Enough Time

One thing that marks life in the 21st century, at least in the city of Sydney, is a lack of time. We have more time-saving tools, faster transport and instant communication. Yet we seem busier than ever and more rushed for time. We go from place to place trying fit more into our already busy diaries.

The classic answer to this problem is that we need to manage our priorities better. And certainly this is a vital part of the solution. We need to be proactive about spending the time where it matters most. The Bible is clear that what matters most in life is our relationships – our relationship with God and with others (Matthew 22:34-40). Managing our priorities is a must.

But there is another vital perspective we need to grasp if we want to live life better. It is live life with the Bible’s view of time. In 2 Peter 3:8, it says that to God ‘a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years is like a day’. God is not limited like we are and he is not in a hurry when it comes to time. God’s purpose always prevails across the generations (Isa 40:6-8).

And God rules not only across time, God is also rules within time. In Psalm 127 we read:

1 Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain.
Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.
2 In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat—
for he grants sleep to [a] those he loves.

Human success does not ultimately depend on how hard we work or how much time we have. At the end of the day it depends entirely on God’s blessing. God can grant success in a short amount of time or over a long period of time. It is his blessing that counts in whatever we are trying to achieve.

The great news is that God generously gives us enough time to do all that is necessary as well as to enjoy the fruit of that work on our day off. This is the basis of God’s command to Israel to not only rest every seventh day (Ex 20:8-11), but also every seventh year! (Lev 25:1-7, 20-22). God promised that he would provide such a bumper crop in the sixth year that they would be covered for a full three years. It was not time or effort that counted, but the promise of God’s blessing as they obeyed his command to keep the Sabbath. We can work all we like, but it is he who grants success to those who loves.

It is within this perspective of God’s sovereignty that we need to learn to be less frantic when it comes to time. God is not only sovereign over time, he generously gives us enough time for all that we need to do and to also enjoy his good gifts. He calls us to slow down enough to take stock of who is in control and what is most important. And God promises that when we set our priorities right, he will never leave us lacking anything (Mtt 6:33).

Pastor Owen Seto.

How do Old Testament laws apply to us today?

One issue that Christians are confused about today is the place of Old Testament law in the life of the Christian. It seems quite obvious that the Jewish sacrificial system is no longer applicable. And many of the other laws regarding Jewish festivals, restrictions on unclean food, as well as circumcision no longer apply (Col 2:16). So how are we to understand the relevance and purpose of Old Testament laws today?

This is a complex question and will require careful thought and study. But a useful way to understand which Old Testament laws apply to us today is to consider the Reformed ‘three-fold division of the law’. Traditional Reformed theology has distinguished the law into three parts, moral, ceremonial, and civil. (While there are some problems with this division, I will highlight the benefits of this approach).

The ‘moral law’ are those laws which are universal and permanent in nature reflecting God’s unchanging moral character. This moral law is summarised in the Ten Commandments and is applicable to all people and at all times. For example even before the Ten Commandments were given, God had already told Noah he would hold people accountable for the life of their fellow human being (Gen 9:6). This is reflected in the commandment, ‘You shall not murder’. This command is again reapplied by Jesus and Paul in the New Testament (Matt 19:18, Rom 13:9). The ‘moral law’ contained in the Old Testament are always applicable.

The ‘ceremonial law’ are those laws which are symbolic in nature. These include the food laws, the temple sacrifices, circumcision and the festivals. These laws symbolically pointed to the holiness demanded of God’s people and reminded them they belonged to him. The book of Hebrews tells us that these ‘ceremonial laws’ ended with the coming of Christ (Heb 10:1). Jesus perfectly fulfilled what these laws symbolised. Jesus is the perfect sacrifice, he is our high priest, and by his Spirit we have received a circumcision of the heart (Col 2:11, Deut 30:6). The ceremonial laws are applicable to us today only in the way they continually point to the holiness and righteousness fulfilled in Christ (Col 2:17).

The ‘civil’ (or judicial law) are those Old Testament laws that governed Israel as a nation state. These laws included Israel’s stewardship of the land, property laws, family laws, and the punishment for idolatry. While the moral principles contained in these laws continue to be relevant, the detailed application of these laws is no longer applicable. The reason Israel’s ‘civil law’ no longer applies to us directly is that we no longer live under a nation state under God. The gospel has now been preached to all nations. Jews and Gentiles have now been brought together as ‘one new man’ in Christ (Eph 2:11-12).

In summary, the three-fold division of the law helps us see which aspects of the law continue to apply to us. The Traditional Reformed approach says that it is only the ‘moral law’ that continues to apply to us. However, I would add that we should study and learn from the underlying ethical requirements contained in all three elements of the law – moral, ceremonial and civil. We need to study how all three aspects of the law point to Christ, are fulfilled in him and are taught by him. In particular we should learn how Jesus teaches us a new obedience that comes not from the ‘written code’, but from the heart (Matt 5:17-48, Heb 8:10). All this must always be grounded in the perfect righteousness he has already achieved for us at the cross (1Pet 3:18, 2Tim 1:9).

Pastor Owen Seto.

Why the Passover Matters

Each year we remember the events and experiences most important to us. It may be our wedding anniversary, the birth of a child, the birth of a nation, the passing away of a loved one. For the Israelites, the anniversary they kept was the ‘Passover’ – the day death fell on Egypt, and death ‘passed over’ Israel (Ex 12:12-13).

The Passover was the tenth and most devastating plague. It was God’s final act of judgment on Egypt for having enslaved and oppressed his people. On that night, God took the life of every firstborn in Egypt, including the cattle. But Israelite homes, if they carefully followed God’s instructions, would be spared. God’s instruction for the night was to sacrifice a lamb, brush the blood of that lamb on their door posts (Ex 12:3-7), and then to share the lamb for dinner as a family.

The blood of the lamb represented the life that would otherwise have been taken when God passed by in judgment. The lamb symbolically took the judgment that would otherwise have fallen on them.
In other words, the sacrificial lamb was God’s provision to spare Israel from the judgment that fell on the Egyptians.

The result of this devastating night of the ‘Passover’ was that Pharaoh finally let God’s people go. This had always been God’s plan and purpose. Through this tenth and final plague God revealed the extent of his power and love for his people.

Israel as a nation was to always remember this night as the climax of God’s salvation. Each year on the 14th day of the month of Abib they were to relive the Exodus experience by eating the Passover meal. For seven days following, they were to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread to remember their departure from Egypt. This reminded them of their hasty exit when they had no time to add yeast to their dough (Ex 12:33-34). This great salvation was also to mark the beginning of Israel’s year. Moses is told that ‘This month is to be for you the first month of your year’ (Ex 12:2).

The celebration of the Passover was therefore the most important anniversary in defining Israel as a nation. Life began for Israel as a nation on that day. They had been rescued from slavery to serve a new master. They owed their lives to God. And they would always remember God’s unchanging power and love towards them.

As Christians today, we have an even greater Passover to celebrate and remember. We remember that ‘Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed’ (1Cor 5:7). We remember the cross as the beginning of our new life – a life in which death has passed over us, because death fell on Him; a life set free from sin and death in order to serve a new master, our Lord Jesus Christ. We remember that ‘He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again’ (2Cor 5:15). Because he died for us as our Passover lamb, we now belong to him and our life is now hidden with Christ (Col 3:3).

The death and resurrection of Jesus will always be the most important event and the defining moment for every Christian.

Pastor Owen Seto.

An outpost of heaven

Some weeks ago I spoke to a guy from mainland China who works in Sydney. He was sincere about wanting to read the Bible and finding out more about Christianity. But his main problem was how being a Christian would practically help him live life in a dog-eat-dog world. When everyone else is looking out for number one, when people are ready to take advantage of you for their own profit, what point is there in doing the right thing? Why not follow the crowd and give in to selfish ambition? Let me share five reasons.

Firstly, we submit to Jesus because he rules the world (Eph 1:22-23). God is not watching from a distance. He is in control over every part of his creation. Our future is not determined by chance, nature or by the actions of other human beings.  Our present and our future depend on God’s perfect and sovereign will. He is able to protect and sustain those who trust in him (Ps 1:6).

Secondly, Jesus is the one who will judge the world (Acts 17:31). At the end of the day none will escape God’s judgment. We must all stand before God’s judgment seat. He will hold each of us to account for every action whether great or small. ‘He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men’s hearts’ (1Cor 4:5). It will be based on truth and without partiality. So even if we experience injustice today, Christians entrust themselves to God’s perfect justice which will be fully revealed on the last day (Rom 1:5-6; 12:19).

Thirdly, we obey him because he loves us. ‘For God so loved the world that he gave his Son, so whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life’ (John 3:16). We love him because he first loved us, dying for our sins, so that we can be forgiven and become friends with God. There is no greater love than this ‘that a man lay down his life for his friends’. And that is exactly what Jesus did for us on the cross. Such love compels us.

Fourthly, as Christians we are called to live out our identity as his chosen people. ‘For you are a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God that you may the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light’ (1Pet 2:9). We are called to live out our identity as ‘salt and light’, citizens of heaven, a transformed community (Matt 5:13-14, Phil 3:20, Rom 12:2). As such we are called to be a positive influence on this world, and not be part of the problem of self-centred living. We’re to be an outpost and a foretaste of the kingdom of God still to come (Rev 21:1-4).

Fifthly, we trust and obey God’s word because his way is always better. Jesus came to give us life, peace, and joy. He came to restore and heal broken relationships. He came to make possible relationships of grace, forgiveness and mutual love. The God who made the world knows what is most important and how best to live in it. His commands are an expression of his love for us, that we might enjoy life to the full and be his transformed community (1Pet 1:11-12).

His forgiveness and his promises give us confidence and hope in a fallen and broken world. This is why we are committed to being an outpost of heaven. We live today in eager expectation of the kingdom yet to be revealed when Jesus comes in all his glory (Tit 2:13).

Pastor Owen Seto

You were made for more than you realize!

In my last post I wrote that God is not only the creator of all things, but that all things have been made to reflect the glory of God in all his beauty, power and majesty. What we also discover is that God reveals himself to us as a good and purposeful creator. Genesis 1 tells us that when he created the world, everything was good. And he placed the first human beings, Adam and Eve at the very center of his creation in a garden to not just enjoy his creation, but to look after and care for creation under his loving care and rule (Gen.1:28-31). Unlike everything else in creation, human beings alone have been made in the image of God and given this glory and honor (Gen.1:27). It appears from the beginning that God actually made the world for us to live in and enjoy under his loving care and rule, where Adam and Eve lived as God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule.

In fact, we’re told in Psalm 8:3-8 that in all creation God actually has us on his mind i.e. he thinks of us and cares for us. The God who is the creator of the universe in all his glory, and in all the perfection of his beauty, power, majesty and greatness has you on his mind and cares for you. He has also given us as human beings the highest place of glory and honor placing us under him, but above his creation, to look after and care for his creation and world.

When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him? You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. Psalm 8:3-5

You made him ruler over the works of your hands; you put everything under his feet: all flocks and herds, and the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. Psalm 8:6-8

This revelation that God has created us and our world with a purpose tells us that you and I are not the by-products of chance. God has not made us and left us to ourselves to discover our purpose in life. In fact, we are reminded that our lives are valuable, because God himself assigns and gives our lives value. In all that God has made, you are the single jewel in his crown. You are more valuable to him than the very universe. There is nothing in creation that compares to you in beauty, power, majesty and greatness. For the same God who declares his very glory in all creation in all the perfection of his beauty, power, majesty and greatness (Ps.19:1) now tells us here that you are more valuable that the very creation he has made. That must mean that as men and women made in the image of God we actually reflect his very glory above everything else in all his creation.

As our creator God has given our lives purpose, meaning, significance and value. And we find our real purpose and value when we begin to bring our lives under the loving care and rule of a God who has created us above all things, to reflect his glory in our lives, and has literally given us the world to enjoy.

Eugene Hor – lead English pastor/elder
www.thereformission.net

How do I fit into God’s plans?

Many people today wonder what to do with their lives. What job or career should I pursue? Should I work in Sydney or should I go overseas? The current GFC has probably put a halt to some of our plans. But the question remains: what should I do with my life?

The Bible’s answer is to begin with a bigger question: What are God’s plans for the world? What is God doing right now and how do I fit into his plans? God is not standing idly by as the world tumbles from one global disaster to another. God is not standing idly by hoping we’ll fix our own problems our own way.

God has in fact already revealed his plan to bring an end to all evil. God has set a day when he will bring an end to all wars, all sickness, and every natural disaster. It will be a new world order, ‘the home of righteousness’. A picture of this future is given to us in Revelation:

“Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ⁴ He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.” (Rev 21:3-4)

This picture of perfect peace is what the world is destined for, where it will no longer be a self-centred, dog-eat-dog world, based on insecurity and greed. Instead God will be with his people and he will be their God. He will rule over them perfectly and lovingly through his Son Jesus.

This is the work God is doing right now as the message of Jesus is preached. It is a message of forgiveness and relationship with God, a relationship that begins now and will last for eternity in God’s new world order. And it begins now as we submit our lives under the perfect rule of King Jesus.

As Christians, we experience a foretaste of the new world now as God transforms us to be more like Jesus. He calls us to no longer live for ourselves but for Jesus who died for us (2Cor 5:15). He calls us to live for his kingdom and his future. In practice this means that serving God’s kingdom will be my highest priority (Matt 6:33). My decision-making will be based on what will best promote the message about Jesus. And I will seek to live such a life that will bring most glory to him (1Pet 2:11-12).

The better question to ask therefore is: Am I part of God’s plans for the future? How will what I do fit into his plans? And how can I best serve him with the gifts and opportunities he has given me today?

Pastor Owen Seto – English Assistant Pastor/elder

Are The Men In Your Church ‘Milksop’?

Almost a 150 years ago in speaking on the challenges of being a Christian man, C.H.Spurgeon said, ‘there has got abroad a notion, some how, that if you become a Christian you must sink your manliness and turn milksop’. (milksop is bread soaked in milk or someone who is a weak and easily frightened person, otherwise called a sensitive new age guy by today’s standard) One of the problems among Christian men is a lack of understanding of what it means to be ‘more like Jesus’ as men. We know that we are to grow to be more like Jesus (Col.1:28), and to lead like Jesus (Eph.5:25) in our relationships. The problem is that most Christian men see Jesus more in feminine categories rather than masculine ones, or as I read in a book this week (No More Christian Nice Guy), the vast majority of Christian men see Jesus as a bearded woman.

If I said to you ‘picture the ultimate man’, what image comes to mind? For most Christian men, Jesus is not the image that comes to mind. In his book The Heart Of A Tender Warrior, Stu Weber writes, ‘Why is it when someone says, “picture the archetypal male,” the image that comes to mind is not one of Jesus? I have to confess that, for years, the picture in my mind would not have been Jesus. Even the single most famous portrait of Jesus makes Him look more like a pouting model for shampoo than a man’. It’s tragic but true. Our image of Jesus is one of a nice guy, who was always gentle, meek, mild, and who never offended anyone.

Yet, when you turn to the gospels you discover a man who we’re told was born to bring division, and who would be the cause of the destruction and salvation of many people (Luke 2:34; 12:51; Matt.10:34). You discover a man who spoke the truth and spoke up publicly against hypocrisy calling the religious leaders in his day snakes fit for hell, and decomposing corpses that stunk and polluted others (Matt.3:7; 23:27, 33). You discover a man who thought his disciples were slow and let them know about it (Matt.17:17). You discover a man who threatened judgment to those who were spiritual unfruitfulness (Luke 13:6-9). You discover a man who got physical when he saw God’s name dishonored (Mark.11:15-17). The Bible’s picture of Jesus is one of a man who openly confronted lies and deception, who spoke the truth boldly, who spoke up against hypocrisy, who spoke judgment, who wasn’t afraid to embarrass those who deserved it, who jealously acted to guard God’s honor, and who wasn’t trying to please everyone. Jesus was no milksop, he wasn’t a sensitive new age guy, and he wasn’t a bearded woman. In fact, in the last book of the Bible, Jesus is portrayed as a divine warrior who initiates God’s final salvation and judgment (Rev.19:11-21)

Yet, we also discover that Jesus was tender and gentle. His strength was matched by tenderness. His power was matched by gentleness. His masculinity was matched by compassion. As I said to the FCG young men on Friday night, not only is Jesus portrayed as powerful and strong warrior who comes to save his people (John 3:17; Luke 19:10), he is also a tender, gentle, compassionate warrior. You discover a man who invites those tired and worn out to come and find rest in him (Matt.11:28). You discover a man who expresses a desire to gather those who are his under his wings (Matt.23:37). You discover a man who was moved in his gut seeing those spiritually lost (Matt.9:36). You discover a man who openly wept with others in their loss (John 11:33-35). You discover a man who gets down on his knees and washes the feet of his disciples to teach them to serve (John 13:1-15). You discover a man who forgave the sins of others (John 8:1-11; Luke 23:34).

To the Christian men at GracePoint, let me say that we need to have a Biblically balanced view of Jesus. Unless you have the right picture of Jesus, your masculinity and your understanding of what it means to be a Christian man will be lacking. Jesus was not a sensitive new age guy and he certainly was not a milksop. The Bible’s picture of Jesus is that of a strong warrior whose strength was matched by tenderness, whose power was matched by gentleness, and whose masculinity was matched by compassion.

Eugene Hor – lead English Pastor/elder
www.thereformission.net

Lethal Words

The story in Numbers 12:1-15 is a case study on the lethal sin of gossip and its power to destroy relationships within the body of Christ.

The setting for the story is Moses’ marriage to a woman from the land of Cush.  Miriam and Aaron disapprove of this marriage as their preference is for Moses to marry an Israelite.  However, instead of bringing their concerns to Moses they murmur secretively between themselves and attack Moses’ character for what they perceive to be an inappropriate marriage (v 1).  The discussion then moves to an attack on Moses’ leadership and to whether they too could be leaders of Israel (vs 2).  God’s reaction to this conversation is violent and swift:  he condemns Aaron and Miriam for their challenge against Moses and inflicts leprosy on Miriam.  Moses intervenes and pleads for her healing; God’s answers his prayer and Miriam is healed but only after she undergoes solitary confinement outside the camp for seven days (vs 3-15).

What can we learn about gossip from this passage?

Firstly, gossip is a cowardly act. Gossip always discusses the victim in their absence and denies them an opportunity to defend themselves or to offer an explanation.  Moses’ marriage to the Cushite might have been unconventional but it was not illegal yet Miriam and Aaron never approach him to understand his reasons for the marriage.

Secondly, gossip spreads and builds like a virus. From an attack on Moses’ marriage the conversation quickly turns to an unrelated matter:  Moses’ leadership.  Gossip can very easily move like spreading cancer, starting small with disapproval of certain acts and then moving to encompass other actions and aspects of the victim’s life.

Thirdly, gossip builds up the perpetrator by tearing down the victim. Aaron and Miriam seek to enhance their leadership credentials by questioning and challenging the exclusiveness of Moses’ leadership.  By “bringing him down” they effectively “build themselves up”.

Fourthly, gossip is a knife in a friendly hand. Imagine a stranger in the street tells you your clothes look ugly and do not fit.  Do you collapse in anxiety and get upset?  Probably not because this person’s opinion does not mean much to you.  But if a friend or a loved one made the same comment you probably would be hurt.  The same is true for gossip.  It’s the friendly hand of family and those that are closest to us (Miriam the perpetrator of the gossip is Moses’ sister) that have the greatest potential to cause hurt and pain through gossip.

Fifthly, God hates gossip. God’s violent judgment on Aaron and Miriam for their gossip is testimony of how much God hates this sin (see also Lev 19:16; Prov 6:16-19).

The body of Christ is not made up of “things” – but rather people who respond positively or negatively to our words.  Our words have enormous potential to tear people (James 3:9-10) or to build them up in the Lord (Psalm 19:14; Prov 18:21; James 3:9-10).

What words will you speak today?

Pastor Andrew Ku

Scripture reading for the week: James 3:9-12

(Read, Reflect, Respond)

1.   What does it mean to “curse men” (vs 9, 10)

2.   Why is it significant that when we curse men we are cursing one who is “made in God’s likeness”? (vs 9)

3.   “..with the same mouth praising and cursing” (vs 10).  What situations do you find yourself doing this?

God looks forward to your time

One of our problems when it comes to prayer is that we’re driven by guilt. We haven’t spent enough time with God, nor do we always look forward to that time. We don’t always pray with passion or persistence. And we’re a lot more self-reliant than we should be.

But as with every other area of the Christian life, we should be motivated by grace and not by guilt. We should be motivated by the privilege, the joy and the unfailing love of our heavenly Father. To be motivated by grace we need to remember the following.

Prayer is first and foremost our response to God’s love for us. It is not a way to earn God’s love or favour. For God has already loved us! He has lavished his love on us through Jesus’ death and resurrection. He has brought us to himself as sons and daughters of God. God loves to hear the prayers of his children who come to him.

Secondly, prayer is our response to God’s word to us. It is not that God silently waits for us to speak to him before he speaks to us. God has already spoken to us through his word, and through his Son Jesus. He has graciously revealed himself, his character his plans and his purposes to us. In response he invites us to pray not only for ourselves, but also for others, and for his glory, his kingdom and his will to be done (Matt 6:9-13).

Thirdly, God’s love for us is never dependent on how we’re feeling emotionally. Our feelings may go up and down, but God’s love for us never changes. As Paul says in Romans 5:6-11, if God loved us when we were his enemies, how much more will he love us now that we are his friends? James Hudson Taylor once said that even when he felt his prayers were flat and wooden, he often experienced God’s answers to prayer.

Fourthly, God listens to imperfect prayers. It is the perfect Son of God who intercedes for us and makes our prayers acceptable (Rom 8:34; Heb 7:25). And it is God’s Holy Spirit who helps us in our weakness, bringing our prayers to God even when we cannot express them perfectly (Rom 8:26-27). God knows what’s on our heart even before we ask.

Fifthly, in answer to prayer God will always give us what is best as only the perfect heavenly Father can (Matt 7:7-11). God is never stingy or joyless. In fact Jesus came to give us life to the full (John 10:10). He came to make our joy complete in him (1John 1:4). God will never give us second best!

Lastly, through prayer God has given us the privilege of being part of his kingdom work in the world. God can do all things single-handedly, but he has chosen to work both through the preaching of his word and through the humble, dependent prayers of his people. As it says in James 4:2, ‘God is more willing to give than we are to ask.’

Be encouraged by this simple fact: God looks forward to our time with him. How can we do anything less than go to him frequently, passionately, and confidently, praying for ourselves, for others and for his kingdom to come!

Pastor Owen Seto

Taking the first step in our community

At this year’s church camp we were challenged by God’s Word to not merely be people who support mission or people who send missionaries.  God’s Word calls us all to be missionaries, and to live missionally.  We’re called to be ‘missionary’ in every aspect of our Christian lives – to see the Gospel of Jesus being brought to any and all who need to hear and submit to His Lordship.

In our suburb here in Burwood there are roughly 10,888 residences around us.  If we took the average family size to be 2 – 3, it would mean we have around 30,000 people in our local community. The census indicates that there are up to 31,000 people living in Burwood.  It wouldn’t be unrealistic to assume that most have not heard about Jesus, and most have not receive Jesus as Lord and Savior.

As a church community, Gracepoint Burwood has to be more than just a church that ‘does evangelism’, but a church that sees itself as part of the Burwood community, serving the Burwood community, and making Jesus known in the Burwood community.  We want to be the redeeming presence of Jesus in the community as we bring the saving words and work of Jesus to the community.  As Jesus came bringing light to a world covered in the darkness of sin, my hope is that our community at Gracepoint will do likewise.  The gospel mustn’t be confined to our Sunday meetings, or in our small groups, or even in our homes. We want people to know that Gracepoint is a community where lives are changed, where grace and forgiveness reigns, where relationships are marked by truth and love, where compassion and service exists, where Jesus and his saving words and work is known.  We want to be a light for the gospel that cannot be hidden in our community here in Burwood so that others might see and be drawn to that light.  You and I are called to be light in this community, serving them and bringing Jesus to them.

Matthew 5:14-16
“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.

Two weeks ago, some of our small group leaders met up for dinner and an evening of prayer where Pastor Euge shared on what we need to be doing.  The first step of what we’re planning to do is a major leaflet drop to every resident in the Burwood community (all 12,000 homes) – we want to let them know that a community of Christians exist and are meeting in Burwood.  We want to introduce them to our church community. This’ll be a great opportunity for us to share in this vision together to begin reaching our community, and get a first hand look at what our community is like as we drop leaflets in their letter boxes.  It’ll also be an opportunity for us to prayer walk those streets and those homes we’ll be leafleting, praying for God’s grace and mercy, and for salvation to come to those homes street by street.  We want to win Burwood for Jesus, street by street praying for each home, and this is only a first step.

For us to do this requires your prayers as a church community, and your partnership in helping make this first step a reality.  It’s time for us to all play our part as a missional community.  We’re looking to do this over two Saturdays (7th and 14th July), which will take a hour or so of your time (if we can finish it in one, that’ll be fine too!), which will also give us time to pray for our community and commit people in Burwood into God’s sovereign and loving hands, asking that he might open doors for the gospel for us. Amy is also organizing members from the Cantonese congregation to come with us as well – so it will also be a great opportunity for us to work in partnership with them as they try to reach the 7000 Chinese speakers in the local area. We want to win Burwood for Jesus, street by street praying for each home, and this is our first step.

Pastor Simon Wong