Jan 30-31, 2021
From the Pastor’s Desk: Pastor Mark Liu
Hello, brothers and sisters. It is by God’s grace that I can use this platform to share with you my thoughts about the responsibility that children of God need to bear.
Recently, because of my deteriorating eyesight, I need to have a pair of progressive glasses. It is said that this kind of lens can help me, who have presbyopia and myopia, to see clearly, both far and near without taking off the glasses. While thinking about what to share with you, God reminded me that the Bible is like a pair of progressive lens that can help us see clearly both near and far. Why do we need to see clearly? It is because we need the “good eyesight” in order to understand God’s Will for us, to live out the life which belongs to the children of God.
From the book of Genesis, we know that because of our sins, we cannot have a direct relationship with God. The problem came when humanity decides not to rely on God but to rely on ourselves. Because of sins entering humanity, which causes the loss of direct relationship with God, this problem extends to our relationship with ourselves, other humanities, other creatures and also the earth. God chose Israelites to be His people, hoping that, through this nation, that the world can understand the right way of living as humanity, which is relying on God. And with this relationship, not only there is a reconciliation to us, but also other humanities, other creatures and the earth. However, Israel did not complete the task. Not only did the nation fail to live like God’s people, but the nation also assimilated with the world.
The purpose of Jesus Christ entering the history of humanity is to put an end of the old and start something new. This “new thing” is the Kingdom of Heaven. During Jesus’ preaching, He preached the gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven. The gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven is to live out God’s original purpose for creation. This starts with a right relationship with God. This relationship can only start when humanity was redeemed, as the entire humanity was under the curse of sin. This was what the salvation of Jesus Christ was about. This salvation enables us to have a right relationship with God. Not only that we can have a right relationship with God, but also, because of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, we are regarded as the children of God.
We see from the history of creation account, to the time when Jesus entering the history of humanity, which puts an end to the old and start something new. How does this have anything to do with our daily living? The Bible tells us to live out the identity of being God’s children. This identity has an important responsibility, which is to live out the original purpose God has for the creation. Because we are reconciled with God, we also need to bring the world to the reconciliation with God, which is sharing the gospel to the world through our lives. It is not about preaching or sharing the gospel through our words but our lives. We need to actively live out the role of an agent, which helps to bring the world to the reconciliation with God.
In today’s pandemic, the life of God’s children is especially precious. Because there is no hope for relying on the world. Hope only comes from relying on God. How can the world know? It’s through our lives. The driving force for you and me to live out this life is to crown our Lord Jesus with many crowns. This is not simply a hymn but a living testimony of each God’s child. May we have the courage to live out this noble role in front of the world.
May God bless you. May God bless RCAC.