Wednesday, August 31, 2016

Today's Passage - Acts 2:29-36

Acts 2:29-36
 
"Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day.  But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne.  ...Therefore let all Israel be assured of this: God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ."
  
Book of Acts can also be called Book of Acts by Jesus, because no matter where the disciple went, their messages are exactly the same, which is Jesus is Christ and Jesus is the Lord.  These two things are extremely important messages in the early church and they are equally important today.  The fact that Christ came to life is important because all men have sinned and the Bible says that the wage of sin is death.  If Jesus wants to be the savior of mankind, He must first be victorious against the authority of death.  Through crushing the authority of death, the authority of sin can also be crushed.  Therefore, Christ must die for us and then be resurrected from death in order to prove that He can overcome death and sin, that He can save mankind of sin.
 
The resurrection from death also proved that Jesus is Lord.  Verse 34 says that "For David did not ascend to heaven, and yet he said, 'The Lord said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.'"  After Jesus resurrected from death, God lifted Him to the highest and sat at the right of God's throne, and made the enemy His footstool.  The authority of sin and death as well as devil Satan have all been nailed to the cross and crushed by the salvation of Christ!  Now, Jesus has absolute authority, and by His holy name we may come before Father God to enjoy the benefits of salvation.
 
Jesus is the Lord, and He is also Christ.  What does Christ mean?  On the one hand, Christ means Messiah in the Old Testament, the one whom Israelites of the Old Testament time were expecting.  On the other hand, Chris also means "the anointed one."  The church today is referred to as body of Christ in the Bible, which originated from Jesus and also the anointing of Jesus.  Because of the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the church today may be glorious testimony for God in the world, much like how Jesus Christ performed miracles in the world through the anointing of the Holy Spirit.  Because church is the body of Christ, we may also receive the anointing of the Holy Spirit to preach in the end time that Jesus is the Lord, so that the hearts of people will turn back to the Lord.
 
Pray with Pastor Tong
 
Lord Jesus, we thank you because you are the Lord and the Christ!  Let us keep a heart of faith and courage as we spread your message around the world.  May the anointing of your Holy Spirit be with us always, so that when we preach you message and manifest your authority and power, hearts will turn back to you.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!
   
 
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Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Today's Passage - Acts 2:22-28

Acts 2:22-28
 
...Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through him, as you yourselves know.  This man was handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.  "...You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence."
 
In this passage, Peter stressed the work of the Holy Spirit in the end time, and also the salvation of Jesus Christ.  Miracles alone cannot save anyone, but only the gospel of Christ can bring people salvation from sin.  Although we often emphasize the work of the Holy Spirit in the end time, but Holy Spirit never works alone.  The Holy Spirit came in order to manifest the authority of Jesus Christ in the hearts of people.  The entire plan of salvation, Father God is the planner, Son of God Jesus Christ is the achiever, and it's the Holy Spirit manifests the effect of salvation.  From beginning to end, salvation is the plan of Father God, and He proved that Jesus of Nazareth is the sole beloved son of God through the signs and wonders that Jesus performed.  Jesus Christ was then handed to men and suffered by the will of God and His eternal plan.  Isaiah 53:5 said that we receive peace of the penalties that Christ received, and we receive healing because of "He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities..."  That passage also mentioned that Jesus was among the felon and even was buried with other rich men.
 
All the pain suffered by Jesus was predestined by the will of God, and even the Lord was even nailed to the cross by the "wicked men."  Why are they called wicked men?  It's because Jesus was the sinless savior.  Pontius Pilate told the crowed who wanted to nail Jesus to the cross three times that he found no fault in Jesus.  Sentencing an innocent man to death penalty is truly wicked, but even that was predestined in the plan of God.  On the other hand, we thank God because resurrection of the Lord was also in His eternal plan.  Psalmist prophesied early on that Jesus Christ will resurrect from death; Holy Spirit actually revealed to David early on so that he could see things of the future by faith.  He saw Jesus sitting on the throne and was no longer the suffering savior, but rather the everlasting savior.  By faith David saw the future, and in Jesus Christ it was validated.  The resurrected savior can also reveal the way of life to us; not only is He sitting high on the throne, He's also willing to lead us and become our strength and help in our daily life.
 
Pray with Pastor Tong
 
Lord, I thank you because not only did you come to the world for us and suffered to death on the cross, you also resurrected from death and brought us hope of eternal life.  We ask that you reveal the way of life to us so that we may receive joy of satisfaction in our daily life.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!
   
 
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Monday, August 29, 2016

Today's Passage - Acts 2:14-21

Acts 2:14-21
 
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It's only nine in the morning! No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:
 'In the last days... And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'"
 
When the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost, Peter and the eleven apostles stood up and preached to the crowd.  This passage specifically referred to Peter.  From a human perspective, Peter is the least worthy to be mentioned because he was the one who denied the Lord Jesus three times on the night Jesus was betrayed.  One may argue that he should be ashamed and stop serving God.  However this Scripture mentioned that Peter stood up, and I truly believe, that this is the Holy Spirit's work of renewal in Peter's heart.
 
After His resurrection, the Lord Jesus asked Peter three times, "Do you love me more than these?"  Peter answered from the depth of his heart, "Lord, you know I love you."  Jesus entrusted Peter with an important task, repeating three times "Feed my sheep".  I believe that the Lord was healing the hurt in Peter's heart at this time, and renewing him in order to give him the confidence to serve God.  Peter was ultimately able to stand up again to preach the gospel.  This is such a precious thing.  You and I may experience various failures in our lives, but as long as we do not lose heart, the Holy Spirit can do a work of healing and renewal in our hearts, just like He did in Peter.  The Holy Spirit can give you courage and God's anointing so that you may stand up again from your failures and ultimately serve and glory God.
 
When Peter stood up, the word of God filled his heart, and those words came from the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit prompted Peter to point to Joel's prophecy which described the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. With the revelation by the Holy Spirit, we are able to quickly understand how the Old Testament is related to the New Testament.  The outpouring of the Holy Spirit brought power, gifts and God's word.  Only the Holy Spirit can understand God's heart and God's plans.  When Peter stood up, the Holy Spirit put God's word in his heart and God's word carried power and authority.  As such, 3000 were saved that day, and subsequently another 5000.
 
Pray with Pastor Tong
 
Lord, thank you for using Peter even though he was weak.  Pray that you will encourage us by the Holy Spirit.  Encourage us when we fail, so that we may stand up again and experience power of your resurrection. We want to be a witness for you in our daily lives.  We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!
   
 
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Sunday, August 28, 2016

Today's Passage - Acts 2:5-13

Acts 2:5-13
 
Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. Utterly amazed, they asked... Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine.
 
"They have had too much wine" were the comments of many Jews. In reality, this was the work of the Holy Spirit.  Today, there are many who are like the Jews back then.  These people play down the work of the Holy Spirit, and even criticize the work of the Holy Spirit.  The fact is that everyone has a different way of experiencing God and God's spirit leads each person differently.  The greatest crisis facing the church today is that we are dogmatic about how each person should experience God. This causes disagreements among the different Christian denominations.  As Paul said in 1 Corinthians Chapter 12, there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.  God did not give us different gifts so that we could form various divisions.  He wanted us to work together to build up the body of Christ. 
 
On the other hand, from this comment made by the Jews, we know one of the signs of being filled by the Holy Spirit is similar to having much wine.  Many people manifest uncontrollable expressions when they first are filled by the Holy Spirit.  This is actually very normal.  We do not have to suppress it or be afraid of it.  People tend to overreact when they see something they have never seen before.  Remember the time when Jesus walked on water? When the disciples saw Him from afar, they were terrified and thought it was a ghost! Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. It is I."  Pray that the Lord will help us recognize the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives and allow Him to accomplish whatever He wants through our earthy bodies.  Of course, if our manifestation is disruptive to the gathering, we need to exercise restraint and be quiet when we need to.  The Holy Spirit is a gentleman.  On one hand, He draws us closer to the Lord Jesus, and on the other, He wants the Lord's peace and guidance to be in our lives.  Pray that the Lord will help us not to be afraid, but to welcome the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. 
 
Pray with Pastor Tong
 
Dear Holy Spirit, we welcome you to move in our lives.  Lord, we pray that you will grant us an open heart to receive your work.  Let us be like a river that flows continuously, bringing joy, freedom, truth and liberty to the world.  We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen! 
   
 
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Saturday, August 27, 2016

Today's Passage - Acts 2:1-4

Acts 2:1-4
 
When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.
 
We see here that when the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost, there were four distinct signs.  First, it says that the work of the Holy Spirit is like a violent wind that filled the whole house.  The work of the Holy Spirit is like wind - be it a violent wind or a small breeze, we know when the wind is blowing. We may not know where it came from or where it is going, but we know when the wind has come.  In other words, we can feel the work of the Holy Spirit.  Contrast this to the teaching of the cults who believe that man can be their own gods, but do not believe in experiencing the work of the Holy Spirit.  At the same time, the wind can be unpredictable and has absolute discretion to blow wherever it wishes to blow, and however hard it wants to blow.  Similarly, when the Holy Spirit moves, He has absolute authority and discretion.  The Holy Spirit never works in the same way, so do not put God in a box. Another thing to note is that the wind leaves traces behind when it has blown. Where the wind passes by, things will be shifted.  In the same regard, the work of the Holy Spirit brings about changes.  Perhaps you may think that it makes things more chaotic, but sometimes Holy Spirit needs to tear things down before He can rebuild.  The process of tearing things down can seem chaotic.
 
Second, other than being like wind, the work of the Holy Spirit can be like fire.  A fire cannot be hidden.  The people of Jerusalem were shocked to see what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of the believers. Although they could not understand or accept what was going on, it shows that a fire cannot be hidden.  In addition, fire can spread.  The fire of Pentecost did not stop in Jerusalem, it spread through Judea and to the Gentiles.  Although the religious and the legalistic keep trying to extinguish the fire, God's fire kept spreading to Europe, America and Asia.  It burned from the Pentecostal church to the traditional church and to the Catholic and Anglican churches.
 
Third, the fire brings about power.  Just like fire brings light and heat, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit brings about immense power.  We see in Acts Chapter 4 that the early churches used the fire of the Holy Spirit to bring about truth and light, and also revealed God's miracle power. We see today that the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives is like fire. 

Four, we see is that when the Holy Spirit comes, we start speak in tongues.  We see the gift of words.  The truth is when the Lord Jesus was on earth, he never spoke in tongues.  However, the Holy Spirit gave the disciples this gift so that we may be able to preach the gospel everywhere.  Ephesians 4:10 says because of the work of Christ, he set the captives free and gave gifts to men, to equip us for the expansion of God's kingdom.
 
Pray with Pastor Tong
 
Dear Lord, we thank you for the Pentecost, because the Holy Spirit Lord came among us and the fire of the Spirit is still burning today.  By faith we receive the work of the Holy Spirit inside us and through us, and we pray that we may be your vessels in the expansion of God's kingdom. We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!
   
 
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Friday, August 26, 2016

Today's Passage - Acts 1:21-26

Acts 1:21-26
 
Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from John's baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection." ... Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.
 
This verse specifically mentions how the early church selected an apostle to take the place of Judas.  They wanted to choose someone who was with them the whole time as well as one who was a witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. The office of an apostle is very important.  I used to think that apostles do not exist anymore.  When I was being tested prior to my ordination, my examiner asked me whether I think apostles exist today.  At that time, I insisted that there were no longer apostles today, and the examiner asked me why.  I referred to Acts 1:21, which states that by the criteria listed in this verse, there are none in this generation who neither were physically with the disciples nor have witnessed the resurrection of Christ.  As such, I did not believe that any apostles would exist today.  At that time, my examiner seemed satisfied with my answer.
 
When I reexamine this Scripture today, however, I realize that these criteria were not established by God, but were established by the church according to their own desires.  Although Matthias was selected as an apostle, the rest of the book of Acts does not mention Matthias at all.  Instead, God chose Paul and Barnabas to be His apostles.  Paul and Barnabas had never been with Jesus or the apostles.  However, they were chosen by God.  All of a sudden, it became clear to me that I had thought that apostles do not exist today because I was looking at it based on criteria established by man.  Today when we reexamine the criteria for apostleship looking at God's definition and God's will, we see that there are still apostles in this generation.  Ephesians 4:11-13 talks about the fivefold ministry - "It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.".  In other words, as long as the church has not yet attained the whole measure of the fullness of Christ, we will need people with the apostolic gift and the work of the apostles today.  Similarly, we will need the prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers as well, to work together, to build up the body of Christ for the glory of God. 
 
Pray with Pastor Tong
 
Dear Lord, we thank you!  Lord, please help us learn how to reinstate the offices of the apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.  Grant us wisdom so that we may know how to work together in order that the body of Christ may attain the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.  We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!
   
 
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