Coming back to your first love

"To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:

The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks among the seven golden lampstands, says this:

' I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place—unless you repent.' " - Rev 2:2-5

Let's get this straight.

The congregation in Ephesus toiled, persevered, did not tolerate evil, tested the apostle's teachings, endured for Christ, have not grown weary - and still..

God had this one thing against this amazing church that birthed one of the greatest Pauline epistles -

God wasn't happy they left their first love.

The NLT quotes :

"But I have this complaint against you. You don’t love me or each other as you did at first!"

How did the Ephesian church loved God at first?

"Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, I have not stopped thanking God for you" - Eph 1:15

This was the first love that the church in Ephesus forsook. These were the deeds that God asked the church to start doing again!

Yes, the Ephesians defended the faith fervently, but something was amiss. I think there was probably a lot of head knowledge but a lack of heart knowledge.

It's just like a doctor who is well versed in the knowledge of medicine, defending what is right but lack the practice of treating patients.

They were so active in defending their theology, fighting heresy that they forgot the heart of the gospel is to love God and people. Let us not forget that.

"Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love." - 1 Cor 13:13

Let your heart live again

"Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for a feast of the Jews. Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, 'Do you want to get well?'" - John 5:1-6

38 years. 38 years of being immobilized, living by the pool of his hope, begging everyday of his life. 38 years of waiting, hoping and longing. Ironically, Bethesda meant the House of Mercy - but he received none.

Then Jesus asked a poignant question, "Do you want to get well?" It seemed like a merciless question to ask an invalid for 38 years. For 38 years he has been dissapointed by hope, and ridiculed by life. His heart probably grew very cold and very tired seeing people around him healed except him. Questions like these probably haunted his mind -

"Have I have sinned too much?"

"Does God hate me?"

He was becoming hopeless of any change and resigned himself to fate. Instead of saying a resounding "Yes, I want to get healed!", he answered :

"'Sir,' the invalid replied, 'I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.'" - v7

In Jerusalem, there was a belief that an angel would come at certain times of the year and stir up the waters in the pool. The first person to jump in would be healed of whatever diseases they had. So people would stand by the pool - the lame, they blind, the paralyzed, all hoping to get healed. So you see the man's answer was valid, but it hinted on a sickness deeper.

He said, "I have no one to help me". He was so resigned, that he did not even ask Jesus to help him to the pool, let alone asking Him for healing.

"Hope deferred makes the heart sick" - Prov 3:12

Have you had similar excuses when your hopes were dashed? Sometimes, it feels better to blame the situation than to seek God earnestly. That is a spirit of resignation. We do not inherit a spirit of resignation but a spirit of resurrection. You need to resurrect your hope and place it on the right Person, not persons.

"Then Jesus said to him, 'Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.' At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked." - v8-9

I believe when God gave the command, it shifted his focus from other persons to taking ownership of his situation. No one was still here to help him get up. Jesus didn't. He got up purely by the word of God. Now his hope was placed at the right pillar - the Word of God and healing power was instantly released. He was able to get up, take up his mat and walk. He took up his mat where he had eaten, slept and begged for 38 years. What he was dependant upon was rolled away and overcome.

Maybe your heart has been sick because of hope that was deferred. You lost hope, and depressed that things would not change. As a result you lost the zest of life, and fell ill. You need to be healed from the inside out, by claiming the Spirit of resurrection right now to lift you up from the paralysis of your situation, take up your problem and walk in victory!

I AM

God said to Moses, "I am who I am . This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.' " - Exo 3:14

I AM is the foundation of all revelation of God. The Hebrew word is YHWH. YHWH cannot be pronounced but was later added the vowels from the word Adonai to form what we know today as Jehovah.

YHWH means I AM who is the everlasting God, who is the same yesterday, today and forever. It also means TODAY or NOW. I AM is not I was and not I will be. God is an ever present help in times of need, and His promises are for you today. The promises He gave to Abraham thousands of years ago is valid for you today through Jesus Christ.

When understood, it becomes the foundation of all other names of God. When you declare God as Jehovah Rapha (our Healer), He says I AM the Healer, not I was or going to be. God is the Healer today!

When God says He is Jehovah Jireh (our Provider), he is telling you I AM your Provision today, not sometime in the future or a fact of the past.

When God says He is Jehovah Shalom, He is your Peace today, tomorrow and forever!

You see YHWH is foundation of all knowledge of God.

Before you call upon the name of God, know this that YHWH desires to manifest Himself to you now, at this very moment.

A new name

"He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna to eat. And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it."'
- Rev 2:17

I want to focus on the latter part of the verse :

"And I will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written which no one knows except him who receives it."

A white stone was generally used as a cast of vote to acquit a prisoner from guilt. Hallelujah! How precious is the significance for we who are not condemned but found in the blood of Christ.

The comes the name on the stone. I wonder what the special name will be? It has to be different and personal for each of us, because no one else except God will know. So that probably strikes out some generic identities like "child of God" or "disciple of Christ"

And it has to be new, meaning a previous name or label was given to us. Familiar with some of the careless labels given by our family, teacher - useless, good for nothing, sissy?

Then, I felt something stirring inside, that many are looking for purpose in their lives. Many do not know why they were going through certain situations in their lives. There were pain, joy, success and tragedy along the journey. Every challenges you are going through now, and how you overcome them will contribute to the name on the stone. A unique name. A name that spelled our destiny. A name that reflects the goodness of God. A name that reveals the victory of Christ in us.

Will the name be
"One who despite poverty, became an apostolic entrepenuer"
"One who faced many rejection, but never stopped to declaring my Name"
"One who was abused and hurt, but didn't choose bitterness over My love"
"One who was born with dyslexia but never stopped learning, and became a teacher of men"
"One who lost his husband, but made Me her husband, and brought comfort to others who lost dear ones"

You see if you don't have a challenge, you won't have a story to tell.

What is the purpose of life? Personally for me, I believe it is to turn every challenge to a testimony for Christ.

In the end, how we live here will weave a story that will be read for eternity and a song that will be sung by the angels.

What will your name be? Think about your pain, tragedy or challenges. A new name can emerge from your crisis.

The love of many shall wax cold

"And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold." - Matt 24:12

Iniquity has indeed abound in this world most recently with the terrorist attack in Mumbai, and the seige of the Bangkok Suvarnabhumi International airport. Tonight, I heard the news of a fellow countryman, Lo Hwei Yen who died in Oberoi hotel, Mumbai. Something broke in me. Why did innocent people have to die?

I don't have the answers. Suffering is hard to explain; it is best felt.

However, God's word warn us 2,000 years ago that because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. When men and women who hears so much about God's justice, do not see peace and justice being accomplished, there is an anger hurled towards God. They conclude that either God is dead, God cares less or God is evil. Then the love they once had for God, waxed cold. If something has turned cold, it must have been hot before. There are people who were once on fire, serving fervently for the LORD who will get disillusioned and angry because the God they served is not the God they knew.

How then can we prepare against the inevitable?

You have to settle in your heart before the day comes when tragedy hits your life, that God is good. Please pause and let this burn in you. This is not some cliche saying. This is faith when the rubber hits the road. No matter what happens, be like Job who neither forsook the LORD, nor sinned against Him. God does care, but His ways are way higher than ours. Every tragedy in the hands of God is a seed to your next overcoming - because you are called to be an overcomer. Instead of letting the pain diminish the fire, let it refuel it with a zest for justice. Instead of looking at why God let it happen, think of how you can champion a cause. The world is not looking for another lamenter but another fighter.

Your breakthrough is not just for you

"About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody's chains came loose." - Acts 16:25-26

It is interesting to know that Paul and Silas were not praying at their point of crisis. They did not cry out to God to deliver them out of their situation. Most of us (that's a loud yes for me) would cry out to God to just get us out of problem when trouble knocks at our door. That's a perfectly legitimate request, but there is something better. Praise.

Bring to God a sacrifice of praise,

"Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name." - Heb 13:14-15

When is praise a sacrifice?

It is a sacrifice when you praise God for His character when the circumstances does not match His provision - and you choose to praise nevertheless, looking upwards rather than sidewards.

"The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted, 'Don't harm yourself! We are all here!'

The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. He then brought them out and asked, 'Sirs, what must I do to be saved?'

They replied, 'Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.'" - Acts 16:27-31

Then the breakthrough came for Paul and Silas. However, notice that Paul and Silas did not leave the prison although the door was opened and the chain was loosed. Most of us consider open doors as answers to prayer, don't we? On the contrary, Paul and Silas did not rush to leave the situation but sought to obey God. Eventually, they shared the gospel to the jailer and he and his household got saved! They didn't get out of their problem but they got through their problem. They didn't run away from adversity but faced it with faith.

Many time your breakthrough is not just for you! It is for your neighbour, your colleagues and your family. Your breakthrough is a beacon of hope for them, as your testimony becomes the spirit of prophecy to release the same breakthrough in them.

So when you through a challenge, think to yourself who will be blessed by your victory and hang in there until His purpose is achieved.

Sometimes things will get worst before...

"Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days." - John 11:6

One of the hardest thing Christians can understand is when God decides to wait.

If Jesus was to leave immediately when he heard of Lazarus sick, he would not have died. The question is why didn't He?

There are times when the heat has to be turned on in order to accomplish His purpose. The fire of His delay has to burn away the dross of self-dependence. During the wait, the flesh revolts, and raises a coup d'etat to overthrow the rulership of the Holy Spirit. Missiles of doubts bombards the mind to change the heart.

Nevertheless, our strategy is to man the fort of faith. The prophet Habakkuk once sang

Though the fig tree may not blossom,
Nor fruit be on the vines;
Though the labor of the olive may fail,
And the fields yield no food;
Though the flock may be cut off from the fold,
And there be no herd in the stalls-
Yet I will rejoice in the LORD,
I will joy in the God of my salvation.
The LORD God is my strength;
He will make my feet like deer's feet,
And He will make me walk on my high hills. - Habakkuk 3:17-19

Yet will I praise thee.

When Jesus did come, Lazarus died. The irony disturbed the minds of the followers. A crisis of faith took place. I can imagine a storm brewing in the minds of the believers who once believed that with God all things are possible; still true but not all the time. That is the lie of the enemy. Satan doesn't want to ruin your belief, he just wants to poison your belief, that God's word is not true ALL the time, just sometimes. He whispers, "Sometimes God doesn't heal, sometimes God doesn't help and sometimes God doesn't care."

But God is the same yesterday, today and forever.

Just as Lazarus died before a greater glory can be manifested, something in us has to die, before God can manifest Himself fully in our lives. It could be a stubborn addiction, a little doubt or unseen pride. Whatever it is, they are like dust that block the light of God from penetrating through our lives. God desires to mature our character more than serving our convenience.

"When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, 'Lazarus, come out!' The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face." - John 11:43-44

Eventually God raised him up. No death can stop the power of God, because every kingdom, every principality, every tongue and every knee shall bow before the Most High.

God is faithful. The name Lazarus means God is my help - and when the time came, God did help.

Do you really need more faith?

Then the disciples came to Jesus in private and asked, 'Why couldn't we drive it out?'

He replied, "Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." - Matt 17:19-21

That desire echoed from centuries into our present souls as preachers often exhort us to have more faith.

Did Jesus give his disciples more faith?

Well not exactly. Jesus gave the example of faith liken to a mustard seed.

The bible says about the mustard seed :

"It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest seed you plant in the ground." - Mark 4:31

Now isn't an irony that Jesus admonished his disciples for having too little faith only to compare effective faith with a mustard seed?? The word little faith here is "apistis" which meant "no faith" or "unbelief". It wasn't just little faith, it was NO faith. Jesus was saying, "because you do not even have a single ounce of faith in you! However, if you do have a little faith just like a mustard seed, nothing will be impossible for you."

Why is that so? Because miracle happens not because of our faith. Miracle happens because of Jesus's power resident in His word. It is God's word that brings the healing and God's word that moves the mountain. Until we understand this truth, we will lack power.

Our duty is to obey even with the slightest faith that God has planted in us and He WILL do it. Everyone of us has the slightest faith, because at the very least we have the faith that brought us to salvation. So let us not look upon our faith, but upon the Author and Perfecter of our faith - the LORD Jesus Christ

True worship - Beyond the music

One of the ways to understand a concept in bible is to study its first occurence in the bible. Hence, to understand worship it is crucial for us to study when it was first mentioned in scripture and in what context.

If you do a little search on the online bible , you will find the first mention of the word 'worship' - Gen 22:5

"He said to his servants, 'Stay here with the donkey while I and the boy go over there. We will worship and then we will come back to you.'"

That is where man first encountered the concept of worship.

Days ago, Abraham had a heart-wrenching word of the Lord to sacrifice his son to God on Mount Moriah. Then at the foot of the mount he said to his servant that

1) we will worship
2) 'we' will come back

'We' here refers to Abraham and his son, Isaac. Herein lies two elements of worship :

1) Sacrifice
2) Faith

We ascend to the heavenlies in our worship through sacrifice, and we descend to the earth to establish His kingdom through faith.

When we worship the Lord, we lay down all we have, all we are and all we want at the altar of sacrifice. Yet we find life. It is an irony that we are called to be living sacrifice.

What is sacrificed? Our selfish desires. What is living? Our relationship with Christ. It is within this truth, that Paul said, "To die is gain, and to live is Christ"

After we worshipped the Lord, we respond to our challenges with faith. Abraham said "we" will come back, believing that God will indeed provide the physical sacrifice and fulfill His promise. How is faith produced?

When we worship God, we worship Him as He is not as we want Him to be. Contrary to most songs, God is not magnified by us. He is already the Almighty One. What is magnified is our perception of God, and that produces faith because faith is seeing God as He is.

Worship then is not singing along in a church celebration service, or hummming along the latest CD from Hillsongs. True worship stems from a heart of sacrifice that releases faith upon an encounter with the living God.