Tuesday, November 12, 2013

DAY 542 - Why Do You Go to Church? To Show off? (請按此處收聼廣東話Cantonese podcast click here)


**NEW link for the  15th: 13th 100 days 24 hours prayer campaign (We are going to use this 13th list leads up to the 15th. 13th from March 15 to June 22, 2013. 14th from June 22 to August 31, 2013, 15th from Sept. 1, 2013 to Dec. 9. 2013)

Want to know why I have been writing and recording my blogs and podcast daily since August 10, 2009? Click these three links:

Confirmation from John Stott in 2009: 
http://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/2009_07_01_archive.html
My MicroMacro Discipleship, A missing DNA in Discipleship Development: http://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/2009/07/introduction-micromacro-discipleship.html
Subject Shifting Devotion Method(Inspired by John Stott in 1991: http://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/2009/08/count-down-5-subject-shifting-devotion.html

                               Today's Reading: 1 Corinthians 11:17-22
** If you would like to learn a simple and good way of Daily Devotion method please read my “Count Down 5” from my Devotion on Fire blog:
http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/2009/08/count-down-5-subject-shifting-devotion.html
To use this simple and good way of Daily Devotion method please click this link:
 .Subject Shifting Devotion.pdf

Please click this link to read 1 Corinthians 11:17-22

Bible Study

     Following yesterday's good message on Paul's talking about true 'headship', about the source of a church is Jesus, we come to another problem of going to church. We cannot understand what Paul is talking about because the Holy Communion we are having now is different. Now we are using a small piece of bread or wafer and a small sip of wine or grape juice. But in the time of the Early Church they were having a full meal. The problem in Corinth was that that full meal had become a sign of the social status rather then a true Holy Communion. Why?  
Bishop N.T. Wright says ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N._T._Wright ) :
     Many rich people in the ancient world prided themselves on showing hospitality to those less well off, but they often did so in a way which let the others know they were inferior, and even made them feel ashamed.  Sometimes they had a small main dining room for themselves and their closest friends, where excellent food and wine would be served, and another room, or a sequence of rooms, with food and drink of poorer quality.  It seems that in Corinth the rich hosts whose houses were large enough for a Christian meeting were continuing this social practice at 'the Lord's supper' itself. 

N.T. Wright. Paul for Everyone:1 Corinthians. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2004, p.146.

      Do you think we have similar kind of showing off in churches nowadays? Do we have similar kind of social status in churches nowadays? How about your church? What are you going to do about it? 

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":  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmax47l2hLU

Spiritual Journal

    What I heard from Jesus today is: Why do you go to church? To show off?

    What I got from Jesus today is a question challenging our reason of going to church. Actually it is still on the theme of 'headship' or 'source' following yesterday's message. If we are not worshiping Jesus, not enjoying the presence of Jesus and being with Jesus, we may have all kinds of reasons to go to church. Showing off of our wealth may be one of the many reasons. Or, joining a similar status social group as a kind of similar reason. Then, more reasons...

      Why do you go to church? If not for Jesus, being with Jesus and worshiping Jesus, why? 

Dear Lord Jesus,
Lead us to be able to worship you as our only reason to go to church. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Please click this link to worship with us -

一首愛歌


10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord) Matt Redman
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): 
http://bishopsilas2.blogspot.ca/
Daily Devotion on Fire (3 years and 3 months plan, one chapter a day to finish reading the whole Bible): 
http://bishopsilas.blogspot.ca/
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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是時候回頭轉向神了!

   今日博客的錄影: Nicky Gumbel  牧師今日靈修博客: https://us17.campaign-archive.com/?e=590b90010b&u=607cd553028b55c8cfb706e8a&id=94c5e0eae4 Nicky ...