Book Review: Manuscript Found in Accra (2013) by Paulo Coelho

Manuscript Found in Accra (2013) by Paulo Coelho

Since I first read The Alchemist, I've always loved Paulo Coelho's books. I think this book is the most spiritual of all. No doubt you can sense Catholic influence in all of his writings (he once attended Jesuit school); New Age mystical and philosophical ideas in every sentence; and obvious syncretistic* beliefs permeated in his narrations [*combining or blending all religious belief systems into a new system or doctrine]. With this awareness, as an evangelical Christian, I read this novel as frictional, fantasy and to some extend – inspirational. A solid Biblical (Christian) worldview is needed to filter some of these ‘unbiblical’ ideas and a gift of discernment should be applied when reading this book.

There are two things that I don’t like about this book. Let me tell you up front: 1) Some of the languages is too spiritual and mystical – too deep – that I couldn’t really comprehend what Coelho is really saying. I feel the same way when I read Henri Nouwen’s works. Sometimes I think I’m too worldly-minded and logical. And 2) Syncretistic belief is really confusing. I couldn’t pinpoint what Coelho really believes about God or god, Love, and Humanity. But these two reasons don’t stop me from liking this book. I love his concept of question-and-answer that he borrowed from the Greek method of learning. I appreciate his brieflessness and simplicity. I admire his ability to capture the imagination of his readers, his wisdom and story-telling power. Officially, Paulo Coelho is one of my favorite novelists together with James Rollins and Nicholas Sparks. Oh yeah!

About his book: In the year 1099, the people of Jerusalem awaits the invasion of the crusaders who have surrounded the city’s gates. There, inside the ancient city’s walls, men and women of every age, race and faith gathered together to hear the wise words of a mysterious man known only as the Copt. He has summoned the townspeople and the religious leaders around him and said: “None of us can know what tomorrow will hold, because each day has its good and its bad moments. So, when you ask your questions, forget about the troops outside and the fear inside. Our task is not to leave a record of what happened on this date for those who will inherit the Earth; history will take care of that. We will speak, therefore, about our daily lives, about the difficulties we have had to face…” With that, the people begin asking questions and the Copt answers them kindly and briefly.

There is no chapter division, so, I will divide this book into topics and include quotes that I underline throughout the pages of this book:

#1 Defeat. “Does a young man, rejected by his first love, declare that love does not exist? The young man says to himself: ‘I’ll find someone better able to understand what I feel. And then I will be happy for the rest of my days’… Ever since he fell in love for the first time and was rejected, he has known that this did not put an end to his ability to love. What is true in love is also true in war”; “Only he who gives up is defeated. Everyone else is victorious”; “Learn three important things: Wait patiently for the right moment to act. Do not let the next opportunity slip by you. Take pride in your scars”; “I here to tell you that there are people who have never been defeated. They are the ones who never fought”; “Woe to those who were never beaten! They will never be winners in this life.”

#2 Solitude. “If you are never alone, you cannot know yourself”; “In solitude, they will learn that saying ‘No’ does not always show a lack of generosity and that saying ‘Yes’ is not always a virtue”; “At life’s most significant moments we are always alone”; “Just as Love is the divine condition, so solitude is the human condition.”

#3 Usefulness. “Don’t try to be useful. Try to be yourself: that is enough, and that makes all the difference”; “A life is never useless. Each soul that came down to Earth is here for a reason”; “The people who really help others are not trying to be useful, but are simply leading a useful life. They rarely give advice, but serve as an example”; “Do one thing: live the life you always wanted to live.”

#4 Change. “It’s nice to dream… [But] dreaming carries no risks. The dangerous thing is trying to transform your dreams into reality”; “The angles say: ‘Now!’… Nature is telling us: ‘Change!’; “The Unwanted Visitor visits those who don’t change and those who do. But those who did change can say: ‘My life was an interesting one. I didn’t squander my blessing.’ And those who believe that adventures are dangerous I say, Try routine: that kills you far more quickly.”

#5 Beauty. “People always say: ‘It’s inner beauty that matters, not outer beauty.’ Well, that’s not true. If it were, why would flowers put so much energy into attracting bees?... Because nature longs for beauty, and is only satisfied when beauty can be exalted. Outer beauty is inner beauty made visible, and it manifests itself in the light that flows from our eyes”; “Beauty is present in all creation, but the dangerous fact is that… we allow ourselves to be influenced by what other people think”; “The world is what we imagine it to be”; “Beauty exists not in sameness but in difference.”

#6 Direction or Guidance. “Like the sun, life spreads its light in all directions… But, if we want to make a fire, we have to focus all the sun’s rays on one spot”; “He focuses not just on the goal to be reached, but on everything happening around him. He often has to stop because his strength fails him… Rest a little, but as soon as you can, get up and carry on. Because ever since your goal found out that you were travelling towards it, it has been running to meet you; “Only the person who accepts God’s plan with humility and courage knows that he is on the right road.”

#7 Love. “True Love, however, is the love that seduces and will never allow itself to be seduced”; “Love is an act of faith, not an exchange”; “It is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all”; “Love is only a word, until we decide to let it possess us with all its force. Love is only a word, until someone arrives to give it meaning”; “Don’t give up. Remember, it’s always the last key on the key ring that opens the door.”

#8 Choice. “I am going to think of this day as the first day of my life”; “I will look at everything and everyone as if for the first time, especially the small things that I have grown used to, quite forgetting the magic surrounding them”; “For the first time, I will smile without feeling guilty, because joy is not a sin.”

#9 Sex. “Sex goes far beyond pleasure”; “For most people, generosity consists only in giving, and yet receiving is also an act of love. Allowing someone else to make us happy will make them happy too”; “See sex as a gift, a ritual of transformation”; “[In sex] time will cease to exist, because in the land of pleasure-born-of-true-love, everything is infinite.”

#10 Respect. “Respect those who grew up and learned alongside you. Respect those who taught you”; “You will only be loved and respected if you love and respect yourself. Never try to please everyone; if you do, you will be respected by no one.”

#11 Elegance. “Elegance lies not in the clothes we wear, but in the way we wear them”; “What is simplicity? It is the coming together of true values of life”; “Elegance transforms complex thoughts into something that everyone can understand.”

#12 Work. “A poet: I fell asleep and dreamed that life was only Happiness; I woke and discovered that life was Duty; I did my Duty and discovered that life was Happiness”; “There are two types of work… The first is the work we do because we have to… The second type of work we call the Offering… The person making the Offering is always rewarded. The more he shares out his affection, the more his affection grows”; “The Offering is a wordless prayer. And like all prayers, it requires discipline – not the discipline of slavery, but of free choice.”

#13 Success. “People who seek only success rarely find it, because success is not an end in itself, but a consequence”; “Real success means: enriching your life”; “What is success? It is being able to go to bed each night with your soul at peace.”

#14 Miracle. “Each time we see the humble exalted and the arrogant humbled, we are witnessing a miracle”; “Miracles do not go against the laws of nature; we only think that because we do not know nature’s laws”; “Give us this day, Lord, our daily miracle.”

#15 Anxiety. “Anxiety was born in the very same moment as mankind. And since we will never be able to master it, we will have to learn to live with it – just as we have learned to live with storms”; “Although anxiety is part of life, never let it control you.”

#16 Future. ‘Our soul is governed by four invincible forces: love, death, power and time”; “When you are going through difficult times, remember: you may have lost some major battles, but you survived and you’re still here”; “What the future holds for you depends entirely on your capacity for love”; “The greatest gift God gave us is the power to make decisions.”

#17 Royalty. “What was broken will never be the same again”; “Royalty can never be imposed by force, fear, insecurity or intimidation”; “Where there is loyalty, weapons are of no use”; “True here is not the man who was born for great deeds, but the one who has managed to build a shield of loyalty around him out of many small things”; “The most terrible of all weapons is the word, which can ruin a life without leaving a trace of blood, and whose wounds never heal.”

#18 Enemies. “We will always meet rivals in everything we do, but the most dangerous are those we believe to be our friends”; “Beware of anyone who tries to please you all the time”; “Only fight with a worthy opponent…”; “Your enemies are not the adversaries who were put there to test your courage. They are the cowards who were put there to test your weakness.”

There are more topics that Coelho (or ‘the Copt’, the main character) covered in this book. But these 18 topics are the most obvious ones. Do you like these quotes? If you do, don’t settle with my summary-review – buy the book!

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Jesus, the Messiah turns the Enemies Upside Down

The Pharisees examined Jesus.

“Then the Pharisees, called a meeting to plot how to kill Jesus” (Matthew 12:14, NLT).

“At once the Pharisees went away and met with the supporters of Herod to plot how to kill Jesus” (Mark 3:6). “At this, the enemies of Jesus were wild with rage and began to discuss what to do with him” (Luke 6:11).

Putting these three Gospel accounts together – Matthew, Mark, Luke – we see that the Pharisees were furious with Jesus. At first these religious leaders had been merely curious about Jesus, but their curiosity turned to hatred. They were “wild with rage” because Jesus had openly confronted their authority and placed himself above them. Jesus had looked them in the eyes, flouted their laws, and exposed the hatred in their hearts to the entire crowd in the synagogue.

These Jewish religious leaders were so jealous of Jesus’ popularity, his miracles, and his authority that they missed who he was (and is) – the God-Messiah for whom they had been waiting. They refused to acknowledge Jesus because they were not willing to give up their treasured positions and power. When Jesus exposed their attitudes, he became their enemy, and they began looking for ways to destroy him. Ironically, they began planning on the Sabbath (context of the verses quoted above) to kill him. Their hatred drove them to plot murder – an act clearly against the law that they themselves defended.

Notice this, the Pharisees “met with the supporters of Herod.” This was unlikely (and unholy) alliance. This group, also called the “Herodians,” was made up of Jews who hoped to restore Herod the Great’s line to the throne, so they usually stood in direct conflict with the Jewish religious leaders. Those minority Jews supporters believed that intermediary rules by the Herods was better than direct Roman rule. (Most Jews, however, especially the Pharisees disapproved the Herods as rulers of Israel because they were originally an Edomite family. Edom was one of Israel ancient enemies.)  But Jesus threatened the authority of both groups – the Pharisees and the Herodians – common enemies suddenly became friend and began working together to rid themselves of this treat. Jesus, a single man, was their greatest treat, even today (In Malaysia, even though Christian’s total percentage is around 10%, the religious and government authorities sees us as “enemies”. They called our evangelism as “Christian’s agenda to apostate the Muslims.” This small minority is a national treat. Just like Jesus).

Think about this: Either Jesus is who he said he is, or he is a fraud. The Pharisees chose the latter. We who follow Jesus can also be seen as threats. When we stand up for truth and love, faith and mercy, compassion and justice, we will be opposed by many who profit from oppression and discrimination. We may even encounter opposition from religious leaders (ever among Christians) who see their grip loosening. Jesus turns the world’s values upside down, but his way is true and right. It is the only path to eternity. Pray to the Lord that you may give your wholehearted commitment to Jesus and his teachings, no matter what consequences arise from your obedience and loyalty. Remember, we follow the Truth and Truth can never be wrong. Amen.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

10 Worst Current Offenders of Religious Rights in the World (and Some Stories from Malaysia)

"Two-hundred million Christians currently live under persecution. 

It’s absolutely on the rise” (Jeff King, president of Persecution.Org). 

“All who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution”

(Apostle Paul to Timothy just before he was beheaded, 2 Timothy 3:12)

“The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church” (Tertullian)

According to the organization, International Christian Concern (ICC), the ten worst current offenders of religious rights in the world are:

1) China – The communist government has intensified repression against Christians by raiding unregistered private homes and house churches, imprisoning the leaders, imposing harsh fines, confiscating property, and publicly slandering house-church leaders.

2) Sudan – The militant Arab-backed regime in Khartoum is using every method possible to repress non-Muslims. Over 25% of the population of Southern Sudan is Christian. Suffering the most are the Christians of the South and Nuba Mountains. Arab forces continue to enslave children, rape women, violently attack and bomb villages, and withhold food and medicines. There is also evidence of the use of chemical weapons. More than two million people have died in Sudan over the past ten years, mostly non-Muslim black Africans. Every attempt is made to force Christians to become Muslims.

3) Saudi Arabia – Perhaps the most oppressive of all countries when it comes to Christians practicing their faith. The practice of the Christian faith and the public display of any Christian symbol are forbidden. Christian workers from outside the country are forbidden from praying or holding Bible studies in their homes. Evangelism and conversion to Christianity is punishable by death by beheading.

4) Burma (Myanmar) – The government of Burma has been involved in a brutal campaign to eliminate Christians and other minorities. Suffering the most are the Chin and Karen people. Buddhist monks backed by the military have been entering villages and forcing Christians to recant their faith. Buddhist leaders recently declared all Christian radio programs a threat to Buddhism and published a document suggesting how to eliminate Christianity from the country. Many Christians have been killed or forced from their homes.

5) North Korea – In May 1999, the government issued an open warning to all citizens that missionaries are “tools of imperialism” and must be “ferreted out.” The number of believers in North Korea has dramatically reduced as a result of years of harsh persecution. Between 1987 to 1992, former prisoner Soon Ok Yi says she witnessed monthly executions of Christians.

6) Indonesia – Christians have come under increasing attack from Muslims. Over the past four years, at least three hundred churches have been destroyed. In East Timor, nineteen priests and seven nuns have been reported killed since September 4, 1999. Christians are victims of a carefully-planned Muslim holy war that has resulted in hundreds of deaths and destruction to scores of churches and property.

7) Vietnam – The Protestant denominations continue to face persecution and the communist government destroys places of worship. Thousands of Christians have suffered ill-treatment, aimed at forcing the minorities to give up their faith.

8) Turkmenistan – All religious groups fewer than five hundred members are required to register, limiting religious activities to only the Orthodox Church and Sunni Muslims. Evangelism and conversion is strictly forbidden. On August 4, 1999, Shagildy Atakov of the Evangelical Baptist Church in Turkmenbashi was arrested on false charges following his conversion to Christianity. He was beaten, fined $12,000, an amount impossible to pay, and sentenced to four years in a labor camp.

9) India – The rise in Hindu nationalism has resulted in over one hundred acts of violence against Christians since June 1998. This is more than all the year combined since India’s independence fifty years ago. The escalation of persecution against Christians made headlines after Australian missionary Graham Staines and his two young sons were mercilessly burned alive. Catholic priest Father Arul Doss was killed by a gang armed with bows and arrows.

10) Egypt – Conversion of Christian girls to Islam is often coerced. Poor Christians are offered incentives to convert (this reminds me of my people at rural areas in Sabah and Sarawak). One Egyptian organization claims that it has documented 218 cases of abduction. Muslims, however, are forbidden to become Christians. Churches cannot be built or repaired without special permission, but the construction of new mosques continues to flourish (Egypt cases sound like in Malaysia).

Upcoming nation that may list in the Top 20 worst offenders for the next few years is Malaysia. Here are just a few examples of persecutions in my country:

In early 2009, Home Ministry of Malaysian government banned the use of “Allah” in the Catholic Church’s weekly paper Herald. Since then, Malaysia has seen the ongoing dispute and increasing tension over whether Christians could use the word “Allah”, which even led to attacks on three Christian churches in 2010.

The Islamic authority in Malaysia, Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais), seized over 300 Bibles from the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) and arrested several staff members in January, 2014.

In May 2014, a controversial seminar promoting the idea of "threat of Christianization" was jointly organized by the largest public university in Malaysia UiTM and the Selangor Islamic Council (Mais). However, facing questions and concerns, the public university UiTM has kept mum over why academic authorities were willing to tolerate and even promote a certain religious agenda. It was reported that the seminar was promoting a bigoted view without inviting any Christian speaker; and an Indonesian Muslim speaker said “Christians were betraying God unless they became Muslims.” Christians expressed concerns over increasingly difficult inter-faith discourse in Malaysian society.

In August 11, 2014, the dream of the Caliphate spreads to Asia, raising fears of violence in Indonesia and Malaysia. International Christian Concern (ICC) noted at least 20 Malaysian nationals are recruited by ISIS in Syria to fight the jihad. The article reports that both Malaysia and Indonesia have warned that those followers of ISIS are “ready to strike their countries of origin” and the goal is to “erase secular and pluralist constitutions in order to introduce Sharia-inspired rules.”

There are many more stories untold. Why I compiled and write all these? Because people need to know the truth! If there are people asking me to shut up, I will reply like Peter and John before the Council of religious leaders: “You yourselves judge which is right in God’s sight – to obey you or to obey God. For we cannot stop speaking of what we ourselves have seen and heard” (Acts 4:19-20, GNB). Amen.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Resources:

1. Robert J. Morgan’s Preacher’s Sourcebook of Creative Sermon Illustrations (Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas Nelson Publisher, 2007). Pg. 761-762

2. From the website: www.persecution.org

3. From the website: http://www.asianews.it/news-en/The-dream-of-the-Caliphate-spreads-to-Asia,-raising-fears-of-violence-in-Indonesia-and-Malaysia-31864.html

Recommended books to read:

1. Book of Acts (or The Acts of the Apostles) in the New Testament Bible. Any translations will do.

2. (New) Foxe’s Book of Martyrs by John Foxe. Buy the new and updated version – more understandable modern language.  Published by Bridge Logos is awesome!

9 Lessons I Learned from Transformer 4: The Age of Extinction [Spoiler Alert!]

I watched Transformer 4 two times already. First with my mother and brother (I told my mother, “It’s going to be more than 2 hours…” She arrogantly replied, “Even 10 hours, I don’t care.”). And secondly with my friends (sponsored ticket). For me the movie is very good, excited, entertaining, imaginative, fun, humorous – and undeniably too long. I kind of ‘addicted’ to Transformers film series since Transformers (2007), Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009), Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) and now Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014). Seven years being faithful followers.

Do you know? On 2013, there are three possible titles for Transformers 4 which were Transformers: Last Stand, Transformers: Future Cast and Transformers: Apocalypse. But after that they revealed one last possible title, Transformers: Age of Extinction. You know the outcome already.

The movie start after the battle at Chicago five years ago when geologists discover a dinosaur corpse turned to or covered in strange unknown metal. Sixty-five million years ago, the flashback, there were beings known as the Creators “denoted many Seeds wiping out most of life on earth.” Then our new hero, Cade Yeager (acted by Mark Wahlberg), a struggling inventor and single father, come into the scene. One day he found an abandon old truck, bring it home and repair it with the hope that he may sell it. His concern is to send his daughter, Tessa (acted by Nicola Peltz) to college. He didn’t know that the old truck is none other than an injured Optimus Prime. At the same time, an elite CIA agents known as Cemetery Wind with the help of Transformer’s intergalactic bounty hunter, Lockdown, hunt down Transformers – Decepticons and Autobots – all together from the face of the earth. And so the adventures, secrets and avengers begin…

Apart from some negative receptions from my friends about this movie such as the overall directing, length and script writing, I personally find that this movie (again) must be praise for the action-packed scenes, great visual effects and Mark Wahlberg’s acting performance. I also think that this movie should be praised for its moral values. I learned:

1) To see that there is greatness and potential in everyone of us. When Cade Yeager found and bought the old truck home he didn’t know that it is the injured Optimus Prime. The rusty truck is actually the legendary leader of the Autobots! Some people that we meet or perhaps ourselves may look “rusty” from the outside but inside if we look deeper there is a great potential within us if only we let God change us from the inside out.

2) To (sometime) say “No” to good thing so that we can say “Yes” to something better. When Yeager found out that the truck was Optimus Prime, he changed his mind. He doesn’t want to report it to the government and get the reward money but instead he repairs it and work alongside Optimus because he know that there is something big is about to happen – he don’t want to miss it! How many time we missed a lots of opportunities that God have in store for us when we say “yes” too soon?

3) To be royal and faithful to our leaders. When the remaining Autobots (Bumblebee, Crosshairs, Drift and Hound) receive Prime’s command “Calling-all-Autobots!” message and then get to know that Prime is still alive – they rejoice! In their discipleship, they’re faithful to the end even that mean, to some of them, loosing their own souls (“sparks”). Ratchet, the Autobot’s medical officer, even willing to died than to reveal where Prime is to Lockdown. When Christ, our Leader, called us into the new life in Him, He wants us to be Christians that is royal (undivided heart) and faithful (obedience to His Word). We must be willing to abandon and sacrifice our lives for Him if that is required of us to serve Him. We are not just people (“Transformers”); we are Christians (“Autobots”)! 

4) To not underestimate others. After the incident at Cade Yeager’s house in Texas, the CIA hunts down both Prime and Yeager’s family. They are looking for them but they hardly find them. Attinger, the leader of the CIA said to his field leader, James Savoy, “You said he (Yeager) was a nobody!” Don’t underestimate others. Don’t underestimate what God can do through you. Throughout the Bible and even today, God is still using the nobodies (shepherds, tax collectors, fishermen, carpenters, young men and women, old people, mechanics, dancers, security guards, teachers, uneducated parents, etc.) to accomplish His purpose and plan. Are you a ‘nobody’? Good! God may use you if you trust Him.

5) To take actions even if we don’t know what lies ahead of us. Cade Yeager when he realized that he is dealing with something bigger than himself said this: “I’m doing things out of my league” – move ahead and doing his best to save humanity. He and his alien gun. When we don’t know what lies ahead of us, just move on, not by sight but by faith – take actions.

6) To realize that we can’t control our sinful nature. Joshua Joyce, the head of KSI, has perfected “transformium, a codeable, molecularly unstable metal that the Transformers are made of” and created human-made Transformers by using decoded dead Transformers’ brains. (Galvatron was created using data from Megatron’s brain). When they tested the prototypes, they soon realize that they can’t control all of them. Galvatron had manipulated and corrupts all the drones. In the same way, we sometime think that we are in control but actually we are being controlled. Maybe we are being control by our lusts, anger or whatever manifestations of sins (“Megatron’s mind and evil desire”) in our lives. Its time to let go of our sinful nature and let God through His Son, Jesus Christ, to forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

7) To ask for help and to offer help when there is a need. When Optimus Prime found out that the Autobots and humans are in danger, he releases and tames the Dinobots, the Transformers’ legendary heroes. With their help, they destroy Galvatron’s army in no time. We need to be humble (even if we’re the leader) and ask help from people. And when our help is needed, like Dinobots, we must ‘rush’ to help too.

8) To love our enemies. Autobots was once an ally to the human. But after the world is peaceful and the war end, they turned against them. The human betrayed the Autobots. But what the Autobots finally do? They protect the human beings from the real enemies. This is forgiveness. If the machines are willing to forgive the humans (humorously speaking), and if Christ the righteous One are willing to die for us the sinners (seriously speaking), aren’t we suppose to forgive and love our enemies?

9) To have hope in humanity. Since the incidence in Chicago (Transformers 3), Optimus Prime has lost his faith in humanity. He even considers leaving the planet earth until Cade Yeager manages to talk and restore his faith in humanity. “We are human,” said Yeager to Prime, “we make mistakes.” He reminds Prime that it is by ‘mistake’ that he found and saved him. Yeager continues, “Have faith Prime...” And then Optimus Prime changed him mind. Though we read and hear many news about what is happenings in Malaysia and the world today such as the missing of MH370, the crash down of MH17, the war in Gaza, the persecution due to racism and religious agendas, the corruptions and human slavery, etc. – as long as God is on the throne, we still have hope for humanity. God will never leave us. God will still use us – humans that makes mistake we are – to accomplish His will in this world. Have hope in humanity because no matter how much we failed and sinned, we still bear “the image of God” within us. We are redeemable, we are savable and we can be righteous in the sight of God by grace through faith in Christ. We can be useful and we can do many good things and can make the different in this world if God’s Holy Spirit works in us. Have hope people!

Cade Yeager asks Optimus Prime, “Will we ever see you again?”

“Cade Yeager, I do not know,” he answers.

“But whenever you look to the stars, think of one of them as my soul.”

Do you know what Christ would say to us now if we ask the same question to Him?

He would say: “Be sure, I will be with you. You will know that I’m always near you.

 And whenever you look at the Cross, you know that I love you.”

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Sebab #5: Yesus Mati... Untuk Kita Berbaik Semula dengan Allah (5/10)

Kenapa Yesus perlu menderita dan mati?

Saya percaya bahawa ini ialah satu soalan yang sangat penting sekali pada abad ke-21.

Di sini ada sepuluh jawapan daripada Firman Allah.

Sebab #5: Untuk Kita Berbaik Semula dengan Allah

Pendamaian yang perlu berlaku diantara kita dan Allah memerlukan tindakkan kedua-dua belah pihak. Tuhan terlebih dahulu menyediakan jalan untuk kita berbaik semula dengan-Nya dengan merobohkan tembok yang memisahkan Dia dengan kita – iaitu, kesalahan dosa kita. Dia bertindak untuk melakukan sesuatu yang tidak mungkin kita dapat lakukan sendiri dengan menyerahkan Anak-Nya, Yesus Kristus, untuk mengalami hukuman bagi dosa kita. Yesus mati bagi kita. “Ketika masih berseteru (atau masih bermusuhan), [kita] diperdamaikan dengan Allah oleh kematian Anak-Nya” (Roma 5:10, TB).

Tindakkan pendamaian bagi pihak kita pula sangat mudah, iaitu, dengan percaya dan menerima dengan iman apa yang Tuhan telah siap sediakan bagi kita. Hanya dengan cara ini kita dapat bertindak untuk mencapai pendamaian itu.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

*Dipetik dari risalah kecil '10 Reasons Jesus Came to Die' oleh John Piper (Wheaton: Good News Publishers) 

Jesus on the Unforgivable Sin (A Reflection on Mark 3:22-30)

To me this part of the Scripture is like a list of unbelievers or doubters starting from Jesus’ own earthly family members, the people in general and here we will see – from the teachers of the Law. When these teachers from Jerusalem observed or probably only heard about Jesus’ works, especially His authority over evil spirits, they concluded: “He has Beelzebul in him! It is the chief of the demons who gives him the power to drive them out” (Mark 3:22, GNB). “Beelzebul” is a derogatory name for Satan or lesser being than Satan, which literally mean “Lord of the Dung.” So they simple accused Jesus’ wonderful works as having it source from “the chief of demons.” They attribute Jesus’ powers as from satanic powers. They and the people were saying “He has an evil spirit in him.” (Mark 3:30) This is blasphemy!

“So Jesus called them to him and spoke to them in parables: ‘How can Satan drive out Satan? If a country divides itself into groups which fight each other, that country will fall apart. If a family divides itself into groups which fight each other, that family will fall apart. So if Satan’s kingdom divides into groups, it cannot last, but will fall apart and come to an end” (Mark 3:23-26). This was a logical answer to their accusation. If Jesus cast out demons by the power of Satan, then the kingdom of Satan are destroying themselves. This is nonsense!

Satan is wickedly evil but not stupid. Satan has power but Jesus is more powerful. Satan is strong but not the strongest, Jesus is. That was why He said, “No one can break into a strong man’s house and take away his belongings unless he first ties up the strong man; then he can plunder his house.” (Mark 3:27) It was a declaration that Jesus has bound Satan so that through Him people can enjoy their freedom in God.

Jesus then said a subject that has puzzled and terrified people to this day – the unforgettable sin, “I assure you that people can be forgiven all their sins and all the evil things they may say. But whoever says evil things against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, because he has committed an eternal sin.” (Mark 3:28-29) Excuse me, will never be forgiven? Eternal sin? Why? Isn’t God is the God of mercy and grace? Wasn’t Jesus Himself died for us in order to provide the way for our sins to be forgiven? I don’t understand!

[I need to pray and pause for awhile to find answer and explanations to my own questions]

In his book Where the Action Is, Ralph P. Martin has written some good words of explanation that I couldn’t figure out just now. He writes, “Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is an attitude of resistance to the Holy Spirit, a rejection of God in human life and a perverse confusion of moral values and issues… In Jesus’ teaching, it was blasphemy to attribute satanic powers to Him or to believe that He was none other than a false prophet inspired by the devil. To attribute His words of mercy, done in God’s name to Satan, said Jesus, is to be morally perverse and spiritually blind. To say that He is the devil’s Messiah is to cut oneself off from all understanding of who He is, and so deny oneself access to God’s forgiveness. This is the ‘unforgivable sin’ – unforgivable because a person like this doesn’t know what right and wrong are, and he is in no conscious need of being forgiven.”

Do not misunderstand the term ‘unforgivable sin’ here. Every sin is forgivable – all, except, the sin of deliberate action of a person who is so morally and spiritually twisted that he attributes God’s work to the devil. The unforgivable sinner, sad as it may seem, I think had lost all the sensitivity to God. I urge you, don’t be like this. The fact that you think you have done an ‘unforgivable sin’ is a sign that you’re not doing it. You’re still under God’s forgiveness. If you have sinned, God’s desire in Jesus Christ is to restore you through your repentance, confession and His forgiveness. Beware not to harden your heart like “the teachers of the Law.” Do you understand now?!

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Jesus Puts People First, Religious-Rules Second or Third or Fourth or… (A Reflection on Mark 2:23-28)

“Jesus was walking through some wheat fields on a Sabbath.

As his disciples walked along with him, they began to pick the heads of wheat.

So the Pharisees said to Jesus,

‘Look, it is against our Law for your disciples to do that on the Sabbath!’” (Mark 2:23-24, GNB).

Jesus’ conflict with the Pharisees now reached to climax. After the issue of fasting, the Pharisees now moved to the issue of Sabbath observance. Sabbath was the most sacred and highly esteemed rule in the Jewish society at that time. Why?

It’s a long history. But let me summaries it this way: Over the centuries, the Jews had established (or rather, complicated) many rules and regulations governing what a Jew could and couldn't do on the seventh day of the week. What God commands as a day of rest to observe God’s provision for mankind in creation, the legalistic leaders of that day had produced ‘religious rulebooks’ that missed the entire purpose of the Sabbath commands. It supposed to be a day for worship and rest, but they are making it a day of “No’s-and-Don’ts.” When Jesus’ disciples “pick the heat of wheat,” they charged them as breaking the Law because to do that is considered reaping, which mean, working on the day of Sabbath! Unbelievable!

So Jesus answered the Pharisees with the story of David and his men (1 Samuel 21) who were very hungry “went into the house of God and ate the bread offered to God” which was “only the priests may eat [the] bread” (see Mark 25-26). I think Jesus was simply saying that even though the Law forbid it, King David does it anyway because he obeyed the higher Law which is – human needs are more important or take priority over religious rules and regulations.

Jesus concluded: “The Sabbath was made for the good of human beings; they were not made for the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27, GNB) Or may I paraphrase it this way: The Sabbath is a day to enjoy, not a law to keep! Or may I surprise some of you readers today by saying that: After Genesis 2:2, God Himself doesn't observed Sabbath anymore – God is working ever since (John 5:17). But nevertheless, Jesus with authority said that “[the] Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath” (Mark 2:28).

Today, I observe that many Christians allowing themselves to be trapped into religious-rule-centered living rather than people-centered living. For examples, we decline an invitation to the unbelievers wedding party because we have this Christian rule, ‘You must not party with unbelievers’. We quietly condemn our friends for staying at their room play games because some Christian fellowship rulebooks that says, ‘You must not miss Christian Fellowship or Youth ministry every Friday night.’ No wonder, because of our religious-rule-centered living, the unbelievers soon get the impression that they are unimportant to us or to God until they are ‘obeying’ our religious rules. How many people or young people you know who are turned off from church or Christian Fellowship because they see that we’re so full of “Do’s and Don’ts” lists?

Listen to Jesus. He is saying to all of us now: “The Sabbath was made for the good of human beings; they were not made for the Sabbath.” Are we like Jesus, attracting unbelievers and transforming people lives because we concern about their relationship with God rather than obeying religious laws? Are we loving and people-centered like Jesus? Do we make it obvious that people are important to us? [Btw, the enemies don’t like all of these. That’s why they “made plans to kill Jesus” (Mark 3:6)]

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Love Your Enemies: One Prisoner's Story of Risky Obedience

“Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say, ‘’I will take revenge; I will pay them back,’ says the Lord’ Instead, ‘If your enemies are hungry, feed them. If they are thirsty, give them something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals of shame on their heads.’ Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good” (Romans 12:19-21, NLT)

Just a picture

Roy Anthony Borges is a prison inmate who, becoming a Christian had some hard lessons to unlearn. All his life he had been taught to hate his enemies, particularly within prison walls. One of his most vexing enemies was Rodney, who stole his radio and headphones one day while Roy was playing volleyball in the prison yard. It was an expensive radio, a gift from his mother. The earphones had been a Christmas present from his sister. Roy was angry and wanted revenge, but as he prayed about it, it seemed to him that God was testing him.

Day after day, Roy wanted to respond violently, to knock the wisecrack grin off Rodney’s face, but Romans 12:20-21 kept coming to mind: Paul’s instruction to avoid vengeance, leaving it to God to settle the score. Roy began to look at Rodney through God’s eyes and have compassion on him. He began praying for him. He began trusting God to accomplish something in Rodney’s life.

By and by, Roy’s hatred for Rodney began fading, and he found himself helping his enemy and telling him about Jesus. Then one day, Roy later wrote, “I saw Rodney kneeling down next to his bunk reading his Bible, and I knew that good had overcome evil”*

“To do evil for good is human corruption;

to do good for good is civil retribution;

but to do good for evil is Christian perfection” (Rev. William Secker)

Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

*Story above is taken from Roy Anthony Borges, “Love Your Enemies: One Prisoner’s Story of Risky Obedience,” Discipleship Journal, Issue 107, 42-43.