DAY 670 - Don't Let Your Opponents Intimidate You (請按此處收聼廣東話Cantonese podcast click here)

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: Philippians 1:27-30

** 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 Philippians 1:27-30

English(ESV): http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians 1&version=ESV

Chinese: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=腓 立 比 書 1&version=CUV

Bible Study

     We as Christians are so easy to be intimidated! Not only in the early church time but up to now, the past two thousand years. Why we can be so lack of faith and so easy to be intimidated? 

Bishop N.T. Wright says ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N._T._Wright ) :
     'Don't let your opponents intimidate you,' Paul tells the Philippians (verse 28)… From the first-century Mediterranean world to the twenty-first century in China, in the Sudan, and in many other places, there have been plenty of people determined to stamp out this Christian nonsense and to use every trick in the book to do so…It's easy for Christians to feel intimidated; but Paul insists that we mustn't…
     The Philippians' public behaviour, as Paul says, must match up to the gospel.  They must not acquire a reputation for being uncivil, boorish or rude.  They must be known as honest, reliable, good neighbours, even if people are accusing or attacking them.  They mustn't be intimidated into retreating into a private ghetto where they can ignore the rest of the world and nurture their own faith away from it.

N.T. Wright. Paul for Everyone:Te Prison Letters. Louisville,KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2004, p.94-95.

     Have you been intimidated by those who oppose you to push you to your own ghetto doing nothing for Christ? 
     

Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through the passage 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

    The title I heard from Jesus today is: Don't let your opponents intimidate you

    The message I got from Jesus today is a warning that we need to stand firm and have faith to confront with those who oppose you to do the work Jesus wants you to do.

     Accusation, intimidation and attack can surely destroy someone's courage and faith. Those intimidation can become nightmares that we can't sleep and live in worries all day long. I have seen much of that happened in the past many years. It is terrible! 

     Is there anyway to help us to get through those kind of intimidation? Well, Paul is trying to tell you and teach you to get over with it.

     One encouragement and command: Don't let your opponents intimidate you. 
     
Dear Lord Jesus,
Lead us to have faith in you that we won't let our opponents intimidate us. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

Please click this link to worship with us -

從心合一

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJWZQyLzDRQ

10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord) Matt Redman

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXDGE_lRI0E

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- For Renewal or First Step for new Christians): http://www.breakbuild.blogspot.ca/

Emmanuel330 (40 weeks First Step Bible Study): 

http://emmanuel330.blogspot.ca/

This blog:

Discipler 123 (Daily devotion using N.T. Wright's NT for Everyone as source)

http://discipler123.blogspot.ca/