Today's Passage - Matthew 25:24-30

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Matthew 25:24-30   "Then the man who had received one bag of gold came. 'Master,' he said, 'I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed. So I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.' His master replied, 'You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed? Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest. 'So take the bag of gold from him and give it to the one who has ten bags. For whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.'   The third aspect of serving as a steward for the kingdom of heaven is that one day our master will come back and review our accomplishment with us. God has given us all kinds of resources in our daily life, and we need to understand that they belong to God and we must use them for the kingdom of God. When will the master come back? It's the day that Jesus returns. The Lord will ask us whether we have faithfully taken care of everything entrusted to us. The point of this parable is not how much each person received, but rather whether we have been faithful. The one who receive five bags of gold and the one who received two bags of gold received the same reward because they are equally faithful. We often compare ourselves with how much others have received, but we overlook that fact that those who received different amount of gold received the same reward. If we are only given one bag of gold and we earn another bag of gold with it, we'll receive the same reward as the one who received five bags of gold to begin with. May God open our eyes and see His will, and to understand that this parable is about being faithful in the work that God entrusted us.   Why was the one who receive one bag of gold rebuked as wicked and lazy? He's wicked because the master gave him one bag of gold, and it was his responsibility to saw the seeds and reap the harvest; instead, the servant blamed the master as hard. He's lazy because he didn't want to do what he was supposed to; even though we might know that God wants us to be faithful steward on earth, we might lazy and just don't want to do the right thing. Also, was the servant characterized as "worthless"? Worthless means that not putting things to use; we might have received all kinds of gifts from God, but we hide the gifts and don't use any of it for the expansion of God's kingdom. God's grace came upon us so that we can use it, since it's God's principle that the more we use the more we'll have, and the less we use the less we'll have. Many are accustomed to using their right hands, so their right hands become more useful; their left hands, on the other hand, become less useful because they seldom use them. Success according to God is to see whether we have been faithful in the work that He entrusted us. May the Lord help us to learn how to become a faithful steward before Him!   Pray with Pastor Tong     Lord, please help us to be determined to be faithful before you, so that we won't be wasting our life away. Let us make up our mind to please you in our daily life, and allow you to use us and help us to be faithful stewards, so that your will may be done. I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

Today's Passage - Matthew 25:19-23

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Matthew 25:19-23   "After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them.  The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.'  His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'  The man with two bags of gold also came. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with two bags of gold; see, I have gained two more.'  His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'"      As a servant, one does not only need to know all that we have are from God, but also that his/her responsibility is to "earn money", which is to use all kinds of resources God has given us to expand His kingdom. To expand God's kingdom is not merely to spread the gospels, but also to bring the fairness and righteousness into this evil generation. Expanding kingdom of heaven is not limited in churches, but in everyone's life and work. We need everyone to fulfill their duties of a servant. The kingdom of God should not rely only on pastors, or lord loving brothers and sisters who are trying their best, but on every christian. Each and everyone of our situation is different. Only you can be the testimony for the Lord in your life. No one can substitute you. Only you can manifest the heavenly glory in your life, and to bring peace and happiness to your surroundings.   Have you thought of expanding the kingdom of heaven in your work? When everyone else is complaining, can you still have happiness and softness? Don't believe that we are just singing spiritual high tunes. Jesus said, "anyone who does not pick up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me." You and I must truly face our belief. If Jesus is truly our Lord, we should follow Him happily, allowing Him to use us in our daily lives.   Have you ever thought of how to expand the kingdom of heaven with the skills you have? Serving God is not necessarily leading a bible study at a church. God gave different blessings to each and everyone of us. Some of us know how to file tax returns really well, and they can service others during the tax season. Some are doctors and nurses who can treat brothers and sisters for free. Someone has never heard of gospels. But through the work of those people, they are attracted to churches. Similarly, how are you used by God in everyday life? God wants us to be the servant of the heavenly kingdom relying the resources that God has given us, so that the heavenly kingdom can be expanded. May God help us to use what He's given us wisely!     Pray with Pastor Tong     LLord, we thank you because you have blessed us with all kinds of resources. May the Lord help us to use the resources given to us to expand Your kingdom. May Your will be fulfilled in us in our daily lives so that we can be your good and faithful servants. I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

Today's Passage - Matthew 25:14-18

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Matthew 25:14-18   "Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his wealth to them. To one he gave five bags of gold, to another two bags, and to another one bag, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey. The man who had received five bags of gold went at once and put his money to work and gained five bags more. So also, the one with two bags of gold gained two more. But the man who had received one bag went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master's money. "   The Lord is teaching us here about being a steward in the kingdom of God. First of all, as a steward, we must understand that all that we have belongs to God. The "bags of gold" here were referred to as "talents" in the King James Version; it not only represents our money and talents, but also everything that we own. In other word, as a steward of the kingdom of heaven, nothing we have actually belongs to us, but all belong to God. Our time, money, talents, spiritual gifts are all given to us by the Lord of all things, and they are to be used on earth for His Kingdom.     A while back when I first became a Christian, I used to have the wrong idea that because the Bible says that we ought to tithe, it means one tenth of our income belongs to God, but the other nine tenth belongs to myself. When I received my salary, I would quickly offer ten percent of it to God to say: "This tenth is yours, and the other nine tenths are mine." It's the same way for me in money and serving. I often said to the Lord: "I won't be absent in Sunday service, because that time belongs to you; I will serve in fellowship and small group because I think they need help, but rest of the time is mine, and you better not touch it!" I often separate everything into His and mine, thus my Christian journey wasn't a pleasant one, because I felt that the Lord was aggressive in wanting more from me and He wanted more than ten percent. After my spiritual life grew and I learned more about God's truth, then I realized that everything that we owe actually belongs to God. Not just the one tenth, but rest of the nine tenth as well, because everything we have is given by God, and God wants to use the nine tenth for His Kingdom.   Jesus shed blood and died for us on the cross. With His precious blood He has redeemed us from sin and law. As soon as we are saved, we no longer belong to the kingdom of the authority of darkness, but rather to God. If we belong to God, then everything that we owe ought to be used by God. Paul said in Corinthians 4:7, "What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?" Our role on the earth is to be the steward of God, so we don't have any right to argue with God what's His and what's ours. It's our responsibility to simply follow God's will and use all the grace that He's given us, so may God help us!   Pray with Pastor Tong     Lord, we thank you, because all that we have are from you. May the Lord help us to be determined to let you use all that we have, and may the Lord use our life to become channel of blessings for many. I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

Today's Passage - Matthew 25:1-13

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Matthew 25:1-13      "At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise ones, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight the cry rang out: 'Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!' Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.' 'No,' they replied, 'there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.' But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. Later the others also came. 'Lord, Lord,' they said, 'open the door for us!' But he replied, 'Truly I tell you, I don't know you.' Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour."   The difference between being wise and foolish is not whether one is eager. Actually, all ten virgin were eager, otherwise they wouldn't have waited till midnight. The difference between being wise and foolish is whether one is prepared. We all eager for the coming of the Lord and His revival, but the question is whether we are prepared to welcome the Lord's return and His work.   Years ago, California suffered severe drought, so we kept on praying for the weather, asking God to send rain. When rain actually came, however, many of us weren't too happy, because when it rained we found that the roof wasn't fixed and became leaky, and drainage wasn't working and caused flooding all over. Because we were not prepared, we weren't able to enjoy the grace of God. In the same manner, we can long for God and wait for His coming, but have you prepared your heart to accept the Lord? We must first fix the roof and make sure drainage is working well in our lives, so that Spirit of God can move freely. We need to prepare first, not only to be eager for God, but also be well-prepared. Let God's Spirit shine upon us and move among us to remove everything that hinders the work of God, and God's Spirit will be able to flow freely in our lives to accomplish His work.   This analogy is not about love, but rather specifically about preparation. The Lord stressed on preparation, and no one else can prepare on your behalf. You must come before God to prepare your own heart, and no one else can do it for you. Jesus will come back again, and great revival will come at this end time. Are we prepared to welcome the Lord's return and revival?   Pray with Pastor Tong     Lord, I ask that you shine you light on us, so that we will not only have a heart that longs for you, but we will also be prepared for the revival of the end time, become your vessel and be used by you. May you add to our strength and make us blessing to many in our daily life. I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

Today's Passage - Matthew 24:45-51

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Matthew 24:45-51   "Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, 'My master is staying away a long time,' and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.   "Faithful and wise servant" is one who knows how to give out food at the proper time. Giving out food" doesn't necessary mean preaching a sermon, but it's to share God's word that one receives daily with others. If we want to give out food, we must first receive good, so it is necessary to do devotion regularly. We need to come before God daily to read His Word in order to receive the spiritual food that we need. Doing devotion is like eating; it's good to have a feast sometime, but we can't have feasts every day. We must have regular daily meals in order for our bodies to grow healthily. In the same way, sometimes we do need big conferences to uplift ourselves, but it's daily devotions that make our spiritual life grow.   How do we give out food then? First, take any opportunity to share with people, saying something like "I read this really precious scripture passage today, let me share it with you..." Don't gossip on the phone, but rather share with one another about the passages you read and how they encouraged you. Second, learn to do scriptural prayer with others. Scripture prayer is one of the most effective ways to read the Bible; if we do scriptural prayer with others, we can encourage and edify one another in the spirit. Third, share what you've learned from devotions in the past week during cell group meeting. We need to share God's Word in cell group; once you share it, you'd feel God's Spirit move through your life to edify those around you. If we never have the opportunity to share God's Word in cell group, then God's grace will not be passed on from us.   The spiritual principle in the Bible is always that the more you use the more you will have, and the more you share the more abundance you'll experience. What you share with others is truly what belongs to you. It's like sharing your testimony; those who like to share testimonies always seem to have more testimonies to share, and those who never share testimonies can't think of anything to share because of lack of practice in sharing. Therefore, in our daily life we must learn to give out food; the more we give out, the more food we will have to give out. Do you give out food regularly? Do you sometimes feel that you have no food to give out? May God help us to see this spiritual principle; help us be a faithful and wise servant, not a foolish one, who will regular receive and give out food!   Pray with Pastor Tong     Lord, we thank you because you are the food of our lives. Let us come before you daily to receive energy for our spiritual life, so that you may become our strength and help. Give you and shine light on us daily, and let us walk in the path that pleases you. I thank and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

Today's Passage - Matthew 24:34-44

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Matthew 24:34-44   "...As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him."   When I was working in Washington D.C., one time I was talking to some Christian colleagues about the second coming of the Lord. One female colleague who's divorced with two children said that she'd rather see the Lord come quickly to bring her back to the heavenly home, because she's already tired of life in the world. Another young female colleague said that the Lord's better wait, because she hasn't started enjoying life yet. A third colleague said that he never thought about the Lord's return, as he didn't really care whether the Lord returns or not. Our attitude towards the return of the Lord will surely impact the way we live.   The early church has great power to testify for the Lord because it had the assurance and expectation for the Lord's return. On the contrary, many Christians today often pity for themselves and don't think the Lord's return would have anything to do with them. Being watchful while waiting is not just about praying while waiting, but we should also bring ourselves before God and serve Him. A godliness that pleases God is not just waiting quietly and do nothing; it's always God's will for us to move forward. Therefore, anyone who follows God must follow all things commanded by God.   Once time President Roosevelt went hunting in Africa. The evangelist Morrison was also there to preach the gospel, and they took the same ship back home. The ship arrived in the U.S., there were lots of people welcoming President Roosevelt home, but Morrison went home alone with his suitcase. As he walked home he was complaining inside: "Lord, I worked so hard for you, how come no one came to welcome me home?" When he prayed about it, the Lord told him: "That's because President Roosevelt is already home, but your home is in heaven. When you come home, you will know how big the welcome ceremony is!" Indeed, our home is in heaven, so when the Lord returns, we will be in the kingdom of God and spending eternity with Him. Our effort in the Lord is definitely not done in vain.   Are you also waiting attentively for the Lord's return? In your daily life, do you really read God's Word and pray, bear glorious testimony for the Lord, and let the love of Christ glow out through your lives to those around you and even to all people and all nations? Are we really able to understand God's will and live a life that pleases Him? When the Lord returns, He wishes that we are all working hard to please Him. May God's Spirit help us to wait attentively and to follow His word until the Lord's return!   Pray with Pastor Tong     Lord, I thank you because you are filled with mercy and grace. Even though we don't know when the Lord will return, but we ask that the Lord will give us a watchful heart to wait for you attentively until the day you return. I thank you and I pray in the victorious name of Jesus, amen!

Today's Passage - Matthew 24:29-33

River of Life Christian Church ︳www.rolcc.net/english Matthew 24:29-33   "...Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will father his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other. Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: as soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that it is near, right at the door."             Although the day of Jesus' return is unknown to us, but this doesn't mean we don't have a responsibility in it. Our responsibility is to "see", which means to be alert and of sober mind. In these last days, we need to pay close attention to the happenings in the world. Billy Graham once said, that when he picks up the Bible in one hand and the newspaper in the other, he reads almost the same words in the newspaper as he reads in the Bible. This statement is both shocking and rejoicing; shocking, for the world is worsen so rapidly, and rejoicing, for the day of the Lord is indeed near.             The more you read the Bible, the more you will not be worried about the world, and the more you will be able to face sufferings and death. Staying alert, which means pray, can help us to be ready to see Him. We often feel powerless and are controlled by the dominion of this world. We often feel helpless in our efforts to living God's will, for we want to overcome temptations but couldn't. We need to come before the Lord and pray earnestly, for only prayer can bind the works of the devils. 1 John 4:4 says that "the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world." It is only by His power we can overcome the power of the world.             I always heard this saying: more prayer, more power; less prayer, less power; no prayer, no power. The more I serve the Lord the more I see how truthful this word is. If we don't pray, we have no power. How could we overcome the challenges from the world if we don't have power? May the Lord help us to pray and observe, and to put everything in His hands. May His compassion fill the earth before His glorious return, so that we may experience His mightiness. Let us pray like how Apostle John prayed: Come, Lord Jesus! The day of His second coming is truly near, so let us prepare ourselves and wait for His return!   Pray with Pastor Tong     Dear Lord, You are the Lord with all authority. For not only You've resurrected from death and ascended to heaven, but also one day You will come back in glory. Come, dear Lord! Come not only in the future, but come now. Guide us in our daily lives, in every circumstance and in every relationship. Teach us to pray earnestly everyday till Your return. I thank you and I pray all these in the victorious name of Jesus, Amen!