked contributors to this volume: "Tell me about your faith. Since I respect you as a philosopher I have to treat very seriously the fact that you are a believer."

Although Christian philosophers have attained to the highest scholarly level in their discipline, little attention has been paid to the actual generation, development and sustenance of their beliefs. Philosophers are often considered calculating devices, devoid of a psychology, sociology or personal story; yet psychological and sociological factors have played crucial roles in the faith development of professional philosophers. I know of a young philosopher who did his graduate work at a university well known for its hostility to theism; indeed, he wrote his dissertation under a professor who was a self-professed evangelist for atheism. This atmosphere had a negative effect on this person's faith. Shortly after graduate school he attended an American Philosophical Association meeting and noticed Alvin Plantinga walking down a hall; he desperately wanted to speak with him and be told (or just feel) that his Christian beliefs were acceptable, but he was afraid to approach him. Eventually he did meet and speak with Plantinga, which was crucial to reestablishing his faith. It is important to many Christians that they be part of a believing community that includes respected intellectuals.

I recently spoke with a friend who was moved by a comment that William Alston had made in an article on religious experience; Alston indicated that he prayed to God on his knees and that God had spoken to him and told him to work in Christian philosophy. Ostensibly the article was a sophisticated and complicated defense of the view that such experiences do not require philosophical justification for their rational acceptance. But the person with whom I spoke was astonished-not by the philosophical arguments but by the fact that a famous philosopher prayed on his knees. Having felt uneasy about his own devotion, the comment was liberating. Respected Christian philosophers are not only models of Christian philosophy, they are models of how thinkers can be Christians.

The Literature of Confession
"Thou hast made us for thyself and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee." So exclaims St. Augustine in the most famous quotation from The Confessions, the greatest of all spiritual autobiographies. The topic of his spiritual autobiography is set from the beginning: finding rest in God. More deeply it is about the God in whom St. Augustine finds rest. He writes of this extended prayer that it
praise[s] the righteous and good God as [it] speaks either of my evil or good, and [it is] meant to excite men's minds and affections toward him. At least as far as I am concerned, this is what [it] did for me when [it was] being written and [it still does] this when read. What some people think of [it] is their own affair; but I do know that [it has] given pleasure to many of my brethren and still does So.5
Spiritual autobiography produces a salutary effect both in its author and in its readers. Self-reflection provides an occasion for becoming aware of God's mysterious and providential grace in the details of one's life; what at the time may have seemed serendipitous happenstance, in recollection through the eyes of faith is recognized as divine providence.

What then is a confession but a profession of the goodness and mercy of God? The dual meaning of confess includes admitting one's moral and spiritual deficiencies as well as acknowledging the grace of God. The occasion of recounting one's sins therefore becomes an opportunity to praise and give thanks to God for his compassion. Confession, as opposed to a boastful recounting of one's experiences, involves a loathing of one's past and a sense of need and gratitude toward God for divine forgiveness; it is the publican giving voice to his plaintive cry: "God be merciful to me, a sinner." Rather than making sin seem exciting and glorifying it, confessional writers describe its odious effects-both the degradation of character as vice eclipses virtue as well as the dehumanization caused by others through willful abuse and neglect.

Although writers of spiritual autobiographies have been deeply involved in sins, both in the giving and receiving, the details are typically spared. One need only include that which makes a necessary contribution to the spiritual dynamics, and the details may be safely excised. Tolstoy in his spiritual autobiography, Confession, reduces an extremely sordid past into a single, powerful paragraph:
I cannot recall those years without horror, loathing and heart-rending pain. I killed people in war, challenged men to duels with the purpose of killing them, and lost at cards; I squandered the fruits of the peasants' toil and then had them executed; I was a fornicator and a cheat. Lying, stealing, promiscuity of every kind, drunkenness, violence, murder-there was not a crime I did not commit; yet in spite of it all I was praised, and my colleagues considered me and still do consider me a relatively moral man.6
While he includes every kind of sin, he rightly omits the specifics.

One may observe in the literature of confession that the authors have known every sin and temptation common to humankind. This makes their experiences universal and manifests the universal nature of temptation; the power of good confessional literature is that it speaks for every person. St. Paul writes of his mysterious thorn in the flesh and thereby allows each of us to fill in the thorn-in-the-flesh blank for our own life. St. Augustine speaks for all when he prays, "Grant me chastity ... but not yet." St. Augustine and St. Paul have written confessions that could be mine; I understand their need for redemption precisely because they are speaking for me.

Of course the literature of confession has power only if it is honest, even about the lifelong battle with wickedness and doubt. One may be rightly suspicious of spiritual writings that facilely turn famous Christians into saints. C. S. Lewis often lamented that people considered him better than he really was because they viewed him through the lenses of his (triumphalist) writings. Lewis was so clever that he could make it seem totally contrary to reason to doubt the existence of both heaven and Narnia. The misleading impression of Lewis's personal virtues could have been easily remedied if his spiritual autobiography had extended beyond his conversion. Only his brutally honest confessions of doubt and anger with God upon the suffering and death of his wife in A Grief Observed reveal Lewis for the moral and spiritual mortal that he really was. No glib theodicies suffice when Lewis becomes the sufferer; he curses God, calling him a cosmic sadist and divine vivisectionist. Curiously A Grief Observed, his most authentic writing, was published under a pseudonym. One most fully understands the Christian Lewis in this book, not in his earlier autobiography or his other writings.

Although a novel, Frederick Buechner's Godric, a compelling spiritual biography of an English pirate who converted to Christianity and was later declared a saint (this much of the story is true), is an honest confession of the lingering power of sin. Buechner's imaginative genius is displayed in his attempt to understand what it must have been like to be transformed from lascivious pirate to reluctant saint. In those days, as Kierkegaard writes, faith was a project for a lifetime. How is one actually set free from one's lusts to genuine and willing obedience to God? For Godric, it was not without a lifetime of kicking and screaming. Godric does not characterize the Christian life as a single dying with resurrection to new life once and for all, but rather he exclaims: "As a man dies many times before he's dead, so does he wend from birth to birth until, by grace, he comes alive at last."7 As a very old man Godric wistfully reflects on the power of the old self over the new self: unable even to lust, he wishes that he still could. He describes his state:
How I rage at times to smite with these same fists I scarce can clench! How I long, when woods are green, to lark and leap on shanks grown dry as sticks! Let a maid but pass my way with sport in her eye and her braid a-swinging, and I burn for her although my wick's long since burnt out.... So ever and again young Godric's dreams well up to flood old Godric's prayers, or prayers and dreams reach God in such a snarl he has to comb the tangle out, and who knows which he counts more dear.8
Confession is the story of the old self being made new, again and again, by the grace of God.

The Bible itself is a treasure trove of confessional literature. Job, for example, in the midst of his anger with God--his intense desire to have his day in court with God as defendant and job as prosecuting attorney--can still proclaim: "For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at last he will stand upon the earth; and tho worms destroy my body, yet in my flesh shall I see God."9 The Psalms contain confession of every variety: pious profession of faith, anger that God seems unjust and absent, confession of sin, expressions of gratitude toward God for being steadfast in love and slow to anger, praise of God for his mighty works, pleadings with and cajolings of God, false praise, and so forth. In the painfully honest Psalms we see into the very heart of the authentic religious believer. "Why dost thou hide thy face? Why dost thou forget our affliction and oppression?" (Ps 44:24 KJV). Wake up, God, the psalmist screams, and come to our rescue. Although Jeremiah, the weary prophet, confesses his anger with God ("O, Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived; thou art stronger than I, and thou has prevailed"-20:7), he returns to God and places his trust in him. Yet Jeremiah chafes against the divine inscrutability and curses the day he was born. And it is in St. Paul's sober yet fleeting confessions that we see him as a fellow pilgrim, and not merely a divine vehicle of doctrine, struggling as we along the way.

It takes more than honesty to construct a powerful and enduring spiritual autobiography. The story and the life remembered must be interesting. It must appeal to universal sins, temptations, needs, desires and struggles. And in order to avoid egotism and interest only to its author, its subject matter must ultimately be God. In the best, there is an intermingling of the personal and the intellectual. While reflecting on what makes life worth living, Tolstoy wanders about in the "forest of human knowledge," discussing with alacrity and clarity the worldviews of the great philosophers and the Wisdom literature of the Bible. There is an ease with which great autobiography engages the most compelling and profound human questions in an insightful and illuminating manner.

In this collection, Plantinga moves from the mentioning of specific tragedies to people he has known to a discussion of the problem of evil. After recording the effect of the cries of the oppressed in South Africa and Palestine, Wolterstorff discusses the notion that the Bible is a book about justice. Penelhum laments being in the Christian minority among philosophers as well as being painfully cognizant of apparently rational alternatives to theism. And Swinburne's essay is primarily intellectual-recounting the chief influences on his development as the premier rational apologist for the Christian faith of our era.

The content of each essay is both personal and philosophical (no writer was to present a philosophical treatise). Indeed, the essays are primarily personal. Let me mention a few examples. Fred Suppe discusses his struggles growing up under the tyranny of a sadistic father. Alvin Plantinga reminisces about the church camps that he attended as a youth and about Sunday school, and he admits to being an insufficiently attentive husband. Nicholas Rescher mentions his doubts about God's existence. Terence Penelhum discusses the struggles he faces being both a philosopher and a Christian. John Rist traces his childhood development. Basil Mitchell wistfully remembers how, a young man, he unexpectedly wept on the eve of a world war. Nick Wolterstorff describes the impact of losing a son in a mountain-climbing accident.

The reader is invited to enjoy the confessions contained within this collection. May each reader treat them as St. Augustine treated his--a prayer of thanksgiving to God who manifests his providential care in the various circumstances of our lives. May you find in each essay some reflection of your life as seeker, Christian, pilgrim, questioner, thinker, struggler, doubter and most important as a sinner in need of grace. May the prayers of these philosophers prod you to cry out: "Lord, hear my prayer." As Augustine urges of his confessions, may we see the depths from which we cry to God: "For nothing comes nearer to your ears than a confessing heart, and a life grounded in faith ."10
Kelly James Clark
1. April 7, 1980.

2. Although under 20 percent of professional philosophers are women, a substantial number of women were invited to contribute to this project.

3. Published in Faith and Philosophy 1, no. 3 (1984): 253-71.

4. For a discussion of Plantinga's views on the problem of evil and the rationality of religious belief see Kelly James Clark, Return to Reason (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1990), pp. 57-91, 118-58.

5. The Retractations 2.6 as found in Augustine: Confessions and Enchiridion, ed. And trans. Albert C. Outler (Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1995), p. 24.

6. Leo Tolstoy, Confession, trans. David Patterson (New York: Norton, 1983), p. 18.

7. Frederick Buechner, Godric, (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1980), p. 99.

8. Buechner, Godric, p. 40.

9. Job 19:25-26. The interpretation of this passage is widely disputed. Does the Redeemer mentioned here refer to God or to something like a defense attorney who will vindicate him against the accusations of God? Or is it a statement of faith, that in spite of his lack of understanding of divine justice, he trusts that God in his Redeemer and , in the end, he shall see God? Either interpretation makes a profound contribution to honest confessional literature.

10. Augustine, The Confessions, bk. 2 chap.3.

The Global Day of Prayer

2006-05-07T18:04:00.000-07:00

http://www.waymakers.org/

http://www.prayforsingapore.sg/index.php

Dear brothers,
please look at this, let us join in on this Global day of Prayer.

joe

The Gospel in Parenthesis

2006-05-04T07:29:00.000-07:00

We use brackets all the time. i.e. ( and )

The significance of these brackets aka parenthesis is really to add a side thought, something btw, kinda off tangent and not in flow with the more important part of conversation. In speech, we communicate it with a hand over our mouth, or indicated by the phrase "by the way". Basically, it means something less important than the things not in parenthesis.

Two things triggered off this thought for me- I was reading my friend's blog and she was writing about something before suddenly broke off a tangent and wrote a paragraph about how the Gospel was preached really well at some occasion. And right after that, she returned to her usual topic, nothing to do with God at all. Secondly, I was having a chat with a friend about how Christians shouldn't have such strong opinions and should instead, learn to be less rigid and stubborn. That way, more people would be happy if only we could accommodate their points of view.

Is that the way we live our lives with Jesus? Do we live with Him in brackets, in parenthesis? Do we ever get embarrassed of our faith, for taking radical points of view, and defending idealistic or naive positions? Or do we cling on desperately to the Cross of Christ and perhaps bear it in our idealism. After all, Luke 9:23 says "Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." Where is the cross we bear? If we are ashamed of living for Jesus with His full glory in our lives, then we are liars and the truth is not in us. Jesus cannot be covered in brackets.

After all, when He died for us, it was all about love- He was not ashamed of us, but willingly bore our sins when He did not deserve it. Philipians 2 says that 'he humbled Himself to death, yea, even death on a cross'.

Have you taken His cross, His thorny crown, His bloodied purple robe and those three rusted nails and shoved them between to brackets? Let us not do this to He who loved us so. Everyday should be a day of declaration, a day of passion, a day of mission.

Why by Nicole Nordeman

2006-05-03T08:00:00.000-07:00

Updates.

2006-05-03T07:50:00.000-07:00

A-hah...dear friends, in a spirit of boredom with my finals, I've tried to edit the blog to make it...more interesting. =) So, for purposes of edification, I've put up a daily verse, daily proverb for wisdom and daily living, a quiz (for kicks) and sermon recommendation board heh. =) Enjoy.

Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.
1 Corinthians 15:58

Is God Worth It?

2006-05-02T03:20:00.000-07:00

When times of trouble come, and things don't look as rosy as we interpret Jesus' words in John 10:10 for 'life abundant', we tend to ask the question, "God, was it all worth it?"- all the holy living, and moralising, all the struggling and wrestling with temptation, all the denial of self, the taking up of the Cross, all the suffering in silence for the glory of God- is it all worth it?

Beloved, let us not forget that Jesus Himself was asked the same question when He was upon the cross and He, in all His perfection and intimacy with the Father, in a way that the human mind can only grasp at but not understand, cried out, "My GOd, My God, why have you forsaken me?" At the crux of His question was the word "why"- as if He wanted to know the reason for God the Father's forsaking. This is a questioning that we too suffer, and how comforting to know that Jesus understands it all.

Sometimes, we look around us and see how Godless men succeed, and how the wicked hold sway over this world. Psalms 73 describes it in such a painful but true way, that it seems that the enemies of God enjoy this life, whilst we, His children have nothing but spit and dust to gristle our teeth on. Yet, all this simply reinforces one single truth- we need Him so much more, we need to rely on His resources so much more, when we are weak- because it is when we are weak that we are strong. Let us learn to declare the truth of His love, and the truth of what we need- Jesus. Yes, God is worth it- so many times over.

PSA 73:25-26 Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides You. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

Dearest Lord Jesus,
the world may seem like it can live without you, and yet you have promised inthe Bible that you alone are the way, the truth and the life- no one can truly live without you. You promised bread that would fill the hungry soul forever, water that would quench our thirst eternally, and a comfort that would soothe all pain ever day henceforth. Your love is perfect. Please let us catch a glimpse of your perfection in our darkest hour, that we can truly say who have we but you? And whom do we need other than you? Be our portion and our inheritance Lord, we have nothing except what we have in You. All our money, titles, education, positions are all rubbish compared to the fact that we are found in You. We need you so much Lord, to help us not envy those who seem to have better lives, but to remember that we are vindicated adn justified in you. The sorrow may indeed, last for the night, but Your JOy comes with the morning! Give us that joy, that hope to look forward to, taht we can be excited abt everyday because of you! Your are marvelous O Lord, and worthy of our praise. Sometimes we take you for granted and expect you to make our lives better, forgetting that you have redeemed us from death adn sin and eternal damnation. It is not just waht you gave us, but waht you saved us from- we need you O Lord- we are so weak on our own. Bind the enemy and his servants, tie them up with ropes and shackles that cannot be broken. Remove the opposition against the armies of the Lord, and give us victory over lust, pride, bitterness, hatred, malice, rage, jealousy, fear, selfishness, self-centredness, laziness and all the other evils that the enemy may use against us. For you have the power to give us victory, and for Your namesake, you will do so. We want to lead lives of victory, not lives of defeat. Jesus, we entrust our lives into Your hand, and for Your glory alone- you are worthy of worship O Lord, you are worth it. In Jesus' name, Amen.

Psalms of Ascent

2006-04-26T07:39:00.000-07:00

Fifteen psalms in the Book of Psalms were designed for a special purpose- these were the songs sung by the children of Israel as they ascended to Mount Zion 3 times a year for a feast, and time of worshipping before the Lord. The Psalms of Ascent are: Psalms 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 125, 126, 127, 128, 129, 130, 131, 132, 133, 134.

On an equivalent level for the faith-children of God, these are the prepatory songs of worship, sung prior to the festive worship of the congregation. Imagine the festivities as God's children gathered in His holy place with worship offerings and gifts to the Holy One! Can you see the smiles on their faces and the pining in their hearts to dance before His throne of glory, and taste of the goodness of His Spirit? Even the children, whose hearts were still young and innocent, rejoiced in the worthy example of their parents jubilation. Young men and women came to consecrate themselves before the Lord in sincere praise for their day to day lives, as did the older ones of the community who had to be helped around the cities- now raising hoarse voices in a reverent praise with hands outstretched. What a beautiful picture of worship the Psalms of Ascent give us! And all this BEFORE the true worship feast!

This article's key word must be preparation, above all else. How much do you and I prepare ourselves before entering the time of worship before our Lord? Do we spend out time bickering and struggling to get up on Sunday morning itself, or do the late Saturday nights leave us tired and sleepy as we approach His throne of grace? Let us follow the example of the Israelites, who came in a spirit of consecration, looking forward with anticipation even in the pre-worship phase BEFORE the worship formally began. For us who live in the 21st Century- this could be simply reading the Psalms of Ascent before heading out the door, or coming home early on a Saturday night, or preparing one's heart for worship with reading of the Scripture, more prayer, extended quiet times, even just a prayer-chat with God. How are you prepared for worship?

If that were not enough, if we pause to consider the motivations for the Israelites and their reverence for God, we find nothing less than an overflowing gratefulness, a brimming heart of worship that was not obligated to do any of these things. They were driven with hearts of thanks, of gratefulness for what the Lord had done in their lives, both individually and as a nation. How much can we thank Him for His bountiful blessings, we who enjoy no lack of anything at all! 2 Corinthians 9:7 says, ". Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." Give your worship out of a heart of gratefulness, nothing less, that He may delight in the gifts we bring- a fragrant offering rising up to heaven.

A Thirst For Glory

2006-04-21T14:14:00.000-07:00

The writer in Psalms 27 talks about his deep desires to "dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple." More than anything else, he longs for the intimacy of beholding the full beauty of God with his own eyes. In that moment of personally experiencing the reality of God, surely all the things of this world that we hold to be true will wilt in the brightness of His glory. The Sunday school song goes, "the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace". In the same way, may we long to have that taste of His person, of His presence and holiness.

Sometimes, when we are at out lowest, what we really desire is that taste of Him, that taste that reminds that He is who He claims to be- a God of power, righteousness, gentleness, comfort, and most importantly- one who loves us fiercely. That, is the experience of His glory. Peter, Isaiah, Paul/Saul, Zachariah and Ezekiel have all had the same experience of His glorious presence, to which their only response is to cower in fear and trembling in the dust at His feet and declare the truth of our unworthiness and sinfulness. Romans 3:23 says that "all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God". How true it is- that just as our God is absolutely holy, we are absolutely fallen and unworthy of His perfection. It is indeed in the presence of pure light that one realises how dark the shadows in the corner truly are, for His illumination allows us to understand our own sinfulness. That is why we need Him, our light and our salvation.

Therefore, let us thirst all the more for His grace undeserved, in dwelling with Man intimately through the person of Jesus- let us rejoice in His identity as Emmanuel- "God with Us", God's righteousness revealed in human flesh. And surely as those nails pierced His carpenter's hands on that coarse wooden beam, His blood poured forth as light, unbearably bright light that was a revelation of His glory, His glory.

Ezekiel 43 writes that Ezekiel "saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east. His voice was like the roar of rushing waters, and the land was radiant with his glory" with his own two eyes, and that His temple described in the closing of portions of Ezekiel were to be marked with the description "The LORD is There" (Ezekiel 48).

Remember then, that the temple of the Lord is now in ours- as 1 Corinthians 3:16 says, "don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple, and that God's spirit lives in you?" Surely then, you and I are in the very homes and shrines of the living God. He lives in us, and the glory of His temple and His home is found in us. What a joy, that as we approach each other, we should do so with holiness and reverence, with awe and trembling and caution and gentleness and an attitude of worship! Let us together, as a body of His temples, as a congregation of His worship, thirst together for His glory, praying that His glorious presence may be manifested in our worship!

"Where Art Thou?" Part Two by D.L. Moody

2006-04-18T08:01:00.000-07:00

A number of years ago, before any railway came into Chicago, they used to bring in the grain from
the Western prairies in wagons for hundreds of miles, so as to have it shipped off by the Lakes.
There was a father who had a large farm out there, and who used to preach the gospel as well as
attend to his farm. One day, when church business engaged him, he sent his son to Chicago with
grain. He waited and waited for his boy to return, but he did not come home. At last he could wait
no longer, so he saddled his horse and rode to the place where his son had sold the grain. He found
that he had been there and got the money for the grain; then he began to fear that his boy had been
murdered and robbed. At last, with the aid of a detective, they tracked him to a gambling den, where
they found that he had gambled away the whole of his money. In hopes of winning it back again, he
then had sold the team, and lost that money too. He had fallen among thieves, and like the man who
was going to Jericho, they stripped him, and then they cared no more about him. What could he do?
He was ashamed to go home to meet his father, and he fled. The father knew what it all meant. He
knew the boy thought he would be very angry with him. He was grieved to think that his boy should
have such feelings towards him. That is just exactly like the sinner. He thinks because he has sinned,
God will have nothing to do with him. But what did that father do? Did he say, “Let the boy go?”
No, he went after him. He arranged his business and started after the boy. That man went from town
to town, from city to city. He would get the ministers to let him preach, and at the close he would tell
his story. “I have got a boy who is a wanderer on the face of the earth somewhere.” He would
describe his boy and say, “If you ever hear of him or see him, will you not write to me?” At last he
found that he had gone to California, thousands of miles away. Did that father say “Let him go?” No;
off he went to the Pacific coast, seeking the boy. He went to San Francisco, and advertised in the
newspapers that he would preach at such a church on such a day. When he had preached he told his
story, in hopes that the boy might have seen the advertisement and come to the church. When he had
done, away under the gallery there was a young man who waited until the audience had gone out;
then he came towards the pulpit. The father looked, and saw it was that boy, and he ran to him, and
pressed him to his bosom. The boy wanted to confess what he had done, but not a word would the
father hear. He forgave him freely, and took him to his home once more.

Oh, prodigal, you may be wandering on the dark mountains of sin, but God wants you to come
home. The devil has been telling you lies about God; you think he will not receive you back. I tell
you, He will welcome you this minute if you will come. Say, “I will arise and go to my Father.” May
God incline you to take this step. There is not one whom Jesus has not sought far longer than that
father. There has not been a day since you left Him but he has followed you. I do not care what the
past has been, or how black your life, He will receive you back. Arise then, O backslider, and come
home once more to your Father’s house.

Not long ago, in Edinburgh, a lady who was an earnest Christian worker, found a young woman
whose feet had taken hold of hell, and who was pressing onwards to a harlot’s grave. The lady
begged her to go back to her home, but she said no, her parents would never receive her. This
Christian woman knew what a mother’s heart was; so she sat down and wrote a letter to the mother,
telling her how she had met her daughter, who was sorry, and wanted to return. The next post
brought an answer back, and on the envelope was written, “Immediately — immediately!” That was
a mother’s heart. They opened the letter. Yes, she was forgiven. They wanted her back, and they
sent money for her to come immediately. Sinner, that is the proclamation, “Come immediately”. That
is what the great and loving God is saying to every wandering sinner — immediately. Yes,
backslider, come home tonight. He will give you a warm welcome, and there will be joy in heaven
over your return. Come now, for everything is ready.

A friend of mine said to me some time ago, Did you ever notice what the prodigal lost by going into
that country? He lost his food. That is what every poor backslider loses. They get no manna from
heaven. The Bible is a closed book to them; they see no beauty in the Word of God.

Then the prodigal lost his work. He was a Jew, and they made him take care of swine; that was all
loss for a Jew. So every backslider loses his work. He cannot do anything for God; he cannot work
for eternity. He is a stumbling block to the world. My friend, do not let the world stumble over you
into hell.

The prodigal also lost his testimony. Who believed him? I can imagine some of these men came
along, natives of that country, and they saw this poor prodigal in his rags, barefooted and
bareheaded. There he stands among the swine and someone says to another, “Look at that poor
wretch.” “What,” he says, “do you call me a poor wretch? My father is a wealthy man; he has got
more clothes in his wardrobe than you ever saw in your life. My father is a man of great wealth and
position.” Do you suppose these men would believe him? “That poor wretch the son of a wealthy
man!” Not one of them would believe him. “If he had such a wealthy father he would go to him.” So
with the backsliders; the world does not believe that they are the sons of a King. They say, “Why
don’t they go to Him, if there is bread enough and to spare? Why don’t they go home?”

Then, another thing the prodigal lost was his home. He had no home in that foreign country. As long
as his money lasted, he was quite popular in the public house and among his acquaintances; he had
professed friends, but as soon as his money was gone, where were his friends? That is the condition
of every poor backslider in London.

But now I can imagine someone saying, “There would be little use of me attempting to come back.
In a few days I should just be where I was again. I should like very much to go to my Father’s home
again, but I’m afraid I wouldn’t stay there.” Well, just picture this scene. The poor prodigal has got
home, and the father has killed the fatted calf; and there they are, sitting at the table eating. I can
imagine that was about the sweetest morsel he ever got — perhaps the nicest dinner he ever had in
his life. His father sits opposite; he is full of joy, and his heart is leaping within him. All at once he
sees his boy weeping. “My son, what are you weeping for? Are you not glad to have got home?”
“Oh, yes, father; I never was so glad as I am today: but I am so afraid I will go back into that foreign
country!” Why, you cannot imagine such a thing! When you have got one meal in your Father’s
house, you will never be inclined to wander away again.

Now let me speak to the Third class. “If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly
and the sinner appear?” Sinner, what is to become of you? How shall you escape? “Where art
thou?” Is it true that you are living without God and without hope in the world? Did you ever stop to
think what would become of your soul if you should be taken away by a sudden stroke of illness —
where you would stand in eternity? I read that the sinner is without God, without hope, and without
excuse. If you are not saved, what excuse will you have to give? You cannot say that it is God’s
fault. He is only too anxious to save you. I want to tell you tonight that you can be saved if you will.
If you really want to pass from death to life, if you want to become an heir of eternal life, if you want
to become a child of God, make up your mind this night that you will seek the kingdom of God. I tell
you, upon the authority of this Word, that if you seek the kingdom of God you will find it. No man
ever sought Christ with a heart to find Him who did not find Him. I never knew a man make up his
mind to have the question settled, but it was settled soon. This last year there has been a solemn
feeling stealing over me. I am what they call in the middle of life, in the prime of life. I look upon life
as a man who has reached the top of a hill, and just begins to go down the other side. I have got to
the top of the hill, if I should live the full term of life — threescore years and ten — and am just on
the other side. I am speaking to many now who are also on the top of the hill, and I ask you, if you
are not Christians, just to pause a few minutes, and ask yourselves where you are. Let us look back
on the hill that we have been climbing. What do you see? Yonder is the cradle. It is not far away.
How short life is! It all seems but as yesterday. Look along up the hill, and yonder is a tombstone; it
marks the resting place of a loved mother. When that mother died, did you not promise God that
you would serve Him? Did you not say that your mother’s God should become your God? And did
you not take her hand in the stillness of the dying hour, and say, “Yes, mother, I will meet you in
heaven!” And have you kept that promise? Are you trying to keep it? Ten years have rolled away:
fifteen years — but are you any nearer God? Did the promise work any improvement in you? No,
your heart is getting harder: the night is getting darker; by and by death will be throwing its shadows
round you. My friend, Where art thou? Look again. A little further up the hill there is another
tombstone. It marks the resting place of a little child. It may have been a little lovely girl — perhaps
her name was Mary; or it may have been a boy — Charley; and when that child was taken from
you, did you not promise God, and did you not promise the child, that you would meet it in heaven?
Is the promise kept? Think! Are you still fighting against God? Are you still hardening your heart?
Sermons that would have moved you five years ago — do they touch you now?

Once more look down the hill. Yonder there is a grave; you cannot tell how many days, or weeks,
or years it is away, you are hastening towards that grave. Even should you live the life allotted to
man, many of you are near the end, you are getting very feeble, and your locks are turning gray. It
may be the coffin is already made that this body shall be laid in; it may be that the shroud is already
waiting. My friend, is it not the height of madness to put off salvation so long? Undoubtedly I am
speaking to some who will be in eternity a week from now. In a large audience like this, during the
next week death will surely come and snatch some away; it may be the speaker, or it may be
someone who is listening. Why put off the question another day? Why say to the Lord Jesus again
tonight, “Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for Thee?” Why not
let him come in tonight? Why not open your heart, and say, “King of Glory, come in?”

Will there ever be a better opportunity? Did not you promise ten, fifteen, twenty, thirty years ago that
you would serve God? Some of you said you would do it when you got married and settled down;
some of you said you would serve Him when you were your own master. Have you attended to it?

You know there are three steps to the lost world; let me give you their names. The first is Neglect.
All a man has to do is to neglect salvation, and that will take him to the lost world. Some people say,
“What have I done!” Why, if you merely neglect salvation, you will be lost. I am on a swift river, and
lying in the bottom of my little boat. Down yonder, ten miles below, is the great cataract. Everyone
that goes over it perishes. I need not row the boat down; I have only to pull in the oars, and fold my
arms and neglect. So all that a man has to do is to fold his arms in the current of life, and he will drift
onwards and be lost.

The second step is Refusal. If I met you at the door and pressed this question on you, you would
say, “Not tonight, Mr. Moody, not tonight;” and if I repeated, “I want you to press into the kingdom
of God,” you would politely refuse: “I will not become a Christian tonight, thank you; I know I ought,
but I won’t tonight.”

Then the last step is to Despise it. Some of you have already got on the lower round of the ladder.
You despise Christ. You hate Christ, you hate Christianity; you hate the best people on the earth and
the best friends you have got; and if I were to offer you the Bible, you would tear it up and put your
foot upon it. Oh, despisers! you will soon be in another world. Make haste and repent and turn to
God. Now, on which step are you, my friend; neglecting, or refusing, or despising? Bear in mind that
a great many are taken off from the first step; they die in neglect. And a great many are taken away
refusing. And a great many are on the last step, despising salvation.

A few years ago they neglected, then they got to refuse; and now they despise Christianity and
Christ. They hate the sound of the church bell; they hate the Bible and the Christian; they curse the
very ground that we walk on. But one more step and they are gone. Oh ye despisers, I set before
you life and death; which will you choose? When Pilate had Christ on his hands, he said, “What shall
I do with him?” and the multitude cried out, “Away with Him! crucify Him!” Young men, is that your
language tonight? Do you say, “Away with this gospel! Away with Christianity! Away with your
prayers, your sermons, your gospel sounds! I do not want Christ?” Or will you be wise and say,
“Lord Jesus, I want Thee, I need Thee, I will have Thee?” Oh, may God bring you to that decision!

"Where Art Thou?" Part One by D.L. Moody

2006-04-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

THE very first thing that happened after the news reached heaven of the fall of man, was that God
came straight down to seek out the lost one. As He walks through the garden in the cool of the day,
you can hear Him calling “Adam! Adam! Where art thou?” It was the voice of grace, of mercy, and
of love. Adam ought to have taken the seeker’s place, for he was the transgressor. He had fallen,
and he ought to have gone up and down Eden crying, “My God! my God! where art Thou?” But
God left heaven to seek through the dark world for the rebel who had fallen — not to hurl him from
the face of the earth, but to plan him an escape from the misery of his sin. And he finds him —
where? Hiding from his Creator among the bushes of the garden.

The moment a man is out of communion with God, even the professed child of God, he wants to
hide away from Him. When God left Adam in the garden, he was in communion with his Creator,
and God talked with him; but now that he has fallen, he has no desire to see his Creator, he has lost
communion with his God. He cannot bear to see Him, even to think of Him, and he runs to hide from
God. But to his hiding place his Maker follows him. “Where art thou, Adam? Where art thou?”

Six thousand years have passed away, and this text has come rolling down the ages. I doubt whether
there has been anyone of Adam’s sons who has not heard it at some period or other of his life —
sometimes in the midnight hour stealing over him — “Where am I? Who am I? Where am I going?
and what is going to be the end of this?” I think it is well for a man to pause and ask himself that
question. I would have you ask it, little boy; and you, little girl; and you, old man with locks turning
gray, and eyes growing dim, and natural force abating, you who will soon be in another world. I do
not ask you where you are in the sight of your neighbors; I do not ask you where you are in the sight
of your friends; I do not ask you where you are in the sight of the community in which you live. It is
of very little account where we are in the sight of one another, it is of very little account what men
think of us; but it is of vast importance what God thinks of us — it is of vast importance to know
where men are in the sight of God; and that is the question now. Am I in communion with my
Creator, or out of communion? If I am out of communion, there is no peace, no joy, no happiness.
No man on the face of the earth, who was out of communion with his Creator, ever knew what
peace, and joy, and happiness, and true comfort are. He is a foreigner to it. But when we are in
communion with God, there is light all around our path. So ask yourselves this question. Do not think
I am preaching to your neighbors, but remember I am trying to speak to you, to everyone of you as
if you were alone. It was the first question put to man after his fall, and it was a very small audience
that God had — Adam and his wife. But God was the preacher; and although they tned to hide, the
words came home to them. Let them come home to you now. You may think that your life is hid,
that God does not know anything about you. But he knows our lives a great deal better than we do;
and His eye has been bent upon us from our earliest childhood until now.

“Where art thou?” I should like to divide my audience into three classes — the professed Christians,
the Backsliders, and the Ungodly.

First, I would like to ask the professors this question, or rather let God ask it — Where art thou?
What is my position in the church, and among my circle of acquaintance? Do my friends know me to
be, out and out, on the Lord’s side? You may have been a professing Christian for twenty years,
perhaps thirty, perhaps forty years. Well, where are you tonight? Are you making progress towards
heaven? And can you give a reason for the hope that is within you? Suppose I were to ask those
who were really Christians here to rise, would you be ashamed to stand up? Suppose I should ask
every professed child of God here, “If you should be cut down by the hand of death, have you good
reason to believe you would be saved?” Would you be willing to stand up before God and man, and
say that you have good reason to believe you are passed from death unto life? Or would you be
ashamed? Run your mind back over the past years: would it be consistent for you to say, “I am a
Christian;” and would your life correspond with your profession? It is not what we say so much as
how we live. Actions speak louder than words. Do your shopmates know that you are a Christian?
Do your family know? Do they know you to be out and out on the Lord’s side? Let every professed
Christian ask, Where am I in the sight of God? Is my heart loyal to the King of heaven? Is my life
here as it should be in the community I live in? Am I a light in this dark world? Christ says, “Ye are
My witnesses.” Christ was the Light of the world, and the world would not have the true Light; the
world rose up and put out the Light, and now Christ says, “I leave you down here to testify of Me; I
leave you down here as My witnesses.” That is what the apostle meant when he said that Christians
are to be living epistles, known and read of all men. Then, am I standing up for Jesus as I should in
this dark world? If a man is for God, let him say so. If a man is for God, let him come out and be on
God’s side; and if he is for the world, let him be in the world. This serving God and the world at the
same time — this being on both sides at the same time — is just the curse of Christianity at the
present time. It retards the progress of Christianity more than any other thing. “If any man will come
after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.”

I have heard of a great many people who think if they are united to the church, and have made one
profession, that will do for all the rest of their days. But there is a cross for everyone of us daily. Oh,
child of God, where are you? If God should appear to you tonight in your bedroom and put the
question, what would be your answer? Could you say, “Lord, I am serving Thee with my whole
heart and strength; I am improving my talents and preparing for the kingdom to come?” When I was
in England in 1867, there was a merchant who came over from Dublin, and was talking with a
business man in London; and as I happened to look in, he introduced me to the man from Dublin.
Alluding to me, the latter said to the former, “Is this young man all O O?” Said the London man,
“What do you mean by O O?” Replied the Dublin man, “Is he Out-and-Out for Christ?” I tell you it
burned down into my soul. It means a good deal to be O O for Christ; but that is what all Christians
ought to be, and their influence would be felt on the world very soon, if men who are on the Lord’s
side would come out and take their stand, and lift up their voices in season and out of season. As I
have said, there are a great many in the church who make one profession, and that is about all you
hear of them; and when they come to die you have to go and hunt up some musty old church records
to know whether they were Christians or not. God won’t do that. I have an idea that when Daniel
died, all the men in Babylon knew whom he served. There was no need for them to hunt up old
books. His life told his story. What we want is men with a little courage to stand up for Christ. When
Christianity wakes up, and every child that belongs to the Lord is willing to speak for Him, is willing
to work for Him, and, if need be, willing to die for Him, then Christianity will advance, and we shall
see the work of the Lord prosper. There is one thing which I fear more than anything else, and that is
the dead cold formalism of the Church of God. Talk about the isms! Put them all together, and I do
not fear them so much as dead, cold formalism. Talk about the false isms! There is none so
dangerous as this dead, cold formalism, which has come right into the heart of the Church. There are
so many of us just sleeping and slumbering while souls all around are perishing. I believe honestly that
we professed Christians are all half asleep. Some of us are beginning to rub our eyes and to get them
half-opened, but as a whole we are asleep.

There was a little story going the round of the American press that made a great impression upon me
as a father. A father took his little child out into the field one Sabbath, and, it being a hot day, he lay
down under a beautiful shady tree. The little child ran about gathering wild flowers and little blades of
grass, and coming to its father and saying, “Pretty! pretty!” At last the father fell asleep, and while he
was sleeping the little child wandered away. When he awoke, his first thought was, “Where is my
child?” He looked all around, but he could not see him. He shouted at the top of his voice, but all he
heard was the echo of his own voice. Running to a little hill, he looked around and shouted again. No
response! Then going to a precipice at some distance, he looked down, and there upon the rocks
and briars, he saw the mangled form of his loved child. He rushed to the spot, took up the lifeless
corpse and hugged it to his bosom, and accused himself of being the murderer of his child. While he
was sleeping his child had wandered over the precipice. I thought as I heard that, what a picture of
the church of God!

How many fathers and mothers, how many Christian men, are sleeping now while their children
wander over the terrible precipice right into the bottomless pit of hell. Father, where is your boy
tonight? It may be just out there in some public house; it may be reeling through the streets; it may be
pressing onwards to a drunkard’s grave. Mother, where is your son? Is he in the house of the
publican drinking away his soul — everything that is dear and sacred to him? Do you know where
your boy is? Father, you have been a professed Christian for forty years; where are your children
tonight? Have you lived so godly, and so Christ-like, that you can say, Follow me as I followed
Christ? Are those children walking in wisdom; are they on their way to glory; have they been
gathered into the fold of Christ; are their names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life? How many
fathers and mothers today would be able to answer? Did you ever stop to think that you were to
blame; that you had not been faithful to your children? Depend upon it, as long as the church is living
so much like the world, we cannot expect our children to be brought into the fold. Come, O Lord,
and wake up every mother, and may everyone of us who are parents feel the worth of the souls of
the children that God has given us. May they never bring our gray hairs with sorrow to the grave, but
may they become a blessing to the church and to the world. Not long ago the only daughter of a
wealthy friend of mine sickened and died. The father and mother stood by her dying bed. He had
spent all his time in accumulating wealth for her; she had been introduced into gay and fashionable
society; but she had been taught nothing of Christ. As she came to the brink of the river of death, she
said, “Won’t you help me; it is very dark, and the stream is bitter cold.” They wrung their hands in
grief, but could do nothing for her; and the poor girl died in darkness and despair. What was their
wealth to them? And yet, you mothers and fathers are doing the same thing in London today, by
ignoring the work God has given you to do. I beseech you, then, each one of you, begin to labor
now for the souls of your children!

A young man, some time ago, lay dying, and his mother thought he was a Christian. One day,
passing his room door she heard him say, “Lost! lost! lost!” The mother ran into the room and cried,
“My boy, is it possible you have lost your hope in Christ, now you are dying?” “No, mother, it is not
that; I have a hope beyond the grave, but I have lost my life. I have lived twenty-four years, and
done nothing for the Son of God, and now I am dying. My life has been spent for myself; I have
lived for this world, and now, while I am dying, I have given myself to Christ; but my life is lost.”
Would it not be said of many of us, if we should be cut down, that our lives have been almost a
failure — perhaps entirely a failure as far as leading anyone else to Christ is concerned? Young lady!
are you working for the Son of God? Are you trying to win some soul to Christ? Have you tried to
get some friend or companion to have her name written in the book of life? Or would you say, “Lost,
lost! long years have rolled away since I became a child of God, and I have never had the privilege
of leading one soul to Christ?” If there is one professed child of God who never had the joy of
leading even one soul into the kingdom of God, oh! let him begin at once. There is no greater
privilege on earth. And I believe, my friends, there has never been a time, in our day, at least, when
work for Christ was more needed than at present. I do not believe there ever was in your day or
mine a time when the Spirit of God was more poured out upon the world. There is not a part of
Christendom where the work is not being carried on; and it looks very much as if the glad tidings
were just going to take, as it were, a fresh start, and go round the globe. Is it not time that the
Church of God should wake up and come to the help of the Lord as one man, and strive to beat
back those dark waves of death that roll through our streets, bearing upon their bosom the noblest
and the best we have? Oh, may God wake up the Church! And let us trim our lights, and go forth
and work for the kingdom of His Son.

Now, Secondly, let me talk a little while to those who have gone back into the world — to the
Backslider. It may be you came to some great city a few years ago a professed Christian. You were
member of a church once, and a teacher in the Sabbath school, perhaps; but when you came among
strangers you thought you would just wait a little — perhaps take a class by and by. So you gave up
teaching in the Sunday school; you gave up all work for Christ. Then in your new church you did not
receive the attention or the warm welcome that you expected. and you got into the habit of staying
away. You have gone so far now, that you are found in the theater, perhaps, and the companion of
blasphemers and drunkards. Perhaps I am speaking now to someone who has been away from his
father’s house for many years. Come, now, backslider, tell me, are you happy? Have you had one
happy hour since you left Christ? Does the world satisfy you, or those husks that you have got in the
far country? I have traveled a good deal, but I never found a happy backslider in my life. I never
knew a man who was really born of God that ever could find the world satisfy him afterwards. Do
you think the Prodigal Son was satisfied in that foreign country? Ask the prodigals in this city if they
are truly happy. You know they are not. “There is no peace, saith my God to the wicked.” There is
no joy for the man in rebellion against his Creator. Supposing he has tasted the heavenly gift, and
been in communion with God, and had sweet fellowship with the King of Heaven, and had pleasant
hours of service for the Master, but has backslidden, is it possible that he can be happy? If he is, it is
good evidence he was never really converted. If a man has been born again, and has received the
heavenly nature, this world can never satisfy the cravings of his nature. Oh, backslider, I pity you!
But I want to tell you that the Lord Jesus pities you a good deal more than anyone else can. He
knows how bitter your life is; He knows how dark your life is; He wants you to come home. Oh,
backslider, come home tonight! I have a loving message from your Father. The Lord wants you, and
calls you back tonight Come home, oh wanderer, this night; return from the dark mountains of sin.”
Return, and your Father will give you a warm welcome. I know that the devil has told you that God
won’t have anything to do with you, because you have wandered away. If that is true, there would
be very few men in heaven. David backslid; Abraham and Jacob turned away from God; I do not
believe there is a saint in heaven but at some time of his life with his heart has backslidden from God.
Perhaps not in his life, but in his heart. The prodigal’s heart got into the far country before his body
got there. Backslider! tonight come home. Your Father does not want you to stay away. Think you
the prodigal’s father was not anxious for him to come home all those long years he was there? Every
year the father was looking and longing for him to return home. So God wants you to come home. I
do not care how far you have wandered away; the great Shepherd will receive you back into the
fold tonight. Did you ever hear of a backslider coming home, and God not willing to receive him? I
have heard of earthly fathers and mothers not being willing to receive back their sons; but I defy any
man to say he ever knew a really honest backslider want to get home, but God was willing to take
him in.

Good Friday II

2006-04-14T07:52:00.000-07:00

Step upon step inching nearer still,
The shoulder's weight, mounting;
Rising dust in sunlight danced
As mocking voices of the air did bid you halt.

The guard's shouts whip you on, yet
The strain, too immense for your mangled flesh-
(The flagellum's work had done its course)
The Cyrene, an unwilling aide to your royal ascent.

The women's tears mourned you
As flourished palm leaves were traded for stones
Hosannas for the spittle of contempt.
I pulled back my window curtains for a clearer view-

Across my loft, the shining roman watched
With hands still damp of red-tinged clearwater.
His eyes darting amongst the crowd for trace
Of truth- he did not know what it was.

Upon the skull your bloodied form trickled
Upwards, defying weight and gravity of suffering
As you collapse. Your body spent,
They flip you over like a steak.

Your stripes so red, so deep, so shredded-
It was hard to see you as a man.
Pikes of rusted metal did draw your screams-
They confirmed your mortality.

Two through the palm, and one through the ankle.
Sniggers and jokes sound the call to hoist you skyward,
A banner of insolence, of blasphemy and triumph.
Prayers of redemption fell yet from your lips

The hours grew long as you hung there fullview,
A criminal's death for the gentle carpenter's son.
The shell of your body broken, precious blood like nard all poured out
To the backdrop of gentle thunder, rolling dice, muffled tears.

"It is finished", you say; your work is done.
The sky darkens, the tent of the rainclouds breaks
The earth bellows angrily whilst the angels sing their silent praises---
Perfect Love has cast out all fear, both now and evermore.

Good Friday I

2006-04-14T07:39:00.000-07:00

Isaiah 53

3 He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering.
Like one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

4 Surely he took up our infirmities
and carried our sorrows,
yet we considered him stricken by God,
smitten by him, and afflicted.

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

6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

7 He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before her shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.

8 By oppression [a] and judgment he was taken away.
And who can speak of his descendants?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
for the transgression of my people he was stricken. [b]

9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
nor was any deceit in his mouth.

10 Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the LORD makes [c] his life a guilt offering,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.

11 After the suffering of his soul,
he will see the light of life [d] and be satisfied [e] ;
by his knowledge [f] my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will bear their iniquities.

the crucible

2006-04-11T06:02:00.000-07:00

hello everyone! now that leb has finally added me (heh jk)...

i usually post on my own blog, but i'll make an effort to include anything i feel is relevant over here. i'm extremely grateful for our little community and while saturday afternoons are not always possible owing to the 'exigencies of service' (yes, i've come across this phrase in some directive), this blog is an excellent complement in our day and age. the best is yet to be!

***

1 corinthians 10:13, niv writes, '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'.

ns is a crucible of race, language and religion, where citizens of contrasting cultures, classes and creeds combine (ok, i shall stop speaking like the masked vigilante). more importantly, it is also a crucible in the sense that one's character is forged by fire and brimstone during the 2 years or so. it stands to reason that what doesn't kill us makes us stronger; at least that's what nietzsche said. this coming from an avowed atheist may somewhat prejudice our reading of it, but i think it captures the point that challenges are an immense opportunity for personal growth. which is why everyone should experience sispec (haha).

that aside, infusing nietzsche's amoral philosophy with our christian worldview adds a whole lot of meaning to the concept of temptation, or suffering. i think this came up during a conversation with howard, then i went back and thought about it some more. i can't even begin to keep track of the occasions on which God has made a way, where there seems to be no way. truly - and i am quoting from another favourite verse here - we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (romans 8:28, niv). it is not for us to question His sovereignty, but rather to seek His divine guidance in all things.

now i shall just use this space to post the details of my easter sunday baptism:

10am, sunday 16 april 2005
kay poh road baptist church
7 kay poh road (off river valley road)

do drop by if u happen to be around!

Close To Thee

2006-04-10T08:38:00.000-07:00

Close to thee, close to thee
hold me closer more to thee
ne'er let me fall away
close to thee Lord let me stay

Close to thee, close to thee
'tis my prayer till endless days
Lord, closer more to thee
Lord, Close to thee

Does Your Woman Match Up?

2006-04-07T23:22:00.000-07:00

More contributions by Uncle Kim Meng and Auntie Beow Kheng- aka, my mom and dad. Imagine...
------------------------------------------------------------------------
To the woman:

When I created the heavens and the earth, I spoke them into being. When created man, I formed him and breathed life into his nostrils. But you, woman, I fashioned after I breathed the breath of life into man because your nostrils are too delicate. I allowed a deep sleep to come over him so I could patiently and perfectly fashioned you.

Man was put to sleep so that he could not interfere with the creativity. From one bone I fashioned you. I chose the bone that protects man's life. I chose the rib, which protects his heart and lungs and supports him, as you are meant to do. Around this one bone I shaped you. I modeled you. I created you perfectly and beautifully.

Your characteristics are as the rib, strong yet delicate and fragile. You provide protection for the most delicate organ in man, his heart. His heart is the center of his being; his lungs hold the breath of life. The rib cage will allow itself to be broken before it will allow damage to the heart.

Support man as the rib cage supports the body. You were not taken from his feet, to be under him, nor were you taken from his head, to be above him. You were taken from his side, to stand beside him and be held close to his side.

You are my perfect angel. You are my beautiful little girl. You have grown to be a splendid woman of excellence, and my eyes fill when I see the virtues in your heart. Your eyes - don't change them. Your lips - how lovely when they part in prayer. Your nose, so perfect in form, your hands so gentle to touch. I've caressed your face in your deepest sleep; I've held your heart close to mine.

Of all that lives and breathes, you are the most like me. Adam walked with me in the cool of the day and yet he was lonely. He could not see me or touch me. He could only feel me. So everything I wanted Adam to share and experience with me, I fashioned in you: my holiness, my strength, my purity, my love, my protection and support. You are special because you are the extension of me. Man represents my image - woman, my emotions.

Together, you represent the totality of God. So man - treat woman well. Love her, respect her, for she is fragile. In hurting her, you hurt me. What you do to her, you do to me.

In crushing her, you only damage your own heart, the heart of your Father, and the heart of her Father. Woman, support man. In humility, show him the power of emotion I have given you. In gentle quietness show your strength. In love, show him that you are the rib that protects his inner self.

Choosing Sides

2006-04-05T21:56:00.000-07:00

Dear Brothers- just wanted to share from a devotion I gave in college a while back in 2005. Just came across it the other day, and I pray it'll be a blessing to you.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"good morning college... my name is caleb, and i just graduated from acjc last year from the class of 2ah and i’ll be sharing with you, in brief, some thoughts for this morning’s devotions. let me begin by telling a story.

when i was in secondary four in a certain school across the street, the prefects in my school put up this gorgeous banner to encourage us, the graduating batch whilst we took our o levels. the banner was this huge blue banner that stretched on and on, and on the banner were the words, boldly painted in gold letters, “with god on our side, who shall we fear?” obviously, the banner was put up to encourage us, and remind us of god’s constant presence in our lives.
yet as i reflected upon the banner as i was discussing with a friend, an interesting thought hit us one day. it was the time of the rugby season, a very important school season indeed, and this thought we had really gave us a headache.
what would happen if at a rugby match, two schools put up the exact same banner, invoking the support or blessing of the same god? i can fully imagine two schools with the same christian roots, possibly Methodist, claiming the favour of the same god. who would god side? the holier school? or the the school with the better team? what a thought.

i decided that there was something very wrong with what we all assume about our god. none of us, pastor, student, teacher, alumni or otherwise, can boast that we have god on our side. after all, if i were to rob a bank today, i’m very sure god would not be on my side. the responsibility of being free of fear or trapped and bound by it lies with us, who are variables and fickle.

the bible states that “god is not a man that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should change his mind. does he speak and then not act? does he promise and not fulfill?” numbers 23:19. and the old sunday school song goes, “yesterday today forever, jesus is the same, all may change but jesus never, glory to His name.” in that case, god doesn’t switch sides. he’s constant, immutable and always, the same. by logical deduction, it must be us who make that choice then. how then can we be unfearful of tomorrow, or whatever lies ahead? by placing ourselves on god’s side, the side of righteousness, of moral conscience, of all that is pleasing to a perfect god.

and how can we know this side? again, the bible says in john 14:21, “whoever hears my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. he who loves me will be loved by my father, and i too will love him and show myself to him.” and in joshua 1:8 “do not let this book of the law depart from your mouth, meditate on it day and night, that you may careful to do everything written in it. then you will be prosperous and successful.” the description of god’s side is clear, and is found no further than in his word.

perhaps one day, someone should tell the school across the street that the banner we put up all those years ago was wrong. maybe it shouldn’t have read “with god on our side, who shall we fear?” rather, we should have written it as, “when we are on god’s side, who shall we fear?” the choice to wallow in sin and remain away from god is ours, as is the choice to turn to Him and make serious and sometimes, painful decisions to follow him and be on His side is ALSO ours. in the words of my friend the Christian math enthusiast, “we are the variables, he is the constant.”

dear friends, whether or not we are in our first year or second year, teacher or otherwise, the choice and responsibility of our relationship with the most beautiful, righteous, holy and pleasurable being in the universe lies with us and us alone. and today, whether it is promos, prelims, or some other fear that grips us, god offers us his peace and his love that conquers all fear, if only we will choose to be on his side. and i pray that his side is where i will see you.

there is an old hymn, forgotten by our generation, by harriet b stowe, which reads
When winds are raging o’er the upper ocean, And billows wild contend with angry roar, ’Tis said, far down, below the wild commotion, That peaceful stillness reigneth evermore.

Far, far away, the roar of passion dieth, And loving thoughts rise calm and peacefully, And no rude storm, how fierce so e’er it flieth, Disturbs the soul that dwells, O Lord, in Thee.
shall we pray.

dearest lord,
thank you for being our friend.
and even now as we come as a college before you, we are mindful of you and how much you love us here in acjc. we know that this college has a special place in your heart, and that you know each one of us, each teacher and student, both past and present, by name.
lord, you called us into a relationship, a friendship with you that we do not deserve, and in your wisdom, you know our needs and deepest fears, even before a word is on our lips. dear jesus, we want to stand on your side in the decisions that we make each day, whether they be big or small. help us to live according to your word, and by doing so, make you smile when you look down at us from heaven. we know that when we are your side, we have nothing to fear. thank you lord, for giving us your word, and we pray for perseverance in our discovery of how you want us to live.
lord, i pray even now for the college and the many teachers who work so hard for their students. i pray that you give them your strength and passion, that they may be lifted up when they are weary. for the jcones and twos, i ask for your peace, and that you give them comfort when they freak out and get stressed, whether it be facing the promos or the prelims. in particular, lord, for the jctwos. the prelims are nearing, and they are worried. remind them lord, that you are mindful of their every need, both great and small, and that you love them so very much. all these things we pray in jesus’ name. amen."

Welcome, Welcome!

2006-04-02T13:35:00.000-07:00

Gentlemen, a warm round of applause for...Luke!

Welcome Luke to the blogging community, and we look forward to hearing from our own Luke- may he be as prolific a writer as the the good doctor Luke aka the Gospel-writer: a keen hand and a quick eye with a knack for clinically sharp detail, tempered caution and sterile accuracy.

Write on.

Come, All Ye Weary and Heavy Laden

2006-03-29T09:23:00.000-08:00

Jesus came to earth to take away our hurt and our pain. To remove the heartache and suffering of this world. That was His purpose- to reconcile us to God, to be the propitiation for our sins- our sins against Him, our sins against each other. He came, that we may live- that we may know that joy of Heaven, that love of God.

Have you ever felt like your heart was too pained and scarred to continue beating? That you couldn't raise your voice in song simply because there's no song left to sing? Aren't there those moments where it all seems so meaningless, so purposeless, so futile and empty? In those moments, vision is clouded and the mind confused, and all one feels is hurt and anguish. Isn't that the time when you want to throw your hands in the air and say, "I give up". Maybe there's someone amongst us who feels this way- like there simply isn't a way to move on with life, that the memories of the past and the disappointment attached to that time ago are just like hooks which cling to us and drag us backward, piercing our flesh and bleeding us dry of whatever was pleasant, beautiful, hopeful and abundant.

And yet, Jesus said that He came to give life, and 'life abundant'. Surely Jesus never lied, surely that Lamb of God would never bring deceit and falsity to His lips- no, Jesus only speaks Truth, and He IS here to give us peace of heart, reconciliation to the Father, and hope for tomorrow.

Jesus said, "Come unto Me, all ye weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest for your souls."

Take some time today, pause and think of what the Lord has done for you and for me. Wait upon the Lord, who knows each care and hurt, each bruise and wound, and tenderly bends to us to care for our pains. He alone can give that peace and healing that our hearts so desperately cry out for- only Jesus. He whose hands were pierced with nails of hate, whose feet were marred with spikes of malice, whose side was thrust through, and whose blood covered that hill on Calvary. The price He paid for our lives, for our reconcilation to God, with nothing less than His own suffering.

And today, He stands, calling, "Come, come, come- Come to the Father, my child. Why so broken hearted and tearful? Lift your eyes to Heaven, and rest in my love, my perfect love." Come to Jesus.

Dearest Jesus,
the price you paid for my life was so high- so unbearably high and painfully costly. Surely you understand the fraction of pain that I'm feeling just in my heart. The Bible says that you were a man acquainted with suffering, and that you understand this fragile mortal life- you understand it all, the heartbreaks and pain. Thank you Lord, for being so close and understanding of what us. Thank you for coming to Earth and giving us your greatest gift- yourself. O Lord, we give you praise and thanks that even now, you understand these prayers for deliverance, and that you are ever so close to us. Jesus, I pray for mercy, for deliverance from all these hurtful thoughts and memories. I ask, jesus, that you send Your comforting Spirit to give me rest. All I want to do, Lord, is rest in you and claim your invitation to take refuge and comfort in Your loving arms. You have said that you will never leave us nor forsake us, and Your Word is true. Give me faith to claim this offer of peace that you hold out open, and let me be found in You. Take this heart that has been so battered by the world, and make it whole. Thank you Lord for your lovingkindness, for your perfect love.

In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

Little Faith-Building Discoveries I: On Marriage and Monogamy

2006-03-26T16:54:00.000-08:00

Dear Brothers, there've always been little seemingly "grey" areas in the Bible which have always been a source of great distress to me. But God is faithful! And in His time, He reveals more of who He is and what He wants to be like in Him. =)

False Claim #1: The Judaeo-Christian God approves of polygamy in the Old Testament, hence the Christian doctrine of monogamous marriage and relationship of fidelity and loyalty are bogus teachings. God's morality is not absolute. Look at examples like Abraham, Jacob, David, Solomon.

Truth: God DOES approve of monogamy! Scripture is absolutely clear and unambiguous in Deuteronomy 17:17where the Law describes the King of Israel, his model and exemplary behaviour (note: at this point of writing, there WASN'T even a King of Israel yet) "He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold." God is a god of truth, and unchanging, unwavering standards of holiness, and likewise, His leaders and children are to be as such. Gen 2:24 makes it clear that God intends ONE man to be witih ONE woman in holy matrimony" For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh."

Abraham: Abraham lay with Hagar to father Ishmael under Sarah's recommendation, in the hope of fulfilling GOd's covenant with Abraham. This may seem like God approves polyogamy, but this is not so. Biblical characters don't always act in accordance with God's will, and this is an example. We understand the ramifications of Abraham's sins when we see his subsequent anguish in having to "sacrifice" his only TWO sons- by leaving Ishmael in the wilderness and sacrificing Isaac on Mt. Moria. Imagine Abraham's pain and suffering as a father having to be heartless and cold to please God. Yet, it could be suggested that this is a result of his sin in not trusting God to fulfil His own promise, as well as taking a second wife and thus bringing sin into the family.

Jacob: We see another clear example when we think of Jacob's 4 wives- again, we remember that it was Jacob's intention to love only woman- Rachel, but because of Lot's dishonesty and the ungodly competition between Rachel and Leia that Jacob took 4. In additoin, we see Jacob consquently punished for this violation of the marriage committment in the disharmony between his sons, who fought amongst themselves: selling Joseph to Egypt and deceiving their father with his bloody coat. A dysfunctional family was birthed as sin started from the father and found its way into the lives of the 13 brothers- plus, Jacob, in his old age, suffered great pain TWICe when he too, lost his beloved sons JOseph and Benjamin at differnet points. The sin of the father persisted even into the life of Judah, who had an incestrous relationship with his daughterinlaw, Tamar. "the sins of teh father will be punished to the 3rd and 4th generation"

David- the "man after God's heart" had 8 wives. Although he was indeed highly favoured in God's eyes, he too sinned when he lusted after Bathsheeba when he already had multiple consorts, resulting in GOd punishing him with the death of his firstborn, as well as the family strife that persisted in the incestrous relationship with Amnom and Tamar. David's latter half of life proved to be extremely problematic, with his family rife with strife and conflict.Amnon and Tamar's sinful account is only one of them. The revenge-murder of Amnon by Absalom and ABbsalom's attempt to take the throne in David's old age further reflects the poor family fabric in David's home, a result of his personal sins. Polygamy was doubtlessly one of these sins.

Solomon- another polygymous King, who began well in God's eyes- the "wisest man in the world" However, with his taking of multiple wives (ultimately totalling approx 700 wives and 300 concubines) he became a poor ruler in his latter years, led into the worship of false gods and turning from the True God. If anything, this should be another clear Biblical example of God's disapproval with polygamy.

In contrast, the examples of Isaac (see previous post), Ruth and Boaz, Adam and Eve, etc demonstrate the kinds of relationships that God desire us to have.

God is a God of Truth, who does not lie or change His mind. Numbers 23:19
His mercies are new every morning! Lam 3:22-23
Amen.

Crystal Cathedral (Garden Grove, CA)

2006-03-26T08:04:00.000-08:00

Could I Ever?

2006-03-25T12:50:00.000-08:00

When I woke up today
And thought of all the things Youâ€™d done
I find myself here
Feeling oh so overcome

You gave Your life away for me
Truly my heart belongs to You
So let me say

How could I ever thank You for
What You did at Calvary
When You bled and died for me
How could I ever turn away
Knowing that You paid the price
That I could never pay

When I think of the way
That You died upon that Cross
Bearing my sin
Even though my heart was lost

You gave Your life away for me
Truly my heart belongs to You
So let me say

How could I ever thank You for
What You did at Calvary
When You bled and died for me
How could I ever turn away
Knowing that You paid the price
That I could never pay

on Understanding

2006-03-13T08:27:00.000-08:00

Charles, thank you for the story and Ken for reminding me about love.

It was good to read the blog amid my flood of work and jobs and unanswered emails
thanks for the mail leb, will reply soon

I have been thinking. That is something we do alot.

The conversations in Job jump at me:

A) We can say all the right things and still be utterly wrong about God, regardless of our heart.

The charater of Elihu was a shock. He spoke nothing untrue about the wrath and character of God, professing to ' ...to speak on God's behalf. (Job 36:1)'. He defered respectfully to Job amd asking him 'suffer me a little' apologising for his chastisement and as he spoke in love.

He did nothing wrong save that of not knowing the context of God in his actions on Job. His heart was righteous as he spoke out for concern for Job . Yet he was wrong

I talk like that. We all do somehow, using words as we make apologies for what we believe in and framing our arguments accordingly as we speak.

Yet Elihu and the friends of Job in all their truth and belief were wrong.

As someone who's tools are the words, pictures and emotion to bring across meaning, i manipulate these to evoke whatever i feel/desire/need/want. Yet as our tools work on others they too work on us.

I have no doubt that the threat of self-delusion is reality among us, even as we seek our God and to understand his ways.

B) Living in God's light is understanding his ways and world view.

'And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.' JOB 28:28 Kjv

It takes understanding and the wisdom of God to see beyond the basal desires of the world as to why we should abandon the things and feelings that we are dependent upon to look to God. Its that difficult truth.

Its something we must aspire to. Aligning our world view with that of God, knowing that it is his affirmation we should bear in mind as we reason with our minds, hearts and the others he has blessed us with. After all all the blessings in the world given to you does not equate to a relationship with God or that he is pleased with you. Job is a fine negative example of that.

Christianity is a relationship. Thats its difference. Relationships need understanding, God understands us, do we in our hearts understand him.

a simple story

2006-03-11T20:22:00.000-08:00

A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art.

When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son.

About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands.

He said, "Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He often talked about you, and your love for art.

The young man held out his package. "I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this."

The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture. "Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift."

The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected.

The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection. On the platform sat the painting of the son.

The auctioneer pounded his gavel. "We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?" There was silence. Then a voice in the back of the room shouted. "We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one." But the auctioneer persisted. "Will someone bid for this painting? Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?" Another voice shouted angrily. "We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Goghs, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!" But still the auctioneer continued. "The son! The son! Who'll take the son?" Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. "I'll give $10 for the painting."

Being a poor man, it was all he could afford. "We have $10, who will bid $20?" "Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters." "$10 is the bid, won't someone bid $20?" The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son. They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections. The auctioneer pounded the gavel. "Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!" A man sitting on the second row shouted, "Now get on with the collection!"

The auctioneer laid down his gavel. "I'm sorry, the auction is over." "What about the paintings?" "I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings. The man who took the son gets every thing!"

God gave his son 2,000 years ago to die on a cruel cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is, "The son, the son, who'll take the son?" Because you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything.

Second class love

2006-03-11T06:16:00.000-08:00

To quote Lewis,
'Human intellect is incurably abstract...Yet the only realities we experience are concrete-this pain, this pleasure, this dog, this man. While we are loving the man, bearing the pain, enjoying the pleasure, we are not intellectually apprehending Pleasure, Pain or Personality. When we begin to do so, on the other hand, the concrete realities sink to the level of mere instances or examples: we are no longer dealing with them, but with that which they exemplify. This is our dilemma-either to taste and not to know or to know and not to taste-or, more strictly, to lack one kind of knowledge because we are in an experience or to lack another kind because we are outside it. As thinkers we are cut off from what we think about; as tasting, touching, willing, loving, hating, we do not clearly understand. The more lucidly we think, the more we are cut off: the more deeply we enter reality, the less we can think. You cannot study pleasure in the moment of nuptial embrace, nor repentence while repenting, nor analyze the nature of humour while roaring with laughter. But when else can we really know these things? "If only my toothache would stop, I could write another chapter about pain." But once it stops, what do I know about pain?' (The Grand Miracle)

My dear brothers, intellectual thought(and even talk) is often good, but let us guard ourselves from desiring merely the satisfaction we derive from it. For what good is it when we have spent our lives successfully unravelling the mysteries of God only to find out that we have never been effective in His eyes? In fact, we will never unravel His mysteries if we don't act upon His commands. Is engaging our minds in the abstraction of God His sole purpose for us on Earth? Certainly not!
Do not think that I am trying to undermine the importance of engaging in intellectual thought about God. Indeed we should keep on searching and struggling intellectually for and with His truth. But I also pray that we will not in the process turn our eyes from desiring to know Him more to simply craving for that indeed perverse pleasure of knowing the depth of our thoughts and having that cosy feeling of engaging intellectually with people of the same 'calibre'.
In fact, I believe, it is God's purpose for us to learn through acting. By putting on His mask(though it might seem awkward at first), we will grow to be more like Him.
Yes, we can think such and such of this philosophy about love and such and such of another... but we will never learn to love until we feed the hungry, clothe the poor, take care of the sick, visit those in prison...
My dear brothers, we are all blessed with intellectuality. If only it would lead us to the point of surrender, of understanding that there is only so far as to where our minds can take us, and rely on our hands to take us further, deeper into the mysteries of God. Therefore let us couple our thoughts with acts, let us struggle but obey, let us not settle for a second class love.

O be careful little eyes what you see, what you see.

2006-03-08T14:48:00.000-08:00

Oh, be careful little eyes what you see
Oh, be careful little eyes what you see
For the Father up above is looking down in love
Oh, be careful little eyes what you see. *clap clap*

Remember this song from kindergarten? It really does highlight something important for us to note. The eyes are the most powerful stimulus we have as human beings- it is our primary means of gaining information of the world around us, and is (apparently,) our most evolved sensory system of all the five. It's no wonder then, that phrases and maxims such as "the eyes are the window to the soul" and "a picture speaks a thousand words" exist and pervade our 21st century lifestyle. Even when we travel, we desperately take photo after photo, trying to retain the visualness of our experience in order to jog our memory and help us remember those special moments.

For Christians, this- as in all things- is a double-edged sword. The dangers of this powerful stimulus is that it opens a whole world of temptation and sins of the eyes- no wonder then, that 1 John 2:15-16 talks about the "lust of the eyes" amongst the three primary sins that pervade Mankind.

Jesus warns us to guard our eyes, to go so far as to "pluck it out" if it causes us to sin, and be holy in all we do- including what we see with our eyes. Remember to guard your eyes from sin.

One way we can do this more effectively is by not just resisting SIN, but fleeing from temptation. By this, we refuse to even put ourselves in a situation where we can be tempted- and this involves the feet taking the eyes a place where the self will be tempted. Avoid places where we see things that displease Him- this may involve being in a room alone with the computer, or going to temptation-ridden place. By placing ourselves in a place where we can be tempted- we've already lost half the battle. A friend recently reminded me of something- people don't fall just because they're weak; they fall because they think they are strong. Flee from temptation.

On the other hand, the eyes have tremendous potential for good and sanctification. I'm not a artist by any standards, but art can also be used to point us toward the things of heaven. Let's explore then, how we can the eyes to glorify Him!

Real Victims

2006-03-07T22:16:00.000-08:00

It seems to be ingrained into our human modus operandi to adopt a series of defensive mechanisms to criticism and hardship. We begin with blame pushing, denying responsibility and accountability for our actions, whether truly responsible or not, and look for scapegoats to push the blame to. We push the blame on those around us. We then push the blame onto evil- upon the temptations that lure into sin and suffering. We push the blame to the Devil. If that doesn't satisfy us, we become moody and depressive, wallowing in our self pity as we bemoan our circumstances and the conditions of our lives. In doing so, we move to a second stage of pushing the blame on God, upon whom all circumstances ultimately rest. In both these stages, we never seem to consider the role of the self in our own sufferings- bringing about our own discomfort and pain. Isn't this true of you and me?

We imagine ourselves as victims, of either malicious individuals around us or the oppression of fate i.e. God's actions (both direct acting and indirectly allowing) IN the case of Eve and Adam and original sin we see this pattern clearly played out when Adam pushed the blame ot Eve, and Eve to the serpent. Implicitly, even in Adam's justifications to God, he implicates the Almighty when he cries out it was the "woman YOU PUT HERE WITH ME" (caps mine) drawing God into complicity too, thus drawing upon the sources of both the first and last stages of the human modus operandi. In our sufferings, we consider ourselves victimised by a oppressive god, (Milton's Lucifer refers to his 'tyrannical rule' often) with our fellow human beings as instruments that god uses to torture or wound us. God becomes the villain, our fellow man, his tools for hurt, and ourselves, the innocent victims of his perniciousness. This is poor theology, or an incorrect conception of who God is.

And yet, how often do we recognise the truth of the matter, that God is in fact, a victim of sin? David makes it clear in psalms when he exclaims, "against you and you alone have I sinned" that GOd, the embodiment and source of all righteousness and good, is the victim against whom ALL sins are committed. He does not delight in evil, but takes pleasure in the righteous shunning sin. Whenever a man falls prey to sin, we call that rebellion against God. In such a matter, GOd does not clap His hands and shout hooray. Neither does He stand silent and say, "free will. Man's choice." No. In fact, every time we choose poorly, His heart bleeds as the prodigal son demands his inheritance from an all-loving father to leave home. God tears each time we sin and reject His holy righteousness. In ALL matters of sin, God alone is the victim of any offense, and we are accomplices to each other's sin.

In Gilead, by Marilyn Robinson, Revered John Amnes replies to a difficult God-type question with tremendous wisdom. He notes that man associates God with 4 essential characteristics- omniscience, omnipotence, justice and grace. He further comments that as far as he goes, he lacks the knowledge to know very much, the influence to be anywhere near potent, the ability to simply be just and fair, and the magnamity with which to show much grace- much less imagine or understand teh powers of all 4 qualities expressed in conjunction. As much as this looks like a cop-out, i think it is a fair argument to say that God's standards and our own are very different. This is not to say that God is beyond human comprehension because He is so high (of course He is,) but God is beyond human comprehension also because we are too LOW.

We grieve each other enough as it is- imagine how every wound we give each other multiplied by 10, and then by every sinful human being in this world- that is the extent of His suffering and His ability toforgive and show grace. Do remember then, that we are NOT victims to each other's hurts, but accomplices in wounding a loving God.