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"Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.” Ephesians 4:32-5:1 Perhaps you have heard this adage before: It is not the offense that destroys relationships, but instead, it is the inability to forgive that destroys relationships. Because offenses will come no matter what; we live in a fallen world. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. (1 John 1:8) So at some points in our lives, we’re bound to have either offended someone or have been offended by someone. But since we’ve been forgiven of all of our offenses by our Heavenly father, who sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. (1 John 4:9-10) We are in turn called to be imitators of Him and to forgive others just like He’s done for us. And one crucial aspect I’d like to highlight regarding genuine forgiveness, which isn’t popular in the world, is how God forgives us to the point where He promises to never bring up our past against us. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Romans 8:1) For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” (Hebrews 8:12) “I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins. (Isaiah 43:25) It is tempting to “forgive” yet at the same time hold on to the past, by remembering, or worse, reminding everyone what so and so has done. What incredible joy in knowing how God completely forgives us to the point of wiping our slate clean. “Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. (Isaiah 1:18) And what a great example to imitate. It can be hard at times, but since we are called to be imitators of God, it assumes that it is possible for us to forgive like God has done for each of us. Ultimately, we’ve all offended our God, and yet he’s offered us unmerited Grace through his Son. How could we withhold forgiveness to others when we ourselves are just as much of a sinner? We are all wretched. We can be just as sinful as someone who is in jail for murder. Why? because Jesus said that anyone who has been angry with his brother deserves the same judgement as someone who committed murder (Matthew 5:21-22). Something to think about right? Article by: Mario Richard

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (Jam 4:7 ESV)   The world we inhabit lies in the power of the evil one (1 John 5:19). Satan is a master deceiver who has been tempting humans to sin against God since the very first man and woman walked with God in the garden of Eden. The devil is thousands of years old, yet age has done nothing to weaken the strength of this fallen angel. He has so much experience with hunting his human prey that his fiery darts rarely miss their targets, striking the weakest points in our armor with pinpoint precision. He has one singular purpose—to kill and to destroy, which makes him more deadly of an adversary than all the half-hearted people of this world. Furthermore, Satan does not act alone, for he is the ruler of a united kingdom of demons (Matt 12:26). How sad to think that Satan is sometimes more united than brothers and sisters in the Christian church!   But the most devious and deadly schemes of the great Tempter of human souls are not found in his frontal assaults against humanity, but rather in his subtle, and eternally devastating suggestions that fly beneath our radar. The great skill of this enemy of our souls lies in suggesting to us ideas that agree with the sin-corrupted reasoning in our wicked and deceitful hearts. To the atheistic professor who is admired for his massive intellect and stellar contributions to research, Satan whispers, “God is a crutch for the weak. You, however are not weak. You are great.” To the religious and proud, the devil says, “Certainly Christ died to save you from your sins, but also need some of your own efforts and other works of the law to be truly saved. Look how well you are doing! You are certainly going to heaven!” To the half-hearted, lukewarm Christian who has put his hand to the plow but constantly looks back, the father of lies says, “As long as you believe Jesus died for you, that’s enough. Don’t let anyone judge you for the sin that you are living in.”   All throughout the Scriptures, this is his pattern. Satan used Peter’s own heart motives to get him to speak against Jesus’ desire to suffer on the cross. Satan filled the greedy heart of Judas with a plan to betray the perfect Son of God by selling him out for mere pieces of silver. Satan tempted Ananias to guard his own financial and social interests by lying to the apostles who were tasked with laying the foundation for the church of God (Acts 5:3). No human being alive is safe from his wicked words! Yet, we are not hopeless, for the Scriptures command us to RESIST him! And RESIST him we must—in the way that our Lord and Saviour did. In the wilderness, Christ set us an example of spiritual combat as he fought Satan with the living and active Word of God that is sharper than any two-edged sword. Jesus countered every fiery dart, not with his own cleverness and intellect, but with the sword of the Spirit.  Believer, are there lies that you are believing right now? Are the minions of the kingdom of darkness so feeding your pride that you worship yourself and not Christ? Or are they so crushing you with waves of guilt and despair that you find that you have lost sight of Christ? Resist the devil and he will flee from you! Tell them as you despair over how you will pay your bills that “Man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Deut 8:3). Tell them as you grieve over your past sins, “Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies (Rom 8:33 ESV).” Tell them when they butter you up and feed your pride that “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” (1 Pet 5:5). Strike with God’s divine weapons and the terrible dragon will flee!  Christian, the venomous snake whose poison sends people into eternal death is no match for the One who lives inside of you. Put on the armor of God and not the armor of Saul which is your own righteousness and works. Sharpen the Sword of the Spirit by filling your soul with the divine Word so that you might not sin against God. Then, resist your devilish opponent with God’s weapons and live in the peace and joy of God. And though the righteous may fall seven times, by the power of God, we will rise again to the glory of God (Prov 24:16).  Article by: Samuel Chua

And he said to his disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! (Luke 12:22-23 ESV) There are many birds in our city, but we do not often pause to consider how spectacular their lives are. A bird does not seem to be a very intelligent creature, but rather one that simply wanders around with no other purpose than to search for food and a mate. Yet, on the fifth day when the Lord said, “Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the heavens” he looked at his creation, the birds he had made, and said it was good. We see them as nuisances that inconveniently poop on our cars, but Christ does not see them this way. For in the eyes of our Saviour, that common bird is a megaphone that declares to us the faithfulness of our Father’s daily provision! Yet, few of us stop to give God praise for these creatures. Very few, upon examining bird droppings on their windshield, would say, “Amazing! For a bird to defecate like this, the Lord must have provided for it a hearty meal!” If we heard someone speak this way, we would most likely laugh! Not because what they have said is false, but rather, because their perspective is highly unusual. “What? You see a bird defecating on your car, and you praise God for his hand of provision?” Remarkable. And yet it is true! The fact that the bird who has no storehouse nor ability to cultivate crops can survive is incredible! How can this be? A bird has no bank account nor even a college degree, and yet it not only lives, but also raises little birdies to do the same! And this is the Lord’s point! You need not fear that you have little in your storehouses or retirement fund, for it is not those things that ultimately feed you, but the God who feeds the sparrow! He will also feed you! Do you want proof that the Lord will clothe you? Then all you need to do is look out at the wild flowers that grow. You may call them weeds and think them to be as annoying as the bird that decorates your car with unwanted droppings, yet our heavenly Father says that he has clothed them with such splendid petals and colors that not even the royal robes of the great Solomon could rival them! And if the Lord so delicately clothes that which is alive today and then thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not also care for you? But in reality, the food and the clothing are but small things that all men seek after and the Lord has given us something far greater to seek. Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things—food and clothing included—will be added to you. If it is true that it is our Father’s good pleasure to give us the kingdom, then why would we not throw ourselves wholeheartedly into the great task at hand? He has told us to go and make disciples of all nations, to baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. He has commanded us to heal the sick and preach the Good News of Christ’s death and resurrection. He has adopted us as his very own sons and daughters and to us he has entrusted the glorious ministry of reconciliation! So then my brothers and sisters, if it is true that Christ has removed death’s sting and the anger of God burns no more against us, and if it is true that his dying breath has breathed out to us the gift of life, then let us throw ourselves at the foot of the throne of grace and take up our crosses and proclaim the Gospel to the ends of the earth! We who are ambassadors for Christ, let us then remember, that as we fulfill his Great Commission, he who feeds the sparrow and he who clothes the lilies of the field, will also feed and clothe us.   Article by: Samuel Chua