The centrality of the gospel message

At church, newcomers are common, we get them every week. Once in a while, one of them will ask if he or she could join, or we would usually invite them to join us for lunch. I had one of the most heated (but still friendly) lunch discussions on Sunday, in between the end of service and the church AGM. We were talking and discussing about the role of church and how the church can/should/could show love.

The newcomer who came along was from the UK and attended St Helen's Bishopgate. He has been in London for close to 30 years, and I would think he has been with the church for quite a fair bit of time. He claimed that he didn't like his church in the UK, and didn't fancy St Ebb's either. I was pretty surprised because I know those two as good bible teaching churches in the UK. He preferred megachurches like NCC because he thought it was more 'lively' and like a 'church', whereas churches (The Crossing Church included) that focus on preaching the Word are boring and dull. To him, the gospel message and preaching the bible message clearly are good to have, but should not be the key focus of the church. Questions about "whether the pastor would visit an ill church member?", "would fellow church members attend to the needs of another church member even though it brings inconvenience?", or "does the church think that community work and serving the community by providing for its needs?" were thrown out at the lunch table. At this point, I was getting a bit uncomfortable. Does he really understand what a church's purpose is? What really is more important?

I sat down after getting home later at night to consider what was being poured out over the lunch conversation. That newcomer reflects very well who I was just three years ago. I have been a Christian for seven years, but for the most part of it, I didn't understand the meaning of a church and what its purpose should be. I insisted that a church must have a building, liturgies that people recite, good music, friendly people, care for my needs, do community work, and if the gospel is preached it will be good but it doesn't really matter. Looking back, I was so lost, very lost and misguided by my own poor understanding.

A church is a community of God's people who believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ. The gospel of Christ makes a church possible. It is only through Christ that the church can grow and love. The gospel message is at the very core of a church, and what the church members do is a response to the grace and love they received, spurring each other on in the Word. Thus, the motivation of what the church does is not to show love, but as a response to the fact that we have died with Christ and are raised with him in his resurrection. The best way for a church to show love is to preach Christ crucified for our sins, and those who believe are made alive in him in his resurrection.There is no greater love than that of God sending his own son to save sinners.

It can be good for a church to be lively, welcoming, caring and loving (in the worldly sense). But without the gospel and Jesus, it is nothing more than a social gathering of (good) people, or a mere charity.

Travelled.

Five days in Malaysia. It was a rewarding experience going around alone and with friends, even though the last couple of days were dreadful and only wanted to return to my tiny island home. Each time I go abroad for an extended period of time, I will take some time during and after the trip to sit down, think, reason and battle it out with myself, turn to the bible and talk to God.

On my first day, I dropped by CERC for a visit and joined them for their Sunday service. CERC is a sister church of The Crossing Church, set up roughly around the same time six years ago in the city of Kuala Lumpur. Thank God for having seen them through six years of struggle in a country and city that has not been the kindest to Christianity and its people. Hearing stories of people (a lot of them!) leaving when the gospel is preached faithfully was startling, at least to me, because it is a different situation here in Singapore. Lack of training for bible teachers, a hostile environment where persecution is prevalent, people leaving the church, the prosperity gospel, and church-goers who are not interested in the gospel are just some of the problems the church of Malaysia is currently facing.. Jesus Christ is what Christianity is about, the gospel at the very core of what we Christians believe in. To remove Jesus and to not preach the gospel is not being Christian at all. Choose Christ, choose life and live in God. Reject Christ, reject life and live in the devil. CERC is a church to pray for, and Malaysia is a country that needs the gospel.

I spent the next couple of days in Ipoh with Jerrine and her family + relatives. The few days were filled with thinking with quiet moments at night to read and pray, and good time that I could sit down chat with Jerrine. It was encouraging to hear from her how she learnt about the importance of the gospel over the last couple of years and drawing closer to Christ. It humbled me as well to treat with people respect, put aside my pride and rid of the holier-than-thou attitude. That was and still is important because it was never ever by my own doings that I hear of the gospel, so there is nothing that I could boast in but in Christ alone! I thank God for this close and dear friend who has been placed in my life, plenty to learn from and keep praying for, that she will continue in Christ till the very very end.

Penang, my fifth time there, but possibly the most dreadful one of all. Fell sick upon arrival, could not eat much (so no street food, urgh) and spent more time sleeping in bed than walking outside along the streets of the UNESCO buffer zone in Penang. I am glad I made this trip, seen a lot, learnt a lot, but incredibly worn out. I look forward to meeting the people that I have met again, but in the meantime, prayer will anchor how I relate to them.

Living the Cross-Centered Life

I had a hard and terrible time trying to fall asleep last night, it's been a while since I last had so much difficulty with that. Since my bookshelf's right beside my bed, I decided to read. It was a small book that I have read before, but the content was nothing small at all. It's "Living the Cross Centered Life" written by C.J. Mahaney.

It was a good read, one that points the reader to the bible and to think and reflect. I did not get past the third chapter, but it was enough to get me reflecting and thinking (at 3am!). Have I been living a life putting the cross in the core, or the cross is just something peripheral? What does the cross mean to myself and to everyone of us?

I spent a good bulk of the time that was supposed to be used for sleeping reading, reflecting and praying. Keeping the cross in the center of my life has not been an easy, and sometimes, I do lose sight of the cross in my actions and thoughts. I admit that by my own strength it will never be possible, but only through God alone.

Seven.

This blog is actually a space which charts out the way I think over the years. It's somewhat a personal space, but as with everything else on the Internet, nothing is really that personal and private. Until a few days ago, you actually would not be able to find it by running a Google search because of the settings I have made.

Why do I name this post 'Seven' and start by talking about this space? It has some significance to me, enough for a post to be titled this way. It was seven years ago in June 2007 that I received Christ as my Saviour and Lord. It has not been an easy journey given that I do not come from a Christian family and will likely to face rejection (which did really happen). Little snippets of my growth can be found on this space and in particular the way I write and think. Over the years, by God's grace, I have grown quite a fair bit in my maturity as a Christian and my mindset as a Christian student. Being able to express myself accurately (most of the time heh) and to be able read the Word is not by my own works but by God's grace alone. Being able to hear of the gospel and to receive Christ into my life was possibly the best thing that could have happened, and it is, without a hint of doubt, God's very grace. I live everyday reminding myself of who I was and am now, what Jesus Christ has done on the cross, and God's grace in having called me to be his own through his Son. Being able to speak of Him is simply pure joy.

Becoming and staying a Christian is a constant struggle, which the bible has clearly talked about. The bible did not promise a smooth sailing journey for Christians for the here and now, but it gives us good assurance of the hope that is to come because it is God's promise (and God keeps his promise)! I'd say that this struggle to keep going is not in vain, for we do have a hope in Christ if we keep going in Christ. I have grown through all these little struggles over the years, and more significantly in the last couple of years when I start reading the bible for myself and learning a lot more about God for who He is. It is a long journey of knowing God better, which I am glad that I have begun and still pressing on.

Seven years of struggles, seven years of grace. Thank You for calling me to be a child of yours, and Lord, I pray that by your mercy and grace, keep me going in Christ, till the day You return or when You call me home to be with You.

Social media, networks, and our real social life

Social media (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, tumblr, you get the idea) is sapping our real social life away. Bit by bit, we get hooked, and begin to spend hours each day trawling through our newsfeed, looking at what people we know have posted on their space, posting our little updates, photos, among all sorts of other things that people do on these websites.

Of late, apart from photos, I hardly post anything else on my Facebook wall. I do not see the need to post something that I grumble about, or basically to get attention of the people I know. It is a conscious effort to not post anything more, because I have got itchy fingers and I have a lot that I want to say. But I think that I have found other ways to say what I want to say, which is to talk to people, face to face or a call or a text conversation. Some may ask, what is the difference between that and just posting it on Facebook, aren't you still ultimately in some form of discussion with another person? Lots of difference. Plenty of it. The connection I get from relating to another person is unlike what socialising on Facebook is. It is more complex, more layered, more exciting, more authentic. It is just better.

During church camp last weekend, I asked one of my small group members if men could relate emotionally to other people properly, as how women could with much ease. He said that it is hard, but not impossible. Most evangelical Christians would probably agree that one of the most effective methods of telling a non-Christian about the gospel is through authentic personal relationships, where two or more people (in the context of small groups) know each other well enough. I am by no means saying that evangelistic rallies and purpose-planned events are not useful, but they are a bit like social media. You are throwing out seeds and see where they will land and sprout. Personal relationship is akin to planting just one seed, and purposefully take care of it so that it will bear fruit one day. Paul, in his letter to the church in Corinth, said this. "What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth. He who plants and he who waters are one, and each will receive his wages according to his labor. For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building." (1 Cor 3:5-9) Ultimately, God is the one who gives growth, and we are His willing servants. God works in the most mysterious ways that is beyond, way beyond, our comprehension. It is important for us to relate to people as we tell them about the gospel. We can all relate, men and women alike; it is a God-given ability for a good number of us. 

One of the biggest challenges for people my age (20-ish) is to keep our mind away from social media. As a Christian, I have found social media to take up more time than it should, when the time wasted could be better used to read the bible, to encourage a fellow Christian, to talk to a non-Christian about the gospel, and more importantly, to pray. We are all so connected, and perhaps not thinking about Facebook only when we are sleeping! However, social networks and social media is not all bad and nothing good. They are excellent tools to promote an evangelistic event, to gather people more easily, and perhaps give you a glimpse into the life of a person you know so you might be able to pray for or encourage the friend of yours. To me, do everything in moderation. I could have been obsessed with Facebook, and I totally regret having been so. It is not worth it at all.

So, social media for evangelism? Why not! Not my preferred method though. 

Travelling Alone.

Once every few years, I take a short trip away for Singapore by myself. In a couple of weeks, I will set off again to Malaysia, just up north of the lovely little island to visit friends. More of it, actually, is to give myself some space away from the hustle and bustle of the city state, and sit myself down to think about things.

It is a trip I look forward too, and hope I will be able to make the best of the 5 days.

Singapore-KL-Ipoh-Penang-Singapore. I'll most likely gorge myself silly.

Coping with death and understanding God's sovereignty

Death is morbid. We all die one day. Some will die by old age, some defeated by terminal illness, some in an accident, and some others take their own life. When our physical bodies stop working and return to dust, the world does not stop. The loved ones of the deceased mourn their death, if there are loved ones around. Coping with the death of a loved one is abstract and hard, and has probably been discussed and recorded countless times by people throughout human history. We read it in the bible, the news and hear from people we know. 

I have to say, even knowing that God is sovereign, death is not easy to cope with emotionally. Emotions are real and God-given, built into us so that we can express ourselves properly. In John 11, we read of the death of Lazarus. In that episode, Jesus wept because Lazarus was a person he loved, and Jesus trusted wholly in his Father's sovereignty even over death. Christians, who have received Christ as their Lord and Saviour, are promised of an eternal life beyond physical death. The penalty of sin is death (both physical and spiritual, the latter means to be cut off from God), and we all will die because we are all sinners. Jesus paid the penalty for sin by dying on the cross, so that we may be reconciled with God. And Jesus is the only way to be with God in his heavenly home. 

We all have to face death one day, and to cope with the death of loved ones. I cried hard when my grandfather passed away a few years back, not doubting God's sovereignty, but that he has not received Christ and acknowledging that I will not see him in heaven. A text from a friend today saying that she met with a near-fatal accident brought me to my knees and to the brink of tears, not that she has not received Christ, but the very thought of having to lose a close friend so dear to me is painful, even when I know that God is truly sovereign. Trusting in God's sovereignty even over death and being emotional about death are two concepts that can be perfectly reconciled, because of the very fact that God is sovereign and in control. We are under his reign. Thank You, God, for preserving her and her family to continue to do your works, till the day you have planned at the beginning of time to call them back home to be with you. May Your sovereign will be done, and I just could not thank You enough for Jesus Christ and His death, so that we can enjoy eternal life in You.