The Mission of Jesus and the Kingdom of God

Excerpt from "When Helping Hurts: How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor and Yourself" by Steve Corbett & Brian Fikkert.

"The mission of Jesus was and is to preach the good news of the kingdom of God (Luke 4:43), to say to one and all, "I am the King of kings and Lord of lords, and I am using My power to fix everything that sin had ruined." As pastor and theologian Tim Keller states, "The kingdom is the renewal of the whole world through the entrance of supernatural forces. As things are brought back under Christ's rule and authority, they are restored to health, beauty, and freedom."

Of course there is both a "now" and a "not yet" to the kingdom. The full manifestation of the kingdom will not occur until there is a new heaven and a new earth. Only then will every tear by wiped from our eyes (Rev 21:4). But two thousand years ago, Jesus clearly stated that there is a "now" to the kingdom, saying, "Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing" (Luke 4:21)"

Jesus preached the good news of the kingdom in word and in deed. His people, His church must do the same. Are you preaching the good news of the kingdom in word and in deed?

Read & Meditate: Luke 4:17-21

Christmas Reflection

I sang this song over and over again. It's simple yet so rich, and it really reminded me of Christ and what He has done for me. Thank you Jesus. I will tell the world about your love. You are so wonderful my Lord.

我主我神
是我主， 是我神 (xi3 ngo1 jü2 , xi3 ngo1 saeng1)
愿牺牲， 拯救我 (yun3 hei2 saeng1, qeing1 gau1 ngo1)
耶稣， 神爱子 (ye3 sou1, saeng1 oi1 ji2)
施恩的主， 真感激祢 (xi1 yaeng4 dik4 jü2, zaeng4 gaem2 gek4 lei1)

神的爱， 极伟大 (saeng1 dik4 oi1, qeing1 wei2 dai1)
赐自由， 更新我心 (qi4 ji1 yau4, gaeng4 saeng4 ngo2 saem1)
为我主， 为我神 (wei3 ngo1 jü2, wei3 ngo1 saeng1)
传福音一生不改变 (qün3 fuk4 yaem4 yaek4 saeng1 baet4 goi2 bin1)

(Note: it is difficult to add hanyu pinyin to a cantonese song because there are no equivalent tones and sounds for certain words)

Sons of God

"You are ALL sons of God through faith IN Christ Jesus, for ALL of you who were baptized INTO Christ have clothed yourselves WITH Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are ALL ONE IN Christ Jesus" - Gal 3:26-28

What a powerful verse. And what a revelation of who we are in Christ Jesus. Those who believe in Jesus are all sons of God. ALL. All are brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ - no race, no status, no gender matters anymore. All are ONE in Christ.

All believers are sons of God. We have this huge family living all around the world. But are we behaving like how family members ought to treat each? Or are we strangers, and worse, enemies?

Why is it so difficult for people to reconcile? And why is it so difficult to accept the mistakes of others? You are ALL sons of God! Let me repeat "YOU are ALL sons of GOD!" Can we not look beyond the errors and follies of our brothers? Can we not forgive? You are ALL sons of God my friends! Why should Coffee time be awkward and impossible? Let's have a meal together, for we are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.

Gal 3:28 for the modern day - "There is neither denomination nor institution, yours nor mine, fiery charismatic nor silent conservative, for WE are ALL ONE in CHRIST JESUS" Amen.


Together as a family with Jesus.

Is Christian Hip Hop Ok?

The song was written 2 years ago before the movie, The Passion of Christ. They put clips of this movie as the backdrop. What do you think of Christian Hip Hop/Rap? I think if properly used, it's just way cool.

P.S. Watching this video reminded me once again how much Jesus had to go through to redeem me. With tears in my eyes, I come in awe before Him once again. Thank you Jesus.

Can I receive love but not follow?

Lord - Our King. One whom we worship. One whom we subject ourselves to. One whom we bow down and worship.

Saviour - Our Redeemer. One who saves. One who purchased us by His blood. One who rescues us from our sins and condemnation.

Master - Our Great Teacher. One who teach with His total being. One whose ways are perfect. One whose ways we seek to follow.

Friend - Our Closest Companion. One who walks with us through all ups and downs. One who make known His inmost thoughts to us. One who never leaves us even when we had left.

Who is Jesus to you? Is He only saviour to you? Is He only a friend to you? Or is He your Lord and Master as well? Let us not forget that Christ is all and He want us to know Him in all His fullness and greatness. This is but a mere description of Him in what human words can describe.

Let us not be ignorant. We must follow Him and become more like Him each day. And let us not kid ourselves on a job well-done when someone makes a 'decision' for Jesus only to say 'I cannot commit(in following His ways).' Has the person really believe and turn from his sins? Maybe yes, maybe no. But Jesus must be Lord and Master as well.

"Oh how far we have fallen! Oh how little we have to draw from! Stories from the past have served to remind us again and again of our lack and want of prayers and love. I have fallen short too. Way too short. May the Lord open our eyes to our deficiencies. May He moved His people to become more like Him. To be really more like Him. Amen"

"I was with you in weakness and in fear and in much trembling, and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of God." - 1 Cor 2:3-5.

Dear brothers and sisters, are we missing something in our sharing of the gospel? And receive a 'result' that is equally deficient too? May His mighty wind blow again.

My Jesus, I Love Thee

My Jesus, I love Thee, I know Thou art mine;
For Thee all the follies of sin I resign.
My gracious Redeemer, my Savior art Thou;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

I love Thee because Thou has first loved me,
And purchased my pardon on Calvary’s tree.
I love Thee for wearing the thorns on Thy brow;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

I’ll love Thee in life, I will love Thee in death,
And praise Thee as long as Thou lendest me breath;
And say when the death dew lies cold on my brow,
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.

In mansions of glory and endless delight,
I’ll ever adore Thee in heaven so bright;
I’ll sing with the glittering crown on my brow;
If ever I loved Thee, my Jesus, ’tis now.
~ William R.Featherston

Is Jesus my delight?

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" I remember telling my Doulos friends this verse from Phil 4:4 as one of my favourite verses. Not too long ago, I was feeling great and full of joy and satisfaction in my journey but things seemed a little different now. Am I moody, down and sulking now? Not at all, and though I still laugh and enjoy my days, there is something amiss. It just feel different.

Last night's reflection had shown me the answer to this seemingly 'missing' joy. I had forgotten to delight myself in the Lord. Omigosh! Have I backslide? No, I have not. So what do I mean by that? I realise I had been focusing on how to live life that I have forgotten my basis for living. My present circumstances have not been great and I feel myself losing motivation for life. I know God is trying me and stretching my faith, and I have been seeking Him for an answer, for a direction to continue on to the next phase. But not hearing nor seeing anything happening all this while does to a certain extent affect my emotion and as time goes by, the uncertainty weighs heavier and heavier.

I told myself:"I will trust in the Lord!", or so I claimed. But there is this 'heaviness" and a 'certain' joy missing from my life. Mind you, I am still enjoying life - I laugh, I play, I give thanks, I appreciate, I enjoy things, I give, I receive and I am really blessed. BUT I realise there is something missing and I realise I had 'forgotten' my basis for living life. I claim to be lacking motivation in life, but if Jesus is the basis for living an abundant life, then how could I claim otherwise? If I have delighted in Jesus and understood that life is worth the living just because He lives, then how can it be possible that I lack motivation in life?

This is indeed basic understanding revisited. Now I can sing again:"And life is worth the living just because He lives". That is the basis for that 'missing' joy in my life - i.e. to live just because Jesus lives! Isn't that great? Isn't that good enough to give me motivation in life? That is the answer to finding joy in my present circumstances. Delighting in Jesus! Giving thanks and praying to Him sure help in lifting my heaviness but that is not yet delighting in Him. To delight in Him goes beyond our thanksgiving and speaking to Him(though it is part of it). It is to adore Him, to hold Him in such awe, to finally understand that having Him alone is good enough reason for rejoicing in life. That is the basis for my living. I need no other motivation nor could I claim I lack one.

O how I delight in You Lord! How can I not rejoice in life?