I do not know how to start my blog for today because I am going to share about something pretty touchy in Singapore - a main topic brought up by the Prime Minister during his speech at the National Day Rally.
Well, it has been the talk of the town since then - religious harmony in Singapore. A Christian couple were also mentioned by Mr. Lee Hsien Loong for how they have been distributing tracts to people of different faiths and as a result for their insensitive acts, they have been charged and sentenced to imprisonment.
Many times Christians have been targetted by many as ones who are enthusiastic (sometimes overly enthusiastic) in spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ to others.
When it comes to this, I can see two groups of Christians here: one who sincerely want to share with others how God has touched their lives; the other who just want to sell Jesus Christ as if He is a product.
Let me just touch on the first group because in doing so, we can see the futile effort of the other, which usually gives a bad name to Christianity.
In my 24 years as a Christian, I have been in both groups and my conclusion is this - let your lifestyle speak the loudest. Christianity to me is not a religion. Another 'r' comes to mind - it is a relationship between God and me. If I cherish this relationship, whatever God teaches me from the Bible; speaks to me during prayers; spurs me during my fellowship with my siblings-in-Christ, I will surely want to be transformed and not be conformed any longer to the patterns of this world. If I constantly keep in step with Him, surely there will be a marked change in my life.
Then, in my speech and action, people will see the difference - they will see Christ in me. Though I am still work in progress (as I still have my weaknesses and flaws), I have shared Christ to people about my testimony when they asked about my faith and why I embraced it. I will then leave it as that. Once in while I will pray for them and allow the Holy Spirit to touch their lives.
With this, I want to encourage my siblings-in-Christ reading this blog to have a genuine relationship with God. This also serves as a reminder for me. In the process, we do not have to sell Jesus to others but in turn, they will be curious to know who He is and that is when we can testify to them about God's transformational power in our lives. If they so conclude that this God is real, then nothing more need to be said. They themselves will naturally be drawn to Him.
Well, I hope I make sense in what I have written. Let us be people of God who attract and not repel.
"We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints — the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth. You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." Colossians 1:3-14
Well, it has been the talk of the town since then - religious harmony in Singapore. A Christian couple were also mentioned by Mr. Lee Hsien Loong for how they have been distributing tracts to people of different faiths and as a result for their insensitive acts, they have been charged and sentenced to imprisonment.
Many times Christians have been targetted by many as ones who are enthusiastic (sometimes overly enthusiastic) in spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ to others.
When it comes to this, I can see two groups of Christians here: one who sincerely want to share with others how God has touched their lives; the other who just want to sell Jesus Christ as if He is a product.
Let me just touch on the first group because in doing so, we can see the futile effort of the other, which usually gives a bad name to Christianity.
In my 24 years as a Christian, I have been in both groups and my conclusion is this - let your lifestyle speak the loudest. Christianity to me is not a religion. Another 'r' comes to mind - it is a relationship between God and me. If I cherish this relationship, whatever God teaches me from the Bible; speaks to me during prayers; spurs me during my fellowship with my siblings-in-Christ, I will surely want to be transformed and not be conformed any longer to the patterns of this world. If I constantly keep in step with Him, surely there will be a marked change in my life.
Then, in my speech and action, people will see the difference - they will see Christ in me. Though I am still work in progress (as I still have my weaknesses and flaws), I have shared Christ to people about my testimony when they asked about my faith and why I embraced it. I will then leave it as that. Once in while I will pray for them and allow the Holy Spirit to touch their lives.
With this, I want to encourage my siblings-in-Christ reading this blog to have a genuine relationship with God. This also serves as a reminder for me. In the process, we do not have to sell Jesus to others but in turn, they will be curious to know who He is and that is when we can testify to them about God's transformational power in our lives. If they so conclude that this God is real, then nothing more need to be said. They themselves will naturally be drawn to Him.
Well, I hope I make sense in what I have written. Let us be people of God who attract and not repel.
"We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, because we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all the saints — the faith and love that spring from the hope that is stored up for you in heaven and that you have already heard about in the word of truth, the gospel that has come to you. All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God's grace in all its truth. You learned it from Epaphras, our dear fellow servant, who is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and who also told us of your love in the Spirit. For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins." Colossians 1:3-14
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