An Eye For An Eye Makes The Whole World Blind

12/3/16

S: Romans 12:14-21

¹⁴Bless those who persecute you; bless, and don’t curse. ¹⁵Rejoice with those who rejoice. Weep with those who weep. ¹⁶Be of the same mind one toward another. Don’t set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Don’t be wise in your own conceits. ¹⁷Repay no one evil for evil. Respect what is honorable in the sight of all men. ¹⁸If it is possible, as much as it is up to you, be at peace with all men. ¹⁹Don’t seek revenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to God’s wrath. For it is written, “Vengeance belongs to me; I will repay, says the Lord.” ²⁰Therefore

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him.
If he is thirsty, give him a drink;
for in doing so, you will heap coals of fire on his head.”

²¹Don’t be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

O: Mohandas "Mahatma" Gandhi once said, "An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind." Although he wasn't a Christian, he really caught the sentiment of this scriptural principle.

It's a natural for humans to want to take revenge, but this tends to end up with a cycle of violence. Generational feuds like the famous McCoys v.s. Hatfields, the Palestinians v.s. the Israelis, the Tutsis v.s. Hutus, etc. cause much misery and destruction.

Jesus told us to "turn the other cheek" and sometimes people protest, "But we have to protect ourselves." Yes, but to be consumed by vengeance will only bring destruction.

A: It's hard to implement, as it goes against our natural psychology, but God does want the best for us. What a testimony of the families of martyrs who forgave the killers, e.g. the Egyptian Christians who were martyred by Daesh.

In many cases, Christian forgiveness shown led the killers to the Lord. e.g. Nate Saint, Jim Elliot, Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, and Peter Fleming's martyrdom and the subsequent forgiveness and witness of their families led the Huaorani "Auca" to Christ, and the martyrdom of an Assamese Christian family led their tribe to the Lord, and is memorialized in the song I Have Decided To Follow Jesus.

Indeed, as church leader Tertullian wrote in the second century, "the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church".

P: Father, it's hard to forgive when we've been wronged, so we ask for Your supernatural strength to do it. In Jesus' name, amen.

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Note: this is using the SOAP method. For more information, see this page (not written by me.)

Sin & Restitution

20/2/2016

S: Leviticus 4:27-28 Now if anyone of the common people sins unintentionally in doing any of the things which the Lord has commanded not to be done, and becomes guilty, if his sin which he has committed is made known to him, then he shall bring for his offering a goat, a female without defect, for his sin which he has committed.

Leviticus 4:31 Then he shall remove all its fat, just as the fat was removed from the sacrifice of peace offerings; and the priest shall offer it up in smoke on the altar for a soothing aroma to the Lord. Thus the priest shall make atonement for him, and he will be forgiven.

Leviticus 6:4-5 then it shall be, when he sins and becomes guilty, that he shall restore what he took by robbery or what he got by extortion, or the deposit which was entrusted to him or the lost thing which he found, or anything about which he swore falsely; he shall make restitution for it in full and add to it one-fifth more. He shall give it to the one to whom it belongs on the day he presents his guilt offering.

O: This is in the Old Testament Law, which we are no longer under. However, the principle remains:

If we do something wrong, even if it's unintentional, it's still wrong. However, don't despair, forgiveness is available. And if the wrong is something we have done to someone that has caused them loss, we should try to make restitution. (I recognize that some losses are impossible to make restitution for.)

My daughter recently did something wrong unintentionally and was worried about it, but I reassured her that she could ask God for forgiveness and atonement has been paid for by Jesus. In the Old Testament, they had to sacrifice some animal, but Jesus has been our eternal sacrifice for all our sins. So we need to confess & repent, but after that, we should not wallow in our guilt, for the price has already been paid for.

A: When we sin, even unintentionally, and we realize it, we need to repent and receive God's grace. If the sin hurt someone else, if it is possible, we should try to make restitution.

P: Father, thank You for paying for our sins on the cross, making grace available to us. Help us to keep from sin. Remind me when I am tempted. In Jesus' name, amen.

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Note: this is using the SOAP method. For more information, see this page (not written by me.)

It's a relationship, not magic

23/1/16

S: Acts 19:11-18 God was performing extraordinary miracles by Paul’s hands, so that when even handkerchiefs or aprons that had touched his body were brought to the sick, their diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them. But some itinerant Jewish exorcists tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were possessed by evil spirits, saying, “I sternly warn you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.” (Now seven sons of a man named Sceva, a Jewish high priest, were doing this.) But the evil spirit replied to them, “I know about Jesus and I am acquainted with Paul, but who are you?” Then the man who was possessed by the evil spirit jumped on them and beat them all into submission. He prevailed against them so that they fled from that house naked and wounded. This became known to all who lived in Ephesus, both Jews and Greeks; fear came over them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was praised. Many of those who had believed came forward, confessing and making their deeds known.

O: In western literature, especially older works, we see things of Christ being held up to have magical power -- e.g. vampires cannot stand the cross, holy water, etc.

Even today, we see sometimes people invoke things of Christ for magical power, e.g. "Be sure to say grace before a meal, especially when travelling in countries where the food might not be clean, to protect yourself from indigestion."

The seven sons of Sceva tried to use Jesus' name as magical incantation to drive out evil spirits, but clearly it did not work.

God wants us to have a relationship with Him, not to use His name as a magical incantation. When Jesus said, "And I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son" (John 14:13), He wasn't telling us a magical formula.

In any case, His name wasn't even "Jesus" -- the way we pronounce it in English is so far removed from the way He would have said His name, which is something closer to "Yeshua".

So, there is nothing magical about the sound "Jesus" -- in spite of what the old hymn "Jesus, what a wonderful name" might imply. It's who is behind that name that is important.

A: So, we must cultivate our relationship with Him, or as John 15:4 puts it, "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can you, except you abide in me."

I, too, struggle with this as the daily responsibilities of life crowd in. But we need to make time daily to cultivate our relationship with Christ.

P: Father, as I juggle so many things daily, remind me to abide in You. In Jesus' name, amen.

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Note: this is using the SOAP method. For more information, see this page (not written by me.)

Learn the lessons of the past

9/1/2016

S: Daniel 5:18-31 As for you, O king, the most high God bestowed on your father Nebuchadnezzar a kingdom, greatness, honor, and majesty. Due to the greatness that he bestowed on him, all peoples, nations, and language groups were trembling with fear before him. He killed whom he wished, he spared whom he wished, he exalted whom he wished, and he brought low whom he wished. And when his mind became arrogant and his spirit filled with pride, he was deposed from his royal throne and his honor was removed from him. He was driven from human society, his mind was changed to that of an animal, he lived with the wild donkeys, he was fed grass like oxen, and his body became damp with the dew of the sky, until he came to understand that the most high God rules over human kingdoms, and he appoints over them whomever he wishes.

“But you, his son Belshazzar, have not humbled yourself,although you knew all this. Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. You brought before you the vessels from his temple, and you and your nobles, together with your wives and concubines, drank wine from them. You praised the gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone – gods that cannot see or hear or comprehend! But you have not glorified the God who has in his control your very breath and all your ways! Therefore the palm of a hand was sent from him, and this writing was inscribed.

“This is the writing that was inscribed: mene, mene, teqel, and pharsin. 26 This is the interpretation of the words: As for mene – God has numbered your kingdom’s days and brought it to an end. As for teqel – you are weighed on the balances and found to be lacking. As for peres – your kingdom is divided and given over to the Medes and Persians.”

Then, on Belshazzar’s orders, Daniel was clothed in purple, a golden collar was placed around his neck, and he was proclaimed third ruler in the kingdom. And in that very night Belshazzar, the Babylonian king, was killed. So Darius the Mede took control of the kingdom when he was about sixty-two years old.

O: Belshazzar knew what YHWH God had done in Nebuchadnezzar's life, and how YHWH had humbled Nebuchadnezzar and proved that He is the One True God. Yet Belshazzar insisted on thumbing his nose at YHWH.

Incidentally, skeptical historians used to claim that Belshazzar was a fiction. Firstly, Nebuchadnezzar had no son named Belshazzar or anything like that -- in fact, Nebuchadnezzar's son Amel Marduk (known as Evil Merodach in 2 Kings and Jeremiah) in had been assassinated by his son-in-law Neriglissar. And secular records said that the king of Babylon at the time of the Medo-Persian conquest was Nabonidius, not anyone named Belshazzar. Nabonidius was actually king of Babylon because he had overthrown Labashi Marduk, son of Neriglissar.

While secular historians acknowledge that a king of Babylon who was not related to Nebuchadnezzar could refer to Nebuchadnezzar as "father" because of the practice of using the term "father" to mean "predecessor", because of the lack of mention of Belshazzar in secular sources, many people pointed to this as another piece of evidence that the Book of Daniel was fiction.

However, in the 20^th century, several archaeological discoveries showed that Belshazzar was indeed reigning as king in Babylon during the conquest by the Medo-Persians, and there's also now evidence outside the Bible that Belshazzar was killed in the Medo-Persian conquest. As a result, today, virtually no historians dispute the historicity of Belshazzar. (For more information, see http://goo.gl/0h1D3i and http://goo.gl/VVLNur).

Incidentally, the last line of today's reading talks about Darius the Mede. Just like Belshazzar used to have no evidence outside the Bible supporting his historicity, currently, there is no evidence outside the Bible supporting the historicity of Darius the Mede. But, as the case of Belshazzar points out, so what? Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence. See http://goo.gl/lvBfw7 for more information and http://goo.gl/jy4ASb for a defense of these and many other objections to Daniel.

A: We, too, usually know when we're doing something wrong... yet so often we give in to pride, temptation, lust, etc. and go ahead and do the wrong thing.

So let's be reminded by what happened to Belshazzar.

P: Father, when I am tempted, may I always run to you and away from the temptation. In Jesus' name, amen.

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Note: this is using the SOAP method. For more information, see this page (not written by me.)

The picture is Rembrandt's Belshazzar's Feast.

You can still turn back to God

25/12/2015

S: Judges 10:6-16 (LXX2012)

And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the Lord, and served Baalim, and Astaroth, and the gods of Aram, and the gods of Sidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Phylistines; and they forsook the Lord, and did not serve him. And the Lord was very angry with Israel, and sold them into the hands of the Phylistines, and into the hand of the children of Ammon. And they afflicted and bruised the children of Israel at that time eighteen years, all the children of Israel beyond Jordan in the land of the Amorite in Galaad. And the children of Ammon went over Jordan to fight with Juda, and Benjamin, and with Ephraim; and the children of Israel were greatly afflicted.

And the children of Israel cried to the Lord, saying, We have sinned against you, because we have forsaken God, and served Baalim. And the Lord said to the children of Israel, Did I not save you from Egypt and from the Amorite, and from the children of Ammon, and from the Phylistines, and from the Sidonians, and Amalec, and Madiam, who afflicted you? and you cried to me, and I saved you out of their hand? Yet you forsook me and served other gods; therefore I will not save you any more. Go, and cry to the gods whom you⌃ have chosen to yourselves, and let them save you in the time of your affliction.

And the children of Israel said to the Lord, We have sinned: do you to us according to all that is good in your eyes; only deliver us this day. And they put away the strange gods from the midst of them, and served the Lord only, and his soul was pained for the trouble of Israel.

O: As I read this on Christmas day, I'm reminded of how often I have let God down and disobeyed Him this year -- even as recently as yesterday. I've also let my wife down, etc.

But this Christmas morning, as I read this, I am reminded again about how God is a God of second chances. While we yet live, there is always the opportunity to repent and return to Him. And He will yet save us.

A: 1 John 1:9 points out, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." This is ever true.

The late Bill Bright put it this way:

Spiritual breathing

By faith you can continue to experience God's love and forgiveness.

If you become aware of an area of your life (an attitude or an action) that is displeasing to the Lord, even though you are walking with Him and sincerely desiring to serve Him, simply thank God that He has forgiven your sins - past, present and future - on the basis of Christ's death on the cross. Claim His love and forgiveness by faith and continue to have fellowship with Him.

If you retake the throne of your life through sin -- a definite act of disobedience -- breathe spiritually.

Spiritual breathing (exhaling the impure and inhaling the pure) is an exercise in faith that enables you to continue to experience God's love and forgiveness.

1. Exhale -- confess your sin -- agree with God concerning your sin and thank Him for His forgiveness of it, according to 1 John 1:9 and Hebrews 10:1-25. Confession involves repentance - a change in attitude and action.
2. Inhale -- surrender the control of your life to Christ, and appropriate (receive) the fullness of the Holy Spirit by faith. Trust that He now directs and empowers you; according to the command of Ephesians 5:18, and the promise of 1 John 5:14, 15.

P: Father, thank You for Your Son whom you sent, not just as a baby in an manger, but to save us on the Cross. In Jesus' name, amen.

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Note: this is using the SOAP method. For more information, see this page (not written by me.)

Aid to the right amount

12/12/2015

S: Joshua 5:10-12 LXX2012 And the children of Israel kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, to the westward of Jericho on the opposite side of the Jordan in the plain. And they ate of the grain of the earth unleavened and new corn. In this day the manna failed, after they had eaten of the corn of the land, and the children of Israel no longer had manna: and they took the fruits of the land of the Phoenicians in that year.

O: God provided manna for the Hebrews up until the time that they entered the land and could now live on the land's produce.

A: When we help people, there's the possibility of them becoming dependent on us. For example, when our children are little, we need to help provide for them, but all of us know that an adult child shouldn't rely on his parents for sustenance unless he is disabled, or in some temporary situation like he just lost his job and is looking for a new one.

P: Father, help us to be wise in our charity; to be generous and provide help where needed, but not to become an enabler for dysfunction. In Jesus' name, amen.

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Note: this is using the SOAP method. For more information, see this page (not written by me.)

Success more dangerous than failure sometimes

5/12/2015

S: Deuteronomy 8:10-20 After you eat and are full, give praise to the Lord your God for the good land he gave you. Make sure that you never forget the Lord or disobey his laws and teachings that I am giving you today. If you always obey them, you will have plenty to eat, and you will build good houses to live in. You will get more and more cattle, sheep, silver, gold, and other possessions.

But when all this happens, don't be proud! Don't forget that you were once slaves in Egypt and that it was the Lord who set you free. Remember how he led you in that huge and frightening desert where poisonous snakes and scorpions live. There was no water, but the Lord split open a rock, and water poured out so you could drink. He also gave you manna, a kind of food your ancestors had never even heard about. The Lord was testing you to make you trust him, so that later on he could be good to you.

When you become successful, don't say, “I'm rich, and I've earned it all myself.” Instead, remember that the Lord your God gives you the strength to make a living. That's how he keeps the promise he made to your ancestors.

But I'm warning you—if you forget the Lord your God and worship other gods, the Lord will destroy you, just as he destroyed the nations you fought.

O: When things are going badly, we're often spurred to remember the Lord and ask Him for help. But sometimes when things are going well, we may become complacent and slack off.

A: We need to stay faithful in "for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health" like the marriage vows say. It's no coincidence that God uses marriage as a picture of our relationship with Him.

P: Father, whether things are going well or going badly at the moment, may I be faithful to You. In Jesus' name, amen.

[Image source]

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Note: this is using the SOAP method. For more information, see this page (not written by me.)