Category Archives: Lent 2016

Day 36: True Repentance

Exhortation, God, Lent 2016, Meditation

Day 36: True Repentance
Passage: John 12
Link to Lent 2016 Vimeo Channel

Transcription of the video above:

God desires for all people to foster a repentant heart so that they can be true worshipers of God. This transformation from the life of sin to a life of faith and obedience is exemplified for us in the person of the sinful woman in John 12:1-8. Here, the sinful woman received the gift of forgiveness from Jesus when she anointed Jesus with myrrh and washed His feet.

The rest of John 12 also foretells of the coming suffering Christ would also endure within a few days. Jesus also calls people to repent from their sins and believe in Him. Christ promises that when he is lifted up, many people will be drawn to Him and become His disciples. As you read through the chapter, do you hear more clearly Christ’s summons to become His disciples through sacrifice and service?

Day 35: Watchfulness & Preparation

Exhortation, Lent 2016, Meditation

Day 35: Watchfulness & Preparation
Passage: Matthew 22:15-46; 23:1-39
Link to Lent 2016 Vimeo Channel

Transcription of the video above:

As Jesus drew closer to his crucifixion, the evil forces intensified their attacks on Him. More specifically, the Jewish religious leaders mounted several efforts to trick and discredit Jesus in Matthew 22:15-46. First, the Pharisees tested Jesus on whether one should or should not pay taxes to government authorities. Second, the Sadducees asked Jesus a question about the resurrection and whether a marriage will last in heaven after death. Third, a lawyer challenged Jesus on the question of the Law. Finally, Jesus refuted their arguments by asking them about the true identity of Christ as the Son of God, of which the Pharisees could not answer. Then Jesus forcibly condemned the Pharisees and Scribes in Matthew 23:1-39 for their hypocrisy and self-centered motivations and false piety, and how they create roadblocks for people to experience a personal relationship with God.

In short, this passage gives us two types of warnings. First, Jesus warned people about false religiosity and hypocrisy. Jesus had no patience for those who are hypocrites and choose to commit evil deeds against people who need to know God the most. Second, it was a warning to all people to be watchful and prepared for the coming of the Lord, lest they be called unprepared before the awesome judgment seat of Christ. Are you prepared this week not just to meditate on Christ’s suffering and death for us, but also for Christ’s second coming in the future? If so, don’t do it as hypocrites but rather as worshipers of God, and seek to help people you encounter this week to know God in a personal and meaningful way by sharing the Gospel message with them.

Day 34: Outside the Gates

Christian, Evangelism, Exhortation, Lent 2016, Meditation

Day 34: Outside the Gates
Passage: Hebrews 13:12-15
Link to Lent 2016 Vimeo Channel

Transcription of the video above:

Just before the armies of Babylon arrived, Jerusalem was happy in their comfort zone; the walled city; and they didn’t feel the need to uphold or share the Law they had been given. They became insular, greedy, and distrusting of anyone that wasn’t them. And only when God smashed their very foundations were they forced to live among those they had despised, those whom they had hated, those whom they didn’t know.

As humans, we tend to construct a city for ourselves, a city made up of us and ours, with walls and gates built not as a sanctuary for those who seek life, but as a bunker for those we think deserve to live. But when the city, shelter, bunker is threatened, then that illusion of a calm haven is shattered. We fall into despair, or worse, lash out and fight to protect what’s ours. We are just plain scared by what might lie outside of our comfort zones beyond the gates of our lives. We forget that the people who we might not like or don’t agree with are also made in the image of God, sinners just like the rest of us.

In Hebrews 13:12-15, apostle Paul tells us that Jesus suffered outside the gate of Jerusalem in order to set apart a people through his sacrifice, which means that we should willingly suffer for His sake since we are not citizens of our own cities, but of the city of God.

Jesus suffered outside the gate by hanging on the cross and died. He was buried and raised to life by his Father in order that we might become heirs to his Kingdom, his everlasting city. Through Christ, we might be able to live forever with His Father as our Father, as co-heirs of Jesus’ inheritance. We must deconstruct the city we have built on our own and get to know the people around us outside our city walls. Befriend them and bless them because it is an opportunity for you to encounter Christ in the world. Be around them, get to know them, learn to love them.

Because only by suffering with people, those outside the gates of your city, will you see Jesus Christ and offer people hope, peace, and joy.

Day 33: Tale of Two Cities

Lent 2016, Meditation

Day 33: Tale of Two Cities
Passage: Genesis 4:11-26; Isaiah 25:5-26:6
Link to Lent 2016 Vimeo Channel

Transcription of the video above:

Genesis and Isaiah tell us a tale of two cities: the city of God and the city of Man. In Genesis 4:11-26, as we trace the descendants of Cain and by studying the city they created, we see the violence and oppression that resulted from turning away from God – including the Bible’s first instance of polygamy. However, we also see that God has not given up on humanity. God has a vision for a different kind of city – a city built on worship and grace instead of self-aggrandizement and power.

In Isaiah 25:5-26:6, the prophet Isaiah also talks about two different cities. The city of God is divine, available through salvation, and based on peace and joy. The city of Man is human, self-created, and based on pride and accomplishment. Christians are called to seek the peace and prosperity of the city, both in prayer and as servants of society. We are called to submit to the government in which we abide and to live in peace with everyone whenever possible. We are called to be bi-cultural. God does not want us to either assimilate or segregate. He wants us to become part of the city, to pray for the city and seek its peace and prosperity. Yet, God also insists that His people retain their distinctiveness and not compromise their allegiance to Him. Christians are called to love the city of man for the sake of the city of God. They are to look forward to the final and eternal heavenly city where the trials of this world will cease. Which city do you belong to – the city of God or the city of Man?

Day 32: Pray

Exhortation, Lent 2016, Meditation

Day 32: Pray
Passage: Jeremiah 29:7
Link to Lent 2016 Vimeo Channel

Transcription of the video above:

Jeremiah in chapter 29, verse 7 told the Jewish exiles in Babylon to, in addition to building, planting, and marrying, pray and seek the peace and prosperity of the city they found themselves in. Like many metropolis, Babylon was an enormous, intimidating city with diverse populations that espoused a variety of values and morals. God would empower the Jewish people to relate and respond in love to all people, without either assimilating too much to the culture around them or separating themselves through tribalism. They are called as citizens of both the city of man and the city of God, they work on the principle of peace and grace for the betterment of all.

As Christians, we find ourselves in a similar situation as the Jewish exiles were. God empowers us to relate and respond in love to all people. God expects us not to assimilate too much to the culture around us or separate ourselves through tribalism. As citizens of both the city of man and the city of God, Christians work on the principles of peace and grace for the betterment of all. Prayer can change a city because God has a heart for His people to reach and impact the city; do you?