Week 56: Knowing God - His Grace

Both stared immensely towards the far horizon. They saw the dark clouds illuminated by the thunderous flashing lighting, resulting in patches of random cotton flashing over the entire sky. The wind was strong and spiraling, very much like it may evolved into a bigger scale of whirlwind.. While it lifted the fallen leaves off the ground, that very sight before them stirred urgency in their hearts. 

They knew the end (of this world) is near. One of them turned to his partner and said "Are you ready?" His partner looked at him in blank. For a moment, his partner was speechless. His mind started to flash back what he had accomplished over the years and all of the sudden, all of these things doesn't seem to matter anymore. If the rapture is happening that very day, then none of his accomplishment, achievements and acquisitions on earth, is going to follow him to heaven.

Obviously, the rapture did not take place. But it was a wake-up call. It happened in the 1990s. This is exactly what my boss experienced that day. He and his partner saw such dramatic weather and thought it was the end of the world. My boss challenged this question to his partner ;" Are you ready?" 

He never knew that his question had made such an impact on his friend that day. It was a "kairos" moment for his friend. He eventually gave up his secular career and become a full-time pastor till today.

Lately, I've been hearing this phrase "Are you ready?" I thought I should just slip in this story. Never know some one out there need to listen to this. My boss, in the spirit at that moment, spoke a word in season to his friend and led him into full time ministry. Likewise, I am just flowing in that spirit. I am not suggesting we should give up our career now and serve God full time. But, let's be mindful of the things that are eternal than the things that are temporal. Because at the end of the day, what we bring along with us from this world are those of eternity. Amen!

Last week, we mention that Jesus died on the cross due to heart ruptured. Medical experts cited that His heart had failed, the blood and water clogged in the area of His heart and as a result, when the Roman soldier pierced His side with a spear, blood and water flowed out.

John 19:33-34

33 But when they came to Jesus and they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.

34 But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came (flowed) out.

Why are we so concern about the every little details that happen on the cross? Derek Prince, a great man of God who specialized in demon-deliverance, explain in one of his sermon:

"One of the great basic truths of revelation is that on the cross there was divinely ordained exchange. I believe this is central to the entire gospel message. If we do not understand this much about what took place when Jesus died on the cross we really have no anchor for our faith, no stability, no solidity. On the cross by the fore ordained purpose of God there was an exchange, very, very simple in its basic nature. Jesus the sinless, obedient Son of God took upon him all the evil that was due by divine justice to all our rebellion and disobedience that in return through faith we might receive all the good that was due to the perfect obedience of Jesus. More simply, Jesus took all the evil that was due to us that we might receive all the good that was due to him. This was the exchange. You can work this out in every aspect of what took place on the cross.

It’s not my purpose to do that tonight but here is one main aspect of the exchange. Jesus was made a curse — what’s the opposite of a curse? Blessing. —that we might receive the blessing. There’s the exchange. The curse was due to our disobedience but Jesus as our representative and our substitute took the curse upon him that we might have what? The blessing. Jesus took the curse that we might receive the blessing. Say that. Jesus took the curse that we might receive the blessing. The evidence that Jesus was made a curse was that he hung upon the cross. "

For further reading of this sermon, go to:

http://www.derekprince.org/Articles/1000085700/DPM_US/Archive_of_UK/Keys/Gods_Abundance/The_Divine_Exchange.aspx

Clearly, at the cross of divine exchange,  Jesus took all our curses so that we can receive all the blessings from God. Amen!

So when we read Matthew 27:46 "My God, My God, why have You abandoned Me [leaving Me [l]helpless, forsaking and failing Me in My need]?", we know Jesus is taking our place... Because for the first time in the Bible, Jesus addressed His Father as "My God". No where else in the Bible did Jesus called His Father "My God"! So today in exchange, we shout "My Father, My Father, why have You so blessed me!" Hallelujah! Amen!

Following so far? Let's go one step further.... When judgement of our sins was exhausted in the body of Christ, Jesus shout "It is finished!" Do you know that Jesus actually quoted the first verse and the last verse of Psalms 22 in the Old Testament? 

Psalms 22:1

1 My God, my God, why have You forsaken me? Why are You so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?

Psalms 22:31

31 They shall come and shall declare His righteousness to a people yet to be born—that He has done it [that it is finished]!

At the cross, Jesus took on the pain, the suffering, the judgement, the curse, and at that very hour He quoted Psalms 22. Lets think for a moment and put ourselves in His shoe, with all the pain and punishment taken so far, would anyone quote the verses in the Bible? I doubt I would. I don't think I am composed enough to quote the Bible verses. The pain would have overwhelmed me! 

Yet, our Lord Jesus quoted Psalms 22.... What is the significance? Question: What come after the last verse of Psalms 22? Psalms 23! The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want..... Familiar?

What is Psalms 23 all about? If you read and digest the entire passage, you will realize this passage is the covenant of Grace! Jesus died on the cross so that He can bring forth His covenant of Grace! Hallelujah! Jesus took on the pain and sacrifice at the cross and He quoted Psalms 22, so that today we can confidently say that the Lord is my Shepherd!  The One who hang on the tree, took on all the judgement of our sins, paid for all of us the penalty of sins, He is our Shepherd! Hallelujah! 

When we remind ourselves in this manner, we are telling the devil to stay away from us. We are reminding him that he has already been defeated at the cross! The devils may around like a roaring lion, but he is not going to devour us,  who declare the Lord is our Shepherd!  Amen!

I am thankful on our recent trip to Paris. It was by the Grace of our Lord. For many years, I felt God prompting for me to go to Paris... But, I did not act upon it until this year because to me it didn't make much sense. I've been to Paris in 1994 and my impression then was I don't really like it. I would rather spend the money to go to some other places like Japan, Korea or even Israel.

Nevertheless, some time before making the decision to go Paris,  I received in my spirit that by going to Paris, God would want to commission me in sharing the Gospel of Grace. With the encouragement from my wife,  Shao Qing, we decided to go Paris by faith. 

 I've shared my story on this trip in the previous blog so I won't go into it. But, this is something I received from the Lord in this trip. Right underneath the Eiffel Tower, I saw a tag that indicates the year which this tower was  built. It was from 1834-1923. Didn't quite make much sense about it then but throughout the trip, we know we were blessed by His Grace. Everything was smooth and flow easily like a river.

Some time later after we return from the trip, while listening to a sermon, all of a sudden, I jumped out of the bed. 1923 is actually Psalms 23! Psalms is the 19th book in the Bible! It is the passage on the covenant of Grace! Hallelujah!

God is good! And the amazing thing is He gave me another confirmation about this trip through my dear friend, Mac! After returning back from the trip, I had coffee with Mac and found out that while we were away during  that period of time, he fasted for three days three nights and at the end of the fast, he kept seeing the word "Amazing Grace"! Right then, I knew in my heart it was a confirmation from God. Hallelujah!

Since then, I have decided to memorized and meditate on Psalm 23. I have made Brielle memorized as well and I would encourage you to do so. Once you memorized and start to meditate on it, you will be surprised how beautiful this passage is!

Ok, glad we manage to share this message this week. For the next few weeks, most likely we won't be doing any sharing. Just want to take some time off to consolidate before we move forwards to more sharing in the future.

I have actually compiled all the previous sharing into a blog website. 

http://gracegrace15.blogspot.sg/

Feel free to go through those sharing during this period of time. Still doing a bit of touch up here and there, but good to go. So, feel free to go to this blog website.

Grace and peace be with you!

Week 55: Knowing God - His Love (Part 6)

Good day!

Praise be to the name of Jesus. What a wonderful name! He came to this earth to set us free! Free from bondage, free from sickness, free from addictions, free from condemnation, guilt, lust, bitterness, fear, worries... Whatever darkness in our lives, He is there to shine with His light. Amen!

Two nights ago, I was watching the channel 8 TV series "Against the Tide" and at the ending of the show, Rui En was trying to re-enact the crime scene and a phrase at the end caught my attention.. It goes like this "You are in contact with darkness, darkness is in contact with you too. Belittle it and you will be engulfed by it"

Isn't it true? Since Adam's sin, forces of darkness has ruled this world. The world is out there to grab our attention in every way so that when we continue to dwell in the forces of darkness, we will be consumed! Remember the news we talked about the boy giving up his organ in exchange for the latest iphone! The power of lust of this world cannot be belittle, less we be consumed by it.

But be of good cheer, we as believer have the One who conquered death and He is on our side! Amen! Jesus said in John 8:12

“I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

Last week, we spoke about Mary Magdalene. She was the first one to see Jesus after His resurrection. When we look closely, we know that Mary's heart was all out for Jesus, yet she may not know everything about Him. Interestingly, Jesus chose to appear to her first.

Let's pause for a moment, assuming you are Jesus, You are resurrected, You are all-knowing God. Question: Who would you want to see when you first resurrected? Would you consider Mary whom knew little about you as your first choice of appearance?

In fact, according to the Bible, the disciples rushed to the tomb when Mary told them that the tomb was empty. Jesus could have chosen to reveal Himself to them since everyone were there, isn't it? But, no. Jesus did not.The Bible says Mary was heart-broken and she insisted to find His "body".

Interestingly, do you know that Jesus died of a broken-heart? Here's some findings of the explanation:

Dr. Stroud, in his book, tried to explain that the death of Christ resulted because His heart ruptured. He reasoned that the blood passed from the heart into the pericardium or caul of the heart where it collected into red clot (blood) and into the limpid serum (which he calls "water"). Therefore, after Jesus was dead, says this doctor, a spear was thrust into His side and out flowed a little blood and water which had collected around His heart So, it is reasoned, Jesus died of a broken heart!

James Thompson believed that Jesus did not die from exhaustion, the beatings or the 3 hours of crucifixion, but that he died from agony of mind producing rupture of the heart. His evidence comes from what happened when the Roman soldier pierced Christ’s left side. The spear released a sudden flow of blood and water (John 19:34). Not only does this prove that Jesus was already dead when pierced, but Thompson believes it is also evidence of cardiac rupture. Respected physiologist Samuel Houghton believed that only the combination of crucifixion and rupture of the heart could produce this result.

Week 54: Knowing God - His Love (Part 5)

Today, we celebrate the colour "blue" not because it is in fashion this season. It is because  the colour "blue" represent "Grace / Favor". When we look up to the sky, it is blue. But, at the same time, we are actually looking up to the One above. Amen! When the woman with the issue of blood for 12 years touched the hem of the garment of Jesus (Mat 9:20-22),  she was healed instantly!

The word "hem" actually refer to the tassels. In ancient Israel, men wore four-cornered outer tunics with these tassels, or tzitziyot, tied to the four corners. This outer garment became known as a tallit, and eventually evolved into the more formal prayer shawl. The interesting thing is these tassels are in blue! Why? It was an instruction from God to Moses in the Old Testament. This instruction is found in Numbers 15:37-41.

So, when the woman touched the blue tassel, she was healed! Therefore, blue is always associated with "Grace".

Matthew 9:20-22

20 And, behold, a woman, which was diseased with an issue of blood twelve years, came behind him ,and touched the hem of his garment:

21 For she said within herself, If I may but touch his garment, I shall be whole.

22 But Jesus turned him about, and when he saw her, he said, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made thee whole. And the woman was made whole from that hour.

Week 53: Knowing God - His Love (Part 4)

Good day, Mdm!

Last week, we talk about exercising God's love for us. We said that Apostle John was one disciple whom knew how to do that. In the Gospel of John, he wrote very often "the disciple whom Jesus loved". Notice that this phrase is only used in the Gospel of John and not in any other Gospel like Matthew, Mark nor Luke.

Why? John was exercising Jesus's love for him. Just to elaborate a little more on this by an example. Let say you love your kids and decided to bring all of them to Paris. And assuming your kids have a habit of writing diary. So Ryan wrote " My mom brought me to Paris....." Ethel wrote "My mom brought me to Paris.." And then Carrie wrote "My mom brought the daughter whom she loved to Paris.."

Notice the difference? But does that mean that you love Carrie more than Ryan and Ethel? No, you showed your love equally among them because you brought all of them to Paris! What Carrie did was she practice your love for her. She is conscious of your love for her. Likewise, for Apostle John. Jesus love everyone of His disciples. John chose to practice and be conscious of Jesus's love for him.

Love is a powerful thing. Often, we see in the movie a mother could lift-off a heavy object like car in order to save her daughter who was trapped... out of love.We want to be empowered by this love..The more we are conscious of God's love for us, the more we are empowered to love others, Amen!

Last week, we also mentioned that although Jesus, out of His own mouth said "You shall love God with all your heart, all your mind, all your soul..." We claimed that He doesn't really mean it. What He did was to put Law at its highest form so that we will know we can never love God the way He love us. Whenever we think of Him giving up His only Son for all of us, we know deep inside our hearts He truly love us. Amen!

Are we sure about that claim? Because even till today, there are many believers still trying to love God with all their hearts, all their mind, all their soul! And when something or challenge happened in their lives, they started to question where is God? Worst of all, they will cite that they love God whole-heartedly but yet they could not seem to see God helping in their situation. This is very dangerous thinking. This is self-righteous thinking and it is back to the Law again. They are expecting God to bless them because they have been putting all their might to love God. Dangerous.

Week 52: Knowing God - His Love (Part 3)

Last week, we see the story of Peter in the Bible. After spending 3 and half years with Jesus, Peter finally see the aspect of love from the Lord. And yet today, we say love is basic and law is deep and we got to go deep into the ten commandments. On the contrary, law is basic. The first time Peter met Jesus and saw His power to bring in the load sinking fishes, he was much aware of Jesus holiness. But, after 3 and half years with Jesus and failing big time, he did not run away from Jesus. Why? Because he was not looking at Jesus holiness, but was drawn to His love. Amen! And by doing so, he became a great vessel for the kingdom of God. Only when we can see and be touched the love of God, we can be empowered to do great things for His kingdom, Amen!

Peter in the Bible represent a certain type of believer in the Christianity today. He was loud, self righteous and always speak of his love for God. "Love God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind." This is what Jesus said, summarizing the totality of the law. But, that doesn't mean He want us to do that, because He know we can't. But, why does He mention then?  In Mat 24:34-38 we can see this phrase spoken by Jesus.