April 26, Sunday

REPOST  Today’s Spiritual Food for Thought, originally posted on April 14, 2019, is provided by Emerson Lin. Emerson, who serves in E. Asia as a missionary, is a graduate of University of California, San Diego (BS) and Talbot School of Theology (M.Div.).  

Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend

“Comparison Hinders Love”

Genesis 26:12-16

Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold, because the Lord blessed him. 13 The man became rich, and his wealth continued to grow until he became very wealthy. 14 He had so many flocks and herds and servants that the Philistines envied him. 15 So all the wells that his father’s servants had dug in the time of his father Abraham, the Philistines stopped up, filling them with earth. 16 Then Abimelek said to Isaac, “Move away from us; you have become too powerful for us.”

Once, when I was in elementary school, my mother bought me a very fancy mechanical pencil. When I took this pencil to school, I showed it off to everyone. However, in the afternoon, I discovered that my mechanical pencil was missing. I started to look for it everywhere until I found it broken in the garbage can. It took me a long time to learn that my classmate broke it. I couldn’t understand why he would do such a thing but later realized that he envied me.

In today’s passage, we see the same jealousy in the Philistines’ attitude towards Isaac. They first accepted Isaac’s arrival, but when Isaac became rich through God’s blessing, the Philistines began to envy him. Their jealousy did not only concern Isaac since these Philistines felt the same jealousy toward Isaac’s father Abraham when he resided in their land and enjoyed God’s favors. So they seized Isaac’s water and tried to force him out of the land. 

In everyday life, we can often experience jealousy prompted by things such as: other people’s promotions and higher salaries, other people’s seemingly nicer families, and even spirituality of other believers.  One outcome of jealousy is depriving us of our love for each other; that is, it devours our ability to love others. How so?  Jealousy makes us compare ourselves to others, and we cannot celebrate what others have achieved. 

Often when we are jealous of others, we protect ourselves by belittling them, hindering their achievements, or surpassing them. God hates jealousy because it prevents us from fulfilling the second greatest commandment: to love one another. We need to understand that everyone is unique and loved by God. We don’t need to be jealous of other people’s strengths, because God gives us His unique gift. 

This morning, let’s spend some time praying, asking God to examine our hearts. Is there jealousy brewing in your heart? If so, take a moment to repent and invite the Lord to help you see people with His perspective. 

Prayer: Dear Lord, I ask You to examine my heart. I know there are many people and things that I envy in my life. Jealousy deprives me of the ability to love others, and it keeps me from seeing Your grace in me. Lord, I repent before You, and ask You to remove the jealousy from my heart and give me the power of love.  In the name of Jesus Christ I pray, Amen!

Bible Reading for Today: Philippians 2

April 25, Saturday

REPOST Today’s Spiritual Food for Thought, provided by Christine Li, was originally posted on January  13, 2019. Christine serves as a deaconess at Remnant Church in Manhattan, New York.  

Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend 

“Who’s in Your Calendar?”

Luke 5:19 

“Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them.”

Luke 11:37 

“As Jesus was speaking, a Pharisee invited Him to dine with him; so He went in and reclined at the table.”

Note: The topic of this devotional is inspired by the passage “The Brotherliness of Jesus” in The Character of Jesus by Charles Edward Jefferson.

I have an aunt who we consider incredibly sociable; my relatives jokingly relay stories about how “nosy” (in my mind, ‘curious and bold’) she was as a child, how she would go to the local barbershop to shampoo other people’s hair or follow friends’ families to the market and watch over others’ vegetable stands. Once, when we passed by a swanky new high-rise, she remarked that she considered buying a unit but didn’t after chatting with a tile-layer who confirmed a rumor about poor installations. She is as comfortable with a storeowner of luxury goods as she is with the store’s security guards. She is not Christian, but despite that, when I spend time with her, I am left with a deep appreciation for the humility with which she approaches others. Her lifestyle indicates a belief that each person is incredibly valuable and important, so she is both comfortable and interested in getting to know people of all backgrounds.

When we read about how Jesus spent His time, we see that He spent it in the presence of both religious leaders as well as people of poor reputation. One does not get the impression that Jesus did so out of dutiful politeness or showed up purposely just to expose hypocrites and correct them (one might be surprised, after reading Luke 11, that He still receives invitations to dine in Luke 14). We see that He was accessible and made Himself accessible to people of all classes and reputation, and that they desired His company as well. Though we know with our minds that God loves the entire world, we rarely appreciate how marvelous this versatility was. He made time for people who were rich and poor, religious and non-religious. He was able to make good conversation with them and enjoyed them as well.

How many of us purposely plan our schedules or are truly interested in spending time with people different than us? I will confess that I usually do not, nor do I make myself available to receive invitations, and I rarely give up that prized pocket of dinnertime. In contemplating the life of Christ, we should be challenged to recognize that God’s heart is for people of all types and characteristics. My encouragement for myself and for you is to spend time assessing how our time is spent. Do we make room to fellowship with and enjoy people from all walks of life, including those who share differing or opposing views? Could we take steps towards cultivating a heart of love that looks more like God’s, roomy and spacious for many others? Perhaps we can start at church today by saying hello to and taking steps towards building friendship with people we do not ordinarily fellowship with.

Our hindrances may be fear of awkwardness or rejection, or of an attitude that it is impossible for us to learn how to love those different than ourselves. Let’s confess these to God and ask Him to replace our fear and our resistance with His heart. From there, He will reveal and grant us a heart that is genuinely interested in understanding and embracing the wide spectrum of the people He created and cherishes. Let’s be people who eagerly desire to see beyond our familiar worlds into all the others that God also loves.

Prayer: Father, thank You that You love me so deeply. Teach me what it is that You love about others, and give me a heart to know and love them as well. Help me also to better appreciate Your love as I begin to learn how it is so varied and thorough for each person that I encounter. Would You show me how You love people that I do not naturally gravitate to and give me a fuller heart of love that resembles Yours? Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Ephesians 6 & Philippians 1

April 24, Friday

REPOST Today’s AMI Devotional QT, originally posted on February 12, 2020, is provided by Pastor Ryun Chang.

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“Theologizing the Oscar Speech by Bong Joon-Ho”

John 1:5 (NIV 1984)

“The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it” (emphasis mine)

John 1:5 (ESV)

“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it” (emphasis mine)

What a shock! The first Korean movie ever to be nominated for the Oscars—Parasite—snagged two most coveted Academy Awards: best film and best director (Bong Joon-Ho).  There were other winners as well and to each was given a moment to share their thoughts with the world.  This being the most significant award ceremony for the film industry, the words spoken by the night’s winners were scrutinized by many; while no one raised eyebrows at Bong’s speech, many had plenty to say about what Joaquim Phoenix shared after winning the Best Actor award. 

Of course, there is a good reason no one had anything bad to say about Bong’s speech: Never did he even once talk about himself; rather, he spent the entirety of that precious moment to give props to the other four nominees who didn’t win.  In fact, Bong’s singling out Martin Scorsese as the lifelong inspiration for his films prompted the audience to give this famed director a standing ovation, while the winning director joined in. Bong then thanked another renowned director Quentin Tarantino for touting his movies when Bong was a nobody.  Perhaps, the best line of the night was what Bong would do to the Oscar statuette if the Academy allowed it: “Using the Texas chainsaw, I’d cut the trophy into five pieces and then share the pieces with the rest.”  Wow, what an incredible display of humility and gratitude that stunningly captured the attitude of Christ: “In humility consider others better than yourselves.  Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others” (Phil. 2:3b-4).

But this morning, as I was reading Genesis, I ran into this verse: “Every inclination of the thoughts of [man’s] heart was only evil all the time” (Gn. 6:5).  Calvinism alludes to this spiritual condition as total depravity of man.  Now, I don’t know whether Bong, listed as a Catholic, is a believer to whom Jesus is Lord. (His constant allusion to drinking until the next morning and failure to thank the Lord for his big night does raise a yellow flag.)  For the sake of argument, let’s assume that he isn’t a believer and therefore, his spiritual depravity (i.e., “dead in your sins”—Col. 2:13a) hasn’t been “made . . . alive with Christ (Eph. 2:5a), that is, regenerated by the Holy Spirit.  How then do we account for his incredible display of kindheartedness—as far removed from evil as one can imagine—that every believer should embody but comes up very short far too often?   

For a response, consider a seemingly straightforward verse in the Gospel of John where the apostle John says, “The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it” (Jn. 1:5 NIV 1984).  Here, “the darkness” could refer to fallen or depraved humanity and “the light” could refer to what the apostle Paul refers to as “the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” (2 Cor. 4:4).  That being said, this verse seems to declare that fallen humans are so spiritually depraved (aided and abetted by “the god of this age [who] has blinded the minds of unbelievers”) that they cannot “comprehend” (NASB) the gospel apart from first receiving the Spirit.    To that end, Paul says, “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Cor. 2:14). It can be then said that all actions of unregenerate men, including seemingly good ones that, nonetheless, do not originate from the Spirit, are evil to the extent that they believe their deeds merit salvation—since this will have the opposite effect of drawing them away from God’s grace (Rom. 10:3). 

But, as hinted earlier, the interpretation of John 1:5 isn’t as straightforward as it seems because the Greek word katalambano—translated as “understood” in NIV—also could mean “overcome” and that is how ESV translates it: “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”  Evidently, this rendering makes the meaning just the opposite: Despite the thickness of darkness, the light from God still manages to reach fallen humans, meaning they can access the light despite being depraved and blinded spiritually.   

Two questions arise here.  First, what is this light? Is this “the light of the gospel?”  If so, then, wouldn’t the phase “the darkness has not overcome it” imply that fallen humans can believe the gospel without first being regenerated by the Spirit?  No. When katalambano is understood as “overcome,” the light mentioned in John 1:5 does not allude to “the light of the gospel,” which I would call as God’s greater light (“a blazing torch,” if you will—Gn. 15:17) since it, when appropriated in faith through the Spirit, will result in salvation. Then, what light from God is in purview when it says that “the darkness has not overcome it”?  It is God’s lesser light (“a smoking pot”), consisting of three blessings (i.e., benefits), that all humanity can access: first, the blessing of being “made in God’s likeness” (James 3:9b); second, the blessing of having “the requirements of the law . . . written on [our] hearts” (Rom. 2:15); and third, the benefits deriving from God’s common blessing (“God . . . sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous”—Mt. 5:45b).  So, when unbelievers access any or all these blessings, they can behave like the unbelieving islanders of Malta who “showed [Paul] unusual kindness” when he was shipwrecked (Acts 28:2).

Second question, then, is why God has bestowed these blessings unto a humanity that has consistently rebelled against Him, from the tower of Babel (Gn. 11) to the present world in which many cultural elites defy God by caring more about a cow’s “cries of anguish” (Joaquin Phoenix) than the silent scream of the unborn while being aborted.  Why? Because “God is love” (1 Jn. 4:8b), and thus, “He is kind to the ungrateful and wicked” (Lk. 6:35).  That is why He has created us in His image, written His moral laws on our hearts and given us rain from heaven so that we can live in a peaceful and quiet society (1 Tim. 2:2) and can have “plenty of food” to “fill [our] hearts with joy” (Acts 14:17b).  Nevertheless, living according to God’s lesser light, however well-kept for the most part—particularly the law written on the heart—does not lead to salvation; that’s not what that is for (Rom. 3:20). 

And the humility and gratitude expressed by Director Bong, who continues to bear the image of God and the moral law in his heart—regardless whether he has been regenerated by the Spirit— reminds us that God’s lesser blessing is still so more powerful than our fallenness. Certainly, our sinful orientation greatly diminishes the effectiveness of God’s lesser light given to our benefits, but our depravity can never completely expunge it.  

So, when people of the world do or say something kind, don’t trash it as if God is not in it.  Instead, celebrate the display of good and beauty expressed by the people of the world whenever they manage to capture it. (Remember, even a broken clock is correct twice a day.)  Then point out the source of their goodness, creativity and innovation—namely, God who “has made everything beautiful in its time” (Eccles. 3:11). Then, tell them gently but firmly that this God, who has blessed you so much, wants to bless you even more by shining upon you His greater light, “the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” (2 Cor. 4:4).

Prayer: Father, thank You for Your love for the entire world! How amazing is it that You are “kind to the ungrateful and wicked,” that You cause [the] sun to rise on the evil and the good and send rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”  May we faithfully express Your love for the world when dealing with the people of the world. In Your Son’s name, Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Ephesians 5

Lunch Break Study

Philippians 2:12-13: “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.”

Questions to Ponder

1. Why do you suppose this passage can be very controversial?

2. How can we reconcile this passage that seems to oppose the doctrine of justification by faith?

3. How serious are you about your spiritual life? In what ways can you be more serious about your personal relationship with God? Is it possible to be serious and joyful? How do you think the apostle Paul is able to display both attitudes in his spiritual walk? How can you?

Notes

1. Verse 12 (“…work out your salvation with fear and trembling”) has caused not a small bit of angst among Christians. Salvation through faith in Christ alone, is a theological doctrine that Apostle Paul himself has developed throughout his epistles (cf. Eph. 2:8-9). Surely, Paul is not suggesting here that we are to earn our salvation through our good works, even if it is with God’s help. So how do we reconcile this?

2. This is an instance where knowing the context is vital in our understanding of this verse. The context (beginning with Phil. 2:1) is not dealing with how to get people saved (justification); rather, it is how saved people are to live out their salvation (sanctification) in light of what God has done. “Fear and trembling” isn’t so much this awful dread that God will zap them if they mess up; but rather, given the majesty of Christ portrayed in the preceding verses (vv.9-11), the idea appears to be that of reverent awe and wonder.

3. Personal response: With these things in mind, it is clear that the way we should go about our lives (cf. Phil 1:27) is not in reckless abandonment, but with carefulness and gravity of thought.

Evening Reflection

Deuteronomy 32:4 says, “His works are perfect and all his ways are just.  A God of truth… righteous and upright is he.”  In light of that, read the following prayer by Pastor Bruce Yi and reflect:

“Father, You desire that I seek and inquire of You, to crave You and Your strength, to behold Your face and Your presence, continually and forevermore.  I am astounded that You make Your Kingdom and Your righteousness available to me!  Father, thank You for Your victory You give me through Jesus. This is the victory that has overcome the world: faith that flows from You, Jesus, my blessed hope. I am confident that Your glorious goodness will be with me all of my life. It is the cry of my heart to believe and speak of Your righteousness and love in all circumstances, and I will! You are always good, upright and just, and available.

Oh, Lord, thank You for revealing more and more of Your very heart and Your character to me.  In Your presence, complicated matters become simple, and You encounter my heart in intimacy and wisdom; there is nothing like being in Your presence.  In Your Son’s name, amen.”

*Originally posted on September 14, 2013, by then-staff of Remnant Westside Church in Manhattan.

April 23, Thursday

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provided by Christine Li, was originally posted on February 4, 2020. Christine serves as a deaconess at Remnant Church in Manhattan, New York.  

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“The Key to Unity”

Ephesians 4:1-6 

“As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”

I used to hold a personal theory called the Transitive Property of Friendship (from the geometric principle that if A = B, and B = C, then one can confidently conclude that A = C). My reasoning went as such: If I had a deep friendship with Person A, and I had a deep friendship with Person C, then Person A and Person C could surely become good friends. On a very ideal level, it sounded right that everybody (especially in the family of God) would get along. But over the years, I have found that not all my friends become friends with each other, nor am I always close with those my friends love and cherish.

The problem with my theory was not that I failed to account for personality differences or how we sin against each other. The problem with this theory is that I relied on the wrong bridge (myself) to join people together. Scripture tells this too: The bond of peace arises (and should be sought) through the Spirit of God. Because His Spirit lives in us and permeates all things, there can be a harmony and unity among all parts.

Our unity does not come solely from my (or yours, or our pastors’) abilities to build relationships. Instead, we look to our God, who is the One most experienced in establishing “impossible” relationships. If He could make peace between holy God and fallen mankind, then surely His Spirit can create or restore relations with one another. 

If you are a believer, then the peace that Christ secured is not a dispassionate co-existence with Him. And if you have seen that God has made a way for an active and rewarding relationship with Him, then I want to encourage you not to settle in your idea of maintaining peace with others.

Would you consider moving towards someone in your church today to maintain and build unity? It could be someone with whom you have little in common; maybe someone that would require a supernatural love on your part to build a relationship with. Rather than counting differences to start, we can begin by counting our similarities: shared identity, shared hope, and shared mission. Let’s ask for the opportunity to demonstrate the incredible peace of God and let it be reflected in our lives and our communities.

Prayer: God, thank You for loving us! You made a peace. Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Ephesians 4

Lunch Break Study

Philemon 1:10-20 “I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, who became my son while I was in chains. 11 Formerly he was useless to you, but now he has become useful both to you and to me. 12 I am sending him—who is my very heart—back to you. 13 I would have liked to keep him with me so that he could take your place in helping me while I am in chains for the gospel. 14 But I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that any favor you do would not seem forced but would be voluntary. 15 Perhaps the reason he was separated from you for a little while was that you might have him back forever— 16 no longer as a slave, but better than a slave, as a dear brother. He is very dear to me but even dearer to you, both as a fellow man and as a brother in the Lord. 17 So if you consider me a partner, welcome him as you would welcome me. 18 If he has done you any wrong or owes you anything, charge it to me. 19 I, Paul, am writing this with my own hand. I will pay it back—not to mention that you owe me your very self. 20 I do wish, brother, that I may have some benefit from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in Christ.”

Questions to Consider

  1. What is the purpose of Paul’s letter to Philemon here? 
  2. What is the benefit to Paul to advocate on behalf of Onesimus?
  3. What kinds of relationships does Paul mention here? Why are they significant?

Notes

  1. Paul is advocating on behalf of Onesimus, who has been separated (likely voluntarily) from Philemon, his master. Paul is asking Philemon to accept Onesimus back. He also charges any losses that Philemon incurred because of Onesimus to himself personally.
  2. Paul mentions that he would regard Philemon’s acceptance of Onesimus as a reason why he would be refreshed in Christ. In short, Paul would rejoice in the Lord and would find this spiritually refreshing if Philemon were to do so.
  3. Paul uses the following terms: “son” (v.10), “man” (v.16), “better than a slave, as a dear brother” (v.16). No matter Onesimus’ previous relationship with Philemon, their history has been replaced with the reality of new spiritual identity. Onesimus has become Paul’s son, and he is now Philemon’s brother. This reminds us that our own experience and history of relating to one another cannot compare to the new names and identities that Christ bestows. Faith in Christ is the ultimate leveler of status and the deciding factor for our love.

Evening Reflection

Take some time to think about today’s topic. Is there someone God has put on your heart to seek out? Let’s ask Him for the strength and commitment to follow through and to surrender our expectations to Him. This is a work in progress – let’s ask God to remind us what is possible in our community when we rely on His Spirit to unify us.

April 22, Wednesday

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, originally posted on April 22, 2020, is provided by Pastor Yohan Lee.  He is a friend of AMI who in the past has served as a staff at several AMI churches.  

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“Day Workers”

Matthew 20:8-16

“When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and going on to the first.’  9 “The workers who were hired about five in the afternoon came and each received a denarius. 10 So when those came who were hired first, they expected to receive more. But each one of them also received a denarius. 11 When they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner. 12 ‘These who were hired last worked only one hour,’ they said, ‘and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the work and the heat of the day.’  13 “But he answered one of them, ‘I am not being unfair to you, friend. Didn’t you agree to work for a denarius? 14 Take your pay and go. I want to give the one who was hired last the same as I gave you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with my own money? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ 16 “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

If you have ever been to one of those large home improvement stores, you’ve probably seen day workers gathered in the parking lot hoping to get hired.  This is the way it works.  If you go early in the morning, say 6 or 7am, you’ll notice that the young stronger guys get picked up first.  If you come back at 10am or so, you won’t find any young guys; instead, you’ll only see middle-aged and older men. If you come back after noon, all the middle-aged men will be gone, presumably because someone has hired them, but you’ll likely find a handful of older men.  At this point in the day, the prospect of finding employment for these men is minimal. Now this is the truly sad part, if you go back the next day or the day after that, around noon to 2pm hours, you’ll notice that it’s more or less the same older men standing out there hoping to get work. How often do you think these guys get picked up for work? Can’t be more than a few times a month, right?  

Now could you imagine how joyous one of these older day workers would be if some guy came up, hired him to do an hour worth of yard work or something, and then paid him like $200-$300.  How excited do you think this old man would be to tell his wife about the gracious bounty he received and how for at least a few days, they wouldn’t have to worry about making ends meet?  

Look, I may not be a 6am worker, but I do feel like I’m at least a 9am worker (not trying to brag), and when I read this parable I often identify with the grumbling workers who bore the sun’s heat.  Too often I’m ashamed to admit that I forget to rejoice at the master’s generosity toward those who really really “need” it.  Perhaps it’s because after so many years of walking in Christ, I’ve actually felt entitled to his grace, and instead of remembering how much I need it, I’ve actually come to believe I’ve earned it.  What about you?  How would you feel if God made that person in your life who has made all the wrong choices “equal to you”?  Would you rejoice or would you grumble?  Why?  

For the record, I basically stole this morning’s devotional from a recent message I heard from Ryan Baitzel, pastor of Emergence Church, Totowa, NJ.  

Prayer: Lord, thank You for Your grace in my life. Thank You that You’re gracious to me and You’re gracious to people who’ve made all the wrong choices in life. Help me never to be envious or entitled but remind me of Your generous heart. 

Bible Reading for Today: Ephesians 3

Lunch Break Study

Psalm 100:1-5 Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth. 2  Worship the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs. 3 Know that the Lord is God. It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. 5 For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.

Questions to Consider

1.  What are some things the Psalmist gives thanks/praise for (vs. 3 and 5)?

2.  Do you see these things in your life?  

3.  How is your heart of thanksgiving lately? 

Notes

1.  In vs. 3, the Psalmist praises the Lord for his ownership and care, and in vs. 5 he praises the Lord for his enduring love.   

2.  As believers, God has adopted us into his family so we “belong to him”.  He also cares for us and provides for us.  And his everlasting love in Christ remains forever.  Hopefully, you have personal testimonies of all these ways God shows his love for us.    

3.  Personal response

Evening Reflection

When was the last time you thanked God for the most fundamental gift of Christianity, eternal life in Christ?  Do you still have a heart for those who still need God’s grace in their lives?  

April 21, Tuesday

REPOST Today’s Devotional Thought for Food, originally posted January 20, 2019, is provided by Andy Kim. Andy is the Lead Pastor of Radiance Christian Church in San Francisco. 

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“In Search of Contentment in Life”

Philippians 4:11-13

“I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. 12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Every year I fall into the trap of making new year’s resolutions. Even though I have yet to accomplish most of them, I continue to tell myself: “I can do it; this year will be different; I’m going to do it.” I may even tell myself, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” When taken out of context, we place a greater emphasis on the “I can do all things” because it fuels our desire to be self-sufficient. It creates the illusion that Paul is talking about what we can do when he’s actually pointing us to a greater truth—the very secret to life of how we can be.

And that secret is how we can be content. Paul writes that in any and every circumstance, whether it be a season of need or a season of abundance, he is content. Oftentimes we think about being content only in times of need but notice how Paul writes he knows what it means to be content even in times of abundance. Even when things are going well, he still understands how to be content only in Christ. For Paul, knowing Christ and being in Christ (Phil 3:8-12) was far more worthy than anything else. Nothing compared to this. His contentment in Christ made him invincible to all of life’s ups and downs. Therefore, Paul could confidently say that no matter the season of need or abundance, Paul could endure all things because he found his strength in Christ alone.

In a world where we take pride in our ability to be self-sufficient, Paul always boasted about his dependence on God alone (2 Cor. 12). As one commentator said, he understood that the secret to life was not to be self-sufficient, but to be God-sufficient. Regardless of what 2020 may or may not bring, may we begin this year with this heart of contentment. As Paul learned this secret to life, may we also learn this amazing truth. May we be content in Christ alone. 

Prayer: Father, teach me how to be content in You alone. Help me not to trust in myself, but in all circumstances find my satisfaction in You. I begin this year knowing that You are more than enough for me. May my weaknesses be ever so transparent so that Your power will shine all the more in my life. 

Bible Reading for Today: Ephesians 2

Lunch Break Study 

1 Peter 1:3-5: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 

Questions to Consider

  1. What is the living hope that Paul writes about? 
  2. How is this hope different from our common definition of hope?
  3. In what do we put our hope?  

Notes

  1. Paul, writing to a church facing constant persecution, reminds the believers that their ultimate hope is in the salvation that comes through Jesus Christ. It is a hope given by God’s mercy, meaning there is nothing we can do to earn it, or have it taken away. This hope is not just for our time here on earth, but it is a hope that leads us to an inheritance that awaits us in heaven.  
  2. Living hope is not sheer optimism. Optimism leaves very little assurance that what we hope for will actually amount to something. Proverbs 10:28 says, “The hope of the righteous brings joy, but the expectation of the wicked will perish.” The hopes of this world will lead to nothing, but our hope in Christ will be eternal. 
  3. Personal Response. 

Evening Reflection

In describing how hope drives us, CS Lewis wrote “We are all born with desires. If I find myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world. If none of my earthly pleasures satisfy it, that does not prove that the universe is a fraud. Probably earthly pleasures were never meant to satisfy it, but only to arouse it, to suggest the real thing.” 

Spend a few moments reflecting on what brings us pleasure. May they only point us to the true satisfaction that can only be found in Christ.  

April 20, Monday

REPOST Today’s Devotional Thought for this Morning—originally posted on March 17, 2019—and the Lunch Break Study/Evening Reflection—originally posted on January 8, 2018—are provided by Tina Pham, who, along with her family, is serving in E. Asia as a missionary.

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“Don’t Live Without the Word”

2 Kings 23:3, 24-26 (NASB)

The king stood by the pillar and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes with all his heart and all his soul, to carry out the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people entered into the covenant. 24Moreover, Josiah removed the mediums and the spiritists and the teraphim and the idols and all the abominations that were seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, that he might confirm the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD. 25Before him there was no king like him who turned to the LORD with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; nor did any like him arise after him.

Some of us who follow a reading plan to  read the Bible in one year, have had times when we had absolutely no idea what we had just read; nonetheless, we were content to mark off another 5 chapters from the reading chart. But King Josiah wasn’t like that. Upon discovering the Book of God’s Law that had been lost for a long time, he devoted himself to purify the land of Judah of its idolatry so that Judah’s ways would conform to what was written in God’s book. He read God’s Word to the people of Judah and led them to renew their commitment to walk in the way of the Lord. The majority of this chapter (vv. 4-20) records how Josiah removed idolatrous priests from the house of the LORD, removed altars that previous kings of Judah had built, burned vessels that were for Baal and Asherah worship, and more. Josiah truly turned to the Lord with all his heart, all his soul, and certainly, with all his might. 

Though Josiah knew that God was going to “remove Judah and cast off Jerusalem” (23:27) because the generations of his forefathers had forsaken God, the Book of the Law (God’s Word) led Josiah to lead the nation back to God in his lifetime. He let God’s Word, which Judah had neglected for many years, define his course of action and his leadership. Though the outcome for Judah was sealed, Josiah was instrumental in preserving covenant faithfulness for Judah in his lifetime. In this way, Josiah was successful and Scripture records, “there was no king like him…nor did any like him arise after him” (23:25). Though he had no control over Judah’s future, he glorified God by faithfully keeping a covenant relationship with God. 

The Word of God provides power for endurance and faithfulness. Nothing can nourish our souls and strengthen us to do the work of the Lord than the very words of God. If reading or listening to the Word of God is lacking in your daily spiritual life, ask the Lord today to renew your thirst and devotion for His Word. Don’t live with the Word.

Prayer: Dear Jesus, I desire for your commands and your Words to be near and dear to me. As your Word is able to equip me to do every good work, help me to spend time in your Word daily. In Jesus’ name, Amen. 

Bible Reading for Today: Ephesians 1

Lunch Break Study 

1 Corinthians 10:13-14. No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry.

Questions to Consider

1. Why is Paul giving the Corinthians this encouragement and warning?

2. How does Paul describe God’s faithfulness?

3. What is idolatry?

Notes

1. In the context of this passage, Paul tells the Corinthians of Israel’s history of displeasing God, in their acts of idolatry, immorality, testing God, and grumbling. His point is that Israel’s history was written down in the Old Testament for our instruction, so that we may be aware that our struggles with temptation are common, and that people in all generations struggle with common trials. This is supposed to encourage us as well as to exhort us to actively overcome these temptations.  

2. In our trials and temptations, we may humanly feel that they are beyond what we can handle, but from God’s point of view, He is able to provide you the way of escape and to teach you how to endure it. He is faithful to help you become an overcomer!

3. Idolatry is anything in our hearts that replaces our security and trust in God. It could be a material thing, but also be way of thinking or impure desires.

Evening Reflection

Tonight, reflect on the word “arise.” Often, Jesus used the verb “arise” to command the sick to receive His healing and to instruct His servants to go on a mission. God called Jacob to arise as well and to take a step of faith towards Him. How is the Lord leading you to arise and to do His will? 

April 19, Sunday

REPOST Today’s Spiritual Food for Thought, provided by Christine Li, was originally posted on March 10, 2019. Christine serves as a deaconess at Remnant Church in Manhattan, New York.  

Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend

“Retiring Old Wonders”

Exodus 10:14b 

“Never before had there been such a plague of locusts, nor will there ever be again.”

Along with many other children in the United States, I believed in the Tooth Fairy growing up. My parents kept up the ruse by making sure the “Tooth Fairy” left money for both me and my brother whenever we lost a tooth. I tried several times to trick her with an old tooth under my pillow, sometimes with a day or a week in-between. Somehow, she always seemed to know when it was an old tooth, and I would wake up the next morning disappointed. 

On a more “grown-up” (but no less foolish) level, I have often asked God to give me the same old things based on prior experience. Could He also save me the way He did before on a final exam? Can He miraculously give me a job the way He did before? Can He provide the same kind of breakthrough as He did the last church retreat? The list goes on..

Unlike the problem with the Tooth Fairy, the problem with asking God for the same old things is not that I exhaust God’s ability to deliver, but that I settle for my limited understanding of what He is able to do. If we only ask God to repeat what He has done in the past, we will never learn new things about His power and provision. We will grow familiar and numb to His wonders. This is why certain miracles and works will not be repeated; they fulfilled their purposes in what they taught us about God, and now there will be new things to look forward to. 

Brothers and sisters, our God is unfathomably powerful and glorious. We have not grasped the full extent of what He is able to do, nor should we expect to know all He wants to do. Before we launch into our petitions and requests today, let’s ask Him to fill us with expectation that He is able to do more than we can imagine. When we believe and trust that He has more to show us, we will find our understanding of Him expanded. We will no longer keep searching for the things that we have seen before but will trustingly look forward to new things.

Prayer: Father, Your ideas are always better than my ideas. I want to surrender my assumption of what You can or should do. Give me a heart that desires solutions that will glorify You the most. Help me not to settle for yesterday’s wonders but that I would look forward to what new things You can bring tomorrow. Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: 3 John

April 18, Saturday

REPOST  Today’s Spiritual Food for Thought, originally posted on March  2, 2019, is shared by Pastor Mark. He is currently pastoring Radiance Christian Church East Bay (near San Francisco). Please keep him and his planting team in your prayers.

Spiritual Food for Thought for the Weekend

“A New Name”

John 1:35-42 (ESV)

The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter).

We often overlook the significant actions that Jesus performs in the gospels.  In this passage, Jesus changes the name of a man whom He has just met.  This is clearly not an ordinary everyday event, which, to the modern reader, sounds completely random.  However, the Jewish people would have understood the two-fold significance of someone changing their name.  First, only God has the right to give you a new name. This makes a lot of sense.  Other than your parents, no one else should have the right to change your name.  Second, your new name speaks of a new identity and destiny over your life.  Names in the ancient Middle East meant much more than the arbitrary labels that we give our children.  Changing your name meant changing who you are and the purpose of your life.  When Jesus met Simon, I’m sure he knew how unstable this young man was—how impetuous, and how unreliable.  But Jesus, seeing who he could be, that is, his potential in God’s hand, called him Peter—the rock on which He would build the church.  

Like Peter, God has a better name for each of us but we have to be willing to receive it and live it out.  There is an interesting British reality show called the Monastery that takes completely irreligious people and challenges them to spend several weeks living as monks in a monastery.  In one of the shows, there was a young man who had been working in the porn industry and at the end of his time in the monastery, he realized that he didn’t want to go back to his old life.  He was afraid that he would lose everything that he had gained during his time separated from the world and separated from sin.  When the monk who has been his spiritual director saw this young man struggle with this decision, he told him slowly and deliberately, “You have a name given to you at birth but you also have a name that you don’t know.”  The monk then described how in the book of Revelation, Jesus tells us that our true names are written down in heaven on white stones, and this name on the stone is our real name, which points to our true identity: “To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it” (Rev. 2:17). 

In the final moments as this young man began to prepare to leave the monastery, the monk took one smooth white stone out of his pocket and gave it to this once hardened, insensitive English hooligan and told him, “This is a symbol of your quest to find out who you really are before God.”  Needless to say, the young man left his job, began to attend church, and started to meet regularly with the spiritual director.  It’s a deeply moving story that reminds us that whether you are Christian or not, we all share this quest to find our true identity, to receive the name that God has reserved for us.   To receive this name, you have to overcome and conquer the pull of the world that is constantly trying to dictate to you what your identity should be instead of what it is in Christ.  Perhaps, you need to start that journey today. 

Prayer: Lord Jesus, help me to see that my true name and my true identity is only revealed when I am found in you.  May my life be hidden in you so that I no longer live but you live in me.  Give me the eyes to see that titles like “successful,” “wealthy,” “powerful,” and “intelligent” will all fade away.  Help me to reject the many different but temporary names that the world tries to label me with.  Only then can I receive this glorious name that you have written down on a white stone, a name that will last into eternity. Amen.  

Bible Reading for Today: Galatians 6 & 2 John 

April 17, Friday

REPOST Today’s AMI QT Devotional, provided by Cami King—now a friend of AMI—was originally posted on April 3, 2020.  Cami served faithfully as a staff at several AMI churches in the past.  

Devotional Thought for This Morning

“What Is Our Witness?”

Acts 1:8; 2:5-13

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” . . . 5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. 7 Utterly amazed, they asked: “Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language? 9 Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs—we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” 12 Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, “What does this mean?” 13 Some, however, made fun of them and said, “They have had too much wine.”

A topic of much discussion at the present moment is how will churches respond to our current global crisis. There are those who feel we waited too long to close our doors (signaling a lack of consideration for the surrounding community) and others who feel churches shouldn’t close their doors at all (because it signals faithless and fear). There are those who believe we should all just stay at home (respecting city mandates out of care for our neighbors) and others who feel it’s our duty to be out and about looking for ways to serve. There are those who feel we should double down and lean into the Lenten Season, not focusing so much attention on the anxiety of a global pandemic (because God knew it was coming) and others who believe it’s best to embrace the present moment, abandon all regularly scheduled programming and lean fully in (because can move uniquely in this time). 

There are many convictions, judgements and opinions, many of which are valid, albeit varied, and rooted in the best of intentions. Yet at the heart of them all is the issue of witness. How will the church bear witness in a season of suffering and uncertainty? You may have heard stories of Early Church Christians who responded to plagues by staying behind to care the sick, almost always at the expense of their own lives. Their witness has stood the test of time – their actions a tangible and distinct display of God’s love. While we’re not facing a plague and we thankfully have modern healthcare systems that can, for the most part, support the sick during a pandemic, the question of witness still stands. 

When we think about our Christian witness, we often think in terms of something we should be doing. But the New Testament usually uses “witness” to describe what Christians are. In other words, our lives are saying something about Jesus regardless of what we do. Thus, witness is not primarily a matter of doing (figuring out the right thing to do amid crisis), but a matter of being (what we call in the Church Christian formation). 

Are we the kind of people God can move through when the need arises? Better yet, are we the kind of people God is already moving through for the sake of the life of the world? 

Prayer: Heavenly Father, You have sent me into the world to be a light and a blessing. May my faithfulness in even the most menial tasks and during the most trying times be pleasing unto You and a blessing to those around me. Amen.

Bible Reading for Today: Galatians 5

Lunch Break Study

Hebrews 12:1-3, 12-17: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart . . . 12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13 “Make level paths for your feet,” so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed. 14 Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. 16 See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. 17 Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. Even though he sought the blessing with tears, he could not change what he had done.

Questions to Consider

  1. What is the context of the instructions above? (i.e. what does the writer mean when saying “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses?) Why is this important. 
  2. What instructions are given in verses 1-3? What is the difference between weights and sin? 
  3. What instructions are given in verses 14-17? What’s at stake if believers fail to heed these warnings? 
  4. In what ways do you need to strengthen feeble limbs and make straight paths for your feet (verses 12-13)? What are the weights slowing you down? What are the sins over which you need victory? In what ways do you need to pursue peace, extend grace, or practice self-discipline? 

Notes

  1. In the previous chapters the writer of Hebrews outlines a list of believers who leveraged their lives and ultimately died in faithful anticipation of God’s redemptive work in the world (God’s plan of salvation through Jesus and coming Kingdom through the Church). Their stories give us hope and confidence as we do the same. 
  2. (1) Throw of every weight and the sin that clings closely. (2) Run with endurance – we do this by fixing our eyes on Jesus who is not only the object of our faith but our greatest example of a faithful life. Sin is missing the mark of God design for creation or falling short of God’s law. Sins are specific and well-articulated in the Bible. Weights, on the other hand, can be neutral things, even good things, that are simply hindering our ability to run well the race before us (distracting or restricting our ability to faithfully follow Jesus).   
  3. (1) Make every effort to live in peace with everyone – if we don’t, it will be hard for others to see God through us. (2) Be gracious with one another – if we don’t, bitterness and division will rise up and destroy fellowship. (3) Do not be controlled by the passions of your body or self-indulgence – if we are, we risk missing out on the blessings of God. 
  4. Spend time in prayerful reflection. 

Evening Reflection

Let’s end day by way of reflecting on Acts 2:44-45. 

42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47)

What do you think it means for believers to be together and have everything in common? What, if anything, keeps you from this kind of radical togetherness? How can you live out the heart of these verses in your present context?