This message was shared as an offering exhortation on May 20.
"I take the train to work every morning. Often I will see young people giving out flyers at the monorail. This week alone, I encountered a young man and a young lady giving out fitness camp flyers and wellness marketing flyers at the Raja Chulan monorail.
My usual habit is to put my face down as though I had never seen them and shake my head as an indication that I was not interested. Then I will hasten my steps to show how much in a hurry I was.
However this week the Holy Spirit prompted me to stop a while to speak to them, ask some questions and then hand them a tract. To the young lady, I told her that I was going to give her something better than physical wellness which is spiritual wellness and she said thank you!
This week also I prayed hard about sharing the 4 spiritual laws with my consultant from Germany. I prayed for boldness as I would usually get cold feet due to the fear of rejection. Praise God, I managed to share with her almost the whole book. At the page where the 2 circles were, she shared that she was somewhere in between (she is an RC). However we prayed the sinner's prayer together at the page where the sinner's prayer was.
You many be saying to me "Ruth I am very busy. You don't know how busy I am. I don't have time to share Jesus with others".
Well I am no different from you. I work from dawn till dusk (sometimes due to the overwhelming work load) but I intentionally make it a point to look for opportunities to share the gospel with others. I realize that if I don't do it intentionally, I will not do it at all!
This year I wanted to share the gospel once a month but only managed it twice - once in Jan and once in May. However the other months I was busy tracting even when I was on holiday in Macau!
The young man in January who had prayed the sinner's prayer when I met him in a nursing home has now gone back to church (backslided). The young lady will be going back to Germany in July and I hope that she will join a protestant church when she return home.
God calls busy people like you and me.....
In fact, the disciples were very busy people indeed.
In fact when Peter, James and John were called they had toiled all night catching fish! Working overtime!
When Matthew was called, he was collecting tax at the tax booth. Luke was a physician. Philip was a tradesman. Paul was a tent-maker.
Yet when they were called, they willingly followed the Lord and served Him. Some continued to work to be self-supporting like Paul, some left everything to follow the Lord into full-time ministry.
God spoke to me about sowing a life when my husband decided to take his VSS and joined the kindergarten. I cannot imagine why he would want to leave his highly paid job for only a fraction of the pay. I was so stressed out by what he did - leaving the task of supporting the family to me (as though I did not have enough financial commitments as it is!)
It was then after a while of nagging, complaining and kicking up such a fuss that God spoke to me "It is good to sow your money but it is even better to sow a life".
Very often when I start feeling sore about this, the word of God will come to me again and again....by releasing my hubby into full time ministry, I was sowing a life....
Today as we come to the offering, let us make a conscious decision to sow our life as well as our offering. Let us pray....."
Wednesday, May 21, 2014
The Lord is near to all who call upon Him IN TRUTH - Psalm 145:18
Psalm 145:18 "The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth"
Non-Christians who genuinely call upon God
Can God be near to those who are not Christians? Will God answer the cry of those who are genuinely call upon Him?
The answer is YES. The story of Sadhu Sundar Singh is an example. As a 14 year old boy, he was such a staunch Sikh that he refused to read the New Testament which was used as a school textbook. He even burnt the NT in his zealous persecution of Christ.
Later when his mother died, he became very discouraged and depressed as he was very close to his mother.
So depressed was he that one night, he cried out in sincerity of heart (in truth). "God if you are real reveal Yourself to me. If not tonight I will throw myself on the tracks of an oncoming train and commit suicide as life has lost its meaning to me".
Immediately the Lord Jesus appeared to him in a brilliant light. He saw the nail scarred hands of the Lord and he knew then that Jesus was God! He gave up all his inheritance and left his home with only a Bible in his hand preaching the gospel wherever he went.
There was yet another testimony of a Pakistani lady who read the Bible and her own holy book. The more she read the Bible, the more she was drawn to Jesus who was revealed in scriptures! Her heart was genuinely seeking the truth. She wanted to know the truth but there was no one to reveal it to her.
So one night she prayed to the true God (whoever He is) and asked Him to reveal Himself to her. In answer to her prayers, the Lord appeared to her and asked her a question - "In which book do you find me real?". As it happened there were 2 books at her bedside, the Bible and her own holy book. She immediately knew the answer and became a Christian without anyone preaching to her!
She later wrote a book of how she came to Christ - "I dared to call Him Father" signifying the nearness and the closeness of her relationship with God. Pivotal to her faith in Christ is the fact that she dared to call God Father, something which was not allowed in her former faith.
3 Principles
There are 3 key principles here:
1. Nearness of God
2. Calling upon God
3. Calling upon God in truth
Nearness of God
The word "near" is "qarowb" which means being near to someone. It signifies a personal relationship or kinship. Thus for God to be near to us, we need to develop our relationship with Him
Calling upon God
To call or to "qara" is to call, cry out, proclaim or cry for help.
Calling upon God in truth
Truth is "erneth" meaning "firmness, faithfulness, sureness, reliability, stability, continuance".
Truth as a stand-alone can be:
Non-Christians who genuinely call upon God
Can God be near to those who are not Christians? Will God answer the cry of those who are genuinely call upon Him?
The answer is YES. The story of Sadhu Sundar Singh is an example. As a 14 year old boy, he was such a staunch Sikh that he refused to read the New Testament which was used as a school textbook. He even burnt the NT in his zealous persecution of Christ.
Later when his mother died, he became very discouraged and depressed as he was very close to his mother.
So depressed was he that one night, he cried out in sincerity of heart (in truth). "God if you are real reveal Yourself to me. If not tonight I will throw myself on the tracks of an oncoming train and commit suicide as life has lost its meaning to me".
Immediately the Lord Jesus appeared to him in a brilliant light. He saw the nail scarred hands of the Lord and he knew then that Jesus was God! He gave up all his inheritance and left his home with only a Bible in his hand preaching the gospel wherever he went.
There was yet another testimony of a Pakistani lady who read the Bible and her own holy book. The more she read the Bible, the more she was drawn to Jesus who was revealed in scriptures! Her heart was genuinely seeking the truth. She wanted to know the truth but there was no one to reveal it to her.
So one night she prayed to the true God (whoever He is) and asked Him to reveal Himself to her. In answer to her prayers, the Lord appeared to her and asked her a question - "In which book do you find me real?". As it happened there were 2 books at her bedside, the Bible and her own holy book. She immediately knew the answer and became a Christian without anyone preaching to her!
She later wrote a book of how she came to Christ - "I dared to call Him Father" signifying the nearness and the closeness of her relationship with God. Pivotal to her faith in Christ is the fact that she dared to call God Father, something which was not allowed in her former faith.
3 Principles
There are 3 key principles here:
1. Nearness of God
2. Calling upon God
3. Calling upon God in truth
Nearness of God
The word "near" is "qarowb" which means being near to someone. It signifies a personal relationship or kinship. Thus for God to be near to us, we need to develop our relationship with Him
Calling upon God
To call or to "qara" is to call, cry out, proclaim or cry for help.
Calling upon God in truth
Truth is "erneth" meaning "firmness, faithfulness, sureness, reliability, stability, continuance".
Truth as a stand-alone can be:
- spoken truth
- testimony, judgment
- divine instruction
- truth as a body of ethical and religious knowledge
- true doctrine
Truth in a person will make a person of probity, uprightness and integrity of mind.
What is truth?
The truth is the word of God.
John 17:17 "Sanctify them by your word. Your word is truth"
Psalm 119:160 "The entirety of your word is truth. Your righteous judgments endure forever"
The Guide of all truth
The truth is the word of God.
John 17:17 "Sanctify them by your word. Your word is truth"
Psalm 119:160 "The entirety of your word is truth. Your righteous judgments endure forever"
The Guide of all truth
I am comforted by this, that the Holy Spirit in me will lead me into all truth. The condition for me to be guided into all truth is to read God's word and keep it in my heart. The more I obey God and keep His commandments, the more I will know the TRUTH!
What is the truth? The truth is the word of God! Who will guide us into all truth? The Holy Spirit! The salvation of Sadhu Sundar Singh and the Pakistani lady is the work of the Holy Spirit.
What is the truth? The truth is the word of God! Who will guide us into all truth? The Holy Spirit! The salvation of Sadhu Sundar Singh and the Pakistani lady is the work of the Holy Spirit.
John 16:13 “However, when
He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”
1 John 3:14
“[The Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Error ] Now he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us.”
God desires truth
1. In our worship
John 4:24 “God is Spirit, and those
who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth"
2. In our inward parts
Psalm 51:6 "Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, And in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom"
3. In His leaders
Exodus 18:21 "Moreover you shall select from all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens."
4. In our service and commitment
Joshua 24:14 “Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord!"
5. In our walk with Him
1 Kings 2:4 "that the Lord may fulfill His word which He spoke concerning me, saying, ‘If your sons take heed to their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul,’ He said, ‘you shall not lack a man on the throne of Israel.’
Psalm 86:11 "Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; Unite my heart to fear Your name."
6. In our speech
Psalm 15:2 "He who walks uprightly, And works righteousness, And speaks the truth in his heart"
Proverbs 8:7 "For my mouth will speak truth; Wickedness is an abomination to my lips."
7. In our dealings with others
Proverbs 12:22 "Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, But those who deal truthfully are His delight"
8. In our sanctification
John 17: 17 "Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth"
9. In spiritual warfare
Eph 6:14 "Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness"
10. In our study of the word of God
2 Tim 2:15 "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."
Sunday, May 11, 2014
RIGHTEOUS IN ALL HIS WAYS & GRACIOUS IN ALL HIS WORKS - KEY WORDS IN PSALM 145:17
Psalm 145:17 "The Lord is righteous in all His ways, gracious in all His works"
Perhaps this verse is a little inaccurate in the NKJV as the word "gracious" is actually "holy" in the KJV.
This verse and the verses thereafter describes the character of the Lord.
Just like the Psalmist says in Ps 27:4, I love to behold the beauty of the Lord and to enquire in His temple. I believe that I am doing this ONE thing that God wants me to seek after i.e. by dwelling in His presence daily (as best as I can) and admiring His beauty by studying and memorizing Psalms 145. Why the Psalms? I choose it because it is poetic and it helps me in my prayers!
In order to strengthen my Bible memory I choose to study verse by verse and to write lines! Yes, this verse would have been written up to 10 times in my diary before this blog is written!
Being righteous and being holy or gracious is a beauty of the Lord's character which is God's and God alone. Man cannot be truly righteous or holy apart from God. The monk or sadhu may think he is holy by shaving his head, eating vegetables, growing long hair and beard, avoiding swatting a fly or mosquito or staying in a cave, or walking on fire or poking himself in the body but sadly he is not - the fact is there is no righteousness and holiness without God in our lives!
When I think that I can only be righteous in Christ, I feel a big relief. Thank God for Jesus for there is no righteousness without His work on the Cross. Thank God that my righteousness is in Christ and Christ alone and not in what I do!
Some key words:
1. "The Lord" - Jehovah is the Hebrew word which means THE EXISTING ONE.
2. "...righteous..." - the word "tsaddiyq" appears many times in the Bible. It covers the following areas:
- just, righteous (of government). We can pray for governments to be "tsaddiyq"
- just, right (of one's cause). We can pray for God to work things out for us in our office when we are wrongly accused or shamed.
- just, righteous (conduct and character). We can be righteous in our treatment of others.
- just, righteous (as vindicated or justified by God). We can trust God to justify and vindicate us when blamed for things we did not do.
I realized one thing - whenever I am ill treated by my boss, God will always work out His righteousness on my behalf. He will always prove me right if I am right.
For example recently, I had a case once where I wrote a memo to recommend to drop a case. She asked me to change the recommendation to a totally different recommendation from mine. She wanted the case pursued. In the end the bank lost the case and had to spend hundreds of thousands in legal fees. Wisdom is justified in her children. When I put on the wisdom of God, I will surely be "tsaddiyq"-ed by God!
To this day I keep the memo which I had prepared earlier in the file to remind myself that my boss is not perfect, God is. My boss can make mistakes, God cannot.
The fact is that every morning I will spend up to 30 minutes or more just praying in the Spirit. It is in the quiet morning hours that God will show me how to handle the most difficult of my work assignments. In fact, God spoke to me to go even earlier to work and to commit one hour of praying in the Spirit to Him! 30 minutes is just not enough for Him and for me!
One sister shared on Saturday that God spoke to her during corporate prayer to go into extended hours of prayer!
3. "......in all His ways....." - interestingly the word "way" means "derek" in Hebrew a popular English name. It refers to:
- a road
- a distance
- a journey
- a manner
- a direction
- course of life (figurative)
- character (figurative)
4. "...holy...." - this word is "chciyd" in Hebrew meaning kind, faithful, godly, holy one, saint, pious, merciful. The NKJV translates it as gracious.
5 "...works..." - meaning "ma'aseh" a deed, thing done, act of deliverance or judgment which is a work of God.
I am comforted. When going through trials in the office, I have this assurance that God will vindicate me and bring me out of trouble as long as I wait upon Him to work things out for me.
Perhaps this verse is a little inaccurate in the NKJV as the word "gracious" is actually "holy" in the KJV.
This verse and the verses thereafter describes the character of the Lord.
Just like the Psalmist says in Ps 27:4, I love to behold the beauty of the Lord and to enquire in His temple. I believe that I am doing this ONE thing that God wants me to seek after i.e. by dwelling in His presence daily (as best as I can) and admiring His beauty by studying and memorizing Psalms 145. Why the Psalms? I choose it because it is poetic and it helps me in my prayers!
In order to strengthen my Bible memory I choose to study verse by verse and to write lines! Yes, this verse would have been written up to 10 times in my diary before this blog is written!
Being righteous and being holy or gracious is a beauty of the Lord's character which is God's and God alone. Man cannot be truly righteous or holy apart from God. The monk or sadhu may think he is holy by shaving his head, eating vegetables, growing long hair and beard, avoiding swatting a fly or mosquito or staying in a cave, or walking on fire or poking himself in the body but sadly he is not - the fact is there is no righteousness and holiness without God in our lives!
When I think that I can only be righteous in Christ, I feel a big relief. Thank God for Jesus for there is no righteousness without His work on the Cross. Thank God that my righteousness is in Christ and Christ alone and not in what I do!
Some key words:
1. "The Lord" - Jehovah is the Hebrew word which means THE EXISTING ONE.
2. "...righteous..." - the word "tsaddiyq" appears many times in the Bible. It covers the following areas:
- just, righteous (of government). We can pray for governments to be "tsaddiyq"
- just, right (of one's cause). We can pray for God to work things out for us in our office when we are wrongly accused or shamed.
- just, righteous (conduct and character). We can be righteous in our treatment of others.
- just, righteous (as vindicated or justified by God). We can trust God to justify and vindicate us when blamed for things we did not do.
I realized one thing - whenever I am ill treated by my boss, God will always work out His righteousness on my behalf. He will always prove me right if I am right.
For example recently, I had a case once where I wrote a memo to recommend to drop a case. She asked me to change the recommendation to a totally different recommendation from mine. She wanted the case pursued. In the end the bank lost the case and had to spend hundreds of thousands in legal fees. Wisdom is justified in her children. When I put on the wisdom of God, I will surely be "tsaddiyq"-ed by God!
To this day I keep the memo which I had prepared earlier in the file to remind myself that my boss is not perfect, God is. My boss can make mistakes, God cannot.
The fact is that every morning I will spend up to 30 minutes or more just praying in the Spirit. It is in the quiet morning hours that God will show me how to handle the most difficult of my work assignments. In fact, God spoke to me to go even earlier to work and to commit one hour of praying in the Spirit to Him! 30 minutes is just not enough for Him and for me!
One sister shared on Saturday that God spoke to her during corporate prayer to go into extended hours of prayer!
3. "......in all His ways....." - interestingly the word "way" means "derek" in Hebrew a popular English name. It refers to:
- a road
- a distance
- a journey
- a manner
- a direction
- course of life (figurative)
- character (figurative)
4. "...holy...." - this word is "chciyd" in Hebrew meaning kind, faithful, godly, holy one, saint, pious, merciful. The NKJV translates it as gracious.
5 "...works..." - meaning "ma'aseh" a deed, thing done, act of deliverance or judgment which is a work of God.
I am comforted. When going through trials in the office, I have this assurance that God will vindicate me and bring me out of trouble as long as I wait upon Him to work things out for me.
GOD OPENS HIS HAND AND SATISFY THE DESIRE OF EVERY LIVING THING - KEY WORDS IN PSALM 145:16
Psalm 145:16 "The Lord opens His hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing"
How we need God to open His hands to us!
This verse not only assures us that God opens His hands to us but also every living thing!
Every living thing created by God
It is interesting to note that "every living thing" here does not just refer to men and women but also refers to green vegetables that breathe through its pores, running water that carries living things such as fishes and also refers to spring-time which is a time for "living things" to blossom, bloom and thrive.
The Hebrew word is "chay" which carries a image of life, moving things and breathing things created by God.
God opens His hand to every living thing created by Him
It is also interesting to note that when the Lord opens His hand, there is an image of freeing something, loosening something and throwing open something! The word "pathach" refers to something being released or set free!
When the hand of God is opened, all our desires will be satisfied
The hand of God is "yad" the Hebrew word for the power and strength of God.
I did not know that the creation of God that I regard as dead objects are actually living and alive. Plants and vegetation breathe and have "desires". Animals, birds and crawling things also have "desires". Though their desires are for food and sustenance, these are still valid desires.
In fact one of their desires would be to multiply because this is God's command to them when they were created.
"Satisfy" - "saba" meaning sated, fulfilled, enriched, surfeited, fill, full, plenty. Animals, birds, fishes, vegetation - God will provide them sunlight, rain, soil, fertilizers, food for them to grow and multiply.
Man is also not left out. Man has spiritual and physical desires. This Psalm gives me the assurance that all my spiritual and physical desires will be met by God at the right timing and in due season.
This Psalm also assures me that my spiritual hunger & desire for God will be met when I seek Him and wait upon Him faithfully!
What are my physical and spiritual desires now?
Physical - complete healing of my knees and the provision to support my mother financially as I consider going full time in the service of the Lord.
Spiritual - the setting up of the Ampang House of Prayer specifically dedicated to praying for Ampang and revival in HGC - HIS GLORIOUS CHURCH!
How we need God to open His hands to us!
This verse not only assures us that God opens His hands to us but also every living thing!
Every living thing created by God
It is interesting to note that "every living thing" here does not just refer to men and women but also refers to green vegetables that breathe through its pores, running water that carries living things such as fishes and also refers to spring-time which is a time for "living things" to blossom, bloom and thrive.
The Hebrew word is "chay" which carries a image of life, moving things and breathing things created by God.
God opens His hand to every living thing created by Him
It is also interesting to note that when the Lord opens His hand, there is an image of freeing something, loosening something and throwing open something! The word "pathach" refers to something being released or set free!
When the hand of God is opened, all our desires will be satisfied
The hand of God is "yad" the Hebrew word for the power and strength of God.
I did not know that the creation of God that I regard as dead objects are actually living and alive. Plants and vegetation breathe and have "desires". Animals, birds and crawling things also have "desires". Though their desires are for food and sustenance, these are still valid desires.
In fact one of their desires would be to multiply because this is God's command to them when they were created.
"Satisfy" - "saba" meaning sated, fulfilled, enriched, surfeited, fill, full, plenty. Animals, birds, fishes, vegetation - God will provide them sunlight, rain, soil, fertilizers, food for them to grow and multiply.
Man is also not left out. Man has spiritual and physical desires. This Psalm gives me the assurance that all my spiritual and physical desires will be met by God at the right timing and in due season.
This Psalm also assures me that my spiritual hunger & desire for God will be met when I seek Him and wait upon Him faithfully!
What are my physical and spiritual desires now?
Physical - complete healing of my knees and the provision to support my mother financially as I consider going full time in the service of the Lord.
Spiritual - the setting up of the Ampang House of Prayer specifically dedicated to praying for Ampang and revival in HGC - HIS GLORIOUS CHURCH!
THE EYES OF ALL LOOK TO YOU AND YOU GIVE THEM FOOD IN SEASON - KEY WORDS IN PSALM 145:14
Psalm 145:15 "The eyes of all look expectantly to You, and You give them their food in due season"
The verse above is very special as it continues the theme of a gracious and loving God toward not just man but also all of His creation. If the previous verse talks about God upholding man, this verse assures us that God provides for His creation.
God creates and He will also provide for those He created.
--------------------------------------------
Key words in Psalm 145:14
1. "eyes of all" - "aiyin" meaning not just the physical eyes but the spiritual and mental faculties of men. It also speaks of a spring or a fountain bubbling forth.
2. "look expectantly to you" - "sabar" from which the Malay word
"sabar" is derived meaning being patient. To look expectantly to God is to wait patiently upon God.
4. "give them food" - speaks of the physical and spiritual provision that gives us the spiritual strength as we go through the seasons of our lives be it good times or bad times.
3. "due season" - "eth" meaning "time, experiences, fortunes, occasion, occurrence". There is a timing to God's provision and help.
Conclusion - I can rejoice because even during bad times, God will provide me the spiritual sustenance. Though it may be delayed, my help will surely come!
The verse above is very special as it continues the theme of a gracious and loving God toward not just man but also all of His creation. If the previous verse talks about God upholding man, this verse assures us that God provides for His creation.
God creates and He will also provide for those He created.
--------------------------------------------
Key words in Psalm 145:14
1. "eyes of all" - "aiyin" meaning not just the physical eyes but the spiritual and mental faculties of men. It also speaks of a spring or a fountain bubbling forth.
2. "look expectantly to you" - "sabar" from which the Malay word
"sabar" is derived meaning being patient. To look expectantly to God is to wait patiently upon God.
4. "give them food" - speaks of the physical and spiritual provision that gives us the spiritual strength as we go through the seasons of our lives be it good times or bad times.
3. "due season" - "eth" meaning "time, experiences, fortunes, occasion, occurrence". There is a timing to God's provision and help.
Conclusion - I can rejoice because even during bad times, God will provide me the spiritual sustenance. Though it may be delayed, my help will surely come!
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