Dear...
'Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose..'
Acts 16:26
This morning, a journalist wrote of his disgust with religious people who seem pretty callous to ascribe to the victims of disasters like the present Japan earthquake, their present woes as due punishment from God for their sinfulness.
An atheist with an inclination to an alternate lifestyle I surmise, but that is irrelevant, for his comments does have a ring of truth, much as one might not be sure of his real intent. As Christians, are we to quick to judge, committing the same folly as good friends of Job, when they admonished him for bringing his present woes upon himself by his sins.
We live in a fallen world, a world that since Adam's days have chosen to move away from the will of God. Much as God is Sovereign, it is the devil, the prince of the air that rules our present world, because we have chosen to let him. And so, would it be fair to ascribe blame to God when troubles befall us?
At this juncture, rather than be at risk of getting oneself into a quagmire of theological argument which is better served by those who are of better Biblical scholastic abilities, let me instead point you away from the blame game to the fact that good will come out of one's troubles, if we allow the Spirit of God to minister to our very being.
'The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself! We are all here!"
Acts 16:27
The people of Japan today much be feeling increasingly distraught and ostracized, for who will not, to be not just shaken and stirred by a massive earthquake, but floored by the merciless tsunami and if that was not suffice, to now be at risk from the unseen but evil forces emanating from the monster of their own creation, the nuclear reactors.
For many of us who take a deeper interest in Japan beyond the food, the hot springs and the cherry blossoms, will know that Japan is indeed a very hard ground spiritually, for one to plant the gospel of salvation. Is it because Shintoism and Buddhism, the two mainstream religions for many Japanese are very much ingrained into their psyche and lifestyle, silos that are as thick and supposedly impregnable as that of the steel casing enclosing the nuclear rods?
'The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?' They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved - you and your household."
Acts 16:29-31
God is love, and love shown to those who are in their moment of need speaks with greater clarity the gospel of salvation than mere words can. And if you were in Japan today, would you follow your natural instincts and man's wisdom of self survival and flee or would you take time to thank God for His protection and to understand His will for you which could include remaining in Japan, even as He brings about the increase in this once hard ground?
It is like the forked road that many of us encountered back in the days of SARS. Do we skip church to avoid the contagion or do we stand firm and fear not?
The answer must come from God, the desire to follow Him must come from us. And like my dear brother and Pastor shared this morning in our man's prayer meeting, we are in times of radicalism, where decisions and actions we take as followers of our Lord Jesus Christ, must no longer be based on our finite understanding and selfish needs, but wherever God leads us.
And it is not about hatred, but about love for God and people He placed in our lives.
'For the Lord will not cast off forever. But though He cause grief, yet will He have compassion according to the multitude of His mercies. For He doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men.'
Lamentations 3:31-33
Job was a man after God's heart. Yet, the Lord allowed the devil to test him by subjecting him to extremities, short of taking his life. Job had every good reason to be angry with God, but He finally understood and repented with the acknowledgment that God is Sovereign and who are we to understand nor question His ways. Cliche it might seem to many, but this yielding to God is a pre-requisite for only then will we be willing to stay in His presence and not bereft ourselves of experiencing His grace and witnessing His wonderful ways, as He will surely bring the willing out of the fire of refinement.
And indeed God is a compassionate God, He knows our limits, much as He will allow us to go through the fire of refinement, but for our good.
'...If the dead do not rise. Let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die!'
1 Corinthians 15:32
Much as most of us find it difficult to fathom the seeming loss of "innocent" lives, just like we will be equally ambivalent about the need for us to go through troubles, especially when we truly believe that we have been desirous of staying faithful to the will of God, like Job, like Asaph(see Psalm 73:17) and countless men of faith, His Spirit will soon sanctify our very being, and much as our natural man might still not fully comprehend the plans of God, it matters not, for our spirit will see the truth of His ways and His grace is indeed suffice for the day, much as the day is evil enough.
'All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes. But the Lord weighs the spirits. Commit your works to the Lord. And your thoughts will be established..'
Proverbs 16:2-3
God never promises us no storms in our lives, but He guarantees us eternity in His presence, if we are willing. And His ways while never our ways is the only way.
'For thus saith the Lord; How much more when I send My four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast? Yet behold, therein shall be left a remnant that shall be brought forth, both sons and daughters, behold, they shall come forth unto you, and ye shall see their way and their doings, and ye shall be comforted concerning the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, even concerning all that I have brought upon it.'
Ezekiel 14:21-23
God Blesses
Eng Hieang
(28th Mar 2011)
Carnal vs Spiritual
As is good practice, much as I have completed this sharing, I have learned to let it simmer for a day or two, for the Lord to fine tune it. And just yesterday morning, our good Lord tested me on a decision, and true to my carnal self, I failed. We do what we should not do, and do not do what we should do. And indeed, the demons of fear, anger, pride, impatience, lusts and self interests are always waiting to pounce on our inclination to sin, based on our own understanding.
In Exodus 15:26 God promised us no diseases if we listen and do what is right in His eyes. Yet many of us still disobey and allow the Egypt of our pre-Christian days to continue to grip and take root in our lives. We continue to let ourselves be in bondage to our fears, pride, anger and all the negatives that run contrary to the fruits of the Spirit.
This morning, my first reaction was carnal, and I almost re-entered the Egypt of my past, but time with God all these years have imbued in my spirit, the correction of the Holy Spirit and indeed all glory to God for pulling me back from sin and like the Israelites of Moses's time, into "Elim, where there were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, and they camped there near the water.'(Exodus 15:27)
We often look to God for healing for our woes. And if we are truly repentant, God will heal us spiritually to be made ready for eternity, much as He might not heal our bodily shell for the temporal world. But if we are just cognizance of His will and am willing to obey, we could save ourselves much grief and even the need to have the diseases of Egypt upon us.
Of course, there are times that God will let us go through difficult circumstances in our blessed lives, but it is for our refinement, and much as our prayer will be like our Lord Jesus Christ who ask God to, if possible take him away from his impending cruxification, our prayers must be even more like that of Christ who willingly let go and let God, if that is His will.
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