Kingdom Come, Kingdom Go: Luke & Acts (2007) by International Bible Society, Review-Maybe

 

Kingdom Come, Kingdom Go: Luke & Acts (2007) by International Bible Society

I think I heard first from the late David Pawson that chapter divisions in the Bible are added later in the year around 1227. When I checked the internet, it was done by Stephen Langton, an Archbishop of Canterbury. The Wycliffe English Bible of 1382 was the first Bible to use this method and since then, nearly all Bible translations have followed Langton’s divisions (then about 200 to 300 years later, verse divisions were added). It is NOT inspired by God in a sense like the Scripture but it is helpful for 1) Quotations, 2) Memorisations, and 3) References. It is easier if I say, "Let's turn to the Gospel according to Luke chapter 22 verse 10" than to say, "Let's turn to somewhere in the middle of the Gospel according to Luke."

But there are, of course, weaknesses with chapter and verse divisions. First, you'll miss the context of the passage of the Scripture easily when it is divided wrongly. For example, in Matthew 16:28, when Jesus said "some standing here right now will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom" is fulfilled just after that in Matthew 17:1-13 through Jesus' transfiguration. Many people argue the meaning of Matthew 16:28 when all they have to do is continue reading the next chapter! Secondly, you'll assume what the Scripture said isolatedly instead of as a whole. For example, Matthew 18:20, "For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there among them", is in the context of church discipline from verse 15 not a general promise for any prayer meeting per se. Thirdly, you'll see the Scripture as a religious document only instead of the story of redemption ultimately. For example, when Zakir Naik lectures against Christianity, he always quotes like this, "Chapter [bla bla bla] verse [bla bla bla] said..." When I paused the YouTube videos and search some of the verses that he mentions, it was always out of context. To put it mildly, the person of Jesus of his version is very abstract here and there instead of the real God-man who enter into the world history. We too must be careful not to do the same. Don't let chapter and verse divisions distract you from seeing the big picture, the drama, the story of redemption.

So you see, there are pros and cons of having these divisions in our modern Bible. With this long introduction, let me say something about this book Kingdom Come, Kingdom Go. It is actually the compilation of the Gospel according to Luke and the Acts of the apostles without chapter and verse divisions. Church historians claim that Luke and Acts are two volumes of a single work which traces the story of Christianity from its beginnings in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ up to the middle of the first century AD. I read it like a novel, only that it is not works of fiction but the truth continuation. The translation is from Today's New International Version (TNIV) and I love it!  #1Book1Week #ServeToLead #LeadersAreReaders #LukeActs #KingdomComeKingdomGo

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Young Men and Women, Christ Is All that Matters

“Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us”

(Colossians 3:11, NLT)

Paul compresses his comprehensive creed into these 12 words: “Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us.” Each word brings to light all the excellences and glories of Jesus Christ our Lord. I love how New King James Version simplified it: “Christ is all and in all.” Letter to the Colossian church aims primarily at the exaltation of Christ in His glory and splendor. Of the 95 verses in this letter, Christ is mentioned more than half! Christ, Christ, Christ. “Christ is all and in all.” The Colossian Christian were being taught and lured away by the false teachings of Gnosticism (you're required to have ‘special knowledge’ to get to know God, to put it simply).  Paul here directs their attention toward Jesus alone as the source of wisdom and knowledge – Christ is all that matters.

Paul tells them that in Christ, “dwells all the completeness of the Godhead bodily” (Colossians 2:9). A hymn by an unknown author puts it wonderfully,

In Him most perfectly expressed,

The Father’s glories shine,

Of the full Deity possessed

Eternally divine.

Jesus is the complete embodiment of all there is in God. Jesus Himself declared: “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father… I am in the Father and the Father is in me” (John 14:9, 11). Paul here demolished the Docetic* heresy which maintained that Jesus has no real body and the Cerinthian* heresy which separated the man Jesus from the divine attribute.

Christ is the all in all of creation. “Everything was created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16). “Everything” here means the whole universe. This is the Christ-centred universe – a Christocentric universe! He is its nerve center. Paul is underlining the central activity of Christ in creation. The whole creation is designed to reveal Him. The natural points us to the spiritual.

Christ is the all in all of the providence. “He existed before anything else” (Colossian 1:17). J. Oswald Sanders writes, “Christ occupies the whole sphere of human life and permeates all its developments. Nature is not a machine. Its laws are formulated and administered by the risen Christ.” It is by Him that all things unified, hold together and “in him, we live and move and exist” (Acts 17:28).

Christ is the all in all of the redemption. He “purchased our freedom and forgave our sins” (Colossians 1:14). Through His blood we have redemption! He alone has redeemed us. He paid the debt of our sin not with silver or gold but by His own precious blood. Jesus nailed our sin to the cross thus “ canceled the record of the charges against us” (Colossians 2:14). At the same time, He gloriously defeated “the [evil] spiritual rulers and authorities” and held them up to public shame and disgrace (read Colossians 2:15).

Christ is all that matters

And you know what? He lives in all of us. Wow!

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Young Men and Women, Consider the Lordship of Jesus

“Christ died and rose again for this very purpose –
to be Lord both of the living and of the dead”
(Romans 14:9, NLT)

Here Paul claims that our Lord Jesus Christ died and came to life again for one main purpose – to establish His lordship over dead and living. This is in keeping with the crucial sentence of the Pentecostal sermon by Peter: “[God] has made this Jesus, who you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!” (Acts 2:36). We, as Christians – Christ-believers – must emphasize that Jesus who died for us lives to rule in the lives of those He has redeemed.

It is tragic that while many Christians verbally acknowledge Christ’s lordship, they do not display it in the day-to-day practice. They are willing to grant Him the position of constitutional Sultan (or Monarch), as long as they can remain prime minister (or president). Like Peter when God instructed him to eat, they reply Him back, “No, Lord” (Acts 10:14). Do we ever say “no” to Him? He moves us to pray in prayer meetings, but we say “no, Lord.” He calls us to service or witness and we say “no, Lord.” To such Jesus says, “Why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say?” (Luke 6:46).

It is possible to accept Christ as Saviour and to reject Him as Lord. But the truth is: He cannot be divided. We cannot accept Him in one position and reject Him in another. Hudson Taylor was right when he said, “If Jesus is not Lord of all, He is not Lord at all.” In almost the same way, A.W. Tozer writes, “It is altogether doubtful whether any man can be saved who comes to Christ for His help, but with no intention of obeying Him.” Jesus’ reign in our hearts is very practical and extends to every area of life. If we disobey Him, all our recognition of His lordship is nothing… useless. The test is not what we say but what we do. What we perform always speaks more loudly than what we profess. Isaiah puts the situation very abruptly, “O LORD our God, others have ruled us, but you alone are the one we worship” (Isaiah 26:13).

So now, how can we acknowledge Jesus’ lordship? We MUST do the following: 1) Understand that we are saved by His grace alone and so we worship Him gladly and freely; 2) Make a break with the past and vow that other ‘lords’ shall no longer rule in your life; 3) Decisively renounce all known sin or disobedience toward God and others; 4) Enthrone Christ alone and refuse to acknowledge any other name; and 5) Depend on the Holy Spirit – “No one speaking by the Spirit of God will curse Jesus, and no one can say Jesus is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:3).

Jesus is Lord! Amen.

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Jesus' Game Plan of Redemption is still Continue, Are You In? (Mark 11:1-10)

“As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, saying to them, ‘Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’’ They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, some people standing there asked, ‘What are you doing, untying that colt?’ They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go”

(Mark 11:1-6, NIV).

God the Father and the Son planned the Saviour’s visit to planet earth before the world was created. The Plan is foretold and recorded in the Old Testament centuries before the Saviour was born. Over 300 specific prophesies about the Saviour-Messiah are found in the prophetic writings of the Old Testament – prophecies concerning the place of His birth (Micah 5:2), the virginity of His mother (Isaiah 7:14), the place of His ministry (Isaiah 9:1-2), His rejection (Isaiah 53:3), death (Isaiah 53:12) and resurrection (Psalm 16:10). This is God’s game plan (God’s will).

Mark 11:1-11 describes the beginning of the most agonizing week of Jesus’ game plan. As you read on until Mark 15, it was the week of rejection, suffering and death (that Jesus had told His disciples about so openly). Ironically, the week began with an event that looked anything like the beginning of a week of suffering: Jesus’ triumphant ride to Jerusalem! Jesus’ entrance on a donkey was another event in the game plan that God previewed in the Old Testament Scriptures. The prophet Zechariah wrote: “Rejoice greatly, Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zechariah (9:9). The fact that Jesus called for a colt on “which no one has ever ridden” was very significant to God’s plan as in Jewish tradition, an unbroken animal was often associated with sacred use.

The people, however, misunderstood Him as a political saviour who would cast out the Roman government from their holy city. They cried out, “Hosanna!” (Mark 11:9) which mean “Save us now, we pray!” It was a plea for political liberation. The people also shouted, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!” (v.9-10). The people imagined that Jesus would use His miracle-working power to fulfil their prayer for political salvation. They wanted a liberator, a freedom fighter but God’s game plan called for a King on a lowly donkey. They were deaf to prophesies of the Old Testament and blind to Jesus’ game plan. The suffering and the death of Saviour was not on their lists of God’s plan. When it became obvious that Jesus was not going to fulfil their hopes and expectations, many turn against Him.

Dear readers, the focus of God’s game plan is redemption. Total redemption, yes; but first – the most important of all – our spiritual redemption. Jesus the Saviour paid the death penalty for our sin in order to redeem us back to God.

Now, even though God’s game plan was completed with the death and resurrection of Jesus (see John 17:4, 19:30), the play continues. For the redemption that Jesus secured for all people must be offered individually by each person. The Lord is “not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9).  So as long as there are those who have not heard the redemption of Christ, God’s plan continues. Just as Jesus used two disciples (and a donkey!) to carry out His game plan, so He uses people today to carry out the game plan of redemption. He still looks for willing followers who will obey His Word trustfully like the two disciples. Most people like to follow their own expectations of how God’s plan work, but as for us, we must follow His plan as written in the Scriptures and through the leading of the Holy Spirit in us. As Christians, we are already in the Game. The question is: Are you actively participating in God’s game plan or just sitting being an audience only?

All the Scripture will be fulfilled.

God’s game plan will continue with or without you.

Are you participating in the Game?

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Ezekiel prophesies that God will Give New Hearts for Old (Ezekiel 11:16-20)

“This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the counties where they have gone… I will gather you from the nations and bring you back from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you back the land of Israel again. They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols. I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God”
(Ezekiel 11:16-20, NIV).

The people of Israel had a long history of rejecting the Lord. God sent judges and prophets to warn them and foreign kings to punish them. And they reformed… for a while. When the threat was gone, Israel always fell back into their old patterns of sin.

Now in exile, the people finally understood what they had done. But could they ever get back again? Could they reform themselves enough that God would have them again?

The answer, of course, was no. Sinful people cannot improve or clean themselves up well enough to be received by God. But as God revealed thru the prophet Ezekiel, it doesn’t start with us. Even when His people were under punishment, God was “a sanctuary for them.” He will gathered up the scattered and brought them home again. Most important, He will changed them from the inside. He will gave them undivided hearts of flesh to replace their cold, dead hearts of stone. God, do this to us.

We can’t reform ourselves either. We don’t have to. God gives us new hearts in Christ, calls us His children, and brings us home. God, do this to me. Amen.

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Letters to Annie:Trust God's Plans and Leave Our Present and Future Relationships to Him

Dear Annie,

            Can I ask you one thing, why you always say “God’s plan for us” in all of your letters to me? I’m a motivational readers and self-help bookers that always emphasis on human strengths and our ability to change our destiny, why you use the phrase “God’s plan”? (Is it because you’re influenced by Jamie Sullivan in A Walk to Remember novel?) At first, I’m not easy with the idea of “God’s plan” and I’m troubled by it because I have my own plan… So I searched the Scripture and after one week… I was convince that God really do have a good plan for our lives.

            The Bible makes it clear: God have a plan – a very big and good plan – and we’re (in fact all the redeemed sinners) are important parts of that plan. “You will teach me how to live a holy life,” write the Psalmist praising God, “Being with you will fill me with joy; and your right hand I will find pleasure forever” (Psalm 16:11). But here is the catch: God won’t force His plans upon us; we got to figure things out for ourselves… or not. Not figure it alone but with Him. C.S. Lewis puts it this way: “I don’t doubt that the Holy Spirit guides your decisions from within when you make them with the intention of pleasing God. The error would be to think that He speaks only within, whereas in reality He speaks also through Scripture, the Church, Christian friends, and books.”

            Annie, as followers of our Lord Jesus Christ, we should ask ourselves this question: “How closely can I make my plans match God’s plans?” and “Is our relationship is following or according to God’s plan?” I find that the more closely we manage to follow the path that God intends for our lives, the better. So if we have questions or concerns about our relationships, we must first take them to God in prayer. If we have trouble with planning for the future together, in which we will, we must consult God as we establish our priorities. Annie, thank you for always whispers “God’s plan” to my ears. As we trust the present and the future in God’s plan, we must turn every concern over to our Heavenly Father, and sincerely seek His guidance – prayerfully, earnestly, and often.

I like this quote by Elisabeth Elliot: “The God who orchestrates the universe has a good many things to consider that have not occurred to me, and it is well that I leave them to Him.” What a wise counsel!

Thank you dear Annie, my love.

I love you for always say “God’s plan for us”.

I love you for who you are.

In God’s plan we trust,

Richard

Amen?

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Jesus, the One Who Takes Away Our Shame

I invite you to think carefully about the supreme test Jesus faced in the race. Hebrews 12:2 offers this intriguing statement: “[Jesus] endured the cross, despising the shame.” Shame is a feeling of disgrace, embarrassment, humiliation. Forgive me for stirring the memory, but don’t you have a shameful moment in your history? Can you imagine the horror you would feel if everyone knew about it? What if a video camera of that event were played before your family and friends? How would you feel?

That is exactly what Jesus felt. Why? You ask. He never did anything worthy of shame. No, but we did. And since on the cross God made Him became sin (2 Corinthians 5:21), Jesus was covered with shame. He was shamed before His family. Stripped naked before His own mother and loved ones. Shamed before His fellow men. Forced to carry a cross until the weight caused Him to stumble. Shamed before His church. The pastors and elders of His day mocked Him, calling Him names. Shamed before the city of Jerusalem. Condemned to die a criminal’s death. Parents likely pointed to Him from a distance and told their children, “That’s what they do to evil men.”

But the shame before men didn’t compare with the shame Jesus felt before His Father. Our individual shame seems too much to bear. Can you imagine bearing the collective shame of all humanity? One wave of shame after another was dumped on Jesus. Though He never cheated, He was convicted as a cheat. Though He never stole, heaven regarded Him as a thief. Though He never lied, He was considered a liar. Though He never lusted, He bore the shame of an adulterer. Though He always believed, He endured the disgrace of an infidel.

[Taken from Just Like Jesus by Max Lucado]

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Jesus, the Sinless Savior

The figure on the centre cross… has no such shadow of sin. “We do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15, NKJV). Stainless. Selfless. Even on a sinner’s cross Jesus’s holiness illuminates heaven…

Many could have spoken on behalf of Jesus, but none did. Until now. Kind words from the lips of a thief. He makes his request. “Lord, remember we when You come into Your Kingdom” (Luke 23:42). The Savior turns His heavy head toward the prodigal child and promises, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43).

To those at the foot of the cross, the dialogue was curious. But to those at the foot of the throne, the dialogue was outrageous. They couldn’t imagine it. How could the thief come to paradise? How could a soul speckled by sin go to heaven? How could a sinner be saved? They were about to see.

Did an angle move, did a demon stir as they witnessed the answering of the prayer? The sins of the thief (and all us thieves!) leave him and go to Jesus. Tiny specks at first, then large flakes, and finally layers of filth. Every evil thought. Each vile deed. The thief’s ravings. His cursing. His greed. His sin. All now covering Jesus Christ. What nauseates God now covers His Son… The One with no sin becomes sin-filled. The one sin-filled becomes sinless.

It is eternity’s most bizarre exchange. Paul explained it like this: “Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’)” (Galatians 3:13).

[From A Gentle Thunder by Max Luxado]

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Jesus: Grace before the Cross

Abram (or Abraham) was far from perfect. There were times when he trusted the Egyptians before he trusted God. He even lied, telling Pharaoh that his wife, Sarai (or Sarah), was his sister. A pagan worshiper and a cheater. But Abram made one decision that changed his eternal life: he “believe God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness” (Romans 4:3).

Here is a man justified by faith before his circumcision, before the law, before Moses and the Ten Commandments. Here is a man justified by faith before the cross! The sin-covering blood of Calvary extends as far into the past as it does into the future.

Abraham is not the only Old Testament hero to cast himself upon God’s grace… We must not see grace as a provision made after the law had failed. Grace was offered before the law was revealed. Indeed, grace was offered before man was created! “You were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you” (1 Peter 1:18-20, NKJV).

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From In the Grip of Grace by Max Lucado 

So You Want to Be a Calvinist? John Calvin on the Grounds of Redemption

The Big Story of Scripture (Pic: Christianity Today)

In this short letter, Calvin provides a very brief summary of his general position concerning the doctrine of redemption. A fuller treatment may be found in his famous book Institutes of the Christian Religion, book 2, chapters 1-17. The style used by Calvin in his brief “letter of advice” (consilium) is much lighter and simpler than that adopted in the Institutes, making this extract unusually easy to follow and understand.

“The first man (Adam) of all was created by God with an immortal soul and a mortal body. God adorned him with his own likeness, so that he was free from any evil, and he commanded him to enjoy all that was in his pleasant garden, with the exception of the tree (of knowledge of good and evil) in which all life was hidden. He was so concerned that he should keep his hand away from this tree that he told him that he would die when he first touched its fruit. However, he did touch it. As a result, he died and was no longer like God. This was the primary origin of death. That this is true is proved by the following words: “As often as you eat of it, you will die”…

Man was therefore driven into exile, along with his descendants, in order that, having lost “the horn of plenty,” he should be miserable and experience all kinds of work and every ill, seeking food, sweating and suffering cold, often hungry, often thirsty, always wretched. Finally, God took pity upon this unfortunate and thoroughly unhappy man. Although the sentence which he passed upon him was correct, he nevertheless gave his only and much-loved Son as a sacrificial victim for such sins. By reason of this amazing and unexpected mercy, God commended his own love towards us more greatly than if he had rescinded this sentence. Therefore Christ, the Son of God, was both conceived through the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin. He was finally raised up on the cross, and through his own death delivered the human race from eternal death.” (Bracket mine).

So you want to be a Calvinist? Please reread what John Calvin himself wrote.

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References:

1) Consilium de peccato et redemptione; in Corpus Reformatorum, vol.10, part 1, ed. G. Baum, E. Cunitz, and E. Reuss (Braunschweig: Schwetcshke, 1871), pp. 156-157.

2) The Christian Theology Reader edited by Alister E. McGrath (Oxford: Blackwell), pg. 186-187

Martin Luther on Justifying Faith

In this passage from The Freedom of a Christian, originally published in German in 1520, Martin Luther develops the idea that faith unites the believer to Christ, in much the same way as marriage unites a bride and bridegroom. The soul is thus made “single and free” from its sin on account of being married to Christ; Luther’s language here suggests the image of being “divorced from sin” in order to be “united with Christ.” Through this union, the believer shares in all Christ’s riches, while Christ swallows up the believer’s sin. The passage serves to emphasize that Luther sees faith as far more than intellectual assent to propositions. Faith establishes a living personal relationship between Christ and the believer.

“[In the twelves place], faith does not merely mean that the soul realizes that the divine word is full of all grace, free and holy; it also unites the soul with Christ (voreynigt auch die seele mit Christo), as a bride is united with her bridegroom. From such a marriage, St. Paul says (Ephesians 5:31-32), it follows that Christ and the soul become one body, so that they hold all things in common, whether for better or worse. This means that what Christ possesses belongs to the believing soul; and what the soul possesses, belongs to Christ. Thus Christ possesses all good things and holiness; these now belong to the soul. The soul possesses lots of vices and sin; these now belong to Christ.

Here we have a happy exchange (froelich wechtzel) and struggle. Christ is God and a human being, who has never sinned and whose holiness is unconquerable, eternal and almighty. So he makes the sin of the believing soul his own through its wedding ring (braudtring), which is faith, and acts as if he had done it [i.e., sin] himself, so that sin could be swallowed up in him. For his unconquerable righteousness is too strong for all sin, so that it is made single and free (leding und frei) from all its sins on account of its pledge, that is its faith, and can turn to the eternal righteousness of its bridegroom, Christ. Now is not this is a happy business (ein froehliche wirtschafft)? Christ, the rich, noble, and holy bridegroom, takes in marriage this poor, contemptible and sinful little prostitute (das arm vorachte boetzes huerlein), takes away all her evil, and bestows all his goodness upon her! It is no longer possible for sin to overwhelm her, for she is now found in Christ and is swallowed up by him, so that she possesses a rich righteousness in her bridegroom.”

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

References:

1) The Freedom of a Christian; in D. Martin Luthers Werke: Kritische Gesamtausgabe, vol.7 (Weimar: Bohlaus, 1897), 25.26-26.9.

2) The Christian Theology Reader, edited by Alister E. McGrath (Blackwell Publishers Ltd, 1995), pp. 229-230

Will Jesus Throw a Stone at the Adulterous Woman? (Maybe. Maybe Not. Only If You Know)

Jesus was in the Temple. “The religious scholars and Pharisees led in a woman who had been caught in an act of adultery. They stood her in plain sight of everyone and said, ‘Teacher, this woman was caught red-handed in the act of adultery. Moses, in the Law, gives orders to stone such persons. What do you say?’ They were trying to trap him into saying something incriminating so they could bring charges against him” (John 8:3-6, The Message).

They want to trap Jesus. They had caught a woman committing adultery and they wanted to know what Jesus would do. By the way, where was the man who committed adultery with the woman? Get away freely? Controversy. Just like today’s controversy. Another story. But now, how would Jesus treat such a foul sinner? What would Jesus do?

The Scripture says, “Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger in the dirt. They kept at him, badgering him” (John 8:6-7, Msg). I suspect, there was a long silence while Jesus looked at the ground and doodled his finger in the dust. They repeated their question (so annoying!) and eventually Jesus “straightened up and said, ‘The sinless one among you, go first: Throw the stone.’ Bending down again, he wrote some more in the dirt” (John 8:7-8, Msg). Or if you like ESV translation, Jesus simply said, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” Very clear and direct. What was their response to Jesus’ challenge? Well, “hearing that, they walked away, one after another, beginning with the oldest. The woman was left alone” (8:9, Msg). Now, since Jesus is the most qualified Man on earth to throw a stone at her, what would Jesus do next? Do you think Jesus would do it? Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe if you know Jesus, you already know the answer…

Jesus stood up and spoke to her, “’Woman, where are they? Does no one condemn you?’

‘No one, Master.’ ‘Neither do I,’ said Jesus” (John 8:10-11, Msg). What is happening here? This is how I see the situation, that: judgment and punishment belong to God – and before Him all men and women are equally guilty. That was why everyone starting with the oldest ones walked away. The accusers were accused! They understood it! Do we? Understand this, in the light of God’s holiness nobody can classified one person as good and another as bad, because all people are equally sinful in the face of God’s absolute perfection, and all are in equal need of His forgiveness. Everyone need God’s forgiveness through faith in the Son of God, Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord. ALL.

This woman, though she had committed a terrible sin, was no worse in God’s eyes than any of the religious leaders who were condemning her. In God’s eyes, sin is sin. There is no small or big sin – just sin. That mean, she was also no more sinner than anyone of us since everyone sin against God (no need Bible verses here. We know it alright). But in God’s grace and mercy, Jesus didn’t pick up a stone. Jesus didn’t asked her if she was sorry. Jesus didn’t say that his love is conditional. Jesus told her that he didn’t condemn her. Jesus only told her, “Go on your way.” Jesus, after his words of forgiveness, he told her, “From now on, don’t sin” (John 8:11, Msg). Jesus as Son of God, with authority, forgive her.

Ah, Jesus = Forgiveness. Mind you, forgiveness is not a reward offered to those who promise not to sin anymore or who have stopped sinning. Forgiveness is not given to those who feel sorry and hope to be good. Forgiveness is God’s unconditional grace to sinners. Forgiveness is through repentance and faith in Christ’s work on the cross for us. So, it is natural and expected – out of gratitude – that we should show our love in our actions, with new behaviour and lifestyle. Jesus says to us, “Go on your way. From now on, don’t sin.” Don’t go back sinning the way you were before. Move on with Christ in you. You’re forgiven sinners.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Peace Child

Dr. Don Richardson, author of Peace Child, speaking at the 2012 Global Ministries Conference.

In Don Richardson’s best-selling book, Peace Child, he tells of going, accompanied by his wife Carol and seventeen-month-old child, to the Sawi, a headhunting tribe in Netherlands’ New Guinea. There savagery was a way of life. The tribesmen considered headhunting, cannibalism, and treachery as virtues. As these savages heard the story of the Gospel, they considered Judas – not Jesus – the hero, and Don almost despaired of ever reaching them.

At last, the warfare and barbarism between the Sawi and their neighbour tribes grew into intense that the Richardsons decided to pack their bags and leave. But when the Sawi heard of it, they were deeply disturbed. They had come to love and trust the Richardsons. To prevent their leaving, the Sawi met in a special session and decided to make peace.

The next day as Don watched with mourning curiosity, the peace ritual began. Young children from the warring villages were to be exchanged, and as long as any of those children were alive, the peace would continue.

It was an anguishing ritual, for every mother feared her child would be taken. But after a period of emotional indecision, the chief himself grabbed his only son and rushed toward the enemy tribe, literally giving the tribe to his enemies. In return, he received a son from the other side. Peace descended across the mountains.

As Don pondered the significance of the ceremony, he realised there was a powerful Redemption Analogy. Shortly afterward, gathering the elders together, he told them how God the Heavenly Father sent Jesus to earth as His Peace Child to make peace between God and man*.

It was a lesson they understood and embraced at last.

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

*Don Richardson, Peace Child, (Regal Publishers, 1975) 

Karl Barth on the "Otherness" of God

Karl Barth (1886-1968) is a name that every serious students of theology should know, period. He is widely regarded as the most important Protestant theologian of the twentieth century. His famous works are commentary The Epistle to the Romans and Church Dogmatics (seriously, it’s a thick book to read. I only read the summary from time to time). Barth’s Romans commentary, which first published in German in 1918, caused a sensation on account of “its vision of dialectic between God and humanity,” writes Alister E. McGrath editor of The Christian Theology Reader (1995). He continues, “There is a total gulf between God and the world, which can never be bridged from our side. The fact that we know anything about God is itself the result of God’s self-revelation, not human activity or insight. God is totally distinct from human thought and civilization.” This relentless emphasis on the “total qualitative distinction” between God and humanity established Barth as “a radical voice in the theology of the period immediately after the First World War”.

On the “Otherness” of God from The Epistle of Romans (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1933), Karl Barth wrote:

“[Paul, in the book of Romans] appeals only to the authority of God. This is the ground of his authority. There is no other. Paul is authorized to deliver – the gospel of God. He is commissioned to hand over to humanity something quite new and unprecedented, joyful and good – the truth of God. Yes, precisely – of God! The gospel is not a religious message to inform humanity of their divinity, or to tell them how they may become divine. The Gospel proclaims a God utterly distinct from humanity. Salvation comes to them from him, they have no right to claim anything from him. The Gospel is not one thing in the midst of other things, to be directly apprehended and comprehended. The Gospel is the Word of the Primal Origin of all things, the Word which, since it is ever new, must ever be received with renewed fear and trembling…

Jesus Christ is our Lord. This is the Gospel and the meaning of history. In this name two worlds meet and go apart, two planes intersect, the one know and the other unknown. The know plane is God’s creation, fallen out of its union with him, and therefore the world of the ‘flesh’ needing redemption. The world of human beings, and of time, and of things – our world. This known plane is intersected by another plane that is unknown – the world of the Father, the Primal Creation, and of the final Redemption. The relation between us and God, between this world and his world, presses for recognition, but the line of intersection is not self-evident. The point on the line of intersection at which the relation becomes observable and observed is Jesus, Jesus of Nazareth, the historical Jesus.” (Bold mine)

The unknown God is known through Christ our Lord

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Jesus, the Ransom. I, the Ransomed

Jesus’ ministry on earth was very short, approximately 3 years. It was packed with wonderful teaching and miracles, but all the time Jesus knew that he was going to die, a fact that I still amaze while reading the gospels! He didn’t hide this fact from his disciples. Several times Jesus told them that he was going to suffer at the hands of the Jewish leaders and be put to death.

“[The] Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and after three days rise again” (Mark 8:31, NIV. See also Mark 9:31; 10:32-34).

Jesus, the Savior. I, the Sinner

This is out of my mind, I said to myself, I can’t imagine what Jesus felt and thought knowing that he was going to die soon. (By the way, how would you handle it?). But strangely as his prediction of his own death was, he made it plain that his death would not be pointless. It would achieve something even more wonderful than his teaching and miracles. Jesus told his disciples that he would “give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

‘Ransom” is not so familiar word for me, “to redeem” is. But the word “ransom” is richer in its meaning. Here it means two things: First, kidnappers demand a ransom to release the people they’ve captured, and all of us humans have been captured by the power of sin. Jesus told his disciples that he would pay the ransom which would release humans from the captivity of sin. Jesus would pay it by giving up His life, by the shedding of His blood on the cross.

The other meaning is that, because of sins, all of us humans have to be punished by the holy God. God who is holy can’t stand to see any sin – even a dot of sin – hated it and will cast sinners to hell out of His holy presence (Check: How holy is your God?). This punishment can be thought of as a fine – the fine of death. Jesus told his disciples that he would pay the ransom – the fine – which would release us sinners from the punishment of God. Jesus would pay it by giving up His life, by the shedding of His blood on the cross.

Jesus taught that He would suffer and die.

His death would achieve something greater than His teaching and miracles

He gave up his life “as a ransom for many” by the shedding of His blood on the cross

To free us from the power of sin and the punishment of the holy God

This is how much Jesus has done for you – what is your respond to this truth?

To all of this wonderful work of salvation, I say, “Hallelujah!”

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.

Part 1: Jesus Christ – His Atoning Death (v)

Actually, this series is from Understanding Bible Truth booklets by Robert Hicks and Richard Bewes (1981), but I have expanded some texts for modern readers (to make it easier to read) and added Scripture quotes (I’m using ESV Bible) into these writings to clarify its points more clearly. My purpose of making this series available in the internet is single: So that you can be clear the essential facts about the Bible’s teaching in a readily understandable form.

First, What is “Atonement”?

The word ‘atone’ was coined by bringing the two words ‘at one’ together. This expresses it meanings. By dying for the sins of the world, Jesus Christ has made it possible for all men to be made ‘at one’ with God. “The doctrine of the atonement is very simple,” writes C.H. Spurgeon “It just consists in the substitution of Christ in the place of the sinner; Christ being treated as if He were the sinner, and then the transgressor (us) being treated as if he were the righteous one.”

This doctrine, in my opinion, is the very corner-stone of the gospel! It is important because the atonement of Christ:

Fulfilled Old Testament Scripture

The Old Testament showed that God and man could not be reconciled unless a sacrifice was made. Only then could the guilt of sin be removed. The Old Testament animal sacrifices could not in themselves take away sin, nor could they be a final solution to the problem of sin. The New Testament sees them as illustrations of the perfect sacrifice Jesus was to make.

“…every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same [Old Testament] sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified” (Hebrews 10:11-14, bracket mine).

Initiated a New Relationship

The Bible teaches that man’s sin has created a barrier of guilt between Him and His creator. However, Jesus accepted the responsibility for human sin and willingly took its penalty on the cross. A new relationship is now available for those who respond to the good news that their sins can be forgiven.

Hostility has been replaced by friendship. Those who unite themselves to Christ are viewed by God as though they had never been rebels at all (“as if” never been rebels). Indeed, the Christian is seen as a new person altogether. The Scripture says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17) and “For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation” (Romans 5:10-11).

Destroyed Satan’s Kingdom

The power of Satan’s kingdom was broken through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ; “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). The final destruction of the devil is yet to be (if you’re eager to know more – read the Book of Revelation). The Christian is aware of his activity and influence – but is confident of victory and protection through the power of the cross.

Reversed Sin’s Dominion

In the Bible, the idea of redeeming (or ‘buying back’) a person who is enslaved is very strong. Christ is presented as the One who, by His death, redeems His people from the penalty of God’s moral law. Apostle Paul writes, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’” (Galatians 3:13).

Because Christ has taken our guilt upon Himself, sin no longer has the power to dominate the life of the Christian. “We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:9-11).

Provided a Way of Victory

With the power of the devil limited (and ultimately doomed), and with the guilt of sin removed, the cross of Jesus has set the Christian free.

The Christian is not set free from the fight of moral purity – rather he or she is set free for the fight. Our personal view of salvation should be as follows:

We have been saved from the penalty of sin by a crucified Savior;

We are being saved from the power of sin by a living Savior;

We shall be saved from the presence of sin by a coming Savior.

I tell you, since the time of the cross; the message has been one of victory!

Guaranteed an Eternity with God

The cross is the guarantee that God has set His eternal love upon His people; there could be no stronger demonstration that the death of His Son.

Death is still an enemy, but it is an enemy that is defeated because of the death and resurrection of Christ. Like the devil, death will face ultimate annihilation (Both writers of Understanding Bible Truth, I perceived, teaches here that the devil will face ‘annihilation’ but I believe that the devil will face ‘eternal punishment’ in hell. There is a different. But don’t worry; this disagreement doesn’t shake our Christian faith at all. The point is – the devil is defeated).

The cross assures the Christian of a promised inheritance in God’s Eternal Kingdom. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Paul writes, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

My Conclusion about Jesus’ Atoning Death

I told to a group of students this fact: There are 2 ways to come to God, 1) By the Law, and 2) By the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ. Since I can’t fulfilled the Law in my lifetime (neither do you), this leaves me of no choice but to let God do the work of salvation for me – my work is to believe by faith that Jesus had died on the cross for my sins. Only through His Atonement can you and I be saved from our sins to live with Him and our Father again. C.S. Lewis observes, “The Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God”. 

THINK BIG. START SMALL. GO DEEP.