Daily Devotion

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Romans 16:25-27   "Now to him who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, but now revealed and made known through the prophetic writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations might believe and obey him - to the only wise God be glory forever through Jesus Christ! Amen."   At the end of Book of Romans, Paul said that only God can establish our hearts.  This is a precious promise in our life of faith.  The "you" here refers to all the children of God - you and me - and it didn't say that we can establish ourselves.  We can't deny the fact that our will is weak and our feelings change.  Just like Elijah, one minute he came out victorious against the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel, but the next minute he lied under a broom tree and wanted to die.  Peter was no better; one minute he said in front of Jesus that he would never stumble, and the next minute he denied the Lord three times.  Human beings are weak and we cannot possibly establish ourselves.  We thank God, however, because God will establish us as Holy Spirit will establish our heart.  The Bible says that Holy Spirit is like a seal in our heart.   What does having a seal in our heart means?  First, it shows that we belong to God.  When you place a seal on an object, it shows that the object belongs to you.  When God places a seal in our life through the Holy Spirit, it shows that we belong to God.  The world can surround and attack us, but it cannot overcome us.  Second, the seal is one that represents guarantee of quality.  God will take full responsibility for our life so that we may come out victorious again and again as we grow up, until we take on the form of Jesus.  May our heart be comforted in God, and may the glory of God be completely manifested in our life.        Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, I thank you because you are the God who establish us.  As we face attacks from the world, temptation of sin and difficult circumstances, our hearts can easily become weak and tired.  Nevertheless, we can come before God again and again, set our eyes on Christ who is the beginning and end of our faith, and you will come and establish us.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

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Daily Devotion

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Romans 16:21-24   "Timothy, my fellow worker, sends his greetings to you, as do Lucius, Jason and Sosipater, my relatives.  I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the Lord.  Gaius, whose hospitality I and the whole church here enjoy, sends you his greetings. Erastus, who is the city's director of public works, and our brother Quartus send you their greetings."   After years of serving in the church, I increasingly recognize the importance of the coworker team.  Ministry cannot be a solo act; not matter how great you perform, once you are gone the act is finished.  Throughout church history, there have been many revivals at various times; some revivals last a long time while others fade away quickly.  If we examine the history closely, we would see that the coworker team plays an important role in prolonging the revivals.  In some cases, coworker teams were not established, and the revivals ended shortly after the leader left or passed away.  On the contrary, the revivals that had solid coworker teams were able to experience continuous waves of God's revival.  Therefore, no matter in what capacity we are serving, we must proactively look for coworkers and establish coworker teams.   What should be our criteria for finding coworkers?  There are some clues from the names that Paul brought up in this passage.  First, Paul looked for those who are faithful.  Timothy was not exactly gifted and courageous, but according to the Bible he was faithful in offering himself.  Faithful doesn't just mean doing what we are supposed to just in order to get things over with; we must also have the attitude of doing our best by making the most effort.  Second, we need to look for learners.  Timothy was a disciple, which means a student.  In other word, he was willing to learn and practice.  Many people like to serve and they are good at what they do, but they lack a teachable heart.  They have their own ways and it's hard for them to team up with others in ministry, God doesn't necessarily lead us the same way every time, and God may not lead others the way He leads us.  If we want to establish a solid coworker team, everyone in the team must have a humble and teachable heart so that we will seek God's will together.  Third, Paul sought those who had good testimonies.  Timothy had testimonies - not just spiritual ones, but also testimonies in life.  One who serves God may not be a spiritual superman, but he must desire to pursue spiritual matters and others should see such determination in him.  On the other, the person doesn't need to be perfect, but must be careful in life and willing to be disciplined.   Faithful, teachable and have good testimonies are the three principles that Paul looked for in coworkers.  Do you have such a coworker team in your life and ministry?  May the Lord give us a humble and soft heart so that we will learn to be good coworkers and also proactively seek to partner with others.      Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, we thank you for showing us an example in Paul as he had so many great brothers and sisters to partner with in ministry.  May the Lord give us good coworkers whom we can learn to support and partner with, all for further spreading the gospel of Kingdom of God.  Give us a humble and teachable heart so that we would depend on your in our daily life and ministry.  I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

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Daily Devotion

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Romans 16:17-20    Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings. I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people. Everyone has heard about your obedience, so I rejoice because of you; but I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you.     Obedience is good, but it is different from following blindly. Paul said that we should be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil. In other words, we should be obedient in what is good, but be resistant in what is evil. What is good mentioned in the Bible is not to build roads and bridges, but to do what God has asked us to do, which is from what God tells us through the Bible. Many people just follow their impulses. Actually they need basis for their impulses; otherwise the world will become chaotic if everyone just follows his impulse. If what is inside us is contradictory to the Biblical teaching, then it is the lust that we need to reject. We must go back to the Bible and use it as our guide for daily life. On the other hand, we should be resistant in what is evil. The so-called evil is the temptation and attack from the evil one. In the early churches, Peter and John were taken to the officials, who then threatened them not to preach in the name of the Nazarene Jesus. But Peter and John replied: "Which is right in God's eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges!" In other words, they refused to listen to the world, but they listened to God.    God has already given us the power to overcome the evil. But when we are under all kinds of threats, we would always be afraid to say no, nor follow the truth. We would always be trapped in the stage where we know but we can't do. But our Lord has already conquered all the enemies and fears. The Lord says that he is "the Lord that gives peace", and "the God who crushes Satan under our feet". Hallelujah! What a privilege we have to come to God and only trust in Him!      Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, we praise you, for you are not only the God that gives peace, but also the God that crushes Satan under our feet. May the Lord give us a brave heart so that we choose only to obey truth, and resist the evil and all temptations from the evil one, so as to just come back to you and follow your Words every day. We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

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Daily Devotion

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Romans 16:3-16   "Greet Priscillaand Aquila, my co-workers in Christ Jesus. They risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them. Greet also the church that meets at their house. ...Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ send greetings."   Not only was Paul God's favorite servant, he also knew how to make friends. If you count carefully, Paul greeted more than one hundred people in his letters. And he never did group greetings; instead, he greeted everyone specifically. It shows that they were not just ordinary friends, but people who fellowshipped in the Lord.   A phrase was used a lot in this passage, namely "in Christ". This term is very crucial in Paul's theology. When he met the Lord on his way to Damascus, the Lord shed light on him and a voice asked him: "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" At that time Saul was puzzled, for he knew whoever spoke to him in the light was the Lord of his life. But he didn't understand when he ever persecuted the Lord. So he responded: "I never persecuted you. Who are you? I just persecute Christians!" Surprisingly the voice in the light said: "I am Jesus, who you persecute." He suddenly realized that Jesus was in unity with his believers. He persecuted the Lord by persecuting the disciples of the Lord. From then on, the concept of "in Christ" was burnt into his heart. He knew that the Lord was always in unity with his believers. In addition, when Ananias came to pray for him, Ananias addressed him by "brother Saul". Then he suddenly realized again how close they were in the Lord, closer than siblings to each other in a family. In Jesus, we become brothers and sisters in God's family. What a blissful grace it is!   Do you have spiritual friends in the Lord? We really lack such friends nowadays. When you come to the church just to attend service or meeting, you lack the opportunity to fellowship openly. Even sisters are the same. In the old days, they gathered together to wash clothes and talk with each other. But nowadays women are just as busy with their work. We also lack the spiritual partners. Let us pray for your spiritual partner whom God will provide to you. You need to attend the cell group in the church, as well as all activities, so that you can find the spiritual partner God has prepared for you during the process. Let's stay in unity in the Lord and march forward hand in hand.      Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, we thank you for your grace, so that we can be part of your family. We thank you for providing many sisters and brothers to us. May you provide a spiritual partner to us, so that we will never be lonely in our spiritual pursuit. We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

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Daily Devotion

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Romans 16:1-2   "I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae. I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of his people and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been the benefactor of many people, including me."     Phoebe was a deaconess of the church in Cenchreae, which is very hard to achieve in that society, for men were favored over women then. The fact that Paul could do his best to support this sister in her ministry shows that he was supportive to sisters in ministry. If you read Romans 16 carefully, you will find that many sisters were listed as his coworkers with good reputation.   In fact during Paul's mission trips, he met a couple who became his best coworkers, namely Aquila and Priscilla. Many people were against sisters in ministry. Actually they didn't understand the Biblical teaching very well. Aquila was the husband of Priscilla. They joined the ministry together originally. But later on Priscilla the wife's ministry became more and more fruitful. So the Bible changed the order of their names. Originally when they were mentioned, Aquila was mentioned first. But in Acts 16:18, Priscilla the wife was mentioned first. This seems opposite from the practice of forbidding women to preach in some traditional churches today. According to the Bible Priscilla not only preached, but also behaved as a spiritual leader to lead the Ephesian church back then. If a sister wants to serve the Lord, she has to get the approval and blessing from the husband. If a husband is willing to support his wife's ministry like Aquila, then the wife serves under the spiritual cover of the husband. That is some kind of blessing for the protected ministry. But if the husband is not willing to be supportive, then the wife has to obey the husband and serve the Lord in the back scene. Once everyone understands this truth, he will no longer blindly oppose to sisters serving in the church or taking the position of a leader. Single sisters should seek the spiritual cover of the elders, so that their ministry may be recognized under the authority of the spiritual elders.   Phoebe was the deaconess of her church then. She was so zealous that she was ready to help brothers and sisters, and to participate in the ministry. She took part in all kinds of ministries and became a good helper in Paul's ministry. Let me encourage the sisters around me to rise for the Lord. If the Lord could use Phoebe and other sisters in that environment two thousand years ago, He can use you in a much more open society right now. May God give you a brave heart to follow His guidance.           Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, may your Spirit raise sisters in your ministry. May the Lord give them a wise heart and a soft spirit, so that they are willing to follow your guidance bravely every day. May you use each and every sister in the end days to form a great army to fight the great battle for you. We thank you and we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

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