Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers. (1 Timothy 4:16 ESV)   The life of God’s preachers and prophets is always intimately tied up with their message. The message is alive because its source is divine and the living and active Word of God is the only force in the world, capable of transforming the immortal soul. At the same time, the life of God’s preacher is a living message that preaches the other 6 days of the week. His life continues to preach even when Sunday has passed and his lips do not move. The fire of sermons will fade and die, but the character of a man fully devoted to Christ is permanently burnt into our minds. How often have I heard Christians say, “I can’t recall exactly what he said, but I remember that he was zealous for God’s Word and that he deeply loved his people.” God has designed us to be deeply touched by people who do not just plead with us, but also radically alter their entire lives for our sake. Paul’s instructions to his young disciple were simple. Watch yourself and watch your message. Preach radical biblical truths and then radically live by them. That was Paul’s duty, that was his hearers’ duty, and that is ours as well.   Brothers and sisters, what do you preach with your lips to your work colleagues, friends and family? Does the person of Christ season all of your speech? Does his merciful work of redemption for you on the cross manifest itself in abounding grace to others? What does your manner of life preach to the watching world? Would they say that there is a great love for His Word and His people? Or is there only a love for your own words and pleasures? Is there a consistency between what you say and what you do? Truly we are justified by faith alone, but the faith that saves is never alone. It is always accompanied by Christ-exalting words and deeds. Examine yourself my dear brothers and sisters and pay close attention to the warnings revealed to us in the Scriptures. For by so doing, we and those whom we love, will taste the unmerited, gracious salvation of God.   Written by: Samuel Chua

[12] But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, [13] who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:12-13 ESV)   Of all the blessings that the Gospel of Jesus Christ offers to us as Christians, the greatest blessing by far is the royal privilege of adoption as children of the living God—sons and daughters who will live forever as heirs of the eternal kingdom which He has promised to those who love him. Justification by faith is a great blessing that is foundational to every other blessing and primary because of our greatest need to have our sins atoned for before a righteous God. But justification is the means to the ultimate blessing of eternal, intimate fellowship with the God who is our Father. And the security of this relationship that is built on divine love is the secret to the inimitable life of the Christian believer. If Christianity demanded obedience from its followers by threatening them with the sword and judgment, we Christians would only excel at protecting our own lives. But because our faith is built on a foundation of undeserved mercy and forgiveness through the God-man Jesus Christ who laid down his life in an ultimate sacrifice of love, we can tangibly portray divine love as we sacrifice our very own lives in our passionate pursuit to love and to share the Gospel with our fellow man, even if we are hated in the process. This our world cannot do, for mercy triumphs over judgment. And when the world excommunicates us as outcasts because of our faith, we can take heart in knowing that God is our Father and that there are no orphans in his Kingdom. It was J.I. Packer who wrote, “…you sum up the whole of the New Testament religion if you describe it as the knowledge of God as one’s holy Father. If you want to judge how well a person understands Christianity, find out how much he makes of the thought of being God’s child, and having God as his Father.” Father! What a short word! Yet one that has more facets and shines with more relational brilliance than the world’s most beautiful diamond!   Child of God, do you think much of your undeserved adoption into the family of God? Do you realize that the mighty angels who stand in the heavenly throne room of God will never be blood-bought, redeemed, sons and daughters of God? When your life seems absolutely overwhelming, do you run to God as the Father of comforts who cares for you? Do you delight daily in your Father’s presence the way that a small child delights in simply being with his parent? Do you treasure the precious moments of your days as gifts of grace from a Father who takes great pleasure in showering you with blessings? Never forget Christian, that God did not just forgive your sins to spare you from hell. He forgave your sins so that you might be restored to what you were meant to be—a divine image-bearer who will worship him as King and love him as Father—forever.  Written by: Samuel Chua

[14] I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, [15] just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.  (John 10:14-15 ESV)   Sheep. There is no better word in all the Scriptures to describe our humble and frail condition in this world. The most courageous, godly and Spirit-empowered person is still at best, a poor, helpless and defenseless sheep who desperately needs daily guidance and protection from our Good Shepherd. God’s people are never described as self-sufficient or inherently capable, but always dependent and incapable apart from the great Shepherd’s guidance. As the need of God’s people has always been to be shepherded and cared for, is it any wonder that the Lord GOD trained the great king David, not in the ivory courts of the palace, but in the rugged hills of a shepherd’s domain? And does not the title of “Good Shepherd,” teach us about the intimate and unceasing care that our Lord Jesus has for us?  Jesus is a king, but He is no tyrant. He is not a robber, harsh taskmaster, mocker or torturer of His people. No, He is a shepherd—and a good one. Unlike the bad shepherd who sacrifices his sheep to the wolves to save his own skin, our Lord laid down His very own life so that His sheep might live an abundant life. It is His tender hands that gently treat and bind our spiritual wounds that we receive from the thorns and thistles in this world. It is His strength that carries us when our feet threaten to slip beneath the waves of the storms of life. It is His rod and staff that smash flat the giants of doubt and despair that we meet when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death. And when we are starving and dying of thirst, it is His sure footsteps that lead us to the green pastures and still waters where we may drink, eat, and lie down in perfect peace. No bank account, door lock or elite army can ever offer us the supreme safety and security that our Good Shepherd does. How can anyone dwell more secure than when Jesus, the Son of God, acts as the very door to the divine sheepfold where we find our rest? So long as the great high priest who rules by the power of an indestructible life occupies the way into the fold, no robber nor wolf nor demon nor even death itself can reach us, unless they first pass through him.  Believer, do you know the care of your Good Shepherd’s loving hands? Do you delight in the sound of your Good Shepherd’s voice? Do you rise early in the morning expectantly waiting for your Lord to let you graze in the lush, green fields of His precious Word? Do you sleep in peace knowing that your Good Shepherd unceasingly watches over your vulnerable and weak condition even while you slumber? Does your life overflow with joy and tears of gratitude for each day that you live for Him on this earth? Do you fiercely love Him for His ultimate sacrifice of laying down His own life for you on the cross?   The glory of the Christian life is not that we are weak and helpless sheep, but rather that we are weak and helpless sheep who BELONG to an omnipotent and unfailing Good Shepherd. We rejoice not because of the abundant possessions that we OWN, but because we are OWNED—owned by the One who purchased us with his blood, sealed us with His Spirit and calls us His very own!  Written by: Samuel Chua

[8] And the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered my servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, who fears God and turns away from evil?” [9] Then Satan answered the LORD and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? [10] Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. [11] But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.” [12] And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your hand. Only against him do not stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD. (Job 1:8-12 ESV)   To say that the story of Job is a tragedy is an overwhelming understatement. He was wealthy beyond comparison, but in one single day, his livestock were destroyed, his servants were slaughtered by raiders, and his ten children were crushed to death in an accident when their house collapsed. Furthermore, Satan was allowed to afflict him with loathsome sores that so disfigured his features that his own friends could not recognize him. But in the midst of such monstrous suffering and loss, what is clear is that although Satan afflicted him, God was the one who permitted this evil to befall Job.  It is sobering for us believers to know that when the Enemy of our souls seeks our destruction, his work and activity is restricted by the LORD our God. He cannot touch our possessions so long as the Lord’s hedge of protection surrounds our lives. He cannot touch our health unless the Lord allows him to. The God who dwells in heaven and does all that he pleases rules even over the demons and they cannot lift a finger without his express command. But if all that God ruled over, was demonic activity, this would not be encouraging. The great encouragement to us as believers is not that God rules over Satan’s activities but rather that he rules over them AND uses them to serve his good and glorious purposes. All throughout the Bible, we read of the Lord’s power to redeem that which is evil for the greater good. In Romans 8:28, we are told that for those who are called according to God’s purpose, all things—ALL THINGS without exception—work together for good. What man meant for evil in condemning Joseph to prison, God meant for good in saving his chosen people from a devastating famine. The wickedness of Satan that inspired Judas to betray his Lord was ultimately used by God to accomplish the magnificent work of eternal redemption through the work of Jesus Christ on the cross!  The incredible harm done to Job, his steadfastness under trial coupled with God’s restoration of him at the end of his trial was not only under God’s control, but served God’s brilliant purpose in giving a model of hope to countless believers throughout the ages who have found courage in God to praise His Name in the midst of their severest afflictions. No man or demon—whether Job or Satan—could ever have imagined that God would use this horrendous tragedy to write canon Scripture that would serve as words of encouragement to millions upon millions of God’s followers as they walk through the valley of the shadow of death.   Believer, do you think about the fact that the greatest schemes of the Evil One in your life are under the sovereign control of God? Do you realize that whatever harm Satan inflicts upon you has been permitted by a God who loves and cares for you? Do you believe that Father of lights who gives good and perfect gifts to his children intends to use what is evil in your life for ultimate good and for His glory?   Though Satan prowls around like a roaring lion who seeks to devour us, he is ultimately God’s unwitting servant. What he intends for evil, God uses to accomplish good—ultimate good. And in that we can always rejoice.    Written by: Samuel Chua

[7] “Will any one of you who has a servant plowing or keeping sheep say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and recline at table’? [8] Will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare supper for me, and dress properly, and serve me while I eat and drink, and afterward you will eat and drink’? [9] Does he thank the servant because he did what was commanded? [10] So you also, when you have done all that you were commanded, say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty.’” (Luke 17:7-10 ESV)   The self-indulgent society in which we live teaches us that we are what we make of ourselves. We are free people, entitled to pursue whatever our hearts desire and no one has the right to tell us what to do. But the words of our Saviour here in the days of his flesh preach just the opposite. We are not free people, but slaves. The Greek word doulos  which is here translated as “servant,” can be more accurately translated as bondservant (ESV footnote) or slave. In the Greco-Roman world of Jesus’ day, a slave was his master’s property and fully owned by him. He had no rights of his own, but lived with one singular ambition—to do his master’s will. And so it is with followers of Christ. To be a follower of Jesus is to be a slave of God.  But as shocking as this is to our culture that prizes personal freedom, we must not think that being a slave of Christ is a negative thing. The Scriptures are clear that no one—not a single person—is truly free, but all are slaves. Paul says, “… when you were slaves to sin, you were free in regard to righteousness” (Rom 6:20). Therefore, we are either slaves of sin or we are slaves of God—there is nothing in between. The only freedom we have if we do not belong to God is the freedom to sin and to disregard the law of God. But the only benefit that this “freedom,” offers is destruction. If God is not our master, then we serve another master—the master of sin and death. He is a cruel master and so long as we serve him, the wages that we earn will only lead to death.  BUT the free gift of God, who bought us with the blood of His very own Son and removed the chains of sin from our souls, is eternal life!  What a joy it is to have been purchased from the slave market of sin and employed in our Master’s family! We are unworthy in that we did not deserve to be saved. We are unworthy in that we have no good apart from God. We are unworthy in that we were God’s enemies. And yet He chose not just to forgive us of our crime of high treason against his holiness, but also to mark us as his very own! Never have we seen such a picture of pure, divine and matchless love! And though we are commanded to serve, we serve out of outrageously grateful hearts that are the recipients of incomparable divine mercy! O what a joy it is to be a slave of Christ rather than a slave of sin!   Christian, do you ever think about the fact that you are an unworthy slave of God? Do you realize that your life is not your own but whatever suffering or work your Master has for you is His particular assignment for you? Is it your life’s ambition to properly steward what He has given you so that you might maximally glorify your Master? Do you labour and suffer for God because you love your Master and singularly desire to please Him with everything that you have? Or do you harbor bitterness in your heart because you cannot accept his Lordship over your life when He does not give you what you want?   Christian freedom is not the right to live and do as we please, but the freedom to live for righteousness and to be God’s slave. The Christian life is the privilege of living for Him who for our sake died and was raised (2 Cor 5:15). God’s antidote for the sin of discontentment, dissatisfaction and entitlement is not to give us what we think we deserve, but to give us true knowledge of who we are. And when we have finished labouring diligently for Christ and drunk the cup of suffering that He has poured out on each of our lives for our sanctification, we shall have the satisfaction of standing before our King’s throne. And we will say, “Master, I stand here clean because of what Jesus has done and not what I have done. All the good works that I have done were but my duty and I am still nothing but an unworthy slave.” And in that day, our Master will say, “Well done good and faithful slave. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your Master.”  Written by: Samuel Chua

[31] “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, [32] not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. [33] For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. [34] And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, ‘Know the LORD,’ for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” (Jeremiah 31:31-34 ESV)   The heart of the born-again believer in Christ cannot help but shout for joy at the infinitely valuable gift that has been given to us through the new covenant. The Son of Man bled and died on Calvary’s cross—not to pay for any sins of His own, but to pay for the sins of others. The righteous, holy One of God died to give life to unrighteous, unholy enemies of God, so that by His own blood He might purchase a people for His own possession.  The history of the children of Abraham is nothing short of 2,000 years of incontrovertible proof that our greatest dangers do not come from foreign armies, tyrannical leaders, or severe famines, but from our own wicked and deceitful hearts. All throughout the desert wanderings, the greatest danger that the children of Israel faced was not a lack of life-giving food or water, but their own evil, and unbelieving hearts that led them to fall away from the living of God. And though they entered the Promised Land under God’s mighty hand, they broke their covenant with Him and as a result, were carried away into exile in Babylon.   But it is here in Babylon, when the judgment of God had reached its zenith, that these unimaginably hopeful words by the prophet Jeremiah were uttered. A new covenant unlike the old! A new covenant that the finger of God would write on the tablets of human hearts! A new covenant that promised hope of an eternal future with God who would permanently deal with sin and make them a people who would never wander from Him again. And this kind of hope, is far greater than any hope that freedom from oppression or debilitating suffering can offer.  Man’s greatest problem has never been how to escape from the city of Babylon, but how to escape from the Babylon within. We can flee the wicked cities of the world and try to live in law-abiding utopias, but we will never escape from the world of unrighteous that is contained within our human hearts. Because of sin, the tendency of the human heart is never to worship the God in whose image and likeness we are created, but rather a god who is created in our own image and likeness. The ultimate question of the Bible was never how to get God’s people out of Babylon, but how to get Babylon out of God’s people. And the joy we have as Christians is knowing and experiencing how this ultimate question has been answered. Because of what our Lord Jesus did on the cross, we rejoice that the curse of sin has been broken and that there is no more condemnation for those of us who are in Christ Jesus!  How essential the new heart is! For without it, obedience to the law of God is impossible. Pursuing it on our own will only lead us to die with the unattainable demands of the law of God on our lips—but absent from our hearts. The Law shouts “Give!” but the Gospel shouts “Gone!” How grateful we are for this Gospel that frees us from the impossible demands of God’s holy law. How grateful we are for our precious Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ who saved us from our sinful selves!  Christian, when was the last time that you considered your own helpless state apart from God’s help? Do you feel deep gratitude for our God who performed spiritual heart surgery on you to remove your heart of stone and to give you a heart of flesh? Do you glory in the fact that when you cried out for mercy, when you were drowning in the cesspool of your own sin, that He came and saved you and made you His very own? Do you weep tears of gratitude, knowing that when you could not keep His God’s holy law, He did it for you?   The boast of the Christian believer can never be, “Look at what I have done for Christ!” but rather, “Look at what Christ has done for me!” There is no such thing as humble people in this world—only HUMBLED people. Humbled people who have been given new hearts that beat with eternal love and reverence for their Saviour, Lord and King.  Written by: Samuel Chua

"Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.  Isaiah 49:15  The image of a mother and her child is a powerful one and there is nothing else like it. A father may hold and protect a helpless infant, but only a mother can nurse and nourish with her body. A father may laugh and wrestle with his child, but only a mother will ever feel that child struggle and kick from within her womb. All relationships in this world are lives intertwined with other lives, yet no relationship, except the mother and the child, is one of life carrying another life. For nine whole months, the child will grow and learn to hear mother’s voice. Mother’s own body will be the shield, warmth and protection from the elements for that developing child’s own fragile little body. It is no wonder then, that mother and child have a special bond unlike any other.  I have often heard it said that a father may leave his child, but that a mother never will. In Canada, single mothers outnumber single fathers with children, four-to-one. But though statistics attest to the bond between mother and child, this is not absolute. We all know of children whose mothers have abandoned them as they chose their own pleasures and lusts instead of the privilege of motherhood. How incredulous this seems and it yet it is true! “Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb?” asks the Lord. “Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.”  How great is the Lord’s care for us! His great love infinitely exceeds the most intimate picture of life-sustaining love on the earth! And as deep as the most doting mother’s love is for her child, the Lord says that his love is greater still! Though a mother may suffer from Alzheimer’s or dementia and forget your name, the Lord knows the very hairs upon your head and even the new name which he will give you on a white stone (Rev 2:17). Though a mother may fill herself with alcohol and abandon you, your heavenly Father will never leave you or forsake you, and promises to fill your emptiness with his Spirit. Never will we wail piteously for spiritual milk and find ourselves with nothing to slake our spiritual thirst. Never will we cry for food and find that the Lord has let his righteous go hungry (Prov 10:3).  Believer, do you ever contemplate that as vast as the difference is between a mother and a child, the difference between us and God is greater still? Do you realize that as helpless as an infant is, we are more helpless still? When the suffering of our lives seems intolerable, are you encouraged by the knowledge that the Lord cares for you more intimately than any mother does?  Though we might cry to our Lord ten times a day as needy infants do, we should never fear that our cries will go unheeded. Our Lord is closer to our cradle than any mother could possibly be. He nurses us with the milk of his Word and treats our spiritual sickness of sin with the blood of his own Son. Therefore, be content, little Christian child. Remember that your heavenly Father hears your cries and will never, ever forget you. And if he did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us (Rom 8:32), how much more, will he remember us in our hour of greatest need.  Written by: Samuel Chua

[8] Accordingly, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do what is required, [9] yet for love's sake I prefer to appeal to you—I, Paul, an old man and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus—[10] I appeal to you for my child, Onesimus, whose father I became in my imprisonment. (Philemon 8-10 ESV)   The Christian faith is unique in that it is an unusual union of authority and love. Here the apostle Paul does not invoke his apostolic authority to urge his brother Philemon to deal kindly with his now converted runaway slave, but instead for love’s sake appeals to him!   Certainly our hearts are moved when we see an earnest appeal from love, but our hearts are absolutely staggered when the individual making the plea has absolutely no need to do so. Paul was an apostle. He had seen the risen Lord Jesus Christ.  He had been taken up into the heavenlies and heard things that man may not utter (2 Cor 12:4). He wrote half the New Testament. And yet here, he makes no mention whatsoever of his credentials! In fact, this is one of only three letters where Paul says nothing about being an apostle. Instead, he refers to himself as a prisoner of Christ Jesus and an old man.  What a fitting lesson in leadership this is for us! Though we may have every right to make demands, for love’s sake we are to choose the road of humility, making ourselves nothing, and appeal to love instead! And is this not a perfect picture of the heart of our Lord Jesus? Though He was rich, He made Himself poor so that by His poverty we could become rich. Though He could have demanded that His followers serve Him, the Son of Man came in humility to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many. Though He could have condemned all of us sinners to hell, He chose to instead to absorb the torment of hell in His body until He had drained the cup of God’s wrath down to its dregs. We must never forget, that it was not nails, but love that secured God’s anointed to that cross.  Christian, is your heart moved by the omnipotent God who came as a servant and not as a soldier? Are you amazed that the infinite God should become finite to save you from your sins? Does this magnificent love humble your heart and drive you to treasure Him above all the fleeting treasures of Egypt in this world?  The uniqueness of Christian leadership is not that it is grounded in authority, but that it is grounded in love. And there is no greater image of love that is patient and kind than the one we see in the living picture of our servant King who did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is not just good news of an omnipotent God who pardons and reigns, but of a God who loves and lays down his rights.   Written by: Samuel Chua

"Do you know when the mountain goats give birth? Do you observe the calving of the does? Can you number the months that they fulfill, and do you know the time when they give birth, when they crouch, bring forth their offspring, and are delivered of their young? (Job 39:1-3 ESV)  The immensity of the difference between us and God cannot be adequately portrayed with words. The chasm of wisdom that separates a full-grown man from a little boy may be large, yet it is nothing compared to the Grand Canyon that separates our wisdom from God’s. Even if one were to live for a thousand years and spend half of this time pursuing one hundred PhD degrees from the world’s greatest universities, this would still not compare to the wisdom of God. But even if we could spend an eternity learning from God’s infinite wisdom, we would still fall short of competing with Him, for we will never be able to replicate His omniscience.  When we read these verses in Job, we should not think that the Almighty is clueless as to the breeding habits of mountain goats. God’s questions in the Bible are never a probe for information, but calculated verbal thrusts designed to provoke us to think. And whether this is “Where are you, Adam?” or “Do you know when the mountain goats give birth?” the questioning of the Creator serves to stop the mouths of His creatures who are often too quick to speak, grumble, and complain.   How matchless is the depth of God’s wisdom and insight! In a few short sentences, He throws down the gauntlet and dares every human being alive to measure up to His unrivaled and meticulous scrutiny of this world. Who knows where the mountain goat gives birth in the crags of the rocks? Who knows which trimester the doe is in as she carries her young fawn? Who knows when the moment of delivery arrives for a heavily pregnant four-legged mammal hidden in the depths of the forest? Though you and I have no idea whatsoever—nor would we even care—God knows. Such a detail which is seemingly insignificant and wholly unknown to us, is not insignificant to God, nor is it unknown to Him. Not a sparrow of the field will fall to the ground apart our Father (Matt 10:29), and neither does anything, no matter how seemingly unimportant, happen to us apart from the hand of our God.   Christian, do you realize that the God you serve is fully aware of the timing of the birthing activities of the animals of this world? Do you think about the fact that He observes each one while simultaneously observing your life? Does God’s answer to this man who has lost his entire family, fortune and health stun you?  The greatest response that God can give to our heart-wrenching trials is NOT to tell us WHY we are suffering, but to remind us of WHO He is! The reason we complain is not because our trials are too difficult but because we have forgotten the One who gave them to us. God does not lead His people into the wilderness to destroy them, but to test and strengthen them.  Do you know when the mountain goat gives birth, Christian? Then, lay your hand across your mouth and say, “I am of small account (Job 40:4). I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, therefore I repent in dust and ashes (Job 42:3-6).” And when you have repented of your Israelite grumbling, humble yourself before the Lord and put your trust in Him. And at the proper time, He will comfort you with His very own presence and exalt you.  Written by: Samuel Chua

And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. (Exodus 3:2 ESV)   When the LORD God appeared to Moses, he came in a flame of fire. Fire is a fitting image for our almighty God whose immense power can consume entire armies, reduce city walls to rubble, and black out the noonday light of the sun. Yet, though our God is a consuming fire (Heb 12:29), he is a fire that burns eternally without consuming its fuel source. God’s power appears in the bush, yet was not dependent on the bush at all! In fact, the God who is independent of the bush is the one who preserves the bush by the word of his power.  What a marvelous picture this is of our God who is without comparison in this world! He is completely free to exercise his power, yet he is never limited in his power. He is the God who gives life and breath to every living thing, yet he is not served by human hands as though he needed anything (Acts 17:25). God’s holy presence should have consumed the sinful children of Israel, yet instead he chose to tabernacle with them in the wilderness and sustained them for forty years.   What an encouragement this is for us as believer! The great “I AM” is the self-existent one who depends on nothing for his own sustenance! And because his own resources are unlimited, only he can be trusted to perfectly supply the needs of poor, finite creatures like us—creatures who cannot look to ourselves for help, but only to our Creator. How comforting it is, Christian, to know that though the God we serve is a consuming fire, he does not consume us! The Holy Spirit who burns within us does not depend on us for fuel, but rather fuels us in the midst of our darkest trials!   Christian are you awed by the fact that your God needs nothing from you and yet freely offers to you everything that you need? Do you realize that the heavenly storehouses will always be full of grace, mercy, and material provisions because their source is an infinite God? Never fear that any cheques that we attempt to deposit through prayer at God’s heavenly bank will bounce, for our accounts with him have no limit whatsoever. In our hour of greatest need, let us boldly come before the throne of grace, dressed in the righteousness of Christ, and ask according to his will, expecting to receive!  And as we rise each day, we should marvel at our ordinary reflection in the mirror. Let us marvel at the fact that though the fire of the almighty God lives inside of us, our flesh is not consumed. Let us give praise to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, whose blood alone can cover the heavenly mercy seat. And let us bow before our God who did not chose to scourge us with his presence, but to save us with his Son.   Written by: Samuel Chua

David said to Solomon, "My son, I had it in my heart to build a house to the name of the LORD my God. 8 But the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 'You have shed much blood and have waged great wars. You shall not build a house to my name, because you have shed so much blood before me on the earth. 9 Behold, a son shall be born to you who shall be a man of rest. I will give him rest from all his surrounding enemies. For his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quiet to Israel in his days. 10 He shall build a house for my name. He shall be my son, and I will be his father, and I will establish his royal throne in Israel forever.' (1 Chronicles 22:7-10 ESV)   The second king of Israel has the distinction of being the only king to have been called a man after God’s own heart (1 Sam 13:14). Though he was but a shepherd boy, the Lord took him from tending sheep to tend the flock of Israel. Here the inspired writer of the Chronicles records that David had been told by God that he could not build the temple of the LORD, because he was a man of war whose reign was characterized by much bloodshed. It is highly unlikely that the writer here is reprimanding David for sinning against God, as God not only sanctioned his wars, but gave him victory wherever he went (1 Chr. 18:6, 13), placing his enemies under the soles of his feet (1 Kings 5:3). David’s prohibition on building the temple was not the result of sin, but the result of God’s will and particular purpose for his life.   The temple was to be the peaceful meeting place between God and man. Only there, with the shedding of blood, could a holy God and a sinful man meet without wrath and judgment. The Deuteronomic law stipulated that peace from enemies was a prerequisite for building the temple (Deut 12:10-11). Therefore, it took the life’s work of one man to pave the way for the foundation of God’s temple. The young Solomon did nothing to earn the peace that allowed him to build the temple. It was a gift to him from both his father and his heavenly Father. And he fulfilled his purpose as a man of peace, by building a temple of peace to give the world a glimpse of unimaginable human flourishing under God’s shalom .   The lives of God’s faithful have always been used for a specific purpose. There are those who have lived their entire lives under persecution while others have only known freedom to practice their faith. Some have been given lives of joy in poverty, while others have been given the gift of generosity with the ample wealth that God has blessed them with. Some have been like Daniel’s friends who were untouched by the flames of the fiery furnace, whereas others burned brilliantly at the stake for the glory of God. Some spend their entire lives sowing Gospel seeds, whereas others spend their entire lives enjoying the bountiful harvest of the spiritual labours of others (John 4:36-38).   Dear Christian brothers and sisters, are you content to live the life that the Lord has assigned to you? Do you look at another believer’s life and envy them, wishing that the giftings or prosperity that were given to them by their Master were yours? Are you disappointed that God has not given you what you have asked for as you have tirelessly waged war for the Lord? Are you conscious of the fact that it is before your own Master that you stand or fall?   Oh, let us love our Master’s will and prize it above any comfort or excitement that belongs to the life of another of God’s servants! David fulfilled the purpose of God in his own generation, and then fell asleep (Acts 13:36). May God makes us a people who are zealous to expend our lives in fighting the Lord’s wars or reaping the harvest—whatever our Master has laid out for us. Let us be steadfast and immovable as we work for our Lord, knowing that one day we will all enter the ultimate peace of God because of what Jesus has done for us on Calvary’s cross.  Written by: Samuel Chua

[30] But Caleb quieted the people before Moses and said, “Let us go up at once and occupy it, for we are well able to overcome it.” [31] Then the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we are.” [32] So they brought to the people of Israel a bad report of the land that they had spied out, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people that we saw in it are of great height. [33] And there we saw the Nephilim (the sons of Anak, who come from the Nephilim), and we seemed to ourselves like grasshoppers, and so we seemed to them.” (Numbers 13:30-33 ESV)   The call of God’s faithful has always been to live by faith and not by sight. Here, the people of God found themselves on the verge of entering the Promised Land, but upon hearing the report of the spies, they became miserable and accused the LORD of bringing them into this land only to devour them. Although they had seen God deliver them by parting the Red Sea and miraculously provide them with quail and manna to eat from heaven after leaving Egypt, they nevertheless did not trust him.  It is often said in Christian circles, “God will never give you more than you can handle.” Although this statement is often offered as a comfort to Christians who are struggling with despair at their circumstances, the truth of the matter is that God DOES give us more than we can handle. In the midst of temptation, we are able to endure because it is God who provides the way of escape (1 Cor 10:13). When we are under attack by the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places, it is God’s grace that is sufficient for us (2 Cor. 12:9).  The reason that God has designed us to be fragile jars of clay is to emphasize to the watching world his surpassing power—not ours. What is most important about the man of God, is not that he is a MAN of God, but rather that he is a man of GOD! The people of Israel were not wrong in their assertions that the people of Canaan were stronger than them, or that they had chariots of iron, or that they were descendants of the mighty Nephilim. What they were wrong about was their inability to succeed in obeying the commandments of God to conquer them with divine power. They determined right and wrong based on the thoughts of MAN and not the thoughts of GOD. And so long as our wisdom is derived from the eyes of unbelief and not the eyes of faith, we will never be able to walk the Way of Christ or conquer the Jerichos that the Lord sets before us.  Christian, do you look at the commandments of God and make excuses for why they cannot be obeyed? Do you shrink back in fear from the hard things that he has repeatedly pressed on your heart to do? Are you overcome with despair and feel grasshopper-ish when you look at the immensity of the work that God has given you to do?  Loving our enemies is impossible if we do not know the God who loved his enemies and sent his Son to die for them. Forgiving those who have wronged us is impossible without knowing the forgiveness that Christ has extended to those who have offended him. God arranges circumstances to make us feel  like grasshoppers so that we are not deluded into believing that we are giants. When we forget that we are dependent creatures, we run the risk of believing ourselves to be independent kings.   What a joy it is to be humble, dependent creatures! There is no shame in being grasshoppers who are utterly incapable of anything, except that which their Master empowers them to do. Learn well then, Christian grasshopper, that true wisdom is not to be gained by looking inward, but by looking upward.  Let us learn to be content as insignificant grasshoppers who are wholly dependent on the strength of our Lord Jesus Christ. How much better to glorify God by being a grasshopper whom God exalts, rather than a giant whom God humiliates!  Written by: Samuel Chua