Today's Passage - Luke 7:31-35

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Luke 7:31-35   "'To what, then, can I compare the people of this generation? What are they like?  They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling out to each other: "We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not cry."  For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, "He has a demon."  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, "Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and 'sinners.'"  But wisdom is proved right by all her children.'"   This is an era that doesn't understand God's will.  When we proclaim to the world the message of repentance, people do not want to repent; when we proclaim to the world the resurrection of the Lord, they don't like to accept it.  Sin has blinded hearts of the people from seeing their own sin.  When King David committed adultery and murder, God sent a prophet to speak to him.  Nathan told him a parable where a poor man lived beside the house of a rich man.  The rich man had many livestock but the poor man only had one sheep; the sheep was so precious to him that he slept with the sheep in his arms.  One day, when the rich man wanted to have a feast, he didn't slaughter his own livestock, but rather he robbed the sheep from the poor man and ate it.  David heard the story and was furious, for he thought the rich man had committed an evil act.  Nathan then pointed out to David that he was that rich man!   The greatest weakness of men is not to know our own weaknesses.  In the darkness, we won't see our need and we won't understand how precious God's grace is.  Sin is not just the outward behavior, for sin can also be the spirit and attitude of self-centeredness, pride and self-righteousness.  It is a sin to believe that we don't need salvation and Jesus Christ and we can live by our own might.  The attitude of depending on ourselves and not depending on God is precisely the root of sin, because we don't understand what our soul really needs.   May the Spirit of God enlighten us so that we can clearly see how we are today.  We are often trapped in sin and fear, so we need the Lord to release us and give us freedom.  Let us turn back to God, welcome the work of the Holy Spirit, and once again pray for our generation.  This is a generation that doesn't know God, but we don't want to simply judge and convict the generation, but rather we want to cry out and pray for it.  We want to let this generation see its spiritual condition and turn back to God.  May God place a merciful heart in us, so that we would come before Him and cry out for mercy and grace to cover the sin of this generation.  This is the mission given to us by God, and we need to do what John the Baptist did, preach the message of repentance so that people will turn their hearts back to God when they hear the word of the Lord.                Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, we thank you because you are the Lord who is full of mercy.  Please open our eyes and let us see our own needs and our sins, and let us turn back to you.  I ask that you grant us the spirit of prayer, so that we won't stop praying for this generating until your will is done.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!