Bible Devotion

Meditative Reflection
House of Prayer

When I was a young boy, I was curious to see a young man in his late teens walk alone, by himself, in the late afternoon heat in proper shirts and pants, as if he were going to school. He would not tell me where he was going. So, one day I decided to follow him. After walking about 15 minutes, he arrived at a church, and after making a sign of the cross, he walked in and knelt on a kneeling pad and prayed. I did not see anyone there, but him alone.

It was, of course, a Catholic church. I was not born again then, and I seldom went to church. My contact at that point had been with Protestant churches only, not Catholic churches. So, it was quite an experience for me to find a church that is open all the time and welcomes anyone who wants to go in and pray!

All these years, that picture of my friend kneeling and praying in an empty church has stuck with me. In all honesty, whenever I read about Jesus’ word that “My house will be called a house of prayer”, I long that my church will be like the one my friend went to that late afternoon. I am afraid, in our zeal to reform, we have thrown out the baby together with the bath water. What I mean is, in the restoration of “sola scriptura” (Scripture only), we have thrown out the emphasis on prayer as well. It is such a pity.

Most Christians go to worship services to sing hymns and listen to sermons. The Holy Spirit often graciously speaks to us through songs, through Scripture reading and the sermon, only to find that whatever He has impressed upon us is lost, after “a moment of silent prayer” at the end of the service. It is never to be remembered again during the week.

I believe that this “moment of silent prayer” is the most critical moment of our worship. It is a crucial time for us to quiet ourselves, to reflect on what the Holy Spirit has spoken to us, and to carefully respond in a prayer of truthful response. Alas, for most churches, especially those with multiple services, we are forced to bow our heads and in seconds be ushered out of the sanctuary, and our souls are satisfied that we have worshipped―we have been to God’s house of prayer. It is time that we stop deceiving ourselves and short-changing our God!

Meditative Reflection
Nothing but Leaves!

I invite you to slowly reflect on the lyrics of this old hymn and examine yourself in light of Jesus cursing a tree in Matthew 21— the only account of Jesus cursing anything in the gospel:

Refrain

Gathering nothing but leaves,
Gathering nothing but leaves;
Spending life’s precious moments
Gathering nothing but leaves.

1
Nothing but leaves I’ve gathered,
Yes, nothing but worthless leaves,
When from the field of labor
Others bring golden sheaves;
Then in the day of judgment
Shall I be found with tares,
When God rewards the faithful
With crowns of shining stars.

2
Nothing but leaves I’ve gathered,
So sad, but, alas, ’tis true,
What I have done I never,
Nevermore can undo;
Past is the harvest season,
The summer has come and gone,
Reaping for future burning
The thorns and briars I’ve sown.

3
Nothing but leaves I’ve gathered,
Dear sinner, oh, hear the cry;
Swiftly your days are passing,
Soon you’ll be called to die;
What are the seeds you’re sowing?
What will you reap at last?
Sometime you’ll surely gather
Sheaves from the seeds you’ve cast.

William J. Henry, 1911

Meditative Reflection
Lest we Repent!

Jesus was questioned by the religious leaders, saying, “by what authority are You doing those things?”. They referred to His healing of the blind and lame, and perhaps the driving out of traders in the temple court area in Matthew 21.  He, in essence, refused to answer their question.

I believe here is an important lesson for us to learn.

God is not obliged to answer our questions. As our Heavenly Father, He is certainly delighted to have His children come to Him often, to talk to Him, to share our latest with Him and to listen to Him. All loving fathers do.

But if we come before Him without the desire to obey Him, it is a waste of His time to answer our questions.

The chief priests and the elders of the people came to ask Jesus a question that they had no intention of obeying. Why would Jesus waste time answering them?

But Jesus was so gracious, as much as they did not deserve to be answered, He directed them to see what their real problem was. By contrasting their rejection of John the Baptist and the reception of the tax collectors and even prostitutes to John’s baptism of repentance, Jesus pointed out their real problem: “And even after you saw this, you did not repent and believe Him.” (Matt. 21:32)

Since the tax collectors and prostitutes were hopeless sinners in their eyes, and yet the power of God was such that these would respond to John’s Baptism, then the chief priests and elders really had no excuse not to honor John the Baptist as a prophet from God. But they didn’t. As a result, it was totally futile for Jesus to prove to them who He is!

As Isaiah foretold, they were bent on not accepting the truth, because if they did so, they would have had no choice but to repent, which was the last thing they wanted to do. Thus, they would hear but never understand, they would see, but never perceive. (Matt. 13:14)

Next time, if we realize that we have not been touched by the Word of God for quite a while, it is time to examine ourselves and see if we have the same spirit as these religious leaders.

Meditative Reflection
Tax Collectors and Prostitutes?

The Synoptic Gospel writers often make mention of “tax collectors and sinners” (see Matt. 9:10, 11; 11:19; Mk. 2:15, 16; Lk. 5:30, 7:34 and 15:1). We know who the tax collectors are - Jews who bought licenses from the Romans to collect taxes (often extra taxes) from the people. They were regarded as traitors and were despised by the people. But who are the sinners then?

In Matthew 21:31, Jesus gives us the answers when he says,

“I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you (the religious leaders).”

To tell you the truth, when I first realized that these sinners refer to the prostitutes, I was quite shocked, because that means unlike us, our Lord Jesus Christ did not avoid these prostitutes like a plague. He even ate with them as He taught them the Word of God. Our avoidance of prostitutes is understandable, in a way, so that we (men) may not be tempted. But it does not mean that we can discriminate against them when it comes to the sharing of the gospel.

I was privileged to accompany a young Christian man who was very passionate in reaching out to the marginalized. One night, way past midnight, he and I teamed up to walk along the streets of Vancouver, carrying with us a pot of hot chocolate and some cookies as well. Among the people we greeted and served was a prostitute. It was more than obvious that she had abused her body with drugs. She stopped and received our goodies, and she shared her pain with us. With words of kindness and encouragement from the Scripture (which she knew quite well), we prayed for her. I felt that we had treated her as Jesus would.

Before this encounter, I was also privileged to lead a team of brothers and sisters to visit a motel nearby that houses some of the marginalized in the area. It was run by a brother from a downtown church I used to pastor. At one point he had confronted me with these words, “If you allow prostitutes to come into the church to worship and sit by my family, we will leave the church.”

By the grace of God, he has come to embrace the heart of Jesus and dedicated himself to bring “tax collectors and sinners” into the Kingdom of God.

Meditative Reflection
Hostility against Christians

Many of my Christians friends are leery about Christian athletes thanking God and praying in public. I heard many well-meaning Christians say, “God does not care about football!”.

I prefer taking a rather simple approach and ask, “Is God interested in my career as His child?”. The answer is obvious. God is interested in my total person, including my career. As for Teebow and Lin, football and basketball are their careers, and I am absolutely confident that God is interested in them and their careers.

We all know that if they really love the Lord, their public display of thanks to God is no different from my public display of thanks when I say a word of grace before my meal. If people take offence at it, it will not stop me from doing it.

And if they really love the Lord, their prayers are not so much for being able to win, but for being able to do their best and accept whatever the outcome is, gratefully and with submission. I am sure Teebow and Lin would tell you that. So, if their public display of their faith offends the secular world, it is not unexpected, but to hear other Christian athletes attack them just as non-Christians do, it is sad.

Both Teebow and Lin are providing great incentives for young Christians, not only to pursue their dreams, but to emulate their faith in Christ. So, let us pray for them, not necessarily for success in what they do, but for God’s protection that they will remain true to Christ, and not be tainted by success and glamour.

To be honest, both men rattle the elites in their respective sports —Teebow does so in a very unconventional fashion, and Lin is such an underdog. But this is in tune with the way God always works, raising the humble in the eyes of the world, so that the proud will be silenced.

Meditative Reflection
Whose Choice is it?

In the parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew 22, we find that the original invitees (who are the Chosen People, the Jews) turned down the invitation.

Some paid no attention and went off to their field, and some left to manage their business. They had no time for God. This is perhaps the picture of the majority of the people in the secular world. They are so caught up with life’s pursuits that they think religion is a waste of time.

But the “rest” of the invitees were very different. They were not only very religious, but were religious to the point that they “seized...mistreated…and killed” the messenger. These are religious fanatics who will resort to violence to silence or eliminate those they do not agree with theologically. The religious leaders of Jesus’ time did exactly that to Jesus.

Then the parable goes on to talk about us who are gentiles, in the corners of the street, not part of the original invitees. But as Paul points out in Romans, we are grafted because the original branches (the Jews) are broken off because of their unbelief (Rom. 11:17ff). It is quite hilarious to read the tone of the parable in that it was almost like a casual affair that the servants went out to draft everyone who was willing to come, the “good and bad” alike. But it does point out that the gospel is for everyone who will  accept it.

Ultimately, those who will not come, and those who will come, both made a conscious choice. It is their choice, and as a result, those who end up not being part of the banquet were “speechless”. They had only themselves to blame.

But why would Jesus end the parable by saying, “For many are invited, but few are chosen”?

I believe Jesus points out to us the two equally true aspects concerning our faith.

On the one hand, salvation is offered to all people, because “God so loved the (whole) world.” (Jn. 3:16). So, many, in fact, all are invited.

On the other hand, everyone has to make a choice, either to reject it, or to receive it. Even if a decision is not made, it has been made, and it is the decision to not to accept the salvation offered by Jesus. But, our all-knowing God remains the one that chooses. Thus, Jesus says, “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit — fruit that will last.” (Jn. 15:16)

I know it is a mystery, but our attention should not be on its mystery, but on the fact that we have been chosen for a purpose—not ours, but God’s.

Meditative Reflection
In the Image of God

Jesus wisely sidestepped the trap set by the Pharisees who allied with their enemies, the Herodians, in order to trap their common enemy, Jesus. (Matt. 22:15-22) In His famous declaration: “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s”, He used the portrait on the Roman denarius to make His point. In essence, He was saying that the image on the coin confers authority to Caesar. The question I can’t help but ask is, “What image confers God’s authority on this earth then?”

The answer is obvious: Each one of us, because we all bear the image of our Creator. (Jas. 3:9)

This is an awesome thought, because if we bear the image of our Creator, every part of our being belongs to the Creator. We have to give God what is God’s.

As Christians, we like to think that if we tithe, we have fulfilled our obligation in honoring God as our God. But the truth of the matter is, our tithing is our acknowledgement that 100% of us, 100% of our income, 100% of our wealth, in fact, 100% of all we have, material belongings and otherwise, belong to God. It is in this sense that we are stewards of God. We are still not free to use anything left in our possession.

It reminds me of a servant of God whose Bible has these words printed on its cover: “For the use of so and so”. The Bible is hers, but she understands that nothing belongs to her; all is God’s. We bear His image; as a result, this image confers to Him absolute authority and possession over us, the image-bearer.