Daily Devotion

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english I Timothy 6: 9-10   People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.   For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many grief.   There is nothing wrong with money itself. In the "Parable of the  talents " Jesus  indicated that  he who received 5 talents made 5 talents more; the one who received 2 talents, made 2 more, but the one who was given 1 talent returned with the same amount.  From our view point, we may feel the one who returned the same amount given was pretty faithful, but the Lord called him a wicked and slothful servant instead!  It is quite apparent the definition of "being faithful" according to God involves earning a return upon what is given.  God wants us to make a good return from what He has given us.  Therefore, it is not wrong for somebody making a fortune; but for one whose only goal is to make money and doing it by any means  such as telling a small lie, misrepresenting a lower quality merchandise as the top of the line product  or taking a short cut,  like bribing, these may seem  normal to him.  For the sake of reaching his goal, he may even sell out his friends or relatives.    Is making a fortune worth the price you are paying?  In an old Chinese saying, "Money can do anything; it can even make a ghost push the grain grinder." In reality, you may be the one pushing the grinder!  Nine out of ten wealthy people are not happy because although they may be able to buy the most comfortable beds, they cannot buy peaceful sleeps; they may be able to  afford the most expensive delicacies,  but not a good appetite; or perhaps the most beautiful house, but not  a happy family and the best insurance policy but not the peace of mind.  Money often leads us astray and makes us miserable - what a horrible truth.    In that case, shouldn't we even try to become wealthy?  That is not the point as the real questions is: Who is your Lord? Making money or Jesus Himself?  If the former is true, then you will be abandoning the Lord looking for wealth; but if the latter is true, you will be able to resist temptation by trusting the Lord, and be blessed according to His will.  May the Lord help us and instill in us a proper attitude toward money.      Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, free us from this burden and desire of becoming wealthy, but to follow you willingly because there is real peace, joy and fulfillment in you.  May the Lord take away the shackle of money and set us free.  With thanks we pray, in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!

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Daily Devotion

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english I Timothy 6: 3-8   If anyone teaches otherwise and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, they are conceited and understand nothing. They have an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk, evil suspicions  and constant friction between people of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means to financial gain. But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.  But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.    Why did Paul emphasized on " But godliness with contentment is great gain" ? This was because many people are focused on money and even Christians are no exception as   there are those who make their wealth through religion.   There are many ways of spreading the gospel today including those highly commercialized methods.   The church today should actively adopt the most advance commercial strategy to disseminate the gospel; but beware of those who have ulterior motives.  The fundamental question to ask is:  are you making money for yourself? Or is this truly for the spreading of the Gospel?     To be content is an important spiritual training.  A person with contentment is one who is satisfied with God's grace and gifts he receives.  Regardless of our circumstances - good or bad, if this is God's arrangement, we should be joyful and be content. Ironically, this is quite different from the feeling of "sour grapes" as those who feels this way are helpless but to find  joy through this painful ordeal;  but a heart of contentment is  a response to God's  promises believing such promises and guidance are truthful and out of His goodness.  As long as there is a heart of meekness in us, we can discern God's will under all circumstances.    Brothers and sisters, are you content in your current situation?  In fact, if we count all our blessings, we can't help but sing praises and rejoice in Him.  Every time after a short mission, I have this deep feeling that we are so much better off when compared to those in the third world.  We have everything we can possibly have, so we should be thankful for all His blessings.  You should now count all the blessings we have received from God and give thanks to Him!  In times of adversity, you should proclaim that He is the Lord of our lives and the Lord of this universe.  With such astounding proclamation, we will be freed from the shackle of any adverse situation.        Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, we thank you for all the blessings we have received.  We pray specially for those brothers and sisters who are at adverse situations.  In the name of our Lord, we proclaim that you are the Lord of all circumstances, free them from these adversities.  With thanks we pray, in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!

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Daily Devotion

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english 1 Timothy 6:1-2        All who are under the yoke of slavery should consider their masters worthy of full respect, so that God's name and our teaching may not be slandered. Those who have believing masters should not show them disrespect just because they are fellow believers. Instead, they should serve them even better because their masters are dear to them as fellow believers and are devoted to the welfare of their slaves.  These are the things you are to teach and insist on.              When we work for someone else, we need to respect our manager or supervisor. No matter how the manager treats us, we should respect him because God has put us in this position. Like Joseph in the Old Testament, from the time he was sold to Egypt, he met a series of unfortunate events, and none of the positions he had were what he wanted. But the Bible says no matter where he was, God gave him success in whatever he did and he had favor before his masters. It is not because his masters were all so good, but because of his attitude of respect towards his managers. When a person respects his manager, the manager knows. That's why Joseph can be successful in whatever he did. Actually his managers were not believers in the Lord, but when they saw the faith of Joseph, they kept it in their hearts. When the opportunity came, the Egyptian Pharaoh had a dream which no one can interpret, the warden immediately remembers Joseph because of his faithfulness and good example in his work.       If your manager does not treat you well, you need to first pray for yourself and ask God to give you wisdom to know how to have good relations with the manager. Next, you need to pray in the Lord's name for the manager. Ask God to be the help for the manager. If your manager is a Christian, you should not expect special treatment from him. Rather, you need to be even more respectful and pray for him, wishing him to be successful. Many Christians make two kinds of mistakes toward their manager.        First, it is to not take their own responsibility seriously, thinking that since the manager is a believer, he should be more empathetic towards him, occasionally he can slack off or take time off and he will receive special grace from the manager. I often hear Christian managers say they discover when they hire Christian workers it caused themselves big headaches because the workers were not diligent in their work. This is truly a pity for Christians.          Second, it is to have the wrong expectations for the Christian manager, thinking that since he is a believer, the manager should treat me especially well and he should promote me first. When the manager doesn't do according to your expectations, you don't feel good. Or when you see the manager not making the best decisions, you may easily look down on the manager. You need to remember that the manager is just a normal Christian. He can stumble and can make mistakes. Rather during those times, we need to bless him, pray for him, and not complain or curse him. In your work, have you prayed for blessings on your manager? From today, begin to do this and you will be blessed.      Pray with Pastor Tong           Dear Lord, I especially pray for blessings on my manager. I ask the Lord to bless whatever he does to be successful and let him know you and have a heart of reverence for you so that in all his decisions he can make it according to your will. 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 1 Timothy 5:22-25      Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, and do not share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure. ... The sins of some are obvious, reaching the place of judgment ahead of them; the sins of others trail behind them. In the same way, good deeds are obvious, and even those that are not obvious cannot remain hidden forever.           The "laying on of hands" mentioned here is not the same as the normal praying by the laying on of hands. Here it is specifically referring to the laying on of hands in the ordination of elders. It is a continuation from the previous verses which are addressed to the elders and ministers. We must not be hasty in ordaining elders and ministers. We need to seek God's will and find the most suitable person. In the church there have been too many examples in the matter of ordaining elder where they were too hasty and it later brought big problems to the church. That's why we need to be very careful and cautious in this matter.       In the normal praying for brothers and sisters by the laying on of hands, we should be proactive and bold. Before the Lord was taken up to heaven, he gave us in the Great Commission the authority to lay hands on others and pray for them. Mark 16 mentions, "And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." What we need to do is by faith pray for blessings on the people who are in our lives. Actually we don't need to exaggerate by saying, "The Lord healed you now", but we can simply ask the Lord to bless, heal the person, and make the person's situation get better. When by faith and a loving heart you go to pray for others, you will discover amazing results.              When I was doing evangelistic ministry in the past, a sister brought a student to meet me. It took a great effort for this sister to bring her classmate, but the student seemed not able to receive anything she was hearing. Afterwards, I discovered that the student has final exams in 2 days so she was totally unable to listen to the preaching. I lay hands and pray for blessings on her finals and ask the Lord to give her wisdom to understand what she studied, give her good memory to remember what she read, and give her a peaceful heart to take the test. After I prayed, I discovered her face was filled with tears. She was very touched and said, "no one has ever prayed like this to bless my final exams." The Lord has already started a good work in her and I was just an instrument God used to bless her. Brothers and sisters, the Lord is also using you in this way in your everyday lives. May the Lord give us a willing heart to co-work with him.      Pray with Pastor Tong           Dear Lord, I thank you because when you gave us the Great Commission, you also gave us the authority to lay hands and pray for others. I ask the Holy Spirit to open my eyes to see the needs of the people around me and to boldly lay hands and pray for the people around me. 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 1 Timothy 5:19-21     Do not entertain an accusation against an elder unless it is brought by two or three witnesses. But those elders who are sinning you are to reprove before everyone, so that the others may take warning. I charge you, in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism.                   How to deal with it if someone in the church accuse against the preacher? Paul mentions another principle of treating the preachers; basically, it is with respect. The position of the preacher is the most vulnerable to attacks because there are so many ideas and opinions in the church; the bigger the church, the more discord that often put the preacher in an unenviable position, as making any type of decisions for sure will offend some people. So often people talk behind the pastor, saying he cares not about this thing, nor willing to do that thing. In fact, the pastors often can only choose to do certain things instead of covering the bases. So we need to listen carefully when someone criticize the pastor; do they talk about only their own opinions or preferences? Or do they talk about the needs of the church?                  On the other hand, we need to understand the pastors should have the rights to enjoy some private life. Some pastors love sports and they cherish the opportunities to play ball; some pastors like fish-keeping and they spend time watching the fish; some pastors like eating out and they are thrilled when visiting the restaurants. These are their preferences that we should not criticize because they have the right to live to their liking, as long as they are not bad habits. By putting ourselves in their shoes, we would not place too many unreasonable demands upon the preachers.                    There are several principles here if a preacher is negligent in his conduct or duty: First, if there is an accusation against a preacher, there must be at least two to three witnesses before addressing the issue. In other words, it's not just one incident, it must be at least two to three incidents. Once a sister asked her pastor to help bring her offering to the church, then inadvertently the pastor forgot about it, keeping the offering inside his suit pocket. It created a great uproar as the pastor was accused of loving the money. It would need the wisdom of the church leaders to avoid the conflict arising from a single incident.                   Next, this incident would need a special committee to handle it, to avoid taking gossip and rumor as fact. We should move toward sanctions only upon confirmation of negligence after undergoing the special committee's investigation. Paul says in God's family we'll need to confess our sins in public, such that this sin is cut off, no longer in continuance. Ask God to help us to treat the preachers with love and acceptance.      Pray with Pastor Tong           Lord, please remove the critical spirit among us, give us the forgiving love. When preachers stumble, let us know how to live and accept them in Christ, so that they can stand up again. With thanks we pray in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!

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