Monday, 5th January 2009
Do you know that we as beneficiaries of the New Covenant can determine when the time for us to leave this earth will be?
Consider the following Scripture passages:
1. God satisfies us with long life (Ps 91:16)
2. Christians are weak, sick and fall asleep (ie. die prematurely) because they do not realise that the Lord’s body is for their health and wholeness (1 Cor 11:30).
3. Jesus, by His resurrection, has put death, which is the last enemy, under His feet as His footstool (1 Cor 15:25-27)
4. Stephen commended his spirit to the Lord and that is why he died from stoning (Acts 7:59-60),whereas Paul was beaten with rods 3 times, stoned once and shipwrecked 3 times (2 Cor 11:25) and yet survived. It was only when he was ready to go by saying that had fought the good fight and finished the race (2 Tim 4:17) that he was prepared to meet the Saviour.
Some people like to quote Ecc 3:2 that “there is a time to be born and a time to die”. I submit to you that when we read this in the light of the New Covenant, God now gives us a choice as to when we would like to say sayonara to our earthly friends to go to the sweet by-and-by.
If I board a plane and declare before doing so “let us go to the other side” (Mk 4:35), because I believe it and therefore speak it out, then everyone on that plane is blessed because God watches over His Word to perform it (Jer 1:12), yea even if there is someone on that plane who believes in “fate” and that maybe his time is up.
The above promises regarding abundant life, which are yes and amen in Christ (2 Cor 1:20) only applies to the New Covenant believer. Those who are not yet under the New Covenant (as well as those who are not aware what benefits come with that Covenant) are subject to the wiles of the devil, who is out to kill, steal and destroy.
Life and death is in the power of the tongue, so let's eat the fruit of our lips (Prov 18:21) by believing and speaking life and by partaking of the Lord's Supper as oft as we can (1 Cor 11:26) for our health and wholeness. Amen?
10 comments:
Some Christians like to say that God allows diseases to happen to believers,although they don't say that God had cause those diseases.
That makes God look very passive as if He doesn't want to do anything about it.The first Adam lost his authority to the devil but the second Adam took back the authority that the devil has taken and gave it back to the believers.
2 Cor 4:4,Lk 10:19, 1 Jn 4:4, Ps 91,Prov 18:21
I believe your reading of 1 Corinthians 11:30 fails to take into proper consideration the context in which it was spoken. The passage here speaks of the Lord's Supper (which you, as a PLMC member, should know since this is what we pronounce before we receive communion) and that we should receive of it in the RIGHT mind, that we have DISCERNED the Lord's body and that we FULLY understand the significance of communion. Otherwise, we invite condemnation if we come to it merely as a ritual. (see also http://www.ccel.org/ccel/henry/mhc6.iCor.xii.html) Nothing is spoken within these words on a lack of realisation that the Lord's body is for OUR health and wholeness, and unless you bring in other proofs, I fear this is a proposition most unacceptable.
Indeed, I'm not sure how you managed to read Psalm 91 in the way you did. The text says, "With long life will I satisfy HIM", not "With long life will He satisfy me" - does this not put what you say in doubt? The Psalm says quite explicitly that we shall satisfy the Lord with the days we have, that we do His will - not the other way round. This goes in line with your reading of 2 Timothy 4:17, that it is our time when we have done what God has meant us to.
One last point about 2 Cor 1:20 and Jeremiah 1:12. Both are in line with each other, but both speak of God's promises and His word to us. Unless you can show me some biblical proof that God has blessed everyone to not die when they take a plane, again this is a proposition at odds with what God's Word says to us.
Hi Tris
Thanks for your comments. I take it that you are a fellow PLMC member?
The ritual that we read as Methodists is actually "passed down" from the Anglican church, which was passed down from the Catholic church. It was the early church's interpretation of what that passage of 1 Cor 11 is all about, and that was my personal belief for the major part of my life as a Christian as well.
It was only in the last couple of years that the Lord revealed what His Supper is really meant for -- and that is our health and wholeness. Please read the following post for a more detailed discussion:
The "Paradox" as to Why Christians Fall Sick".
As for Ps 91, notice how verses 14-16 are actually in quotations. The closed inverted commas in verse 16 has its corresponding open inverted commas in verse 14, viz
14 "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15 He will call upon me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With long life will I satisfy him
and show him my salvation."
The phrase "says the Lord" in verse 14 indicates that it is actually God speaking to us, and hence He is the one that satisfies us with long life, and not the other way around :-D
Hi Tris,
You said: "One last point about 2 Cor 1:20 and Jeremiah 1:12. Both are in line with each other, but both speak of God's promises and His word to us. Unless you can show me some biblical proof that God has blessed everyone to not die when they take a plane, again this is a proposition at odds with what God's Word says to us."
The bible does not specifically promise that we will not die in a plane crash but the bible does say that God ORDERS His angels to protect us wherever we go. This is His Word and He is watching over it to perform it. I say YES and AMEN!
Psalm 91:9-13
9 If you make the Lord your refuge,
if you make the Most High your shelter,
10 no evil will conquer you;
no plague will come near your home.
11 For he will order his angels
to protect you wherever you go.
12 They will hold you up with their hands
so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
13 You will trample upon lions and cobras;
you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!
Malcolm:
Thanks for clearing up my misimpression about Psalm 91 - I concur that it was a quote from the Lord, and have nothing to dispute about the phrase.
However, I will again ask about your interpretation of 1 Cor 11. With regards to your previous post, would it also not be ironic if God was a God who told us not to serve 2 masters (Matthew 6:19-21, 24) and yet would want us to be rich (2 Cor 8)? Either God desires material wealth for us or He does not - this is one irreconciliable point brought about by a certain reading of the text of God.
So what are we to make of health? Are we to believe that we shall never fall ill? Or is it, as Jesus said when Lazarus became ill (John 11:4) that the Glory of God be shown through it? Are we to believe that we will never ever suffer and are somehow removed from the First Sin, or that through our inevitable troubles that we look to God and see our truth and hope? God rebuked the Israelites whom He so loved - what is so deserving of our generation that we are above this reprimand?
Hi Tris
I used to struggle with prosperity as well. After all, Jesus did say that it was easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter God's kingdom (Matt 19:24, Mk 10:25, Lk 18:25).
But I have now come to realise that God is not against us having money, but against money having us. Our church theme contains the phrase "blessed to bless". Just ponder over that for a while. In order to bless others, we must first be blessed by God. We cannot give to the poor or sow into anointed ministries unless God first gives us the means and seeds to do so.
This is not inconsisent with what Jesus says about serving only one master. We serve only God, but let money serve us. There is a saying that "fire is a good servant but a bad master". The same would apply to money.
If you need other references, please do a search on the word
"prosperity" on my blog.
As for health, when Jesus said those words regarding Lazarus, He had not yet died on the cross. Paul tells us to "rightly divide the Word" (2 Tim 2:15), which means to say we need to know which dispensation God was dealing with mankind under. For example, it was not "sinful" for Adam's children to procreate with each other because that was the only way to do so in order to populate the earth. Abram married his half-sister Sarai. Jacob married his cousins Leah and Rachel.
However, the effect of Adam's sin in causing gene mutation would became significant by the time of Moses, and hence God forbade such marriages as part of the Law.
Likewise, when we read passages regarding health and healing, let us remember that we are now of the New Covenant. Those diseases that came upon the Israelites because of their disobedience and unfaithfulness should not come under us, and dare I say it, even if we disobedient or unfaithful.
What matters to God now is because Jesus was obedient, even unto death, and because Jesus took those stripes upon His body, the diseases and illnesses cannot fall upon us. Our sin, poverty and sicknesses were imputed to Jesus and in exchange of that, His righteousness (ie right standing with God the Father), riches and divine health is imputed to us.
Say, I am more than happy to meet up with you to discuss this topic further. Please text me at 9029-5677.
Hi Tris,
Let us look at John 11 in its full context: John 11 is actually setting the stage for Jesus to accomplish his ultimate mission on earth i.e. Jesus, the Son of God dies on the cross in atonement for man's sin.
In John 11:4, Jesus said “Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this.” This whole Lazarus episode, when it is fully played out, will announce to the Jews that Jesus is indeed the Son of God.
Jesus specifically said that Lazarus's sickness will not end in death but in v14 we see Jesus plainly telling his disciples that Lazarus is dead. Jesus' objective is not to heal Lazarus of his sickness but to raise him from the dead. That is why v6 says that Jesus stayed where he was for two days even after being told that Lazarus was very sick. Jesus allowed Lazarus to die so that he could perform the greatest miracle of raising the dead. Why?
Jesus has been healing the sick, even making the blind see (v37) but the Jews still see him as merely a prophet, a rabbi and a miracle healer.
Jesus told Martha in v25-26, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?” Martha relied “I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God.”
This is what Jesus wanted to proclaim to the Jews: he is the Messiah, the Son of God and those who believe in him will not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16).
After Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, Many of the people who were with Mary believed in Jesus when they saw this happen. (v45). So from that time on, the Jewish leaders began to plot Jesus’ death.(v53) This marks the beginning of Jesus' road to Calvary, the cross.
Caiaphas, the high priest himself prophesied about this (v49-50): “You don’t realize that it’s better for you that one man should die for the people than for the whole nation to be destroyed.”
He did not say this on his own; as high priest at that time he was led to prophesy that Jesus would die for the entire nation. And not only for that nation, but to bring together and unite all the children of God scattered around the world. (v51-52)
Lazarus' sickness and death was meant to bring glory to Jesus as the Son of God before his passion and death on the cross. Now that Jesus has already died and rose again, we cannot accept being sick as bringing glory to God because Jesus has borne all our diseases and by his wounds we are healed (1 Peter 2:24).
God does NOT rebuke us through sickness. God desires that we prosper and be in health (3 John 1:2). Does this mean that we shall never fall sick?
No but Jesus himself said in John 16:33b: "Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world." So if you feel sick, take heart because Jesus has overcome that sickness.
How does God rebuke us now? Through His Word. By showing us the correct path in His Word, maybe through anointed preaching, a fellow brother correcting our error or even our own bible reading.
By the way, Tris, you are right in that we don't deserve any of this goodness from God. For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
After my second reading of Koh's article:
To be fair to Koh, we do notice his usage of inverted opening commas "" and '' at many passages. My guess is that Koh intend to made known of direct quotations in his article.
His mistake lies in not acknowledging where those quotations derived from.
Or could it be the editor who neglect to print or include the Footnotes or Endnotes.
The editor of the newsletter happens to be him as well :-D
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