AbeLog

Dear readers,

My devotional journal blog has moved to the following address:

http://abelog-devotionaljournal.blogspot.com/

Hope it will be a blessing to you as you read…
HHS…
Abel…

Dear readers,

My devotional journal blog has moved to the following address:

http://abelog-devotionaljournal.blogspot.com/

Hope it will be a blessing to you as you read…
HHS…
Abel…

The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly. (John 10:10)

Jesus came not to judge, but to save (John 3:17). But the question is: what is Jesus saving us for? What are we saved for? Are we saved for living a miserable life? Are we saved for living under the bondage of Satan? Are we saved so that we can be slave to our work and family? What are we saved for?

John 10:10 tells us that we are saved so that we might have life and have it abundantly. Incidentally, I will be preaching on the topic: Life of Abundance, some time next month. I am really thankful that God has given me the Word He wants to speak to His people, and I am now able to begin to work on it.

What is life of abundance? Life of abundance can be found in the early Christian church in Acts 2. They lacked nothing, they shared everything, they were filled with awe, they were filled with the fullness of the Holy Spirit, and they were experiencing life in full, in abundance. They have no worries of where their next meal would come from, because they have confident in the Lord that they were be provided as they faithfully contributed all they had.

I was trying to imagine living in that church. I would own nothing, as I have given back the ownership to God and entrusted the church and the Christian community to use it for the Kingdom. I would not be worried if there would be a financial crisis, as I would not have any finance to be in the crisis, but at the same time I would not be in need. This would be the life of abundance.

In our reform tradition, the life of abundance is interpreted to be spiritual abundance. Surely, I have no doubt about spiritual abundance we will experience when we receive Jesus into our life. We will be spiritually eternal as the God promises us eternal life after death, but what is installed for us on earth before death? Again a good Presbyterian, who embraces reform teaching, will say that we will experience abundance of joy, peace and love while we are still on earth. And again, I have no problem with such explanation, as life includes our emotions and inner soul, and I am one of which goes after such experience of abundance from within my soul and spirit. But is that all?

I have been thinking of this question for quite awhile as I am preparing a sermon on it. What does it mean to experience life of abundance with my finance and physical health? I know that I may be accused of being a proponent of prosperity gospel, but I am not. Neither is I a hyper-Charismatic who do not believe that Christian will get sick and all Christians should be always healthy? I do not promote wealth and health gospel. But I strongly believe that we do not need to live in the oppression of poverty and sickness, though I reckon that these are part of our fallen humanity. But I do not believe these are part of the life of abundance Jesus came for.

Satan comes to steal away our inner peace, kill our emotional joy and destroy our hope of love; Satan also comes to steal our possessions; kill us by introducing more and more diseases; and destroy our properties by natural disasters. But Satan cannot steal God’s possessions if we have given up the ownership to God; Satan cannot kill our souls and hope if we have experienced God’s healing power and grace; and Satan cannot destroy God’s Kingdom only if we are not only building our houses but God’s house.

Are you experiencing life of abundance or life struggling to deal with Satan’s threats? Stop trying to fight Satan alone, submit everything you have to God and He will give you life of abundance. Surely, there will be tension between the life we are living now and the life of abundance Jesus intended for us. But such tension can be good if we recognize our short for and move towards the life of abundance by taking practical steps to surrender our life to God.

Start to give more of your finance to your church and see how you are freed from the bondage of finance and how God will use it for His Kingdom and increase in His blessing for you. Give and watch. Start to give more of your love to people around you by going an extra miles for them and see how God can use your kindness and love to draw those people to Himself. Start to give more of your gifts to the ministry of church and see how God can cause you to grow in Him and increase your gifting.

You can give because God first gave His Son, Jesus. Jesus came so that we might have life and have it abundantly. Do not live as if you are still in the bondage of Satan. Live a life of abundance. This is what Jesus came for.

Life of Abundance. You can have it.

HHS…

Abel…

PS: This will be the last of 40 days with the Son series of devotion. I will be taking a short break for a week or so, as I will be going to Hong Kong for a week of holiday. Then I will start a new series; still do not have any idea yet. You can pray for me that God will lead me to another meaningful season of writing devotion that will be a blessing to others. Meanwhile you can reflect on my other devotion on this series from September 08 onward.

Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples ventured to question Him, “Who are You?” knowing that it was the Lord. (John 21:12)

Every morning, I have to pack breakfast for my wife to bring to office to eat. It is a mad rush almost every morning, especially after we have our baby Alethea. My wife will have to feed her before she can start preparing herself for work. And that usually leave her with very limit time. As a husband and a father, and as I am used to waking up earlier; I do my little part by helping her to prepare for work such as ironing her clothes, packing breakfast and getting other things ready for her. But it sets me thinking, that when we are rushing here and there, are we missing out anything?

The reason I wake up early in the morning is a habit, or rather it is a spiritual discipline to spend time with God which I have cultivated to ensure I keep myself spiritually fit. I know myself well, that I have great tendency and propensity to slack and be lazy. I have to ruthlessly discipline myself to wake up early to have breakfast with God. And this verse (John 21:12) has inspired me to press on for many years, especially for the past three years in Seminary.

Yesterday, during the pastoral team meeting, we have a short devotion led by Rev Sunil about how the Word of God should remain as a pillar of a growing church. We were asked to share our journey as in what had caused us to be hungered and thirst for the Word. Most of the pastors are very spiritual people; they either have a hunger to know the God in the Bible or an encounter that propelled them to desire to read the Word and know the Author. But as for me, I never really have the hunger or deep desire to read the Word. And with all honesty, I will be happy if reading the Word of God is not required as part of spiritual discipline; or the Word of God is not the mean of God’s authority on earth for this day. For me, Bible is the Word of God, and as a disciple of Christ, I cannot live without knowing His Word. The logic is simple, I have to read and know His Word if I desire to grow in Him.

My journey began way back when I was in my 2^nd year of undergraduate school. I just came back to the Lord after more than 2 years of running away from the church. I was challenged by a senior student to be discipline in my daily devotion and he gave me one year worth of passages to do my devotion. At that time, I really wanted to grow, so I took up the challenge and almost daily without fail, I spent almost an hour in solitude praying and reading those passages given to me. It was a real discipline and that one whole year of habit formation laid the foundation for my future spiritual life. But to be frank, I still have no passion about the Word, and the main reason is that: I don’t really understand the Bible, it is in English!

Surely, I grew as a Christian, and my English improved over these years. And after I went through Seminary training, I began to understand the Bible more. But whatever it is, whether I really understand or don’t understand fully about the Word, I always find that the Word of God is like a double edged sword (Heb.4:12), it speaks to me and it is very practical. Somehow, the Word of God can come alive to me and very applicable to my situation in life.

Do I have a desire to read the Word of God? Not really. But does it change that reality and the fact that the Word of God is active and living (Heb. 4:12) and have authority and inspired (2 Tim. 3:16)? No! The nature of God’s Word never changes or depends on our mood, preference or spiritual maturity. Heaven and earth will pass away, but the Word of God abides forever (1 Pet. 1:25).

Take time to read the Word of God. Take time to response to Jesus invitation: “Come and have breakfast.” Let His Word give you the nourishment you need for the day. Let His Word penetrates your spirit and your soul as you live Him out in wherever you are.

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. It sets our system to deal with our daily demands. I am not saying you have to spend one hour in devotion; I think you are smarter than me and are able to understand the Bible better and faster than I; but at least have a proper breakfast which is nutritious to your soul. The Lord knows what you need for breakfast, come and have breakfast with Him.

I am having my breakfast with my Lord now, how about you? Did you skip your breakfast? Or did you look for some fast food such as inspirational articles or motivational sermons CDs as your breakfast? Take some time to make your own breakfast with the Lord; He knows your diet more than you know yours, and He knows what you need more than you know of yourself.

Come and have breakfast. It’s my treat.

HHS…

Abel…

And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28)

I am led to reflect upon my life when I read this verse. I recall the season in my life whereby I am so determined to be a music producer in entertainment industry. I went to learn how to play guitar, operate sound system, composing songs, arranging music for songs and even singing. I can say that I am jack of all trades, but master of none. I spent all my savings and even borrowed money from my father to run concerts. I still remember there was a Chinese New Year whereby I have to empty all my angbao to pay the printing company. I have wasted all my resources and energy and time just to chase after a dream.

Until today, I wonder why I pursue all these empty dreams, why I hang in there for so long. But little do I know; many years later, after I became a disciple of Jesus, I began to write songs to worship God. I also served the church by managing the sound system and even playing the drums and guitar. I even wrote and directed a few music productions. As I look back, I know that God has caused my past experiences to work together to serve Him.

I recall also my stubborn love towards Chinese language even though my Chinese was not exactly very outstanding. But my stubbornness is actually a reaction towards my inability to master English language. I was not very gifted in languages, and I did not have an English speaking home environment to help me along. My negative sentiment towards English language grew even greater when I struggled to pass my English exams. Hence, I redirected my focus to Chinese language. Though I was not exactly excelling at it, at least I enjoyed and I hang in there for many years. Little did I know at that time, my quested for Chinese language laid a foundation for language study.

When I was in Bible College, I enjoyed learning Greek and Hebrews, as I enjoyed learning Chinese language. The most interesting thing is that, my first preaching assignment after I graduated from Bible College was to the Chinese Ministry in Mandarin. I still remember how I dragged to attend Homiletic (preaching) class and kept fumbling during my preaching tests as I could not read my script and even though I wrote it myself. I told myself that preaching is not my gift. But I am surprise that I was able to preach rather clearly in Mandarin. As I look back, I know God has caused my reaction to work together to minister to His people.

There are many things in life that we don’t know why it happens, but as a disciple, I have to learn to believe and trust that God causes all things to work together for good. Maybe you are going through some struggles in your finance right now due to the financial crisis, but hang in there; God will cause this finance crisis into an opportunity for you to grow in your trust in Him. Maybe you are facing some heath issues and wondering when you will be healed, but hang in there; God will cause your testimony to be an encouragement to many. Maybe you are in the midst of a rough patch in your relationship with your spouse or partner and on the verge of breaking up, but hang in there; God will cause your determination to work through this relationship issue into a chance to deepen and strengthened the relationship.

Whatever you are going through is unique to you, but just hang in there; God will cause all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28)

HHS…

Abel…

Now after the Sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to look at the grave. (Matthews 28:1)

I am in the midst of preparing a sermon to be preached 3 Sundays from now. I am so stressed out because I don’t even have a passage in mind. All I am given is the topic: Life of Abundance. This is such a wide theme. I am not sure if i should speak on material abundance or spiritual abundance or emotional abundance or whatever abundance; with God, everything can be in abundance. This topic is simply too broad and I am not given a specific area to work on. Rather to say that I am in the midst of preparing a sermon, I have not even decided on a good passage to work on it.

I feel stressed because I will be going for a holiday with my family end of this week for a week, and I am also preaching again on the Sunday after preaching on the “Life of Abundance”. Before that I am going to have a Boys’ Brigade camp and apprentice training class on a new material which I have not have completed on the week before my preaching. To add on my stress level, I will be running another round of fellowship for single working adults on the day I am preaching and I have to teach during that fellowship. On top of these, there are two weddings to attend on the two Saturdays before I am preaching. When I look at my schedule, I am like the Marys, we are all looking at the grave.

I am looking at the grave of religious work while the Marys were looking at the grave of Jesus. They did not know that Jesus will eventually walk out of that grave; that grave had no restraint to the Lord Jesus. Though I know Jesus is already out of the grave, yet I still look at the grave. I look at my own ability to handle all my preaching preparation and teaching. I look at the time I have at hand to work on all these preaching and teaching. I am looking at the grave.

What is beyond the grave? It is grace. It is grace because Jesus is walking out of the grave. It is grace because Jesus is no longer in the grave. Jesus is the grace of God who will allow us to walk through life with Him in peace and joy. Jesus is the grace of God whom we receive the life of abundance. Jesus is the grace.

I am thankful to realize such grace this morning. I can no longer look into the grave but to the grace of Jesus. By looking at the grave of religiosity, I am hopeless and weak. By looking at the grace of Jesus, I am sufficient and strong (2 Cor. 12:9). By looking at the grave of the bureaucracy of the church, I am bounded and restrained. By looking at the grace of Jesus in His truth, I am being set free (John 8:32). By looking at the grave of my personal inadequacy, I am disappointed and discouraged. By looking at the grace of Jesus in my life, I can be comforted and rejoice for He is faithful to those who are faithful to His commandments (Deut. 7:9).

Now, I can relax and take some time off to wait upon the grace of God to give me the strength, the faith and the truth to prepare for my next sermon. I have to learn to look away from the grave of Jesus and look to the grace of Jesus. For by grace I have been saved through faith; and that not of myself, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast (Eph. 2:8-9; Italics are mine).

Are you looking at the grave or are you looking at the grace of Jesus? If you are looking at the grave of your health, look to the grace of Jesus for healing. If you are looking at the grave of a relationship (I am not referring to marriage), look to the grace of Jesus to learn to submit to one another (Eph. 5:21). If you are looking at the grave of your current job, look at the grace of Jesus who will speak and guide you gently along. If you are looking at the grave of the current financial crisis, look to the grace of Jesus for security and provision. If you are looking at the grave of your loneliness, look at the grace of Jesus’ promise to be with you always (Matt. 28:20). Turn away from the grave, and look to the grace of Jesus.

HHS…

Abel…

This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then Pilate ordered it to be given over to him. (Matthew 27:58)

Today is Monday and it is my off day. I can possibly sleep in more, but I have chosen to wake up earlier to pray and help my wife to get prepare for work and look after my daughter. I take her out for a walk and bring her to a nearby children center to enquire about enrolment and registration. I behave like a typical Singaporean father. As we walk around the neighborhood, I discover that my daughter is more well-known than me by the neighbors. Suddenly my eyes open to see that there are so many people out there need Jesus, and I am so caught up with my churchy thingy. I meet an ex-taxi driver who used to climb mountains, had a stroke and have half of his body paralyzed. But by his determination, I see him exercising hard and on his way to recovery. He is taking his life seriously and wanting to make the most out of it. He does not allow the stroke to determine his future. I am not too sure if he is a believer, but his spirit for life encourages me.

As a pastor in a church whereby we talk about discipleship and outreach, I am always disappointed with people not living out what they say they believe. I am also disappointed with myself too. Yesterday, when I was attending the My Hope Singapore training, the trainer kept saying that we should be like Matthew (or Levi) in the Bible, who threw a party for his friends who were sinners. We also throw a party, but who will come for our party? I do not doubt that My Hope Singapore project can be an useful avenue to reach out to our friends, but what have we been doing before we even think of My Hope Singapore? Matthew was a new convert at the point he threw that party, and he still had many non-believing friends. After so many years being a Christian, we have lesser and lesser non-believing friends, and some even have no more non-believing friend.

Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for Jesus’ dead body. His intention was good; he wanted to give Jesus a proper burial. But little did he know that that dead body was not going to remain dead, Jesus will rise again. Sometime, when we lose sight of the full glory of God, we will settle for the dead body of Jesus. If we look beyond the dead body of Jesus, we will be able to see the fullness of Jesus in the body of Christ. Both are the bodies of Jesus, but one is seen with shortsightedness and another with farsighted vision.

Being in church on Sunday can be in a dead body of Jesus. People are merely concern of their needs being met rather than meeting the needs of the body of Christ at large. People see their ministry as the greatest and of the most importance, and do not see the possibility of working along with the body of Christ for the common good of the church. We have become more concern over the dead body of Jesus rather than the living body of Christ.

The dead body of Jesus concerns about the possibility of rats if we have food during our fellowship, but the living body of Christ concerns about the possibility of people getting connected and being ministered. The dead body of Jesus concerns about the numerical growth of the church after an outreach project, but the living body of Christ concerns about the community around each disciple daily. The dead body of Jesus concerns about the standard of the Sunday worship (whether the worship leader sings well or the preacher preach loud enough etc…), but the living body of Christ concerns about how each disciple lives their life wherever they are from Monday to Saturday.

Are you living with the dead body of Jesus or die to Christ for the living body of Christ?

I want to be the living body of Christ, I want to walk the talk, and I want to practice what I preach. I want to have more time hanging out with people who have not known Christ, not because they are my next project, but believing that they too can be blessed by the life of Christ through me as the living body of Christ, even though they don’t believe. God still loves them. I don’t want to be the dead body of Jesus, merely doing things which are religious and glamorous. I rather die with the living body of Christ than live with the dead body of Jesus.

HHS…
Abel…

When Jesus therefore had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head, and gave up His spirit. (John 19:30)

It is finished. Jesus had finished what He needed to do on earth and returned to His Father in heaven. He had come to earth, born of a virgin, grew up as a son of a carpenter, humbly being baptized by His cousin, ministered among the poor and the sick and the sinners, calling people to repentance and put their faith in Him, taught His disciples and empowering them to the work to come, submitted to the will of His Father by journeying to the Cross from the garden of Gethsemane, and even gave up His spirit.

It is finished for Jesus, but a new beginning for us. Jesus gave up His spirit, so that we can take on a new life. Jesus gave up not only His spirit, but His entire being. He gave up His throne in heaven and came to earth. He gave up His status as the Creator to be in the womb of His Creation. He gave up His right to be the Son of God and became a son of a carpenter. He gave up His authority to baptize but to be baptized by His Baptist cousin, Johnny. He gave up being served and ministered by host of angels but He chose to walk the street, touch the lepers, raise the dead, welcome the sinners and wash the feet of His disciples. He gave up His ability to do it Himself by sharing the joy of His ministry with His disciples by empowering them to do so. He gave up His will to go in the opposite direction of the Cross so that our sins can be forgiven by His blood shed on the Cross as the nails pounded through His hands and legs. He gave up everything and finally, He gave up His spirit so that we may be able to receive the Holy Spirit promised by Him for us to have a new life. He gave up, so that we can have them all.

As I reflect and process the truth of Jesus actually gave up all He could have for my sake, my heart soften. I cannot explain or give a clear description of what is happening; it is as if my heart weakens and come to a realization of what Jesus has really done for me. It reminds of the day I accept Jesus as my Lord and Savior. It was the story of His crucifixion which touched my heart so deeply that I felt a pain and heard the voice of Jesus asking me: What is my response? You know the answer, I responded to Him and put my life in His hand and today, you are reading what I am writing. Jesus has transformed my life. From one who does not like English language at all to one who has been writing devotional blog for past two years, He has performed a heart transplant surgery and life transform makeover. It is all because Jesus gave up Himself.

It is easy to give up on things you do need, but another story to give up things which are dear to you. It is easy to give away $100 if we have $10 000, but it will be a challenge to give $10 if we only $20. It is easy to give up our sleep to care for our children when they are sick (though may not be true all the time), but try to stay awake during an overnight prayer meeting. It is easy to give up holding grudges against your naughty children (though again may not be true all the case), but try to give up holding grudges against the one who cheated all your saving into investing in a bank which gone bankrupt.

But Jesus gave it all up for you and for me. I don’t think it is easy for Him either. But He did it anyway because of the love He has for His Father and for us. We can give up ourselves too, unless we have love for God and the people around us. A mother will give up her $10 for her son to buy his favorite toy, because she loves her son. A father will give up his sleep to pray for his dying daughter at a overnight prayer meeting, because he loves his daughter. An old lady will give up her right to hold grudges against the agent who mislead her to lose all her savings, because she loves God more than her money.

You can give up for Jesus too as Jesus gave up…

HHS…

Abel…

Surely our griefs He Himself bore,

And our sorrows He carried;

Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken,

Smitten of God, and afflicted. (Isaiah 53:4)

I am saddened when I read about the news of recent economy crisis. It is not because I have suffered any loss due to this crisis, it is because I read about how ordinary folks are being misled to invest all their savings and end up with almost nothing. I am saddened and even angry when I find out from the news that the financial institute which was bailed out by the US government with billions of their tax payers money, splurged it staffs with expensive spa resort expenses. I am saddened by the godlessness of humanity in this crisis. This is our fallen world.

I am saddened to hear my father coughing badly and complaining of his sleepless night as he has to constantly wake up to urinate. My heart was pricked every time I accompanied him to hospital for check up and blood test has to be done. I feel bad at times for getting irritated about his complains of being lonely, being sick and weak; as for me, it is himself that has not been proactive to live a meaningful and healthy life. Sometimes, I think that if he goes to church, that will solve all the problems. But I know that is not true, he does not really need to go to church, he needs Jesus. He needs Jesus to be his friend, so that he won’t be lonely anymore. He needs Jesus to heal him from his sickness so that he can enjoy his life again. He needs Jesus to give him hope for keeping his life healthy. He needs Jesus. And I have not been sharing much with him. I am disappointed with myself. I am even ashamed of myself as a pastor who teaches people to share Christ with others.

I am saddened to see my own daughter having running nose recently. I feel the pain she seems to be going through whenever I hear her nose being block by mucus. I even feel bad whenever my wife and I have to “pin” her down to suck out the mucus from her nose; she will struggle and cry, and my heart simply can’t bear to continue, but we have to. Now I begin to understand the heartbeat of a parent, and surely appreciate God the Father even more when I know that I have failed Him, and yet He still goes all the way out to help me to get it right again. That’s the Father’s heart.

Indeed, there are many more things in life can sadden me, and I believe this is true for most of us. But the question I have to ask myself will be: how do we carry on from here? How do we continue to live in such a sadden world? The answer is that, we don’t have to live through it by ourselves alone. Jesus promises to bear it and carry all of them for us.

As I read Isaiah 53:4, I can’t help, but be thankful. I am reminded that I am not alone. I am not to bear and carry all my pains, my grief and my sorrows alone, but to let Jesus takes them all. This verse has been used by pro-super-natural-healing preacher to point out that Jesus’ work on the Cross does not only deal with the emotional grief and sorrow, but actually deal with physical pain and healing is promised here. As the Hebrew word used to translate “Griefs” is better translated as sickness or pains. I agree to such exegesis and understanding of this passage, and agree that God has promised physical healing as part of His work on the Cross. God is greater than who we think He is. God is not restricted to emotional and spiritual healing only, but His greatness and power covers even our physical body.

I am not here to advocate Charismatic movement, but to realize that life without letting Christ to bear and carry our sickness and sorrows is a meaningless. On the Cross, He bears and carries my sins and my pains. On the Cross, He bears and carries your sins and your pains. What must we do? Surrender our sins and pains to Him. Simple? But not so.

We can easily submit our sins to Jesus to bear and carry, but somehow we keep to ourselves our pains and sickness. We think that our doctors and specialists can bear and carry our pains and sickness better that Jesus. I believe that God has risen up doctors and specialists to assist Him in treating our sickness, but it is ultimately God who heals. We cannot give our sickness to the doctors; neither can we pass our pains to the specialists. No matter how much they want to help, but they can’t. But the Bible tells us, at least I see that it is clear, that “Surely (without any shadow of doubt) our griefs (sicknesses) He (Jesus) Himself (no one else) bore (on His body), and our sorrows (pains) He (Jesus) carried (to the Cross)”.

Are you still holding on to your sickness and sorrows? Why not let Jesus bear and carry them for you?

HHS…

Abel…

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Rom 8:1)

Sometime, I am really amazed by the imagination I have, or rather amazed by the imagination God has given to me.

I imagine that I had killed someone in the rage of my anger. I was presented in court; the judge pronounced me guilty and sentenced me to death penalty. I was remorseful and guilty. I felt that I was hopeless and condemned for eternal hell. But one day, Jesus came and told me that if I were to be in Him, there will be no condemnation. I can be forgiven.

I imagine I had a good wife and a few children, and that’s a happy family, but I committed adultery with my secretary and my wife found out and she wanted a divorce. I felt sorry and regret. I wanted very much to keep the family intact, but I had failed to keep my commitment and promise which I made on our wedding day: till death do us part. My wife had the right not to forgive me, she had the right to hate me and she had the right to ask for a divorce. My company found out my affair with my secretary, and decided to ask me to leave my job. My secretary was not serious with me and we broke up, anyway I knew that I was wrong and wanting to ask for a break up. I had no job, no family, no relationship and no reputation. I felt so condemn and hopeless. I ready for eternal condemnation for all I had done. But one day, Jesus came and told me that if I were to be in Him, there will be no condemnation. I can be forgiven.

I imagine that I did not report my income accurately and IRAS found out and charged me for tax evasion. I was found guilty and sentence to jail. My family and relatives despised me for bring disgrace to them. My company fired me because they were unable to trust me anymore. My church looked at me differently and people began to distance from me, for I had brought dishonor to the church name and I had committed a sin and I was a sinner all over again. I felt shameful and surely I was guilty of my misdeed. It was not a moment of folly; it was a deliberate act of greed and dishonesty. I left the church and thinking that I can leave God there because I was too ashamed to face Him. But one day, Jesus came and told me that if I were to be in Him, there will be no condemnation. I can be forgiven.

I imagine I did not want to waste a parking coupon and left my car at carpark for only 15 minutes and found a summon ticket on my car’s windscreen. I felt stupid and regretful. Maybe, I felt angry and started swearing and cursing the carpark warden and HDB and government and even God for not preventing that ticket to land on my car. Then, I felt bad, really bad for my reaction. I felt condemn for this was not the first time. I had promised God and myself that I would change my bad temper. I went into depression for being unable to fulfill what I promised myself to do. I was even suicidal, and hopeless. But one day, Jesus came and told me that if I were to be in Him, there will be no condemnation. I can be forgiven.

Isn’t that amazing that I can have such imagination? But we can be in such situation in life. We felt so condemn by our action, thought and even words. We are simply disappointed with ourselves because of our inability to do good and keep sinning. All the above are merely imagination; please do not let your imagination run wild and think that these are my true stories in disguise. I might have killed many cockroaches, but never kill anyone else, though sometime the thought do come by. I don’t have a secretary to have an affair with, I don’t have to evade tax for do not have much to pay, and I don’t have a car for I am still learning how to drive, but I did have a motorbike in the past. That is history.

The truth is that we live in a world whereby we can be easily trapped by the temptation and fall from grace. We can be in self-denial, or be defensive or be in self condemnation. Anyway, we are already being judged by our sinful deeds and thoughts. There is no need for Jesus to condemn me further. That is why Jesus did not come to judge, but to save. We are our own judge. We are condemned if we are looking within ourselves. But Jesus came and told me that if I were to be in Him, there will be no condemnation. I can be forgiven. In Him, there is no condemnation. In Him, I can be forgiven. In Him, I am a freed person.

Are you still carrying the condemnation you laid upon yourself? Come into Christ, there is no condemnation. The reason why we feel condemn at times, it is because we have forgotten that we are in Christ. Keep remaining in Christ. Keep remembering that you are already in Christ. And in Christ, there is no condemnation. Are you in Christ? Do you remember to remain in Christ?

HHS…

Abel…