Tuesday, August 20, 2013

DAY 458 - It's Your Faith, Your Relationship with Jesus. Nothing More, Nothing Less! (請按此處收聼廣東話Cantonese podcast click here)


**NEW link for the  14th: 13th 100 days 24 hours prayer campaign (We are going to use this 13th list leads up to the 14th. 13th from March 15 to June 22, 2013. 14th from June 22 to August 31, 2013)


Today's Reading: Romans 4:9-12

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Please click this link to read Romans 4:9-12

Bible Study

      Today's passage talks about the same issue as in the previous chapters, and this is the last time that Paul about the issue of circumcision and uncircumcision. The question is whether Jewish Christians were insisting that Gentile converts needed to get circumcised in order to be full members of Abraham's family. And Paul insisted that they were wrong. 

Bishop N.T. Wright's says (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N._T._Wright):

     Paul points out that Genesis 15 comes some time before Genesis 17, so that when God established the covenant, calculating Abraham's faith to his credit in terms of being in the right, Abraham was still uncircumcised, and remained so for some while after that.  Therefore, Paul reasons, one cannot possibly suggest that circumcision was a necessary part of belonging to Abraham's family. ..
     This leads Paul to the first of the two crucial answers to the question in 4.1. what sort of a family have we come into?  Have we found Abraham to be our ancestor in the physical sense - in other words, must Gentile converts get circumcised and regard themselves as members of ethnic Israel?  Paul's answer is clearly No. Abraham is the father of all those who believe even when uncircumcised.  They too are within the covenant, simply on the basis of their faith (v.11). 

N.T. Wright. Paul for Everyone: Romans:Part12. Louisville,KY:Westminster John Knox Press, 2004, p.70.

     So, what is this problem concerning with you? Anything to do with your faith like those Jews and Gentiles in Paul's time? How about the issue and problem of what is a real Anglican, or Baptist, or any other denomination or no denomination? What is a real Anglican church, Baptist church or any other church? 
                                    
Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through the passage of scripture we have just read. Offer this time up to Jesus as you listen to him, while listening to "Gabriel's Oboe"



Spiritual Journal

     What I heard from Jesus today is: It's your faith. Your relationship with Jesus. Nothing more, nothing less!


    What I got today from Jesus is a simple but serious question. I have been personally against and even attacked many times in the past 17 years since I became the Rector of Richmond Emmanuel church. The accusation is that I do not do things in an Anglican way. What is an Anglican way?

    In my point of view, Jesus uses me to lead Richmond Emmanuel church and other Asian Initiative(AI) and Anglican Mission in the Americas - Canada in an authentic and renewed way. If the seminary that I got my M.Div., Nashotah House has been authentically Anglican since it was found in 1842 "forming leaders in the Anglican tradition since 1842 (http://www.nashotah.edu/). If my spiritual fathers, Rev. Dr. John Stott, Most Rev. Yong Ping Chung, Rt. Rev. TJ Johnston are all authentically Anglican leaders. If Nicky Gumble, a great leader I have been learning and following his way of doing Anglican churches are authentically Anglican. How come I am leading churches out of Anglican tradition? Ridiculous! 

    And, after all, we are not worshiping Anglicanism, we are worshiping Jesus and our faith is not believing in Anglicanism, our faith is believing in the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, right?

Dear Lord Jesus, 

Lead us each day that we are guided by you, loved by you and protected by you. You are our Saviour, our Lord and our King. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.


You may choose to follow my other daily blog: 

Daily Devotion on Fire 2(2 years plan -One year New Testament, one year Old Testament): 

Daily Devotion on Fire (3 years and 3 months plan, one chapter a day to finish reading the whole Bible): 

Break.Build (40 days daily devotion- First Baby Step for new Christians): http://www.breakbuild.blogspot.ca/

Emmanuel330 (40 weeks First Step Bible Study): 

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世世代代頌讚你的作為，傳揚你的大能!

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