Gospel permeates every aspect of your life

2007 is full of news in my life. In May, I finished the school, and I married dream-girl (haha) in June. In July, a new family member was introduced to our home, and August we went to Tahiti for our honeymoon trip... and now in December, for the first time as a married couple, shrie and I celebrate Christmas together... only over thousands miles between us (and through skype).

The new member of my family is the one that I want to begin today's posting. In July, shrie and I adopted a 6 weeks old female Siberian husky. She was a tiny and shy puppy who was smaller than my flip-flops and was afraid of everything. She was light brown/tan colour, so we named her cocoa. She now became a naughty 32LB husky who loves to run, dig, and play fetch. We love her so much, but once a while (in truth... most of time) she is hyper and out of control... We tried so hard to discipline her; we scold her, use dog treats, or even imitate dog-whispererTM. But taming her is just one tough mother job.

The main point of the story is not that cocoa is one naughty dog, but that no matter what WE LOVE HER. We love her regardless of her behavior and we continually love her and provide her needs no matter what. How well she listens to us or she does something for us is far out of context. We simply just love her as a family member and someone who is in our care! Isn't that the same for how God loves us regardless of what we do for Him. If I can love and provide for cocoa how much more God would do for me and us!

I've been going to church for awhile, but sometimes I forget the very essence of Christian life or even what the gospel is all about. Well, it was good thing that I visited pastor Ray's archive [R. Chang. The True Gospel: 2007 October 7th sermon. Available at www.sermonplayer.com/pastorray]. Followings are some memo from P. Ray's message.

Let's begin with what is gospel... Gospel literally means Good News in Greek. The essence of Gospel is who Jesus is, which is what we proclaim and where our faith lies onto. But the good news isn't really good news to some. Because, without it (accepting the message) there is no salvation. Plus, how we accept the message is as important as whether we accept it or reject it.

Many of us think of salvation as a very individualized salvation. It is more like after-life insurance; where we think we pay our dues then it is guaranteed. If that's true 1) it is more like the work 2) what's that to do with faith at all 3) where the mercy & grace hold their place?

Mercy and grace is an important trait of the gospel. We call our salvation (and all the things that God does for us) is merciful and gracious, because we simply and truthfully don't deserve it! We follow the commandments because we already received the mercy and grace; not the other way!

If we do the work and live purpose, at the same time, expect to receive the salvation at the end... something is entirely obscured. We believe not to be more religious and follow the path of self-justification, but to focus more on the relationship with God and relationship with others.

Repent! Repent not just our sin, but for the obscured reasons for our so-called good deeds (more coming later). Idolatry is not just worshiping other gods, figures, or whatever we think it is... but also placing ourselves, our ego before God. We are not and should not be the center of the universe. The truth is we, all of us are inadequate (and that's why it is mercy & grace).

Then how do we distinguish the true altruistic vs self-centered moralists' action? Pharisees taught to judge by external behavior without reflecting on internal motive. Selflessness? What is sin? It is any action or thought of something against God. Not just behavior, but also the motive. And regardless of its degree, it takes one sin to break the relationship with God. After all, worship of selfness may be the worst idolatry and the most often practiced one.

Talking about good and evil, our God's scale is not about relativism. Saying "I'm a pretty good person cf. to most criminals or average citizens" would not do much. It has to be the absolute scale.

Remember, we sin because it is our very nature; not just we chose to do so. We're born with separation from God already. Sin permeates. One sin, almost always, leads to another one. The wage of sin is death. We are born in the state of rejecting God already, too!

God does not dwells in mutual relationship. God loves us unconditionally & equally regardless of our offering. Amnesty between God & us? He substitute himself for us! Gospel = center piece = essence = Jesus Christ = our foundation. People have problems with christians who does not follow Jesus.

Jews rejection of Jesus as the Messiah [read Isaiah 55]. Key idea is not just he died, but sufferred & humiliated for us. You can denied the historical truth. We call it gospel, the good news. News means to report what already happened; not merely what happened to Jesus, but what happened to him as who he was and how he died.

Remember the Gospel - God chooses to accept the least = truly inadequate. Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:8, and least of all, as to the 'child' untimely born, he appeared to me also.

'More you accumulate, more empty you become'. But by giving and through sharing, you'll be filled. We live in grace filled life, not by performance based life. Your gratitude reflects the generosity of the giver! How truly have you transformed because of the Gospel of Christ? Which permeates every aspect of your life!

Day Four: Made to Last Forever

God has . . . planted eternity in the human heart.
Ecclesiates 3:11 (NLT)

Surely God would not have created such a being as man to exist only for a day!
No, no, man was made for immortality.
Abraham Lincoln

There is more to life than just here and now.

"This world is fading away, along with everything it craves. But if you do the will of God, you will live forever."
1 John 2:17 (NLT)

Since I was made last forever, what is the one thing I should stop doing and the one thing I should start doing today?

Tent vs House. Live each day as if it were the last day of your life.
Again, it's the relationship: His love, forgiveness, and salvation. If you choose to live without God on earth, how would you live with Him in heaven?. This life is just preparation for eternity; however, use your time & money wisely. Harvest on relationships & character, rather than fame, wealth, achievement, even fun. Reorder your priorities. To make most out of your life, you must keep the vision of eternity continually in your mind & the value of it in your heart. God has purpose of your life, but it doesn't end here. Think about eternity and be prepared.
Phil 3:7 - what Christ has done for us. No confidence in flesh. I consider them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ. Stop being too conscious about the consequences of your action, but rather be good and ethical. 2 Corinthians 5:6 - every moment we spend in these earthly bodies is the time spent away from our eternal home in heaven with Jesus.

DAY TWO: YOU ARE NOT AN ACCIDENT

"I am your creator. Your were in my care even before you were born."
Isaiah 44:2 (CEV)

Knowing that God uniquely created me, what areas of my personality, background, and physical appearance am I struggling to accept?

WISDOM FROM THE SPIRIT

We do, however, speak a message of wisdom among the mature,
but not the wisdom of this age or the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.
No, we speak of God's secret wisdom,
a wisdom that has been hidden and that God destined for our glory before time began.
None of the rulers of this age understood it,
for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.
However, as it is written:

"No eye has seen,
no ear has heard,
no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love him"

but God has revealed it to us by his spirit.
(1 cor 2:6-10)

DAY ONE: IT ALL STARTS WITH GOD

all things were created by him and for him
Colossians 1:16

how can I remind myself that life is really about living for God, not myself?

PURPOSE DRIVEN LIFE

I opened up the book to find the answers and ways to fulfill my personal goals, just like I did last time. Instead, it reminds me that it is not about me and my focus is way off. This is why I cannot find what I search for.

JESHURUN

"BUT NOW listen, O Jacob, my servant, Israel, whom I have chosen.
This is what the LORD says -
he who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you:
Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.
(Isaiah 44:1-2)

I was reading Isaiah this morning and noticed the word Jeshurun. Even the Blogger spell check underline this word in red. I began to ponder, "O Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen," is Jeshurun another name for Jacob? I haven't heard of that. Is this another person besides Jacob? I'm too lazy to go back and search through the scripture. Well, this is when the the friendly wikipedia comes in handy.

According to the wiki, Jeshurun is a poetic name for Israel. It also may refer to the people of Israel, the land of Israel, or Jacob (as in Isaiah 44:2). Wiki adds to this and explains that the word Jeshurun roots from the Hebrew word yesharim, which means "upright," often refer to the people of Israel.

LINK: Wikipedia - Jeshurun

BOOKS

Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their work:
If one falls down,
his friend can help him up.
But pity the man who falls
and has no one to help him up!
Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm.
But how can one keep warm alone?
Though one may be overpowered,
two can defend themselves.
A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

Day 01 - Start Over

24/7

I will give you a heart to know me,
that I am the LORD.
You will be my son,
and I will be you God,
for you will return to me
with all your heart.

with all my heart...

2:10pm