And Jesus looked at him and said, "How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." (Luke 18:24-25 NASB)
The Bible mentioned two rich men, one righteous rich young ruler who did all the commandments of God and Zacchaeus, the sinful publican, traitor, cheater and liar.
Jesus said to the righteous young man, "Sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." (Luke 18:22)
Jesus said the sinful Zacchaeus, "Zacchaeus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house." (Luke 19:5)
When the righteous rich young man hear what Jesus required, he became sad. (Luke 18:23)
When sinful Zacchaeus heard that Jesus was coming to his house, he said, "I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!" (Luke 19:8)
Jesus taught all who are rich not to trust in uncertain riches (1 Timothy 6:17). Jesus taught all who are righteous not to trust in their works (Matthew 7:22).
When you trust Jesus for your salvation, automatically you will not trust in your wealth, which is why Zacchaeus was willing to give half of his wealth away.
But when you trust in your own works of righteousness, you will also trust in your own wealth. That is why the rich young ruler was so sad when Jesus asked him to sell all that he had.
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Human Relationships, 人倫
五倫《孟子 ‧ 滕文公章句》
人之有道也，飽食、暖衣、逸居而無教，則近於禽獸。聖人有懮之，使契為司徒，教以人倫：父子有親，君臣有義，夫婦有別，長幼有敘（序），朋友有信。
The Bible has three relationships instead of five and Apostle Paul always use the relationship of Christ and the Church as the model for interaction:
Husband and Wife (Colossians 3:18-19, Ephesians 5:22-33, 1 Peter 3:1-7)
Parent and Child (Colossians 3:20-21, Ephesians 6:1-4)
Master and Servant (Colossians 3:22-4:1, Ephesians 6:5-9, 1 Peter 2:18-25)
Finally, we have two commandments (Deuteronomy 6:5, Leviticus 19:18) which undergird all the three relationships:
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. (Matthew 22:37-40 KJV)
人之有道也，飽食、暖衣、逸居而無教，則近於禽獸。聖人有懮之，使契為司徒，教以人倫：父子有親，君臣有義，夫婦有別，長幼有敘（序），朋友有信。
The Bible has three relationships instead of five and Apostle Paul always use the relationship of Christ and the Church as the model for interaction:
Husband and Wife (Colossians 3:18-19, Ephesians 5:22-33, 1 Peter 3:1-7)
Parent and Child (Colossians 3:20-21, Ephesians 6:1-4)
Master and Servant (Colossians 3:22-4:1, Ephesians 6:5-9, 1 Peter 2:18-25)
Finally, we have two commandments (Deuteronomy 6:5, Leviticus 19:18) which undergird all the three relationships:
Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. (Matthew 22:37-40 KJV)
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Christ Pre-Eminent
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For everything was created by Him, in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities — all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and by Him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:15-17 HCSB)
Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. (Colossians 1:15-17 KJV)
Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. (Colossians 1:15-17 KJV)
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Council of Trent
But I fear that somehow your pure and undivided devotion to Christ will be corrupted, just as Eve was deceived by the cunning ways of the serpent. You happily put up with whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach, or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received, or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed. (2 Corinthians 11:4 NLT)
For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. (1 Corinthians 15:3-5 HCSB)
He has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. (2 Timothy 1:9 HCSB)
The Council of Trent was the Roman Catholic church's response to the Reformation. It was convened Pope Paul III in an attempt to counter the doctrines raised and supported by the Reformers. The official opening of the council was on Dec. 13, 1545 and was closed on Dec. 14, 1563, after twenty-five sessions over three periods (1545-1547, 1551-1552, 1562-1563). The council delivered many statements specifying Catholic doctrine on salvation, the sacraments, and the Biblical canon and issued condemnations on what it defined as Protestant heresies. The following are some of the condemnations (curses, anathema).
On Justification
Session VI - Celebrated on the thirteenth day of January, 1547 under Pope Paul III
Canon 9:
If anyone says that the sinner is justified by faith alone, meaning that nothing else is required to cooperate in order to obtain the grace of justification, and that it is not in any way necessary that he be prepared and disposed by the action of his own will, let him be anathema.
Canon 12:
If anyone says that justifying faith is nothing else than confidence in divine mercy, which remits sins for Christ's sake, or that it is this confidence alone that justifies us, let him be anathema.
Canon 14:
If anyone says that man is absolved from his sins and justified because he firmly believes that he is absolved and justified, or that no one is truly justified except him who believes himself justified, and that by this faith alone absolution and justification are effected, let him be anathema.
Canon 23:
If anyone says that a man once justified can sin no more, nor lose grace, and that therefore he that falls and sins was never truly justified; or on the contrary, that he can during his whole life avoid all sins, even those that are venial, except by a special privilege from God, as the Church holds in regard to the Blessed Virgin, let him be anathema.
Canon 24:
If anyone says that the justice received is not preserved and also not increased before God through good works, but that those works are merely the fruits and signs of justification obtained, but not the cause of its increase, let him be anathema.
Canon 30:
If anyone says that after the reception of the grace of justification the guilt is so remitted and the debt of eternal punishment so blotted out to every repentant sinner, that no debt of temporal punishment remains to be discharged either in this world or in purgatory before the gates of heaven can be opened, let him be anathema.
Canon 33:
If anyone says that the Catholic doctrine of justification as set forth by the holy council in the present decree, derogates in some respect from the glory of God or the merits of our Lord Jesus Christ, and does not rather illustrate the truth of our faith and no less the glory of God and of Christ Jesus, let him be anathema.
On Baptism
Session VII - Celebrated on the third day of March 1547, under Pope Paul III
Canon 5
If anyone says that baptism is optional, that is, not necessary for salvation, let him be anathema.
On Holy Communion
Session XIII - The third under the Supreme Pontiff, Julius III, celebrated on the eleventh day of October, 1551
Canon 2
If anyone says that in the sacred and, holy sacrament of the Eucharist the substance of the bread and wine remains conjointly with the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, and denies that wonderful and singular change of the whole substance of the bread into the body and the whole substance of the wine into the blood, the appearances only of bread and wine remaining, which change the Catholic Church most aptly calls transubstantiation, let him be anathema.
For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve. (1 Corinthians 15:3-5 HCSB)
He has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began. (2 Timothy 1:9 HCSB)
The Council of Trent was the Roman Catholic church's response to the Reformation. It was convened Pope Paul III in an attempt to counter the doctrines raised and supported by the Reformers. The official opening of the council was on Dec. 13, 1545 and was closed on Dec. 14, 1563, after twenty-five sessions over three periods (1545-1547, 1551-1552, 1562-1563). The council delivered many statements specifying Catholic doctrine on salvation, the sacraments, and the Biblical canon and issued condemnations on what it defined as Protestant heresies. The following are some of the condemnations (curses, anathema).
On Justification
Session VI - Celebrated on the thirteenth day of January, 1547 under Pope Paul III
Canon 9:
If anyone says that the sinner is justified by faith alone, meaning that nothing else is required to cooperate in order to obtain the grace of justification, and that it is not in any way necessary that he be prepared and disposed by the action of his own will, let him be anathema.
Canon 12:
If anyone says that justifying faith is nothing else than confidence in divine mercy, which remits sins for Christ's sake, or that it is this confidence alone that justifies us, let him be anathema.
Canon 14:
If anyone says that man is absolved from his sins and justified because he firmly believes that he is absolved and justified, or that no one is truly justified except him who believes himself justified, and that by this faith alone absolution and justification are effected, let him be anathema.
Canon 23:
If anyone says that a man once justified can sin no more, nor lose grace, and that therefore he that falls and sins was never truly justified; or on the contrary, that he can during his whole life avoid all sins, even those that are venial, except by a special privilege from God, as the Church holds in regard to the Blessed Virgin, let him be anathema.
Canon 24:
If anyone says that the justice received is not preserved and also not increased before God through good works, but that those works are merely the fruits and signs of justification obtained, but not the cause of its increase, let him be anathema.
Canon 30:
If anyone says that after the reception of the grace of justification the guilt is so remitted and the debt of eternal punishment so blotted out to every repentant sinner, that no debt of temporal punishment remains to be discharged either in this world or in purgatory before the gates of heaven can be opened, let him be anathema.
Canon 33:
If anyone says that the Catholic doctrine of justification as set forth by the holy council in the present decree, derogates in some respect from the glory of God or the merits of our Lord Jesus Christ, and does not rather illustrate the truth of our faith and no less the glory of God and of Christ Jesus, let him be anathema.
On Baptism
Session VII - Celebrated on the third day of March 1547, under Pope Paul III
Canon 5
If anyone says that baptism is optional, that is, not necessary for salvation, let him be anathema.
On Holy Communion
Session XIII - The third under the Supreme Pontiff, Julius III, celebrated on the eleventh day of October, 1551
Canon 2
If anyone says that in the sacred and, holy sacrament of the Eucharist the substance of the bread and wine remains conjointly with the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, and denies that wonderful and singular change of the whole substance of the bread into the body and the whole substance of the wine into the blood, the appearances only of bread and wine remaining, which change the Catholic Church most aptly calls transubstantiation, let him be anathema.
Thursday, January 19, 2012
First Things First
In the book "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" by Stephen F. Covey listed "Putting first things first" as the third habit and uses the four quadrant to determine what should be first.
The Bible tells us what are the first things.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Matthew 6:33 KJV)
After that we should be witnesses, first to those near us, then to those far away.
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. (Acts 1:8 KJV)
The Bible tells us what are the first things.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. (Matthew 6:33 KJV)
After that we should be witnesses, first to those near us, then to those far away.
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. (Acts 1:8 KJV)
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Reaching God Through Silence
Today (14 Jan 2012) Straits Times Forum (page A47) published a reply by Shi Chuan Guan (Shi ZhiXing), Dharma Propagation Chair, Singapore Buddhist Federation, in response at an article by Chua Mui Hoong on Tuesday (Straits Times Prime Commentary Page A2), who thought that she found some harmony in all religions - reaching God through silence. But Shi Chuan Guan unharmoniously rebutted her. This is part of what he wrote:
QUOTE
Buddhists do not have a belief in a creator god and also do not meditate to reach god through silence.
We meditate to cultivate samadhi (concentration) and prajna (wisdom).
This wisdom culminates in nirvana, which is the complete cessation of suffering, attaining Buddhahood.
This is not communion with god or gods.
UNQUOTE
Well, the Bible tells us that there is a Creator God, but the Bible never teaches Christians to communicate with God through silence. We pray intelligently and verbally to God. There are times when we have to wait in silence for God's answer, but that is waiting, not communicating.
Actually if you read Chua Mui Hoong's article carefully, she did not contradict Buddhism. This is what she wrote:
QUOTE
They focused on contemplation and meditation - the common search for meaning and the journey to God or Ultimate Reality or Divine Consciousness, through the path of stillness and silence.
UNQUOTE
So she described exactly what Shi Chuan Guan described - meditate to attain wisdom than to the ultimate - nirvana. She just did not add nirvana into her catalogue of ultimates to seek, but neither did she claim that those are the only three possibilities.
But she contradicted the Bible. The Bible tells us that men never seek for the true God. "There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. (Romans 3:11 KJV)", but it is God that seeks for us. "For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost. (Luke 19:10 NLT)".
Stop your seeking through the path of stillness and silence. God had already spoken and had told us the way. Any other way leads to ultimate futility.
Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6 KJV)
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8 NASB)
Friday, January 13, 2012
Cockroach, Evolution and Sex
I had lunch on 12-Jan-2012 with some friends and one of them enlightened us with the fact that cockroaches had survived for hundreds of millions of years. I searched the web and found that cockroaches easily date back to 350 million years, that is, if you believe in the theory of evolution. But evolution is a farce and sex proves it.
This is what evolution teach us. Long ago, living things were single celled and asexual. They reproduced by dividing themselves into two. Then one day, one living thing hit upon the idea of mixing half of its genetic material with another living thing and sex was invented. And all these are done without consciousness and planning!
Try this thought experiment, how does an asexual living thing eventually developed into a pair of living things, with one giving and the other receiving genetic material for reproduction? How can this synchronised evolution happen? Remember, this is about reproduction. So it has to work the first time, or there will be no descendant to evolve further.
When we write computer programs to do interfaces between two systems, we have to do so much planning and testing. Here we are expecting brainless random chance to create a working interface. Do you think it will happen; even you give it a billion years to try?
By the way, why didn’t the cockroaches evolve further? They have attained perfection?
This is what evolution teach us. Long ago, living things were single celled and asexual. They reproduced by dividing themselves into two. Then one day, one living thing hit upon the idea of mixing half of its genetic material with another living thing and sex was invented. And all these are done without consciousness and planning!
Try this thought experiment, how does an asexual living thing eventually developed into a pair of living things, with one giving and the other receiving genetic material for reproduction? How can this synchronised evolution happen? Remember, this is about reproduction. So it has to work the first time, or there will be no descendant to evolve further.
When we write computer programs to do interfaces between two systems, we have to do so much planning and testing. Here we are expecting brainless random chance to create a working interface. Do you think it will happen; even you give it a billion years to try?
By the way, why didn’t the cockroaches evolve further? They have attained perfection?
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Artificial Contraception No, Casual Sex Yes
Today (12th Jan 2012) in Straits Times in Mind Your Body page 14, there is a certain Peter Liang who wrote this:
"As my religious faith does not encourage the use of artificial means for contraception, I would ask my partner for her menstrual cycle and avoid having sex during the 'riskier' ovulation period."
I think I can assume that the "partner" is not "wife" (unless he is a modern gender neutral guy, which I think spouse would be a better word than partner). This makes me wonder what kind of religion he follows, one that forbids artificial contraception but allows adultery and fornication.
"As my religious faith does not encourage the use of artificial means for contraception, I would ask my partner for her menstrual cycle and avoid having sex during the 'riskier' ovulation period."
I think I can assume that the "partner" is not "wife" (unless he is a modern gender neutral guy, which I think spouse would be a better word than partner). This makes me wonder what kind of religion he follows, one that forbids artificial contraception but allows adultery and fornication.
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