The Sophos (May 30th)

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What is it?
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“The Sophos” (Sage) would be a topic where I share wise and edifying words from Pastors, Theologians, the Puritans and the characters in Scripture. May you find this entry encouraging.
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The Sophos
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“Life, death, hell, and worlds unknown, hang on the preaching and the hearing of a sermon.” – Charles Haddon Spurgeon

“For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps.” – The Apostle Paul 

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” – Jesus Christ 

“There is nothing more irreligious than self-absorbed religion.” – J.I. Packer

“The Scriptures teach us the best way of living, the noblest way of suffering, and the most comfortable way of dying.” – John Flavel 

Jude 3 – 4

Beloved, although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. (Jude 1:3-4)

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Introduction
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We continue with our study on the letter of Jude. Last week, I began on the 1st part of Jude. Let me provide for us some reminders about this letter. We want to be reminded that the theme of Jude is that “the church must contend for the one true faith once for all delivered to the saints and people of faith must persevere to the end by resisting the false teachers and following the truth.” (ESV Study Bible, Introduction to Jude) The purpose for which Jude wrote this letter is found in verse 3, where believers are to “contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.” With thoughtful and careful exegesis, and biblical hermeneutics, we will today examine Jude’s appeal to the Christians that he’s writing to, and also his appeal to the Christians who will read his letter. 
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Jude 3 – 4
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Beloved,

In the opening sentence of Jude’s content, or the body of the letter, Jude begins with a sentiment by calling his readers “beloved” (Gk: agapētos). Other translations would say, “Dear friends”, but I think it misses an important point of the emotion or sentiment that Jude is expressing. In the Greek, it literally says “beloved” or agapētos.  Who are the “beloved”? An obvious answer would be the Christians. But we should ask ourselves, how did we come to that kind of conclusion? Is it just what we think or is it what Scripture teaches? Scripture clearly teaches it, and it’s not just what we think. Without going into the technical details, the answer is that the New Testament uses that language very frequently to refer to God’s children (1 John 3:2) who are loved by God (1 John 4:11). Indeed, Jude is speaking to Christians. 

although I was very eager to write to you about our common salvation, I found it necessary to write appealing to you to contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.

 By reading this writing of Jude, we know Jude was probably going to write something else regarding “our common salvation” or “the salvation we share”. Every Christian shares a salvation that does not differ no matter what the false teachers teach that Jude is going to talk about. It is a salvation that is not perverted. It is a salvation where we acknowledge and believe Jesus Christ as our Master and Lord – other letters talk about believing in Jesus Christ as our Savior as well. It is a salvation where we are justified by faith (Romans 3:28) and saved by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9). After being justified by faith, sanctification begins as a progress in our salvation (1 Thessalonians 4:3; Philippians 2:12-13) where we follow Jesus, love and obey Him by the power of the Holy Spirit and grow in holiness. It is a salvation with which Jude concludes his letter in his doxology (Jude 24 – 25). 

He was eager and wanted to make an effort to do so; however, his agenda has changed. He has a different purpose in writing this letter. Instead, he found it necessary to tell the Christians to “contend for the faith” (Greek: epagōnizomai), which is the purpose of this letter. It is a letter of exhortation. This word, “epagōnizomai”, is only found in this letter – it is a very rare word. It would not be wrong to add an adverb for the content, which is “earnestly”. The word “earnestly” is added to convey the intensive force of the preposition “to contend for”. “The faith” is the known and received body of truth about Jesus and salvation through Him. This faith had been once for all delivered to the saints, which are the Christians. In other words, by the time that Jude wrote his letter, “the faith” had already been fixed and established in the apostolic teaching of the early church, and therefore could not be changed, but was under attack and in need of defense. It also indicated that new revelation cannot change the core of this faith. This faith has been received and passed on (just like Paul entrusted the gospel to Timothy and urged him to guard it (2 Timothy 1:14)). Why would Jude be writing this letter?

For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

This sentence explains the reason why Jude is telling the Christians to “contend for the faith”. There are these “certain people” sneaking in or creeping in unnoticed. Paul, and probably the New Testament, uses the word “certain” to describe the unnamed group (1 Tim 1:3, 1:6). Jude makes charges about these people. 

1. They entered into the church as ordinary Christians and (perhaps) their behavior did not cause the church to be suspicious of them when in reality their teaching is different and ought to have aroused suspicion. 
2. They pervert the grace of God into a “license” to sin and for immorality. 
3. They deny Jesus Christ as their Lord and Master (it’s not enough to just believe Jesus as your Savior). Without recognizing Jesus’ Lordship over our lives, is there any need to obey and fear God?
4. They are ungodly people – “ungodly” is a repeated word in the entire letter of Jude. 
5. Scripture condemns these people (later on in the letter).

Jude says that these people “were designated for this condemnation”. Apostasy and false teachers in general are not new. Furthermore, the New Testament also prophecies that these people will come. Paul in Acts 20:29-30 and Jesus in Matthew 7:15 talks about these people as wolves who will sneak into the church and twist the truth. Peter says that “there WILL be false teachers among you” (2 Peter 2:1). It has already happen, and they will be condemned unless God, perhaps, grant them repentance (2 Timothy 2:24-26). Jude later on illustrates and applies examples of judgment from the whole of biblical history in his polemic against the heretics (Jude 5 – 7). 
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Application
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1.) As Jude exhorts his readers, we are to “contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints”. How did you come to faith (salvation through Jesus Christ)? Meditate on 1 Thessalonians 2:13. 
2.) Are you equipped to defend the truth? False teachers are here, and their teachings may sooth your “itching ears” and soon enough “turn [you] away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”
3.) Is your teaching/theology/doctrine consistent with Scripture? If not, then I urge you to examine the Bible more carefully, correct yourself and repent. If you do not, then please examine your faith lest you continue your path to everlasting destruction. (Yes I am threatening you because the Bible threatens and warns us about false teaching) (see 1 Timothy 1:3-7; 2 Corinthians 11:13-15; 2 Peter 2:1-4; Revelation 20:10)

Law And Gospel Debate

There has been a discussion that’s been circulating within the evangelical circle regarding the law and the gospel. There is a mixed bags of confusion on how Christians should understand the law and the gospel, especially on the topic of sanctification. Such confusion can cause theologians, preachers, and Christians to step out of the line of orthodoxy, which then leads back to the subject of antinomianism. Antinomianism is not simply about “sinning so that grace may abound”. This teaching (bad theology and false teaching) is sneaking inside the church without the lay people having any sort of knowledge about the subject. 

The questions that are being asked are (and there’s more):

1. Do Christians need to obey the law in order to please God?
2. Do Christians need to work hard and try to obey the law by the power of the Holy Spirit? 
3. Is God displeased when Christians sin OR do our sins affect God’s love for us?
4. Is the motivation in obeying the law simply a way to express thanksgiving?

I somewhat made a response in the past, and I will not repeat myself.

It would seem like there will be a discussion or a debate about this subject, and I think it is needed because Christians are confused. It is critical to have a clarity and an answer about this topic. 

Dr. Mark Jones publicly offered to go to Florida and debate with Tullian Tchividjian at his own expense.  

Check out Kevin DeYoung’s post on this issue:

But it’s also possible—and in fact, everyone seems to agree on this point—that there are profound disagreements about what sanctification is and how it happens. I’d be happy to slowly work through each of these questions over the coming months. I’d be happy to look at questions from the “other side.” I’d be happy to see Mark and Tullian sit down (or stand up, as the case may be) for a friendly debate. I’d be happy for anyone willing to hash through these questions, ready to quote Bible verses and bring to bear the wisdom of our confessional tradition. I’d be happy for anyone or anything that produces clarity.

Rightly Handling The Word Of Truth

Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. (2 Timothy 2:15)

“Do your best” (Greek: ‘spoudason’) can also be translated as “be diligent”. It is a word that stresses excellency, zeal and effort to be put into the work.

In context, one of Paul’s final instructions to Timothy was for Timothy to pursue with great diligence to seek God’s approval. This “approval” is not speaking about salvation, but is speaking of one that has been tested and approved by God. One of the tests is “rightly handling the word of truth” or the “word of God”, which can be:

1. All of Scripture in general (John 17:17)
2. The Gospel message in particular. (Colossians 1:5; Ephesians 1:13)

Timothy was to give his maximum effort to impart God’s word completely, accurately, and clearly to his hearers. This is crucial to counter the disastrous effects of false teaching in the surrounding context. Precision and accuracy are required in biblical interpretation because the interpreter is handling God’s word. Therefore, anyone who is approved after being tested has no need to be ashamed.

However, for anyone who fails this test, not only is he not approved, but he should be ashamed. So if you’re not rightly handling the word of truth, then you ought to be ashamed. 

There is an end-time nuance in this verse because of the word “approved by God”. Like us, Timothy will stand before God and give an account of his life. Teaching or preaching is especially dangerous because teachers will be judged with greater strictness (James 3:1). If you are teaching, then you better be careful with what you say because you will also give an account “for every careless word” that you say (Matthew 12:36).

Jude 1 – 2

Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James,To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ: May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you. (Jude 1:1-2)

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Introduction
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Last week, I began an introduction on the book of Jude. I thought it would be appropriate, in this day and age, for me to do an exposition on the letter of Jude because of all the false teachings that are present. Although false teaching is certainly contagious and deadly, apostasy is equally dangerous. We want to be reminded that the theme of Jude is that “the church must contend for the one true faith once for all delivered to the saints and people of faith must persevere to the end by resisting the false teachers and following the truth.” (ESV Study Bible, Introduction to Jude) The purpose that Jude wrote this letter is found in verse 3, where believers are to “contend for the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints.” With thoughtful and careful exegesis, and biblical hermeneutics, we will today begin the study by understanding the opening and salutation of the letter.
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Jude 1 – 2
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Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James,

First of all, who is Jude? Jude introduces himself as a “brother of James”. How do we know? Nowhere in the Bible does the word, “Jude”, appear aside from this letter. 

Jude, in Greek (Ἰούδας, Ioudas), can also be called “Judas”. Jude traces back to the root word in Hebrew called “Judah”. We know Jude is not “Judas Iscariot”, who betrayed Jesus Christ, because he was already dead by the time this letter was written. The options are then narrowed down to two as to who he is: one of the apostles (John 14:22) or the half-brother of Jesus (Matthew 13:55). Evidently, Matthew 13:55 says Jesus’ family, his brothers, consists of James, Jude, and others. In the introduction of this letter, we are told that Jude is a brother of James. It is highly possible, therefore, that Jude is the half-brother of Jesus.

Second of all, Jude also introduces himself as a “servant of Jesus Christ”. In Greek, the word, “servant”, is called “doulas”, which means servant, bond-servant, or slave. Why does Jude call himself a “doulas” of Christ? Is he trying to be humble? Jude is not the only one who introduces himself like that, for the author of the Pauline Epistles and the author of the other Epistles often introduce themselves as “doulas” of Christ. The term, “servant of Christ”, is not necessarily a term of humility per se, but an indication that the author’s status comes from Jesus, whom they belong to. Jude recognized that his life is for the service of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. There are many ways to refer to the identity of believers in Christ: Beloved, Children, Son, Disciples… As believers, we are also called “servants” or “slaves” because Jesus Christ bought us with His blood (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). The implication is that we are called to obey Him and submit to His Lordship for our lives. Believers tend to miss this vital point regarding our identity in Christ. 

To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ

There are two approaches in understanding what this “called” means. First, we accept that God, in His love, called us in the way of predestining us for His service. Calling, within this context, is when God elected His people, and this calling is not a “general calling” but an “effectual calling” to salvation. Or second, we accept that God’s calling to salvation is for everyone, but they have to receive and accept that calling. Either way, we know that this calling has a connection to the Trinity. 

We are described as beloved (agapaō) in God the Father. This is good news. It is this great fact which determines the nature of the call. The call to men and women is the call to be loved and to love. Near the end of the letter, Christians are to “keep [themselves] in the love of God”. Jude might be hinting at John’s understanding of abiding love (1 John 4:16; John 15). Jude is indicating that those who are “loved by God” are “in God”.

We are also described as “kept for Jesus Christ”. Other translations might say “kept by Jesus Christ”. However, the former is more natural when reading the Greek (pg. 38, The Letters of 2 Peter and Jude by Peter H. Davids). Those who are called and loved are also those who are protected. Who’s doing the protecting? God the Father is doing the keeping (1 Peter 1:4-5; John 10:29). The Holy Spirit has sealed us (Ephesians 1:13-14). Jesus said nobody can snatch His people out of His hand (John 10:28). All are equally true. What is the emphasis in this passage? The emphasis is that believers are guarded or reserved (kept) FOR Christ – for Him in a specific way and in a special moment. The emphasis is an eschatological focus on the idea of guarding. I think believers being kept has a lot to do with Revelation 19:6-10 where Jesus Christ will get His Bride – the Church (Ephesians 5:22-33). 

May mercy, peace, and love be multiplied to you.

Finally, Jude completes his salutation with a threefold blessing: Mercy, peace and love. John MacArthur commented that ” ‘mercy and peace’ [Shalom] was a common Jewish greeting; ‘love’ was added to make this distinctively Christian. Only here in the NT do these three qualities appear so closely together. Where law and works prevail, there is failure and death. Where grace prevails, there is mercy (Eph. 2:4; Heb. 4:16), peace (Rom. 5:1), and love (Rom. 5:5) in abundance.” (John MacArthur Study Bible) And we see that Jude prays for this threefold blessing to be multiplied to you. Peter gives that same prayer (2 Peter 1:2). 
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Application
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There are important lessons to be learned in these two short verses. First of all, believers are identified as “servants” or “slaves” in Christ. This has strong implications regarding how we live our lives, spend our money, spend our time, how to talk and how we serve. If we are servants, then every part of us belongs to Jesus Christ. Not only is He our Savior and Friend, but He is our Master; He is our Lord. The false teachers and the apostates deny Jesus as their Lord and Master (Jude 4). How do you live your life as “servants” in Christ? Are you obeying Him? 

A second lesson we can learn is that we are beloved in God the Father. Every Christian should be able to say, “I am loved by my Father in heaven!” This love should transform us to be more like Christ. God demonstrated His love for us by sending His Son to die on the cross for our sins (Romans 5:7-8). The love he shows us is part of His grace towards His people. When we sin, we can find forgiveness in Him. Regret, shame and guilt may cause us to doubt God’s love for us, but Scripture affirms that God does indeed love us; and we need to hold on to that reminder. 

Introduction: Epistle Of Jude

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Overview
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I have been wanting to do an exposition on a book in the Bible. I’ve had this desire within me for the past few weeks. There are a lot of things happening in my life, and a lot of things could pull their influence on me and distract me. I thought it would be appropriate, in this day and age, for me to do an exposition on the letter of Jude because of all the false teachings that are present in this world. There is a movement very prevalent in this age called the “Hyper-Grace” movement. This “hyper-grace” movement is led by people like Paul Ellis, Joseph Prince, and the like. It is appropriately seen in the light of the teaching that Jude says in verse 4, “ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality”. King James would use the word, “lasciviousness”, instead of sensuality. 

Hyper-Grace teaches that once we are saved by Jesus, we are no longer bound to law and we no longer need to obey  because we are holy and righteous, since Jesus, as a holy and righteous man, lives in us. Hyper-Grace teaches that we no longer need to confess our sins because our sins have been forgiven from the past, the present to the future. 

Not every point of teaching from hyper-grace is false, for, indeed, they have some teaching correct. Overall, however, it is teaching that disregards Progressive Sanctification (I’m not talking about justification); it disregards the importance of keeping God’s commandments and it brings back an extremely controversial topic in the 17th century called antinomianism. 

I sincerely believe that the hyper-grace movement is associated with antinomianism. I honestly believe that antinomianism is not only bad teaching or bad theology, but a false teaching that “perverts the grace of our God” and misinterprets the meaning of God’s grace. I am not merely picking on the hyper-grace movement, but every kind of false teachings, such as the prosperity gospel, modalism, pelagianism and etc.
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Introduction
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Therefore, the theme of Jude is that “the church must contend for the one true faith once for all delivered to the saints and people of faith must persevere to the end by resisting the false teachers and following the truth.” (ESV Study Bible, Introduction to Jude)

It is one of the shortest letters in the New Testament. Jude and 2 Peter were probably written around the same time because their content is very similar to each other. 

Because of false teachers who are sneaking into the church, Jude warns against being led away by their teachings. Paul testifies about the need for such warnings to the church of Ephesus in Acts 20:29-30, “I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them.” False teachers generally will rise up and expose themselves from within the church – sometimes we think it is backward. Jesus also spoke about this warning in Matthew 7:15, ““Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.”
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Conclusion
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I look forward to writing about and explaining the Epistle of Jude. It is an important letter that has unfortunately been devalued in the church. May we heed the gospel’s warning and stand edified in the upcoming weeks.

The Sophos (May 14th)

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What is it?
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“The Sophos” (Sage) would be a topic where I share wise and edifying words from Pastors, Theologians, the Puritans and the characters in Scripture. May you find this entry encouraging.
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The Sophos
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“He that has doctrinal knowledge and speculation only, without affection, never is engaged in the business of religion.” – Jonathan Edwards

 “My brothers, when God first began to love you, he gave you all that he ever meant to give you in the lump, and eternity of time is that in which he is retailing of it out.” – Thomas Goodwin

“It is in the nature of this grace to grow and increase unto the end. As rivers, the nearer they come unto the ocean where they tend, the more they increase their waters, and speed their streams; so will grace flow more freely and fully in its near approaches to the ocean of glory.” – John Owen 

“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” – C. S. Lewis

“Justification by faith is the hinge on which all true religion turns.” – John Calvin 

The Gospel Is "Better" Than You Imagine

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Life Story
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The other day, Alison and I went to a small bookshop to browse and purchase some books. Alison happened to find some good children’s book for the kids that she helps out with. I, on the other hand, immediately went to the Christian book aisle and the biography aisle. Little did I know, there wasn’t an aisle for Christian books. I did, however, find a religious books section, which were filled with interesting books on different religions – I personally enjoy reading and understanding different faith backgrounds. 

I stumbled across a book by Rob Bell called, “Love Wins: For Teens”. I was reading the description at the back cover of the book. There was this one sentence that bothered me a lot, “And what if the answer to life’s meaning is much better than we ever imagined?” I immediately glanced over and picked up the original version of the book, “Love Wins”, and I read another sentence that was similar to the former, “Rob Bell presents a deeply biblical vision for rediscovering a richer, grander, truer, and more spiritually satisfying way of understanding heaven, hell, God, Jesus, salvation, and repentance. The result is the discovery that the ‘good news’ is much, much better than we ever imagined.” Just recently, I remember a person who said to me, “The good news is better than you think!”
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The Phrase
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I personally never bothered to try and find out what that phrase means. I do not even know who originally coined that phrase – it is possible for the meaning to have different nuances or semantics – but Bell is one of the first authors I know of who cited that phrase – by the way, I will be doing a critical or reflective reading of “Love Wins” for my seminary outcome. 

The phrase may be interpreted in several ways:

1. Our present perspective of the Gospel is dull and boring Therefore, we need a reminder that the Gospel is much better – not dull nor boring – than our present perspective. 
2. We have already have an understanding of the Gospel, but the teacher shows us something more that we’re missing – the better aspects of the Gospel!
3. Our understanding of the Gospel is all wrong. Therefore, the teacher shows you the real Gospel, which is better than what you have!

Whatever the meaning may be, we need to be discerning when we come across this phrase. Because this phrase contains a lot of nuances, we need to understand it in light of the context of the book or the article or whatever the content may be in order to present a fair critique of the phrase. It is probably not a bad phrase if it is used properly and Biblically to clarify and correct our understanding of the Gospel or the Bible or the traditional orthodox teachings.

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Discernment
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Might I suggest passages of Scripture that may help us to discern what to make of the Gospel, whatever the content we are reading. 

1. The Gospel has to be presented “in accordance with the Scriptures.” (1 Corinthians 15:3) If the “Gospel” that is presented is contrary to the entire teachings of Scripture, then we have to immediately reject that “Gospel”, which is no Gospel at all. 
2. If the “Gospel” is a different gospel from what Paul taught, confirmed with the other Apostles, and is contrary to the entire teachings of Scripture, then it is a distorted gospel. (Galatians 1:4-10)
3. If the “Gospel” is a different gospel from what Paul taught, confirmed with the other Apostles, and is contrary to the entire teachings of Scripture, then it is a “Gospel” preached by false teachers that promises health and wealth. If you have believed in that “Gospel”, then you have received a demonic or a false spirit and have been greatly deceived. (2 Corinthians 11:1-6)

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Conclusion
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Having discernment and wisdom is important. The noble Bereans in Acts 17:10-12 should remind us about the importance to “examine the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” Apollos in Acts 18:24-25 should remind us about being “competent in the Scriptures” and being able to teach “accurately the things concerning Jesus”. Paul’s teaching to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15 should remind us to “rightly [handle] the word of truth”. It is not necessarily always safe to only listen to teachers. In our walk with God, we ought to balance between listening to teachers and studying the Scriptures. The Gospel is indeed glorious and has the power to save. The Gospel ultimately has to derive from the teachings of Scripture, not from people who create counterfeit gospels. 

Reminiscing And The Future

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Story
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Alison and I went to a park and playground near my church yesterday. She enjoyed taking a stroll at the park and playing with the monkey bars, the swing and the slide. I was reminiscing.

As a kid, I absolutely adored the playground. Not only that, I was pretty much as wild as a monkey. I would play with the monkey bar until my hands literally started to bleed and skin started to get ripped out, developing a lot of calluses. I would go to the extreme on the swings, get as high into the air as possible, and then take a leap of faith in midair. My mom used to get upset at me for playing too crazily at the playground, because she would have to patch my wounds. Going down the slide with my head first was also fun for me. That’s me when I was a kid. I am sure there are a lot of boys like me who would do these kind of things. 

While I was at the playground reminiscing, reality struck me – I can no longer do what I used to do as a kid. Now my hands hurt, and I pulled a muscle on my arm while playing on the monkey bars. I also can’t muster up enough courage to do anything extreme. I’m too big for the playground. Indeed, I am getting old. 
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Overview
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I was pondering about getting old for some time. People do not like the idea of getting old. People do their best to preserve their youthful looks, which is where most of the money is spent in this world. There is fear about getting old because getting old means that you’re getting closer to your death. Getting old means that you’re growing wrinkles or “not-so” beautiful or handsome. Getting old means you’re loosing strips of hair and growing white hair.  Most of us do not look forward to getting older. 
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What The Bible Says
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The Bible presents growing old as something that is very normal and a natural part of life. There is splendor and dignity in growing old (Proverbs 16:31 and Proverbs 20:29).

The Bible presents growing old as a reminder that life is short and temporary. James reminds us that in everything that we plan, we are not to be proud about it as if these plans would happen. We are to be humble, and if God wills, then may we be able to do the things that are planned (James 4:13-17). 

The Bible, specifically the book of Ecclesiastes, presents growing old as a way to inform us about what the meaning of life is and what kind of legacy we are passing on. I believe Solomon was the one who penned down Ecclesiastes near the end of his life. Solomon was the wealthiest and most successful man in the history of mankind. Solomon even owned a harem (1 Kings 11:3). The book of Ecclesiastes is a testimony of Solomon’s life, and he’s providing wisdom to us about life and informing all of us that life without God is vanity. 

The Bible presents growing old as a process that serves a direction in life, which is death. Death does not have to come by growing old, but whichever way we die – whether it’s by natural causes or not – we will face judgment immediately (Hebrews 9:27). There will not be any second chances. In addition, Jesus promised His people that He will return to wrap up history (John 14:2-4). Anything that happens to us at this hour may be the last thing we will do, and Jesus is calling us to repent or perish. (Luke 13:1-5)
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Conclusion
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The Bible teaches us a lot more about growing older. I am technically just thinking out loud in this entry. We cannot control time and we cannot control how we age. Hopefully this entry serves as a reminder for all of us about life. Life is indeed fragile, but no one knows the depth of their own fragility.

Mother’s Day

Happy Mother’s Day! During the Sunday morning service, I gave a tribute to my mom. This is my transcript for my speech.

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Who?

• Hazel Leung…that is the name of my mother.
• My mom is the second youngest in the family of…9, I think.
• My mom is the best cook ever. I asked her how she learned to cook. She learned how to cook by observing and helping her mother, my grandmother, cook. She also knows the food that I hate to eat, so she does not cook a lot of them.
• My mom has good taste on fashion. In addition, she works as a tailor during her extra free time from work. My mom would make sure that I would have a suit that perfectly fits me because she wants me to dress nicely for special events.
• My mom loves dim sum – food in the Chinese restaurant. Almost every single week, she would spend time with her friends to go out for dim sum. I would always do my best to spend time with her and at least eat lunch with her.
• My mom is very traditional and loved family time. Special events such as Chinese New Year, she would tell everyone in the family to get together for dinner, and bring your significant other if you will.
• Of course, there are still much more I could tell you about my mother.

• My mom is a strong woman…a woman who conceived and bored 5 boys in the family, of which I am the second youngest.
• My mom has always been there – from the time of my birth until now. She took care of me, she looked after me, she fed, she clothed me, and she saw me grew in stature.
• My mom would invest her money and time to put me in extracurricular activities, tutoring and Chinese school.
• My mom would correct her boys in whatever manner of tone or action.
• My mom is full of grace when her rebellious sons go on the wrong path.

Challenges

• My mom has faced many challenges in her life. I did mention that my mom is a strong woman. Not only is she strong, but a woman who perseveres through the most difficult trials in her life.
• My mom took up the responsibility to raise up her two youngest sons, me and my little brother, when my parents separated. Three of my older brothers were independent at that time.
• My mom had no income, nor received any income from relatives or immediate family, so she had to work even to the point of working every single day with two jobs for 3-4 years.
• I remember as she was trying out the second job, she quit immediately because it was challenging. Nonetheless, she persevered in finding the 2nd job because she had no choice since she did not have enough income to pay rent nor feed her two sons. She sacrificed her sleep and social life just so that my little brother and I could get through high school, and go to University and get a good job after that.
• My mom at one point was tempted to not bear the responsibility or burden and leave her two sons all by themselves, but her love and sacrifice for the family was breath-taking.
• Despite the fact that my little brother and I were giving her tremendous hard times during our teenage years, my mom is not a person who easily holds grudges against someone. She will do her best to correct and teach her children.

Lessons

• That’s my mother. Growing up and watching her live, there are great lessons to be learned.
• She taught me to be a responsible person, and take good care of her and my future spouse as I grow up.
• Her circumstances taught me about perseverance. It is definitely not easy to walk along this path, but we as a family persevered together through those challenges.
• Nonetheless, my mom is a great role model in demonstrating her love and sacrifice for the family, and bearing the responsibility to take care of her children.

Doxology

• I really thank God for placing a wonderful mother in my life.
• God used my mom in many ways to nurture me into the person that I am today. If it weren’t for her, then I might not even be here.
• I know my mom loves me.
• If my mom were here today in this service, I want her to know that I deeply appreciate her and I love her.