Devotional 040609

Dear brothers and sisters,
Good morning. It was good to be able to sleep in a little bit longer. Enough sleep is important for meditation and ministry. We thank God for giving us the opportunity to draw close to Him each day. But we want to make sure the spiritual receptivity of our brain is in good condition to interact with Him. Therefore, a balanced life is the prerequisite of effective Christian living and ministry.

"Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you’" (Hebrews 13:5). What line does my thought take? Does it turn to what God says or to what I fear? Am I learning to say not what God says, but to say something after I have heard what He says? He has said, I will never leave you, nor forsake you. So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.

"I will in no way forsake you." – He will not forsake me for all my sin and selfishness, stubbornness and disobedience. Have I really let God say to me that He will never fail me? If I have listened to this proclamation of God, then let me listen again.

"Never will I forsake you." Sometimes it is not difficulty that makes me think whether God will forsake me or not, but hard work. There is no difficult hill to climb, no vision given, nothing wonderful or beautiful, just the commonplace day in and day out - can I hear God's say-so in these things?

We have the idea that God is going to do some exceptional thing, that He is preparing and fitting us for some extraordinary thing by and bye, but as we go on in grace we find that God is glorifying Himself here and now, in the present minute. If we have God's say-so behind us, the most amazing strength comes, and we learn to sing in the ordinary days and ways.

The author of Hebrews was urging believers of the early church to stand firm in their faith and Christ-centered lifestyle. He urged them to “Keep on loving each other as brothers. Do not forget to entertain strangers… Remember those in prison as if you were their fellow prisoners, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering” (Hebrews 13:1-3). Moreover, he also admonished them to remain faithful to their marriage, “Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral” (v. 4), before he came to the passage we study today. It is definitely not easy to resist temptations in the first century as it is today. We are all human being and imperfect. We have no strength in our nature to resist temptation that is so appealing to our flesh. It is so common to hear stories of how sincere Christians failed in their marriage and moral conducts nowadays. As the judgment day of this world is quickly approaching, many will loss heart and give up their Christ-centered lifestyle as well as their compassion for needy people among them. They will say, “Forget it. I will never be perfect anyway. Why should I make myself conform to Christ-likeness? Why can’t I conform to the trend of this world and enjoy my ‘freedom’ to entertain my flesh instead?” You will fear the little voice of God saying to you, “I love you and I will not forsake you,” when you struggle with your flesh today. You are not alone. Talk to a trusted friend in Christ, and let us pray for one another in dealing with our temptation in this world.

Love you with the mind of Christ,
Lawrence

Devotional 030609

Dear brothers and sisters,
Good morning. Pray that your day is filled with the presence of God. Our Creator God speaks and works in His universe. He does not leave us alone in this planet earth and enjoy His vacation somewhere else. God chooses to dwell among us and cultivate history with us. Consciously or unconsciously we are God’s workmanship in fulfilling His purpose on earth. He wants us to understand His love and His plan for us, so that we can enjoy our partnership or friendship with Him, from now until forever.

"The LORD confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them” (Psalm 25:14). What is the sign of a friend? That he tells you secret Sorrows? No, that he tells you secret joys. Many will confide to you their secret sorrows, but the last mark of intimacy is to confide secret joys. Have we ever let God tell us any of His joys, or are we telling God our secrets so continually that we leave no room for Him to talk to us? At the beginning of our Christian life we are full of requests to God, then we find that God wants to get us into relationship with Himself, to get us in touch with His purposes. Are we so committed to Jesus Christ's idea of prayer - "Thy will be done" - that we catch the secrets of God? The things that make God dear to us are not so much His great big blessings as the tiny things, because they show His amazing intimacy with us; He knows every detail of our individual lives.

"…he makes his covenant known to them" At first we want the consciousness of being guided by God, then as we go on we live so much in the consciousness of God that we do not need to ask what His will is, because the thought of choosing any other will never occur to us. If we are saved and sanctified God guides us by our ordinary choices, and if we are going to choose what He does not want, He will check, and we must pay attention to. Whenever there is doubt, stop at once. Never reason it out and say - "I wonder why I shouldn't?" God instructs us in what we choose, that is, He guides our common sense, and we no longer hinder His Spirit by continually saying - "Now, Lord, what is Thy will?"

Sometimes when we questioned the will of God for us, we may not necessarily mean to follow. We question because we don’t want to obey. The will of God is not a myth that requires supernatural knowledge to understand. God makes it clear through His written word and His Holy Spirit within us. Jesus made it clear to us the role of Holy Spirit, “When he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you” (John 16:13-14). It is the promise of God that the Holy Spirit will come upon those who follow Christ. With the presence of the Holy Spirit, we should have no problem in understanding the Will of God for us.

Communication is the nature of God. John said, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). If God is Word, He is the expert of communication. God communicates to each other (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) eternally. There is no hidden agenda among them. And He intended to communicate or reveal to us who He is and what His will for us. His creation represents His thought. He communicates Himself to us through Nature. God wants us to know His secret of joy. He wants us to share His joy. Do you want to draw close to Him to become His trusted friend and share His joy?

Love you as good friend of God,
Lawrence

Devotional 020609

Dear brothers and sisters,
Good morning. I did not sleep well last night. It could either be my serious reading before bed or concern about my dental appointment in the morning. My mind was so active with different pieces of images flashing in and out. I wished I were meditating on the words of God in my dream instead. Just like the way our Lord encouraged Joshua, “Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night…” (Joshua 1:8). I wished my mind were active in reading the Words of God. In this way, I would be conscious of His presence even in my sleep, and my mind would do unceasing prayer in my dream. Right?

Who, then, is the man that fears the Lord? (Psalm 25:12) What are you haunted by? You will say - By nothing, but we are all haunted by something, generally by ourselves, or, if we are Christians, by our experience. The Psalmist says we are to be haunted by God. The abiding consciousness of the life is to be God, not thinking about Him. The whole of our life inside and out is to be absolutely haunted by the presence of God. A child's consciousness is so mother-haunted that although the child is not consciously thinking of its mother, yet when calamity arises, the relationship that abides is that of the mother. So we are to live and move and have our being in God, to look at everything in relation to God, because the abiding consciousness of God pushes itself to the front all the time.

If we are haunted by God, nothing else can get in, no cares, no tribulation, no anxieties. We see now why Our Lord so emphasized the sin of worry. How can we dare be so utterly unbelieving when God is round about us? To be haunted by God is to have an effective barricade against all the onslaughts of the enemy.

"His soul shall dwell at ease." In tribulation, misunderstanding, slander, in the midst of all these things, if our life is hidden with Christ in God, He will keep us at ease. We rob ourselves of the marvelous revelation of this abiding companionship of God. "God is our Refuge" - nothing can come through that shelter.

Indeed, we need to kick the habit of worry and fear. It is so human that our immediate respond to problem was either fear or worry. We seldom react by casting it to God as Paul suggested us to do, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil 4:6-7). Somehow we need to train our mind to react in the Biblical way. This is what spiritual discipline comes into picture. We can train our brain to handle stress or anxiety in a positive manner. Yes, we still need to encounter or solve our problems at work or at home. But we don’t need to consume so much energy to worry the uncontrollable future. Let our brain remind us that we are not God. But we do have the Holy Spirit stand by within us to guide us through our difficult times. Our attitude should put God in the highest priority of which He deserves in our lives. If not, we will suffer in our own consequence of trying to play God, though we said we believed in God.

Have mercy on us O Lord! We cast ourselves into our own fear and worry instead of into your hands. Help us to stay focus on You no matter how big or small our problem may be in life today. Amen.

Love you in Christ,Lawrence

Devotional 010609

Dear brothers and sisters,
Good morning. Thank God for a wonderful weekend to celebrate a seminary graduation and a commissioning ceremony of one of our seminarians to serve God in Macau. There were many tears of joy and thanksgiving in those events. Yes, our Lord will continue to call new workers into His harvest field. But how many will respond to His call? Our common response is, “I am not ready.” What if the Lord said, “you are ready,” will you accept His challenge? It does not depend on whether you think you are ready or not. It depends on Him. He is always able to make you His chosen workers if you allow Him to do so.

He asked me, "Son of man, can these bones live?" I said, "O Sovereign Lord, you alone know." Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones and say to them, 'Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign LORD says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord' " (Ezekiel 37:3). Can that sinner be turned into a saint? Can that twisted life be put right again? There is only one answer: "O Sovereign Lord, you alone know. I don't." Never trample in with religious common sense and say - "Oh, yes, with a little more Bible reading and devotion and prayer, I see how it can be done." This is our “self-help” religion.

It is much easier to do something than to trust in God; we mistake panic (I got to do something about it) for inspiration. That is why there are so few fellow workers with God and so many workers for Him. We would far rather work for God than believe in Him. Am I quite sure that God will do what I cannot do? The degree I despair of men depends on my realization of how much God has done for me. Is my experience giving me a wonderful realization of God's power and might that I can never despair of anyone I see? Have I had any spiritual work done in me by God at all? The degree of panic or obsession is the degree of the lack of personal spiritual experience.

"Behold, O my people, I am going to open your graves and bring you up from them" (Ezekiel 37:12b). When God wants to show you what human nature is like apart from Himself, He has to show it to you in your inner being. If the Spirit of God has given you a vision of what you are apart from the grace of God (and He only does it when His Spirit is at work), you know there is no criminal in the world, who is half so bad in actuality as you know yourself could be in possibility. Therefore, I cannot criticize others as though I am better than what they did. God has opened my “grave” and "I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out" (Rom 7:18). God's Spirit continually reveals what human nature is like apart from His grace.

Indeed, apart from Christ you can do nothing (John 15:5). The branches may think that they can bear fruits for the Vine. But in reality, all they did was to dwell in the vine, so that the nourishment and DNA of the vine will cause the branch to bear fruits. The Word of the Lord once again reminds us, “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me” (John 15:4). Don’t get panic as though you disappoint God if you fail to do this or that. Learn to quietly remain in Christ. Trust that God is in control. Our well being, security and identity depend on Him alone. He knows our weaknesses and limitations. We may want to bear fruits now. But if God wants us to wait, then we learn to wait and watch Him do His work through us. Of course, we don’t procrastinate when the Holy Spirit prompts us to do our work, just as Paul reminded the Thessalonians, “Do not put out the Spirit's fire” (1 Thess 5:19). If the branch truly remains in the vine, it will surrender completely to the vine to do whatever the vine wants to do through it. Therefore, don’t think you can do anything FOR God. Instead, ask yourself whether you remain or dwell in Christ or not.

Two ways I use to evaluate whether I dwell in Christ or not: 1) Do I submit to the Word of God as my ultimate standard of behavior and value judgment? Jesus said, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you…” (John 15:7). 2) Do I obey the Commandment of Christ in loving others as Christ loved me? Jesus said, “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love…My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you” (John 15:10, 12). These two questions represent the life of an “in and out” Christian: Internalize the word of God and express it out through loving relationship with one another. Let’s hold each other accountable to build up this kind of life each day.

Love you because Christ loved me,
Lawrence

Jackson's commissioning service

It was a joyous occassion to commission Jackson to serve in Macau as a minister. Our prayer will go with him as He continues to serve the Lord in that casino city of Asia. We believe God will use him to touch many people and bless the Cumberland Presbyterian Church where he will serve in Macau.

Janet Jackson Graduation

It was a joyous day to attend the graduation of Jackson and Janet at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary. To celebrate for their accomplishment and praising God for equipping them for His ministry are our blessings.

May God continue to use them as His channels of blessings to many people whom He places in their lives and ministry. As Jackson said in the graduation luncheon, it is only the beginning of their jouney in serving the the Lord. I am sure God will grant them strength and patience in shepherding His sheeps, and saving more souls for the Kingdom of God.

Devotional 270509

Dear brothers and sisters,
Good morning. We thank God for another beautiful day, which is a sign of God’s grace for our lives. This grace is a free gift from our Creator God. As we receive this free gift from above each day, we are reminded to live gracefully to one another in return. John said, “We love because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19). If we experience free gifts and blessings from God, we should learn to give ourselves gracefully to help others in return. Amen?

"I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high" (Luke 24:49). The disciples had to wait until the day of Pentecost not for their own preparation only; they had to wait until the Lord was glorified historically. As soon as He was glorified, what happened? "Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear" (Acts 2:33). The parenthesis in John 7:39, "For the Holy Spirit was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified" does not apply to us because the Holy Spirit has been given, the Lord is glorified; the waiting depends not on God's providence, but on our fitness or readiness.

The Holy Spirit's influence and power were at work before Pentecost, but He was not here. Immediately Our Lord was glorified in Ascension, the Holy Spirit came into this world, and He has been here ever since. We have to receive the revelation that He is here. The reception of the Holy Spirit is the maintained attitude of a believer. When we receive the Holy Spirit, we receive quickening life from the ascended Lord.

It is not the baptism of the Holy Spirit that changes men, but the power of the ascended Christ coming into men's lives by the Holy Spirit that changes them. We too often divorce what the New Testament never divorces. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is not an experience apart from Jesus Christ: it is the evidence of the ascended Christ.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit does not make you think of Time or Eternity, it is one amazing glorious NOW. "This is life eternal that they might know Him." Begin to know Him now, and finish never. Once we respond to the work of the Holy Spirit within us, we begin to know our Lord Jesus more each day. It is the role of the Holy Spirit, who reminds us the Word of God and shows us the Will of God.

A lot of time, we neglect the work of the Holy Spirit or even ignore His presence in our lives. We seldom pray to the Holy Spirit because of fear. We are afraid that we may connect to a wrong source of supernatural power. Therefore we try to tackle the evil forces by our own might. As a result we become helpless and hopeless. We even doubt whether God exists or cares. But in reality, we never live according to the Will of God as Paul pointed out in 1 Thessalonians 5:15-18 (the text we studied yesterday). And we seldom listen to the Holy Spirit. Paul continued to encourage us in verse 19-22, “Do not restrain the Holy Spirit; do not despise inspired messages. Put all things to the test: keep what is good and avoid every kind of evil.” By doing so, we walk by the Holy Spirit and experience God in an intimate way.

May the power of the Holy Spirit sustain you each day, and His presence will help you understand and obey the Will of our Father God.

Love you in Christ,

Lawrence