Charity...1Cr 16:14

1Cr 16:14

Let all your things be done with charity.

Every now and then, we would come across advertisements on TV and other media asking for donation to charities, to help the poor and needy. Therefore charity has been usually associated with material lack.

Charity originated from Greek word "agape", which means unconditional love.

For Christians, the purpose of our lives is to share the unconditional love of Christ Jesus (that's why we are called Christians). The church, being a collection of Christians for the purpose of sharing this Charity of God, existed to manifest the Charity of God.

Once you are touched by the Charity of God, the overflowing love in your heart will cause your charity toward other men to be effortless and unconditional.

Brethren, ask God for a revelation of how much Father loves Jesus, and that is how much God loves you. If you are a parent and you love your children, times that love a thousand times?...a million times?... a billion times? And may be, just may be that offers us a glimpse of God's love for us. Oh, I just can't help but want to love everyone on Earth whenever I am think of God's infinite love for me because my heart could not contain but need to share this life giving
water with the rest.

My friend, only when you have and understand the agape love of God in you and act according to the dictation of this love, you can be truly charitable and be a blessing to the world. Giving will be a overflow of you receiving from God, AMEN.

Closer...Amo 3:3

Amo 3:3

Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?

Very often, our prayers seemed to be unanswered, and we were discouraged and even started to doubt God. Worse of all, we also felt guilty because we doubt God!

Brethren, don't fall into devil's trap! For he knew that though God no longer condemns us once we are in Christ, we can be condemned by our own conscience.

The truth is that Abba answers ALL our prayers! God is love (1 Jo 4:8), and He answers our prayers in His faithfulness and righteousness (Psa 143:1). It is us that, when the answers from God are not in accordance to what we prayed, maligned God for not answering our prayers. While we were focusing on the things that were prayed for, the loving God focus on His faithfulness and righteousness. Abba is faithful and righteous to answer ALL our prayers.

God loves you more than you love yourself! His love for you is at the same degree as how He love Jesus, even when you were still a sinner (Jhn 3:16)! I don't know the number of hairs on my head, but my loving Father does (Mat 10:30)!

Therefore, brethren, when your prayer seems to be 'unanswered', trust in Abba's love for you and your prayer has been answered in His best interest for you, abundantly above all that we ask or think (Eph 3:20) and makes all His goodness pass before you (Exd 33:19). As a omnipotent God, nothing is impossible for Him. As a omniscient God, He foreknew your destinies.

Abba wants to draw us closer to Him, He loves us and craved for our love. He has given us the gift of righteousness through the death and resurrection of Christ, so that we can agree and walk with our righteous Friend (Amo 3:3), AMEN.

Lord, Lord...Mat 7:21

Mat 7:21

"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.

Last night when I was having my quiet time, the Holy Spirit asked me, "Why do you address God as Lord when you pray?"

I answered, "Yes, it means He is my King, submitting my will unto Him and do His will"

And the Holy Spirit chuckled, "Is that so? What have you submitted to Him?"

Suddenly it dawned upon me that I have only selectively submitted to His Lordship in certain areas. A flood of guilt and condemnation immediately emerged but then the Holy Spirit arrested and convicted me of my righteousness in Christ, and despite all these Abba Father's love for me has (and will) never change(d) and I am still His beloved son. All the promises of Abba is still mine.

I was also reminded of the sermon by Pastor Joseph Prince awhile ago, where he touched on Mat 7:21. In that sermon, Pastor Prince expounded on "the will of the Father in Heaven".

Jesus in Hbr 10:9 said that He came to do the Father's will - to take away the first and establish the second. The first being the old covenant of works and the second being the new covenant of grace.

Hallelujah! What's this mean to me is that as long as I am trusting the grace of God in my life, even when there are areas that I foolishly did not submit myself to His Lordship, I am doing the will of God.

What this also mean is that in my walk with Christ, as He is transforming me more and more like Him each day, He is also putting more and more areas of my life under His Lordship all by His grace and none of my effort. Moreover, His Lordship is different from that of man (1Sa 8:11-18), for His burden is light and His yoke easy (Mat 11:30). The areas of my life that Christ has Lordship over are the areas the I have dominion over.

Trusting in the grace of God is the true submission to the Lordship of Christ that leads to true dominion over our lives, AMEN!

Happy...Psa 144:15

Psa 144:15

...Happy are the people whose God is the LORD!

Everyday, when we meet someone, whether or not he/she is a person we know, we asked, "How are you?" Basically, we are asking whether he/she is happy.

Everyone wants to live a happy life, but what is really happiness?

According to Oxford Universal Dictionary, happiness is "a feeling derived from satisfaction with one's circumstances."

Ruut Veenhoven, a leading authority on "happiness", described happiness as "the degree to which an individual judges the overall quality of his life-as-a whole favorably."

Looking at these two statements, it seems that happiness is the product of two factors, one external and the other internal.

The external factor is the circumstances that one's in, while the internal factor is how one judges quality of his/her life.

That's the best that the world can offer, either looking at others or ourselves, because they don't have God! However, we can look at God for our happiness.

When Jesus came and saved us, we are saved spirit, soul and body. Abba Father gave His Only Begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to die not only to save us from eternal damnation while living in this world sick, poor and feeling miserable. No! His precious blood is worthy to save us bodily and emotionally, in fact all the faculties of our lives!

Abba Father wants us happy, and the good news is that He had already done His part! When Christ was scourged, died on the cross, risen and now sitting on His heavenly throne, all the external enemies of our happy - sicknesses, financial lacks and even death were removed from us by the Lamb of God when He took away the sin of the world (Jhn 1:29).

Abba Father loves us as much as He loves Jesus, and favors us as much as He favor Jesus!

Oh beloved, if even the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth is looking at you favorably, and even did not spare only begotten Son for you, would He not give you all things (Rom 8:32)? Furthermore, the life that is in you now is not just any other life but the life of Christ (Gal 2:20), the highest quality life that one can ever wish for! A life that is full of health, wisdom, power, grace and mercy.

Hallelujah! A Christian ought to be the happiest person in the world, because by His grace our external circumstances can only be good for He doesn't know how else to treat His beloved. Internally, how else can we judge the quality of our lives when we know that we are in fact living Christ's life, other than very, very, very, very....very good?

My friend, if you are still in your journey of pursuing happiness and have started to feel weary and tired, you need not go further. All it takes is to acknowledge Jesus as your Lord and Savior, surrender to Him and invite Him to live in and through you. If you do that, you have just become the newest member of the "Happiest People In The World" club. Moreover, the membership never expires, AMEN!

Olive Oil...Exd 27:20

Exd 27:20

"And you shall command the children of Israel that they bring you pure oil of pressed olives for the light, to cause the lamp to burn continually.

In the New Testament, we are called the sons of light (Luk 16:8; Jhn 12:36 and 1Th 5:5), and Exd 27:20 offers a detailed picture of how Christ works through us to bring salvation to the world.

In Exd 27:20, children of Israel is a picture of Christians, the pure oil speaks of the Holy Spirit while olives typifies Christ.

Jesus Christ was beaten and crushed for us, so that we don't have to bear the punishment from God for our sins. In fact, His beating, death, resurrection and finally ascension were necessary for Him to send the Holy Spirit from heaven to earth, to teach us all things, and bring to our remembrance all things that we learn from the Bible (Jhn 14:26). The Holy Spirit also brings the gifts (1Cr 12:8 - 10) of:

1. Word of wisdom
2. Word of knowledge
3. Faith
4. Healing
5. Working of miracles
6. Prophecy
7. Discerning of spirits
8. Different kinds of tongues
9. Interpretation of tongues

Olive oil was also used for anointing of the tabernacle and everything there in to make them holy (Exd 40:9). This is a beautiful picture of the sanctification of the Holy Spirit (the anointing oil) on our bodies (the tabernacle) and every body parts/organs, to set them apart from the world the moment we believe in our hearts and confessed in our mouths the perfect work of Christ and that Jesus is our Lord and Savior.

If one has diseases in is body before this, this sanctification can heal and make him whole again.

If one was healthy before this, this sanctification can keep him strong and healthy for the rest of his life.

With this sanctification, the spirits and powers of this world cannot get near us, no destruction shall come near us.

Oh sweet Jesus, as I enjoy the great taste of olive oil. I am reminded of the anointing of Holy Spirit in my life and even my physical bodies. I also remember the price that You had paid, by Your crushing and death on the cross, to send the Holy Spirit to the world, to indwell in me. Jesus, I love you because You first loved me, AMEN!

Praise...Psa 7:17

Psa 7:17

I will praise the LORD according to His righteousness, And will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.

I was awaken by the storm this morning, my heart was filled with joy and bursting with praise for Daddy God.

I praise You Daddy God, for the lovely wife and children, and the financial blessings that You have so kindly given me.

I praise You Daddy God, for the wonderful friends and colleagues that You have so kindly arranged to cross my path.

I praise You Daddy God, for the divine health and godly wisdom that You have restore upon me by the blood and body of Christ.

I praise You Daddy God, for Your divine protection and healing.

And most of all, Daddy God, I praise You for Your righteousness (Psa 7:17).

While it is natural to be joyful and give praise to our Father when we are experiencing good time, it is supernatural and even more beneficial to be joyful and give praise to Daddy when we are going through evil time.

Praise Daddy God through the evil time is a conscious choice, not a natural choice, staying in the consciousness of a big, loving, righteous Daddy God.

Daddy God is big, He is bigger, more powerful and wise than anything or person that you can imagine. He is the creator of everything (Gen 1).

Daddy God is love (1 Jo 4:8), and in Christ, I am inseparable from the love of God (Rom 8:39).

Daddy God is righteous (Ezr 9:15). The righteousness of God demands that through the perfect and finished work of Christ, He sees me in Christ - perfectly righteous (1Cr 1:30).

As I am concluding this writing in the evening, I received the news that the boy that my wife and I had prayed for had passed on due to leukemia and we are greatly sadden by the news. this sadness reminded me about the sorrow that was upon Jesus in Gethsemane (Mar 13:46).

My soul cried out "Abba, Why!?" but my spirit choose to sing praise, to look at and trust His love, righteousness, power and wisdom, regardless of what I see in flesh.

I believe in all of my heart that when I meet Daddy one day in heaven, He will tell me why. But as for now, I must choose to let my spirit reign over my soul and body, so that Christ may live through me.

Oh Daddy God, I thank thee for continuing to bless me with perfect health, so that as long as I live, I can continue to praise You, AMEN.

Abba...Mar 14:36

Mar 14:36

And He said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for You. Take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not what I will, but what You will."

After the last supper, Jesus went with his disciples to Gethsemane, which mean oil press, and was straight away pressed hard (Mar 14:33), filled and deeply distressed with the horror of man's sufferings under the weights of their sins. Their sufferings were so horrific and the victims were so pitiful that Jesus felt so sad for man that His soul was exceedingly sorrowful onto death (Mar 14:34).

His love for man demand that He must fulfill the Messianic prophecies to the very last, going through the passion of death in His body, soul and spirit, in order to be the first fruit of eternal life, body, soul and spirit for man. Only Jesus, the sinless lamb of God (Jhn 1:29) is worthy of this task.

Lest we think that the Passion of the Christ is easy for Jesus, as He is the Son of God, the sweet Holy Spirit is faithful to record the prayer of Jesus pleading God to find another easier mean to save the sinners. Jesus is 100% man when He was on the Earth.

Jesus in His prayer in Gethsemane cried out "Abba", reflecting the tenderness of love between God the Father and God the Son. As a father myself, I can imagine the pain and sorrow that God the Father went through as He listened to Jesus' prayer and lovely cry of "Abba", yet must lovely answer Jesus' prayer with a "No" because there is only one way to save the lost, through the Passion of the Christ!

Brethren, let's not let Christ went through the Passion in vain by not fully claiming our position as a son of God (Luk 3:38)! Jesus forfeited His Sonship on the cross (Mat 27:46), so that we can cry out "Abba" to God to enjoy His tender loving kindness and protection, AMEN.

Life...Jhn 6:53

Jhn 6:53

Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.

King Solomon in Ecclesiastes lamented about the vanity of life in this world. So what's 'life' to you?

Is life just about following the cycle of birth, growing old, falling sick and death? What makes human different from other creatures?

According to Bible, human is the only creation of God that is made in His image (Gen 1:27), and became alive when God breathed into his nostrils the breath of life (Gen 2:7). In another word, man is created to have the zōē life of God in him!

So what's the life of God? Just look at Jesus (Jhn 8:19)!

Jesus lived a victorious life, in both the physical and spiritual realms. Even during His temporary submission to the pharisees and Romans, even when He was scourged and hang on the cross, all these were done so that Christ's victory over sins and death is complete. He is now sitting down on His throne in heaven as a victorious King. His victory is total and complete, else He would not be able to sit at God's right hand (Mat 16:19)!

What's the source of this victorious life? The answer lies in God's love for Him.

Jesus always walked in God love, and called God His Father (Luk 2:49), as the Spirit of God with Him from birth (Luk 1:35). God even directly declared from heaven His love for Jesus (Mat 3:17) and most of all, God is love (1 J0 4:8).

My friend, if you feel that you are always a victim of circumstances, and life have dealt you a raw deal as you are trapped in unending cycles of lack (materially and emotionally) and sicknesses, you can have a choice of saying 'no' to all these and 'yes' to the victorious life that is your birth-right!

God wants you to live a victorious life, the life that you as a child of God deserve because you have been fully qualified by God through the blood of Jesus on the cross two thousand years ago.
Say 'yes' to Jesus, acknowledge Him as your Lord and Savior and receive His life into you (Jhn 6:53) to be a heir of this world (Rom 4:13), to be a victorious witness, AMEN!

Baptism Of The Holy Spirit...Acts 1:8

Act 1:8

"But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."

In Acts 1:8, just before Jesus was taken up to heaven, He foretold them the "birth" of Christianity later at the Pentecost, exactly fifty days after His death on the cross. Every year during the Pentecost, while the Jews celebrate the given of the Law through Moses, Christians celebrate the baptism of the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5).

When the Pentecost had fully come, all the disciples (about 120 (Acts 1:15)), were filled with the Holy Spirit, to be witnesses to Christ everywhere they went. Same is the case for us today, we shall be witnesses to Christ today when we are baptized by the Holy Spirit, manifesting the power of God (Acts 1:8) with signs and wonders by the gifts of the Spirit (1Cr 12:8-10).

So how can we be baptized in the Holy Spirit?

In the story of Cornelius, the Roman Centurion and his family were baptized in the Holy Spirit even before they had the chance to confess Christ as their Savior and Lord. They received the baptism of the Holy Spirit just as they heard Peter mentioned God's forgiveness of sins for those who believe in Jesus (Acts 10:44).

Jesus Himself teach that the Holy Spirit will come upon those who ask (Luk 11:13).

On the other hand, others such as Simon (Acts 8:17) and Timothy (2Ti 1:6) received the baptism of the Holy Spirit through the laying of hands by someone who was already had the Spirit upon them.

Brethren, it is God's will that all Christians should receive baptism of the Holy Spirit, and does not tie to a method. The question is not with the will of God but our will, will you ask God for the baptism of Holy Spirit? If your answer is yes, God will find a way to baptize you in Holy Spirit. All that is required of you is to yield to the Spirit, and loose your tongues when the Spirit gives utterance (Acts 2:4) to be a sign of power of God in you.

O you the bride of Christ, adorn yourself with the heavenly jewels, not for the love of oneself but the love for Christ because He first loves you! Please don't grief the Spirit, gifts of the Spirit that came with baptism of the Holy Spirit are meant for public display to witness the love of Christ for the world, AMEN.

Lost And Found...Luk 15:24

Luk 15:24

for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.' So the party began.

In the story of the prodigal son, the father not only forgave all the transgression of his son, but lavished on him when the son returned. Though the son had forsaken him by asking for inheritance while the father was still alive, the father still loved the son.

Note that when the son was out in a far country, he was regarded as 'lost' and even 'dead' but once back and 'found', he returned to life.

This is a picture of when Adam and Eve were driven out of Eden, man is lost and death set in. However, when we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are found and returned to life. And the party began! Hallelujah!

Note the furry of activities that took place between the prodigal son's arrival and the commencement of the party. Same happened the moment when we accepted Christ as our Lord and Savior, best robe (of Jesus' righteousness) was put on us, ring (of Jesus' authority) on our hands and shoes (of Jesus' shalom peace) on our feet. And that's not all, but just a beginning, beginning of great celebration where the fatted calf (of Jesus' abundant blessings) were provided by our Father for us to enjoy and merry (and dance) in His presence!

Just like the father in the story that did not tell the younger son to clean up his acts and find the right reason of return before re-admitting him back to the family, our Father in heaven only need us to turn our way and head back to His bosom, for whatever reason!

My friend, if you are down, rejected and depressed, and had even done many wrongs to many people, your Father still want you. Even when you think that you are worth next to nothing and living a life not worth living, you are still the most precious in His eyes and God is waiting for you to join His party. In fact, you are so precious to God that, even in you worthless and wretchedness, God as Jesus was bitten and died for and as you, resurrected as you and ascend to the heavenly throne as you, to restore you to your rightful position as a son or daughter of God, AMEN!

Treasure...Luk 2:18-19

Luk 2:18-19	All who heard the shepherds' story were astonished,
	but Mary quietly treasured these things in her heart and thought about them often.

Luke chapter 2 described the birth of Jesus. The angels appeared to shepherds announcing His birth, and when the shepherds found Jesus and told others about what they encountered, the people were astonished. They were probably discussing or even arguing loudly about the trust-worthiness of the shepherds' report. Apparently, people did not believe the shepherds' report, fulfilling the prophecy of Isiah (Isa 53:1), else the wise men from the east would have easily found out the where about of Jesus from the people, instead they were guided by a star (Mat 2:1-9).

The people were using their mental faculties when they heard the good news, they were analyzing, wondering and evaluating these things that took place. Their mind received but not their heart.

Throughout out the commotion, Mary remained quiet. I especially like the NLT version of Luk 2:19, "...Mary quietly treasured these things in her heart...". To Mary, all these things were not just things that amused, but miraculous and precious gems that were to be adored and stored deep within her hearts, an so very often she would take out these gems to admire and study their beauty and magnificent, from different viewing angles.

My friend, how do you treat this wonderful gospel of God's love for us, in the person of Christ Jesus? Do you simply astonish by its story and amazed by the miracles, and then try to explain the miracles by your intellects? Or are you like Mary, simply treasure Jesus, the most excellent Gem, often behold and mediate on His person with the help by the Holy Spirit through the study of His Word.

Father in heaven, thank you for giving us Jesus, the most excellent Gem in the treasure of Your Holy Heart, that we may have this same wondrous Gem as our Inheritance. Help us to the fresh revelation each day about Jesus, so that we might be transform more and more like Him toward the day of His glorious return, AMEN.

Missing The Mark...Exd 23:33

Exd 23:33

"They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against Me. For if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you."

When God brought the children of Israel out of Egypt, He want to bring them into their promised land. However, before that, He warned the children of Israel against co-habiting with the people of the land, the Canaanites.

Forsaking the warning from God, the children of Israel permitted some of the inhabitants of the land dwell among them. They even caused children of Israel to worship their gods. They are in their promised land but could not rest and enjoy.

Sin, in Hebrew, means missing the mark. The children of Israel, when they chose law over grace, effective chose to aim and hit the mark themselves, to gain their salvation, their peace with God through their obedient of law.

The Mark has come and they missed Him, not recognizing Jesus Christ as their Saviour.

My friend, oh the redeemed ones! You are already in the Mark, you are in Christ and when you are in Christ, there is no sin in you as far as God is concern because all He can see is Jesus when He look at you.

Brethren, we are different from the children of Israel who are under law, as you are under grace, and will never ever be snared upon even though you may still sin from time to time. Even as the Holy Spirit is still in the process of perfecting our soul to be like that of Christ, God does not see our present incomplete state but already see the final glorious Christ-like son of God. Praise His holy name for His faithfulness, AMEN!

Living Water...Jhn 7:38

Jhn 7:38

"He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."

All living things on Earth need water to live. Water is required to maintain blood and extracellular fluids balance in our bodies.

When a person believes and confesses Jesus as his Lord and Saviour, he is immediately made the temple of God and the Holy Spirit moves to dwell in him (1Cr 3:16). The Holy Spirit is the living Spirit of Christ, that is endued with the power of God so that we may have life and have it more abundantly (Jhn 10:10).

The Holy Spirit is purposed by God to stay still in our hearts, but to radiate out, first touching our spirits, then our souls, then our bodies, and then spirits, souls and bodies of others around us. However, the Holy Spirit is a perfect Gentleman, and He will not force its way in us but will stay still as long as we do not activate it. The key that releases the Holy Spirit in us is our believes about the truth regarding Jesus, as the Spirit is truth (1Jo 5:6).

Which ever areas of truth about the person of Jesus we believe, these corresponding areas of our lives will be touched by the power of God through the Holy Spirit, even as the similar areas of lives of others around us will be touched by the radiating power of God.

My friend, I pray that as you row in Christ, you will have new revelation about Jesus each day, so that God will transform you each day more and more like Jesus each day in your spirit, soul and body. And as you are blessed, so are others around you, so that they will want to know your God, AMEN.

Friend of God...Jam 2:23

Jam 2:23

And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness." And he was called the friend of God.

When two people become friends, they see each other as equal, they share their thoughts, joy and sorrow, even possession and enemies. How about if you are a friend of God?

Abraham was called the friend of God because he believed God (Jam 2:23), Similarly, we are also called the friends of God because we believed God. God has always view you as His friend, but how about you? When was the last time you went to God as you are and pour out to Him your complain about so-and-so, that you shared with a fellow colleague?

My friend, God longed for you to share your thoughts, joy and sorrow, and enemies with Him. He wants to be your Comforter, Counsellor and Overcomer. He wants to share your joy and celebration.

How about looking at all this from the other way around? How about that God is your friend because He believed that you will become like Him!

Our destiny is to be like God, so that He can share His thoughts, joys and sorrows with us. God wants companion of other 'gods' , and we are these 'gods' (Ps 82:6), who share His same nature (Rom 8:29).

My friend, it is your destiny by His grace to be the friend of God, a very personal friend of God, in you own and unique way. It is also your destiny by His grace to be a 'god' and 'christ' Oba 1:21) that God's grace and power will flow through you to save the world from Satan, the enemy of God, AMEN.

Daily Bread...Mat 6:11

Mat 6:11

Give us this day our daily bread.

Bread was a staple food of Israelites during Jesus' time. Even in this modern age, bread is still a key staple for many people that provide daily nourishment that give our body energy to carry out our daily activities.

Just as our bodies craving for food, our souls also need feeding.

Just as we feed our bodies with all kind of food, some nutritious and some junk and even harmful, same for our souls.

Just like our bodies, our souls prosper or shrink depending on what we feed them.

But what are we feeding our souls? We feed our souls from anything that we read and listen to. Good food for our souls are articles and messages about Jesus.

Just like eating for our physical body, even with this good food, how the food was prepared and consumed affect how our souls can be nourished, know our infirmities, our loving Father has instructions for us on this also.

In Exd 12:8-9, the children of Israel was instructed by God to roast the passover lamb with fire and not raw, nor boiled with water. What this mean is that when we read or listen to messages concerning Jesus, we are to behold Him as our Saviour, the sacrificial lamb that had completely exhausted the anger of God on the sins in us to save us, now seated with the Father in heaven.

Anything less than that would not be right. Though He is the greatest Teacher or Healer or wisest Man ever lived, we must first and foremost behold Him as our Saviour. Every details of Jesus person shall be carefully 'chewed' upon, savouring the taste of His goodness.

And as we are in this world, though not of this world, death daily passover us, in the form of news and articles that we read or hear that would cause fears and worries, casting dark shadows over our souls.men

To counter this, we need to 'eat' and 'chew' the Living Bread (Jhn 6:51) , our Saviour Jesus daily. When we feed our souls, we will experience prosperity in every expect of our lives (3Jo 1:2).

The Signs...Mar 16:17 - 18

Mar 16:17 - 18

"And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; "they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover."

We come across signs all the time in our daily, some serve to tell you directions, some warning you of danger, some are used to mark boundary an limit. In a nutshell, signs give us information about something.

Therefore Jesus, in Mar 16:17, mentioned that "these signs" will follow those who believe

in Him. These signs are for the purposes of:

1. Pointing the unsaved to Christ (1Co 14:22)
2. Distinguishing the saved from the unsaved

These signs serve to demonstrate:

1. The love of God
2. The power of God
3. The wisdom of God

Note that these signs will follow those who believe, which mean that as you believe, these signs will follow you, and you do not need to be a pastor, deacon or leader of a church, as the only qualification here is 'those who believe'.

I believe that this is the personal ministry of every believer of Christ that God pour out His power, for His glory. The power of God in us is released to manifest these signs when we are positioned by God, at the right time and the right place, to do God's miracle(s) on the unbelieved, when we yield our heart to Him and believe, and He will do the rest.

Dear beloved of Christ, be of courage when the Lord put the desire in your heart to be a vehicle of His miracle. Just like Joshua when he was commanded by God to bring children of Israel to their promised land, God is giving the same assurance to you, "Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you..." (Jos 1:9), to bring the unsaved to their promised land. And He will not put to shame who ever believe on Him (Rom 10:11).

Without God, we cannot. Without you, God will not.

Eat, Drink and Remember...1Cr 11:26

1Cr 11:26

For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes.

Eating and drinking are two of the most fundamental daily activities that any human does, and God, in His most infinite and yet simple wisdom, make use of this two simple acts to help us stay in faith of His faithfulness and blessings.

Lord Jesus personally taught that when we take the broken bread during holy communion, it helps us to remember His bodily suffering when He was scourged, pierced and nailed to the cross and eventually His death on the cross. He was scourged brutally by Roman soldiers so that by His stripes we are healed (1 Pe 2:24). He was pierced so that He can give us the Spirit of grace and supplications (Zec 12:10). He was nailed to the cross so that we can never be cursed (Gal 3:13). He died so that we no longer need to die for our sin but have eternal lives (Rom 6:23).

Our sweet Lord aagin personally taught that when we drink the juice during holy communion, it help us to remember that by shedding of His precious blood, all our sins are forgiven and we have a new covenant with God (Mat 26:28). The remission of all our sins offers our bodies as the temple for the Holy Spirit that He may once again be in us (1Cr 6:19), hallelujah! When we have the Holy Spirit is in us, Christ lives through us, quickening our body and give us all the blessing due for Him. The new covenant is one that promises His mercy and eternal forgiveness of our sins (Hbr 8:12).

My friend, let us no just depending on the holy communion elements to remind us of the death of Christ. We can have holy communion as and when we eat and drink, treat the food and drinks as if they are the elements and we can have the communion with the Holy One as often as we eat and drink, and proclaiming the power unleashed in our lives through His death, AMEN.

How Good Is God?...Jhn 3:16

Jhn 3:16

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

How good is God to you? The answer depends on your opinion of what God can do and His willingness to do them. All Christian would agree that God is all powerful. However, it draws a mixed respond when it comes to the willingness of God.

Such a mixed opinion about God derives from the way some of us judge God, based on man's own standard. It is easy for man to be completely awed by the display of God's power through creation, but hard for him to fully comprehend the display of God's heart through redemption. That's why it took God only one chapter in the Bible on His works in creation but four books on the good news of redemption.

While willing to believe that God will bless us when we do good, some of us are not only less inclined to believe God will still bless us when we sin but even thinking that we should be still be punished when we sin!

God's display lavishly His love for us, even to gave up His only begotten Son (Jhn 3:16). Will God love us less after we are saved? NO! God's love for man can and will NEVER change and God loves us as intensely as He loves Jesus. In fact it is because of this intense love, God has never stop blessing man, even before the passion of the Christ.

However, God could not bless man completely and perfectly because of sin in man and as long there is sin in man, God's living Spirit, the greatest blessing one could ever ask, can never be in man. All this changed after Christ's passion on the cross and ascension to heaven, and the Holy Spirit came rushing on the first Pentecost.

Rejoice! O saints of Christ, you can 'experience' as much of goodness of God as you can believe. In fact, God is blessing us more that what we are able to believe and how much we believe actually does not make any different to how much good God want to do to you, it is solely depending on God's lavish love for you.

The more you can see and taste God's goodness in your life, the more restful and joyful you will be. The more restful and joyful you are, more you will see and taste God's goodness in your life. You are on the upward spiral of moving from glory to glory, hallelujah!

So how good is God in your life?

Jesus My Rest...Exd 33:14

Exd 33:14

And He said, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."

"Rest in Peace", the most common phrase you can find on head stones, reflects the deepest desire of all man.

When God created man, man had the Spirit of God in him (Gen 2:7), and he had free access to God's presence, there is no sin in man and he had peace with God and the peace of God in him. Man was in perfect rest in the perfect world.

However, all this changed after Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil. They sinned and the Spirit of God has to leave man, and man no longer have the peace of God in him. Guilt and condemnation set in and man lost his peace with God (Gen 3:10). Man lost his rest.

Nonetheless, God can never stop loving man because man was created for Christ (Col 1:16) and Christ is love (1 Jo 4:8). He wants to bring man back into His Rest by restoring man back to be able to be in His presence (Exd 33:14).

During the forty years of wandering in the wilderness before the law was given through Moses, the children of Israel were under pure grace. They were fed by God, just like Adam and Eve, with manna from heaven, until, just like Adam and Eve, they chose law (the tree of knowledge of good and evil) over grace (the tree of life). God was constantly with them during these forty years, as pillar of cloud in the day and column of fire at night, regardless of whether they are stationary or on the move.

Although the Israelites murmured, complained and rebel against God in numerous occasions during this period, none died for these sins. However, once the Israelites chose to have law (Exd 19:8) over grace (Exd 19:6), God immediately barred them from coming close to Him, except Moses and the priests (Exd 19:19).

Today, we are redeemed by Christ, fully restored to His righteousness and have the constant presence of God in us, for He will never leave us nor forsake us (Hbr 13:5), and He will constantly give us rest, AMEN.

Freedom...Jhn 8:32

Jhn 8:32

"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

"Freeeeedom!" - That's the famous war cry by William Wallace (acted by Mel Gibson) in the movie Braveheart, as he rally his troops in a battle that saw the Scots defeated the much superior English army. The desire for freedom had energized the ragtag army of Scot peasants. Afterwards Wallace was betrayed and captured, and before he died, he cried out again, "Freeeeedom!" for the last time.

When God created man, He created him in His likeness, and in His likeness man was free. God is love, and this divine love value freedom so much that He gave man the free choice to eat the fruit of knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:16), foreknowing that would mean sending of His only begotten Son to the cross!

When Adam and Eve ate the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, the Spirit of God left them, man lost their rest in God (Gen 3:23) and freedom!

Christ was sent to restore this rest and freedom. When we accepted Christ as our Lord and Saviour, we entered into His Rest and have perfect freedom in His Rest. He came to set us free (Jhn 8:32), for we were bruised (Luk 4:18) and bound (Isa 61:1), and to have life and have it more abundantly (Jhn 10:10). For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ (Jhn 1:17).

However, devil does not want us to be free, for a free and thus bold Christian is too powerful for him to handle! For this, many Christian continue to be bound by fear and condemnation under the domain of sin (Rom 6:14) due to mixed teaching of law and grace by the false brethren among us (Gal 2:4)! Peter was rebuked by God when he tried to put Moses (representing law) and Elijah (representing prophets) on par with Jesus (representing grace) (Mat 17:4-5).

Brethren, our beloved Christ has given us our inheritance of freedom, to soar high and freely like an eagle and not bow low like a chicken. Hear what Jesus says, "Arise, and do not be afraid (Mat 17:6)." FREEEEEDOM!