February 25/26, 2023

From the Pastor’s Desk: Alex Poon

Dear brothers and sisters of RCAC,

Jesus surprises us, doesn’t he? He does meet our expectations. He intentionally does things that leaves us sometimes in confusion.

In John 11, the account of Lazarus, we see Martha wondering aloud to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” (John 11:21)

He remained in remained for two days longer in the place where he was in (John 11:6).

All to set up a scene where Lazarus would be raised up from the dead, and he would declare “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.”, and declaring all this so he would ask the question of utmost importance, “Do you believe this?” (John 11:26)

We ask, where was he when he was most needed?

The Gospel of John 12 and Luke 19 together gives us another surprising story. Jesus sends two of his disciples to fetch for him a young donkey who has never been ridden (Luke 19:30).

And upon his arrival into Jerusalem, the crowds gather to welcome him in. “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” (John 12:13)

The crowds praise his name… but were they expecting another kind of king? Perhaps a mighty warrior who would ride into their city to wage war against their Roman oppressors. A mighty King who would rescue them from their immediate problems…

Instead… this king wouldn’t take the lives of his enemies, but rather, he would give his own life for the ransom of many.

He would lay down his own life to rescue us from the bigger problem – the problem of eternal damnation, to give to us eternal life.

Whatever may be going on in your life, however you feel these days, I pray that you would be revealed to the surprising king in a way that anchors your worship.

Our Lord does not fit into our boxed definitions of who he is. May we see a clear picture of his heart.

His plans may surprise us; we cannot contain his knowledge of what we need best. We cannot contain his purposes for us, nor his purposes for the world.

Worship still.

Worship in way that trusts him.

Worship in a way that adds to your faith.

Worship, with an anchored hope that Christ does knows all, that he sees all things going on, and he’s in control of it all. He remains Lord of it all.

Worship, declaring his praises because you know truthfully, that Christ has not abandoned anything.

Worship, even when you’re surprised, all because you can rest in the hope of our Coming King.

You’re invited to worship, even when it’s hard. And in our worship, we’ll be reminded of Christ who is very much alive, still, in the most surprising kind of way.

Your servant in Christ,
Pastor Alex Poon

2023.02.25/26

親愛的列宣家弟兄姊妹：

耶穌給我們驚喜，不是嗎？ 祂確實回應我們的期望。 祂刻意做一些讓我們有時感到困惑的事情。

在約翰福音 11 章拉撒路的記述中，我們看到馬大大聲地對耶穌說：「主啊，如果你早在這裡，我的兄弟就不會死了！」（約翰福音 11:21）。耶穌聽說拉撒路病了，仍然在原來的地方住了兩天，（約翰福音 11:6）。一切都是為了營造一個拉撒路從死裡復活的場景，耶穌說：「我就是復活和生命；信我的人，雖然死了，也要活著。所有活著又信我的人，必定永遠不死，你信這話嗎？」 （約翰福音 11: 25-26）。

我們會問，最需要祂的時候祂在哪裡？

約翰福音 12 章和路加福音 19 章同樣講述了另一個令人驚訝的故事。 耶穌派祂的兩個門徒去為祂牽來一頭從沒有人騎過的小驢（路加福音 19:30）。

當祂到達耶路撒冷時，群眾聚集起來迎接祂，「和散那，奉主名來的以色列王，是應當稱頌的！」 （約翰福音 12:13）。群眾一邊讚美祂的名字，另一方面祂們是否期待著一個王， 一個威猛的戰士，騎馬進城，與當時壓迫祂們的羅馬政府抗爭，解決祂們眼前的困苦，把祂們解救出來。相反… 這個王不會除掉敵人的性命，而是會獻出自己的生命來救贖許多人的生命。祂犧牲自己的生命來拯救我們脫離罪惡，永死的刑罰，賜予我們永恆的生命。

無論你生活在任何光景，我為你祈禱願你能定晴敬拜給我們驚喜的主耶穌。我們的主不單單局限於我們對祂的認識，願我們能清楚地看到祂的內心。祂的計劃可能會讓我們驚訝， 祂完全知道甚麼是我們最需要的，祂對我們甚至對世界的旨意，我們無法猜透。

唯有專心敬拜祂，以堅定和信靠祂的心敬拜祂，祂是全知全能宇宙萬物的主宰。

敬拜祂，讚美祂，祂沒有撇下我們不顧。祂是我們再來之王，在祂裡面我們得安息。

邀請你與我們一起敬拜，即使是在艱難的時候， 在我們的敬拜中，我們會想起基督，祂仍然以最令人驚訝的方式活著。

主僕
潘啟華傳道

Feb 18/19, 2023

From the Pastor’s Desk: Pastor Karen Quan

1 John 1: 5-10 (The Message)

5 This, in essence, is the message we heard from Christ and are passing on to you: God is light, pure light; there’s not a trace of darkness in him.

6-7 If we claim that we experience a shared life with him and continue to stumble around in the dark, we’re obviously lying through our teeth—we’re not living what we claim. But if we walk in the light, God himself being the light, we also experience a shared life with one another, as the sacrificed blood of Jesus, God’s Son, purges all our sin.

8-10 If we claim that we’re free of sin, we’re only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—simply come clean about them—he won’t let us down; he’ll be true to himself. He’ll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing. If we claim that we’ve never sinned, we out-and-out contradict God—make a liar out of him. A claim like that only shows off our ignorance of God.

Vancouver winters, although mild in temperature, can be so very dark and dreary. Although I’ve lived here for over 26 years, I still find myself longing to see the sun, even if it’s a short glimpse, especially after many endless days of rain. Slowly, the days are getting longer and I find myself emerging from what seems like this endless gray canvas.

Feb 22, 2023 marks Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. A solemn season in the church calendar that prepares our hearts for the death of Christ (Good Friday). It’s a time to quietly reflect on the greatest sacrifice of all time, as Christ gave up his life for our sin. It’s an opportunity to pause and make time to draw closer to God. For some, a time that might include practices such as extended prayer or fasting. This preparation can assist us to truly appreciate the resurrection of Christ celebrated on Easter.

This passage in 1 John, tells us of how God himself is light, even brighter than that of the sun. Darkness and light do not belong together, just as God and sin cannot coexist. God calls us to be in the light with him, and not stumble around in the darkness. He calls us to walk closely with him in this light and as the light reveals our sins, we’re to confess them to Jesus, for only He can forgive and remove these sins.

May the Lord give us fresh new ways to experience Lent this year so as to know Him deeper and so as to walk more freely in the Light.

Your servant in Christ,
Pastor Karen Quan

2023.02.18/19

親愛的列宣家弟兄姊妹：

約翰一書 1:5-10（新譯本聖經）

「5神就是光，在他毫無黑暗。這是我們從主所聽見、又報給你們的信息。6-7我們若說是與神相交，卻仍在黑暗裡行，就是說謊話，不行真理了。我們若在光明中行，如同神在光明中，就彼此相交，他兒子耶穌的血也洗淨我們一切的罪。8-10我們若說自己無罪，便是自欺，真理不在我們心裡了。我們若認自己的罪，神是信實的，是公義的，必要赦免我們的罪，洗淨我們一切的不義。我們若說自己沒有犯過罪，便是以神為說謊的，他的道也不在我們心裡了。」

溫哥華的冬天雖然氣候溫和，同時也非常陰黑和沉悶。縱然我已經在這裡居住了26年多，我仍然發現自己渴望看到陽光，即使是短暫的一瞥，尤其是在連續下了很多天雨之後。日照慢慢地變得越來越長，我發現自己正在從這片似乎沒有盡頭的灰色畫布中走出來。

2023 年 2 月 22 日是聖灰星期三，預苦期開始，這是教會年曆中一個莊嚴的季節，讓我們的心為基督的死做好準備（耶穌受難日）。也正好是時候我們靜靜地反思，耶穌基督的偉大犧牲，祂為我們的罪捨棄了自己的生命。這是一個停下來騰出時間安靜默想親近上帝的機會。對一些人來說，他們在這段日子會操練不住地祈禱或禁食。這樣可以幫助我們真正體會在復活節慶祝基督的復活。

約翰一書的這段經文告訴我們，神就是光，比太陽還光亮。黑暗與光明從不相屬，就像上帝與罪不能共存一樣。上帝呼召我們與祂一起生活在光中，而不是被罪絆倒生活在黑暗中。祂呼召我們在這光中與祂親密同行，當光顯露我們的罪時，我們要向耶穌認罪，因為只有祂才能赦免和除掉我們的罪孽。

願上帝給我們新的方式來體驗今年的預苦期，以致我們更深入地認識祂，更自由地行走在光中。

主僕
關潔玲傳道

2023.02.04/05

From the Pastor’s Desk: Rev. Pastor Francis Chan

Dear brothers and sisters of RCAC,

On the first Wednesday of every month, AYAYA will hold a prayer meeting in Room 200. In the meeting, brothers and sisters sing hymns together to worship God; give thanks to God for his protection, guidance, and provisions; pray and intercede for one another. Brothers and sisters who did not know each other in the AYAYA community can get to know each other in the prayer meeting and watch out for each other. In the past February prayer meeting, 26 brothers and sisters participated. From their sharing, we clearly see the glory of God. Among them, three sisters used “miracle” to describe their recent experience in God.

A sister testified on behalf of her husband. Because they want to apply for immigration, her husband needs to take an English language exam. The result of the first exam was not good, mainly because the oral English examiner had a strong accent, and her husband could not hear clearly and could not respond well. But he didn’t give up, and he didn’t complain. He continued to pray, trusting in God’s grace. In the second exam, he encountered an examiner who he believed to be from Hong Kong. Since the examiner spoke with a Hong Kong accent, her husband could understand and respond well. This time he got a very satisfactory result: from 5.5 points last time to 7 points this time. His score for applying for immigration was met. The sister described it as a “miracle” because only God could have provided an oral English examiner with a Hong Kong accent for her husband.

A sister passed the driving test on her first attempt. She described it as a “miracle”. She is a very nervous person, and she has no talent for driving a vehicle. She bit the bullet and took the driving test because of family needs. On the day of the test, she herself knew that she had made many mistakes. After the exam, the examiner told her about her mistakes one by one, but gave her a pass, nonetheless. She thanked God for providing her with an understanding and kind examiner.

The sister who testified used to work as a registered nurse in Hong Kong. Now in Canada, she hopes to continue to work as a nurse and has taken a nursing license course. In the process, she needs to pass many exams. Recently, the school prepared a mock exam for its students, which require them to take more than 4 hours to complete. Many of these questions are not easy to answer. Although the sister studied very hard, she had no confidence in passing the exam. She said that even experienced nurses could not be sure of the correct answers to some of the questions in the exam paper. Consequently, she could only make guesses for many answers. After the exam, she thought she could only get about 350 points, but in the end, she got 1,000 points. She said it was a “miracle” because it was impossible for her to achieve it herself. The results of this mock exam have greatly increased her confidence in eventually obtaining a nursing license.

From the three testimonies above, we can understand that brothers and sisters who have just arrived in Canada face many difficulties and challenges in life and work. At the same time, because they are willing to trust God, they also experience a lot of grace and provision. In the prayer meeting, not only did God receive the glory He deserved, brothers and sisters were also strengthened in their faith because of the testimonies they heard. Glory be to God!

Your servant in Christ,
Pastor Francis Chan

2023.02.04/05

親愛的列宣家弟兄姊妹：

每個月第一個星期三，AYAYA 會在200號房舉行祈禱會。當中，弟兄姊妹一同唱詩敬拜上帝；為着上帝的保守、帶領與供應獻上感恩；為着弟兄姊妹的需要互相禱告代求。在 AYAYA 群體裏面本來互不相識的弟兄姊妹，在祈禱會中能夠互相認識，互相守望。在剛剛過去的二月份祈禱會，有26位弟兄姊妹參加。從他們的分享，我們清楚看見上帝的榮耀。其中有三位姊妹，都用「神蹟」來形容他們最近在上帝裏面的經歷。

有一位姊妹代表她的丈夫作見證。他們因為要申請移民，丈夫需要考英文公開試。第一次考試成績未如理想，主要因為在英語會話的環節，考官有很重的口音，他聽不清楚，也不能作出理想回應。但他沒有放棄，也沒有埋怨。他繼續祈禱，相信上帝有恩典。第二次考試，他遇上一個他相信是從香港來的考官。由於考官說話時有香港口音，弟兄聽得明白，也能作出好的回應。今次他得到非常理想的成績：由上次 5.5 分提升至今次 7 分。他申請移民的分數達到了。姊妹形容這是一個「神蹟」，因為只有上帝可以為她丈夫預備一個有香港口音的英語會話考官。

有一位姊妹第一次考車牌就合格了。她形容這是一個「神蹟」。她是一個非常緊張的人，而且自覺對駕駛車輛亳無天份，只是因為生活需要才硬着頭皮去考車牌。考試當天，她自己也知道犯了不少錯誤。考試完畢，考牌官將她的錯誤一一告訴她，但最後仍然給她合格。她感謝上帝讓她遇上一個既體諒又仁慈的考牌官。

有一位姊妹在香港任職註冊護士，來到加拿大希望可以繼續做護士，所以再讀書，預備考取本地護士執照。在過程中，她需要通過很多考試。最近，學校為學生預備了一個模擬考試，大家用了超過4小時才完成。其中很多問題，就算是經驗豐富的護士也無法肯定正確答案，她只可以靠估。考試完畢，她以為自己只能得到350分左右。結果，她得到1,000分。她說這是一個「神蹟」，因為她自己無可能得到這個分數。而這次模擬考試的結果，就大大增加了她對自己最終能夠考獲護士執照的信心。

從以上三個見證，我們可以明白新來加拿大的弟兄姊妹在生活和工作上，都面對很多困難和挑戰。與此同時，因為他們願意信靠上帝，也經歷不少恩典和供應。在祈禱會裏，弟兄姊妹同心禱告，彼此守望，不但上帝得着當得的榮耀，弟兄姊妹也因為所聽的見證，信心就得着堅固。你有參加祈禱會嗎？願一切榮耀歸於上帝！

主僕
陳榮基牧師

2023.01.28/29

Hello, brothers and sisters of RCAC. May you all have a blessed Chinese New Year. You may not celebrate the Chinese New Year.  But no matter which new year you celebrate, one thing is certain, we will send our best wishes to each other.  Behind these best wishes is the wish that this year will be better than last year.

In the past week, I thank God for allowing me to share with the Mandarin Congregation through the Gospel of John. In last week’s sermon, I talked about what a fulfilled life is through the miracle of Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand. First, this miracle is recorded in all four Gospels. Apart from the resurrection of Jesus, this miracle is the only one recorded in all four Gospels. Since each Gospel was written for a different purpose, and each Gospel writer decided to include this miracle in the respective book, there must be a significance to the miracle.

Jesus Christ broke our inherent logic through feeding the five thousand. How did the logic come about? Logic is accumulated through our life experiences. In other words, the foundation of logic has a historical background behind. And because of this, no matter who we are, we approach things according to a similar logic.

Through feeding the five thousand, Jesus wants to tell us that to follow Him, we must first let go of our inherent logic. Because He is the source of all power. There is no Jesus in worldly logic. However, as a child of God, the logic of dealing with things must first put Jesus Christ in the most important position. In the miracle of feeding the five thousand, Jesus fed the five thousand people (actually more than ten thousand people) with the five barley loaves and two fish that a child was willing to offer. Jesus can turn nothing into something, why would he rely on a child’s five barley loaves and two fish? It is logical that five barley loaves and two fish cannot feed five thousand people. But Jesus does not act with logic. Because God is above all, that is to say, logic cannot bind God’s deeds. When we face the present difficulties, we may all think logically. This is an inherent way of thinking, the apostles were like this, and so are we. However, Jesus told us that to rely on Him is to use a new perspective, a new logic, and this new logic is not taught by the world, but taught by Jesus. Everything starts with Jesus Christ.

In the new year, may we all put Jesus Christ first. May the Holy Spirit help us see that when we trust in Jesus, there is a life of fulfillment. This satisfaction is not given by the world, but by Jesus Christ. And this satisfaction can be obtained because Jesus Christ gave up everything in heaven, dwelled among us, and carried our sins.

May God bless you all. May God bless RCAC.

His servant,
Pastor Mark