True Fasting and True Worship

What a timely reminder for me!

True worship is more than religious rituals, going to church, fasting, listening to sermons and Scripture readings. A close relationship with God is very very important.

Fasting is one of the spiritual disciplines we should practice, but it is more than not eating. Fasting is meaningless in God's eyes if I am not doing it with the right attitude and perspective. If I do not reach out to those in need, if I have no compassion for the lonely, poor, helpless and oppressed or if I am harbouring resentment, anger, bitterness towards others, my fasting has lost its significance meaning.

Religious practices are important, but what is most important is my heart and attitude towards God and men.

Isaiah 58 (NIV)
True Fasting
1.
"Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the house of Jacob their sins.
2.
For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them.
3.
'Why have we fasted,' they say, 'and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?' "Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.
4.
Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5.
Is this the kind of fast I have chosen, only a day for a man to humble himself ? Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed and for lying on sackcloth and ashes? Is that what you call a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD?
6.
"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?
7.
Is it not to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter-- when you see the naked, to clothe him, and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8.
Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear; then your righteousness will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.
9.
Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I. "If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
10.
and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.
11.
The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail.
12.
Your people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
13.
"If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the LORD's holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,
14.
then you will find your joy in the Lord, and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob." The mouth of the LORD has spoken.

Prayers

Was using this book "Reaching out to the Father" by Teresa Tay for my Quiet Time since yesterday. I learned something new about prayers today (Tay Teresa, Reaching out to the Father, 2004, pages 14-15):

"Praying for others is a form of giving; it is a part of giving of ourselves for others in order to see God's will being fulfilled in thier lives. When we pray for others, we are accpeting God's call to be partners with Him. Jesus said, 'Give and it shall be given unto you.' Praying for others puts us in a position to receive what God promises in many scriptures, such as:

'If you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and

satisfy the needs of the opressed, then your light will rise

in the darkness and your night will become like the noon

day. The Lord will guide you always; He will satisfy

your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen

your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a

spring whose water never fail.' (Isaiah 58:10)

'My command is this, love each other as I have loved you.

Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down

his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do as I

command you.' (John 15:12-14)

It is indeed a privilege to pray for others! Let's rememer to uphold our family, friends, church, workplace/school, community, nations and the world in our prayers.

Like Eagles (Isaiah 40:29-31, CEV)

29 The lord gives strength

to those who are weary.

30 Even young people get tired,

then stumble and fall.

31 But those who trust in the LORD

will find new strength.

They will be strong like eagles

soaring upwards on wings,

they will walk and run

without getting tired.

An Invitation to Pray

I believe prayers shape a large part of our Christian life. Christians should be people of prayer. Romans 12:12 says that we ought to be "patient in affliction, faithful in prayers". We are to "devout ourselves in prayers" (1 Cor 7:5).

Below is a poem "An Invitation to Pray" taken from the book "Reaching Out to the Father" written by Teresa Tay. My mum gave this book to me.

An Invitaiton to Pray:
The Mighty One looks down from heaven
His eyes filled with tears
This is the world He created
Yet many know Him not
His heart is grieved to see evil everywhere

The Lord pondered from heaven
Waht shall I do with these people
With His heart of mercy and love
He wil march out like a Mighty Man
Like a warrior He will stir up His zeal
With a shout He will raise the battle cry

Awake, My peoole, awake
Come with Me on your knees
Humble yourselves and pray
Seek the Lord while He may be found
Repent of your sins and I will hear
The Lord will lift up His banner to the peoples
And triumph over His enemies
You will say to the captives 'Come out'
And to those in darkness 'Be free'
You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace

Such is the inheritance of the Lord
When they take heed to pray
Today as you hear His call to pray
Rend your hearts to Him and say
We will go on our knees
Till Your Kingdom come Your will be done

Take My Hand (The Kry)

Hope this song will minister to you:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwwnIr5yZ7E&feature=related
I know there are times your dreams turn to dust
you wonder as you cry
why it has to hurt so much
give Me all your sadness
someday you will know the reason why
with a child-like heart
simply put your hope in Me

Chorus:
take My hand and walk where I lead
keep your eyes on Me alone
don't you say why were the old days' better
just because you're scared of the unknown
take My hand and walk
don't live in the past
cause yesterday's gone
wishing memories would last
you're afraid to carry on
you don't know what's comin'
but you know the one who holds tomorrow

I will be your guide
take you through the night
if you keep your eyes on Me
take My hand and walk where I lead

keep your eyes on me alone
don't you say why were the old days better
just because you're scared of the unknown

just like a child holding daddy's hand
don't let go of mine
you know you can't stand on your own.

The Hope & Power of the Resurrection

12 April 09

The Resurrection of our Lord, Easter Sunday

The Hope & Power of the Resurrection

Mark 16:1-8

1.
When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus' body.
2.
Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb
3.
and they asked each other, "Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?"
4.
But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away.
5.
As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.
6.
"Don't be alarmed," he said. "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.
7.
But go, tell his disciples and Peter, 'He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.' "
8.
Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid.

On the first Easter morning, three women came to visit the tomb of their beloved teacher and friend. He had filled their lives with love and hope, made them to think and feel as they had never done before. He had also promised them that He would rise from the dead. Did they come, then, to check whether this promise had been fulfilled? Did they come to see the empty tomb, perhaps to see the risen Christ? No, they came out of devotion to their dear dead friend.

The first words, by an angel, about the Lord at the resurrection were, "He has risen". The angel was instructed to tell the disciples that Jesus who was going ahead of them into Galilee, the place where the action was when our Lord was alive. That was where most of those who believed in Him would be.

What is worth nothing is that our Lord said He would be 'going ahead' of them. Indeed the resurrection is about our Lord 'going ahead' of and for us. He has 'gone ahead' to prepare a place for each one of us in the Father's house (John 14:2). This is the resurrection hope! He has also 'gone ahead' of us to meet us in each situation and circumstance in life. He wants to empower us for our preservation unto eternity. He accompanies us and carries our burden so that we may faithfully complete our pilgrimage on earth. He is there up on the mountain of disappointments and loneliness and down in the valley of suffering and pain. He is there even before we are. Our Lord is alive and He is moving among us!

Every time we celebrate Easter, we must proclaim to the world and also to ourselves the Hope and Power of the resurrection: indeed He has 'gone ahead' of and for us. What a hope! What a comfort! What an assurance!

(Rev Dr William Chang,

Senior Pastor,

Jurong Christian Church)

Commitment:

Christians are people of Hope and Victory because of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us focus on te Hope (of eternal life) that we may be focused in our earthly life.

Prayer:

O Lord, help us to remember that you are alive and that you dwell among us so that we too may be alive and be among others as your witnesses. Amen.

"The Silence before Victory"

11 April 09

Holy Saturday

The Silence before Victory

John 19:38-42

38.
Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jews. With Pilate's permission, he came and took the body away.
39.
He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.
40.
Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs.
41.
At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid.
42.
Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

Their hopes were dashed, their faith shaken; thier Lord Jesus Christ lay dead. A spear that pierced through His side had ensured that He could not be revived. The fact that thier beloved master was really dead was finally sinking in, as the two men held his bloodied and lifeless body in their hands.

Three years of knowing Jesus had given Jospeh and Nicodemus hope that the Messiah had come. Observing Him from afar, speaking to Him in secret, the two men had grown courageous as they became more and more convinced that Jesus was the Son of God. Though aware that following Jesus would result in their being ostracised from their community, the two men decided to be His disciples, albeit secretly.

Now the Hope of Israel was dead. God seemed strangely silent in the face of His Son's tortured death. Though broken and defeated, Joseph and Nicodemus did what they could to honour their lifeless master.

But God was not silent. Beneath the stillness of death, unseen by the human eye, God had torn down the gates of hell, and plundered Satan's domain. Christ's victory over death and hell would only become obvious the next day. For Saturday, there was just the stillness of death.

There are seasons in our lives when we are faced with God's silence in the midst of the enemy's attacks. The devil and the opponents of all that is fod apprear to have won. We may have dutifully followed Christ; we may even have made sacrifices for the sake of Christ; but the devil seems to have had the upper hand.

In such times, we are called to continue to honour our Lord Jesus Christ. And believe in our heart of hearts that in the apparent silence of God, Christ is working out another mighty vitory.

(Rev Dr Chiu Ming Li,

Senior Chaplain,

Prison Fellowship Singapore)

Commitment:

As you face opposition while following Christ, determine t ohnour Him still. Continue in the hope that even as God appears silent, He is working out a mighty victory for us.

Prayer:

Father, help me to continue to honour you even when things do not go the way I wish them to. Help me to trust you and believe that your mighty works of salvation are often disguised as your defeat. Amen.

"The Heart of the Giver"

10 April 09
Good Friday

The Heart of the Giver
Isaiah 52:13-53:12

The Suffering and Glory of the Servant
13.
See, my servant will act wisely; he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted.
14.
Just as there were many who were appalled at him-- his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness--
15.
so will he sprinkle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him. For what they were not told, they will see, and what they have not heard, they will understand.


1.
Who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?
2.
He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3.
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4.
Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted.
5.
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.
6.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7.
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
8.
By oppression and judgment he was taken away. And who can speak of his descendants? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was stricken.
9.
He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10.
Yet it was the LORD's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.
11.
After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light [of life] and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.
12.
Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.


When we give gifts to our loved ones, our giving is often tainted by mixed motives. On the other hand, we give to bring delight to the person receiving our gifts. On the other, we hope to impress the receiver as well as onlookers. We secretly draw attention to ourselves, hoping that our generosity, our creativity, or our stature will be noticed by all. Our desire to bless another is often tainted by a self-seeking motive to be recognized, admired, and applauded.

When God gave us His Son Jesus Christ, He gave out of the purity of His love. His giving was not tainted by mixed motives. The gift was given exclusively for our sakes. He gave us Christ the Saviour simply because we needed a saviour. In fact, the gift was so nondescript that the prophet Isaiah exclaimed concerning him, “Who has believed our message, to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” The power and majesty of God was not apparent in His servant Jesus Christ. Isaiah went on to describe the gift thus:
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
Nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows,
And familiar with suffering. Like one from whom men hide their faces,
He was despised and we esteemed him not.

God gave us His most precious gift, not to elicit our admiration, but to save us from our sin. He had no other motivation for giving us His only Son, except that He loved us absolutely.

God’s gift to us seemed unattractive and marred, not because God did not give us His best, but because He placed His best gift at our complete disposal. Jesus was disfigured, afflicted, pierced, and oppressed because He carried upon Himself our disfigurement, our iniquities, our punishment, and our wounds. In Christ, God was saying to us, “Here’s my most precious Son. He will take in all the abuse, all the wounds, all the rejection and contempt, and all the punishment that is needed to make you whole.” In Christ, God held nothing back from us.

Have you doubted that God would give you good gifts, gifts that you really need? Have you felt that you are not worthy to be blessed by God, and that you need to do better to earn God’s blessings? If so, you do not know how God feels towards you. If God would allow His most precious Son to suffer abuse and rejection and death just because this suffering was the only way He could lift us out of the mess that we are in, how can we imagine that God who withhold any good thing from us? The problem is not that God doesn’t love us enough; the problem is that we have not taken the effort to observe and understand God’s love for us.

(Rev Dr Chiu Ming Li,
Senior Chaplain,
Fellowship Singapore)

Commitment:
We are so blind to the fact that God loves us unreservedly, deeply. Lord I want to be still and allow You to pour Your love into my heart.

Prayer:
You gave me your best without withholding anything from me. Draw close to yourself today, and let me understand with my mind and my heart your love for me. Amen.

"Love one another as I have loved you"

"Proclaim the Lord's Death"

09 April 09
Maundy Thursday

Proclaim the Lord’s Death
1 Corinthians 11:23-26


23.
For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread,
24.
and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me."
25.
In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me."
26.
For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

There was a time when what you believed about the Lord’s Supper was a matter of life and death.

From 1555 to 1558, two hundred an eighty-eight English Prostestant Reformers wee burned at stake by the Roman Catholic Queen Mary, They were burned alive over what they believed was the meaning of the Lord’s Supper. Was the Lord’s body literally and physically present in the Bread and Wine? Martyrs like Nicholas Ridley, Hugh Latimer, and Thomas Cranmer all through this was a matter worth dying for.

Today, some take a more lackadaisical attitude towards the Lord’s Supper. Some aren’t even sure what it stands for. 1 Corinthians 11 reminds us that the Holy Communion itself proclaims the Gospel----the eternal life-giving and sin-cleansing Life and Resurrection of Jesus.

Whenever we take Holy Communion, we eat at Jesus’ table. He is there with us in fellowship. We remember what Jesus had to go through in order that we might have the privilege of sharing bread and wine with Him today. The memories of Jesus should fill is at His table, and lead us to feed spiritually on Him, drawing from Him all that we need to sustain us.

Today is called Maundy Thursday, from the Latin Mandatum, or ‘command’ (“a new command I give you…-John 13:32).

Let us this day remember our Lord’s command to love each other as Hr loves us. Let us also determine to remember what Holy Communion means, and how we can proclaim the Gospel, the good news of what God offers.

After all, for Jesus it was a matter worth dying for.

(Rev Chiang Ming Shun,
Pastor-in-charge,
Aldersgate Methodist Church)

Commitment:
Think of Jesus’ sacrifice, and surrender your timidity in proclaiming His Gospel. Give up all the anger, bitterness and grudges you may harbour against others, and choose to live and love as Jesus did!

Prayer:
Jesus, I thank you again for al that you had to suffer through so that I might live. Help me to remember this whenever I take Holy Communion, ad give me strength to love as you love. Amen.

"Run Your Race to the Finish"

08 April 09
Wednesday of Holy Week

Run Your Race to the Finish
Hebrews 12:1-3

Foe some Christians, life in Christ is a stroll in the park. We have believed in God, but it has made little difference in our lives: no difference in the way we spend money, no difference in life’s goals, no difference in the way we treat our maids. We continue merrily on our own way, stopping by once a week in church.

For others, it was a short jog. We did a few laps energetically and enthusiastically, but now we are tired and we have slowed down. We are still in the race, but we leave the running to the more passionate or younger people ---- we had our turn.

The letter to the Hebrews was written to a church that was slowing down; it was getting tired and no longer running. This passage is not only a reminder that the Christians journey is a is long race, it is also an encouragement to persevere, to endure, to be strong, to carry our cross, and to keep running.

Millions of other Christians have gone on before us and finished their race by faith. Just beyond the finishing line, they are cheering us on. But our greatest encouragement is the example of Jesus. It is Jesus who will perfect our faith and make us triumph. If He could do it, if the other Christians before us could do it, we can also!

So run the race set before you! Don’t stroll, don’t slow down! Lay aside all that slows you down in your Christian journey, especially sin which clings closely. Don’t give up! Run your race to the Finish!

(Rev Chiang Ming Shun,
Pastor-in-charge,
Aldersgate Methodist Church)

Commitment:
I strip off from me all bad habits and sins that keep me from following closely after Jesus, and I hold to the promise that those who hope in the Lord will run and not be weary (Is 40:31).

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, keep my eyes focused on you and the race you have laid out before me. Help me to run my race in faith that I, too, may be a witness and source of encouragement to others. Amen.

"Wisdom from Foolishness"

07 April 09
Tuesday of the Holy Week

Wisdom from Foolishness
1 Corinthians 1:18-31

Christ the Wisdom and Power of God
18.
For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
19.
For it is written: "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate."
20.
Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
21.
For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.
22.
Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom,
23.
but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,
24.
but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.
25.
For the foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength.
26.
Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth.
27.
But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.
28.
He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things--and the things that are not--to nullify the things that are,
29.
so that no one may boast before him.
30.
It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God--that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.
31.
Therefore, as it is written: "Let him who boasts boast in the Lord."

About 200 years after Paul wrote these words, a pagan stood before a wall in Rome to draw some graffiti. He scratched the sentence, "Alexamenos worships his god," and illustrated it with a picture. On the left side of the picture was Alexamenos standing with his hand raised to hail his god. What he faced as he performed this act of worship could be seen on the right: a figure stretched out on a cross. But the most sriking thing abut the drawing was that the human figure stretched out on the cross had the head of a donkey!

With that blasphemous drawing, the graffiti artist showed what he thought of Christianity. You might as well worship a donkey! Unwittingly, he illustrated the truth Paul had expounded in this passage. The gospel of Christ crucified is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved, it is the power and wisdom of God.

Paul makes it clear that the gospel is not a refinement of worldy wisdom. It is not the progression of religious instinct into a more advanced development. It could not be that, for the gospel originated from the mind of God, and it stands in utter contrast to all the best that the human spirit has achieved or deemed noble. The contrast is so vast that God's gospel wisdom is foolishness from a human perspective. Paul is not alone in perceiving that contrast. The ministry of Jesus dramatised that contrast, as depicted by the oppostion of the Pharisees and Sadducees, and underscored it with every drop of blood that fell from His wounded flesh. Jesus' opponents preferred killing Him to hearing His heavenly wisdom.

That puts us on our knees in gratitude for being favoured with the gospel and with faith to received it. Here we are, men and women who know that the gospel of Jesus Christ and nothing else is the wisdom of God - the One Thing Needful. More than that; we are men and women who have been called to serve as ministers of the gospel. Woe to us if the One Thing Needful does not receive its due from us!

(Dr Tan Tee Khoon,
General Secretary,
Fellowship of Evangelical Students)

Commitment:
I surrender my human wisdom in exchange for God's foolishness.

Prayer:
Lord, make me a fool for Christ so that I can be blessed with your divine wisdom to speak your oracles to the world. Help me, Lord, not to despise the cross for it was where your Son disarmed the principalities and powers, and reconciled me to you. Thank you for the cross. In Christ's name, Amen.

"Jesus Anointed at Bethany"

Jesus Anointed at Bethany

(Mark 14:3-9)

0.
14:1-11pp -- Mt 26:2-16 14:1,2,10,11pp -- Lk 22:1-6 14:3-8Ref -- Jn 12:1-8
1.
Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some sly way to arrest Jesus and kill him.
2.
"But not during the Feast," they said, "or the people may riot."
3.
While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.
4.
Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, "Why this waste of perfume?
5.
It could have been sold for more than a year's wages and the money given to the poor." And they rebuked her harshly.
6.
"Leave her alone," said Jesus. "Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me.
7.
The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.
8.
She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial.
9.
I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."
10.
Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them.
11.
They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

""Jesus Spells Freedom"

06 April 09
Monday of the Holy Week

Jesus spells Freedom
Isaiah 42:1-9

The middle section of Isaiah, chapters 40-55, ws set in the period when the Jews were permitted to return home from their exile in Babylon. The pagan Cyrus of Persia had overthrown the Babylonians and ordered the release of the Jewish captives. Isaiah sees this in a cosmic context, and, in 41:1 through 42:9, he describes two “trials” in the court of heaven that vindicate the sovereignty of Israel’s Lord. Cyrus is described as the Lord’s instrument in His plan to free the Jews. The second trial ends with today’s passage, the selection of the Lord’s servant, and the assignment of a mission to the servant.

The servant was probably a figure for the people of Israel, or for a faithful remnant within the people. Later, the early church saw the aspects of Jesus’ own life and mission foreshadowed in the Servant Songs.

The Lord chooses the servant, upholds him, is pleased with him and gives the servant His spirit. This servant’s role is to establish justice on the earth (v1,4), open the eyes of the blind, release prisoners and those in darkness (v7). He does so in gentleness and patience [not crying out, not shouting, not making his voice heard, not breaking the bruised reed or quenching the smouldering wick (v2-3)]. However the servant’s mission is not confined to Israel only but extends to the rest of the nations as well (v6).

Jesus has come to offer liberty to all who are sin-bound. The invitation is open to all and each one who accepts Him will experience newness of life (v9). In essence, Jesus spells FREEDOM to the oppressed and downtrodden. In Him, there is deliverance and fullness of joy.

(Dr Tan Tee Khoon,
General Secretary ,
Fellowship of Evangelical Students)

Commitment:
I surrender unwholesome habits that I cannot be freed from and will ultimately ruin my walk with God unless I bring them to Jesus. He will break the fetters and chains of these habits, and release me to do His will.

Prayer:
Lord, the good I want to do, I don’t do but the evil I don’t want to do, I find myself doing. Cleanse me from my sin, set me free from the wretched man that I am. I desire to walk free in your righteousness. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

"Truly this Man was the Son of God!"

05 April 09
Passion Sunday (Palm Sunday)

Truly this Man was the Son of God!
Mark 15:1-39

It started on such a high note. Nothing could hold back the crowd in Jerusalem. The people were jubilant ---- waving their palm branches, shouting hosannas and they were welcoming Jesus as their King into the very city of God! The air was indeed thick with hope.

But who would have thought that in less than a week, the adulations would turn into ridicule and hatred as the crowd turned against Jesus. They had asked for Him to be put through the cruelest form of punishment and their request was granted. In crucifying Jesus on the cross, the world was witnessing one of the darkest moments in the history of humankind. Not only was a sinless person sentenced to die on the cross. It was God Himself hung on that cross. He was supposed to be the Saviour ---- the One who had come to save the world and bring deliverance to all who placed their hope in Him. But now, on that cross, He seemed so helpless and forsaken. The darkness that fell over the land only served to confirm the sense of doom.

Just when everything appeared to be lost and hopeless, a declaration was made by, of all people, the centurion who had witnessed all that had taken place. His words like a beam of glorious light seemed to penetrate the darkness of the gloom that hung in the air. “Truly this man was the Son of God!” Somehow, through all that had happened, he was able to see that this was what Jesus had earlier described Himself to be. Though he might not have fully anticipated what was to follow, the centurion spoke for all who believed and would believe: “It was Friday and my Jesus was dead on the cross. But that was Friday and Sunday’s coming!”

(Stanley Tay,
Parish Worker,
St John’s ---- St Margaret’s Chruch)

Commitment:
I surrender my sense of hopelessness and despair, as well as the inability to see beyond my Fridays into the coming Sundays.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, help me to be able to always declare, “Truly, you are the Son of God!” Help me to believe that you are always present in the midst of all that we go through and especially in situations of extreme difficulties and daunting challenges. Amen.

Blessed is the One who Comes

4 April 09
Saturday of the Fifth Week in Lent

Blessed is the One who Comes
Psalm 118:1-2; 19-19

Why do humans find it hard to comprehend God’s faithfulness; to believe that His love for us is so strong that it is unconditional? Many think that God’s faithfulness means life should never have problems and pain, and that it should always be comfortable and serene. May our meditation on Psalm 118 help us to truly know God, and in every discovery of His goodness and faithfulness, be provoked to trust and praise Him!

Psalm 118 is a celebration of a victory worthy of a great king. It expresses the king’s personal experience in relation to the faithfulness of God. He was rejected by his country men, experienced many ordeals and struggles, and was discarded like one of those stones that builders deemed unfit for the building. But God heard his cry for help, answered him, rescued and restored him, and gave him a position of prominence. In the name of the Lord, the king routed all his adversaries, and rose to the throne. And now, the Psalmist describes, in the first person, his burst of praise as he enters the temple to fulfill his vows, “Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, His steadfast love endures forever! You h salvation….Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”

The New Testament identifies Jesus Christ as “the One who comes in the name of the Lord.” The eternal purpose of God for Israel and for us finds its fulfillment in the single-handed work of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. In His crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus is “the rejected stone that has become the chief cornerstone.”

Some stumbled over Christ because they reject Him or refused to believe that He is who He says He is ----- the royal, the victorious, the almighty Saviour in whose hands our souls are safe! Concerning this rejection, there is nothing in His character, nothing about Him that would give men cause for doubt and anger, except that Jesus unmasks the pride of the heart, and exposes the hypocrisy and sins of human beings. But for those who accept Him as He is, “to them He gave the right to become the children of God, even to those who believe in His name.”

This exalted Christ, this precious Cornerstone is present in the world, binding God and people together in eternity. His Gospel triumphs over all opposition! Let use then renew our confession of faith that “The Lord is God”. Let us open our eyes to see that all of life bears the imprint of God’s wisdom and His marvelous love towards the human race. Let us with joyful hearts, sing and confidently cry out to Him, “Save all those who are around us! Save them al! Save them now!”

(Ms How Kim Chin,
Parish Worker,
St John’s ---- St Margaret’s Church)

Commitment:
I surrender the darkness of life threatens to engulg the light. Speak Lord, for your servant heareth.

Prayer:
Forgive us O Lord, for our faltering steps at times. Show us more clearly the Way. Shine anew the light of your presence into our lives so strongly that a new love for your will be kindled. Speak Lord, for your servants. Amen.

"Death on a Cross"

2 April 09
Thursday of the Fifth Week in Lent

Death on a Cross
Philippians 2:1-11

In this passage, we see how Jesus completely humbled Himself. Although He was God, He didn’t demand His rights and privileges as God. Instead He became a bondservant. A bondservant is someone who belongs fully to his master. He goes only where his master wants him to go and does only what his master wants him to do. A bondservant serves even when there is no recognition.

The founder of the Navigator was the great Dawson Trotman. At his funeral in 1956, people from all around the world were asked what they remembered of Mr. Trotman. A pastor from Taiwan stood up and spoke of a time when he was serving together with Mr. Trotman in Taiwan. They went on a hike on day and the ground was very muddy. They came back that evening extremely tired and fell into bed immediately. The next morning when the Taiwanese pastor woke up, he found that his shoes had been washed and shined. Mr Trotman had gotten up early, cleaned his shoes and tidied the room. Mr. Trotman understood the value of serving people even when there was no applause or praise. He served with a pure motive, simply because he loved God and he loved people. Jesus sais, “Whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.” (Matt 20:2).

Servanthood is the key to promotion. This is the attitude and mindset of Christ. The Apostle Paul encourages us to change our attitude to be more like Christ.---- serving people even if no one appreciates us publicly. Before the glorious resurrection, there has to be the humble death on the cross.

(Rev Dr Kong Hee,
Senior Pastor,
City Harvest Church)

Commitment:
Lord, I am willing to be your servant for all and for life.

Prayer:
Jesus, help me to have the same attitude as you have, to love people through serving them. Amen.

"God Promises Future Blessings"

1 April 09
Wednesday of the Fifth Week in Lent

God Promises Future Blessings
Haggai 2:1-9; 20-30

The returned exiles saw a temple which was in ruins .Haggai has the unenviable task of encouraging them to rebuild it. The Lord’s message was that “I am with you” (Haggai 1:13). In our passage, Haggai goes on to proclaim the coming glory of the temple. The word “glory” comes from the Hebrew root kobed which means weight. “I will fill this house with glory” is what Haggai now says, the promise of a temple more weighty than before. The glory of the temple is to be more than that of silver and gold, for all that already belongs to the Lord of hosts. Solomon’s temple was indeed filled with silver and gold.

Today the temple of the Lord is our body (“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?” asks Paul in 1 Corinthians 6:19). God can indeed fill our temples with a greater glory because it is God’s Spirit who will fill it, not just silver and gold. It is God’s Spirit which will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land, so that all the treasures of all nations will come into His temple. Today we know that the temple was never rebuilt to its former glory; what was rebuilt was furthermore destroyed by the Romans. However, you and I are able to receive of the Holy Spirit that which is needful to build God’s temple in our very bodies. Even though our bodies will turn back into dust, the Holy Spirit will raise them from the dead, in the same way that the Spirit raised Jesus from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep (1 Cor 15:20). Praise God for His promises!

(Dr Lee Soo Ann,
Chairman,
Impact Christian Communication)

Commitment:
I surrender myself and my body to be the promised temple of the Holy Spirit.

Prayer:
Lord, God of Hosts, build your temple in me by the infilling of the Holy Spirit into every aspect of my life and body. Amen.