Weeks 19 & 20 (11) - Blessings of Divine Guidance

Last Friday, a Christian Senior Architect at work came to me for advice. She had a dream just before the 311 (11th March) disasters in Japan. In the dream, she saw major natural disasters happening. She shared with me that she wanted to study the Bible systematically by joining a Bible Seminary. She would only work half-time then. Clearly the Lord is stirring the hearts of many through dreams and visions as the Day is getting nearer!

Yesterday at BBC, we started a new teaching on A Kingdom Church. We were 4 people; a few regular people couldn’t make it. As an introduction we started with some definitions of the Kingdom of God, which the Bible explained using a number of parables. The one that struck me most was The Parable of the Wedding Feast.

[Matt 22:1-14 NKJV]

And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: "The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. Again, he sent out other servants, saying, 'Tell those who are invited, "See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready. Come to the wedding."' But they made light of it and went their ways, one to his own farm, another to his business. And the rest seized his servants, treated them spitefully, and killed them. But when the king heard about it, he was furious. And he sent out his armies, destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. Then he said to his servants, 'The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.' So those servants went out into the highways and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests. "But when the king came in to see the guests, he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. So he said to him, 'Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?' And he was speechless. Then the king said to the servants, 'Bind him hand and foot, take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' "For many are called, but few are chosen."

It talked about 3 categories of people:

1) Group 1 – people who have known the Groom and were invited to the wedding

2) Group 2 – people who were invited to the wedding in the last minute

3) Group 3 – people without a wedding garment

In Group 1, not everyone who knew the Groom will respond to the invitation, implying the falling away of believers who did not keep their faith till the end.

Group 2 are those who accepted the invitation just before the start of the wedding feast; those who were saved shortly before the return of our Lord Jesus, during the 7 Years of Tribulation.

Group 3 are those who are not TRULY born again.

The Kingdom of God will consist ONLY of people who will be at the wedding feast – The Groom (Jesus Christ), the Bride (The Church or Zion), people who are very close to the Groom and friends & colleagues of the Groom. All will receive God’s gift of salvation and spend eternity with God.

But these people have different levels of relationship with the Groom and will have different rewards in Heaven, which I will share deeper in the BBC teachings and in my quarterly Newsletters to Church Leaders.

The most important thing is to ensure that one is at the wedding feast, i.e. having confessed Jesus as one’s Lord and Saviour, and keeping that faith without waivering till the end. No doubt, when we observe all the happenings around us in different parts of the world, the wedding is not a million years away!

On the same subject, I notice a lot more people are seeking “god”, may be due partly to the world happenings.

But the 2nd most important thing is for one to find the right god – the God of Creation, the God who came to earth some 2000 years ago to die for our sins, and the same God who will return as the Groom of the Wedding, and not false ones which Satan has created to deceive many.

In Hong Kong, one popular topic of conversation is about owning a property, because prices are not only sky high but keep on rising, due partly to a devalued HK dollar. Many young people are worried about never able to own a property. Money or making money therefore becomes the main goal in life. But the Bible is clear on this issue. “For all can see that wise men die; the foolish and the senseless alike perish and leave their wealth to others. Their tombs will remain their houses forever, their dwellings for endless generations, though they had named lands after themselves. But man, despite his riches, does not endure; he is like the beasts that perish. This is the fate of those who trust in themselves, and of their followers, who approve their sayings…..Do not be overawed when a man grows rich, when the splendor of his house increases; for he will take nothing with him when he dies, his splendor will not descend with him. Though while he lived he counted himself blessed? and men praise you when you prosper ? he will join the generation of his fathers, who will never see the light [of life]. A man who has riches without understanding is like the beasts that perish. [Ps 49:10-20 NIV]

Indeed Satan, who wants to be God, has throughout the ages distract men from knowing the true God and enticed men to worship all kinds of idols that are detestable to God. “And there before me was the glory of the God of Israel……..Then he said to me, "Son of man, look towards the north." So I looked, and in the entrance north of the gate of the altar I saw this idol of jealousy. And he said to me, "Son of man, do you see what they are doing — the utterly detestable things the house of Israel is doing here, things that will drive me far from my sanctuary? But you will see things that are even more detestable." Then he brought me to the entrance to the court. I looked, and I saw a hole in the wall. He said to me, "Son of man, now dig into the wall." So I dug into the wall and saw a doorway there. And he said to me, "Go in and see the wicked and detestable things they are doing here." So I went in and looked, and I saw portrayed all over the walls all kinds of crawling things and detestable animals and all the idols of the house of Israel. In front of them stood seventy elders of the house of Israe……Each had a censer in his hand, and a fragrant cloud of incense was rising. He said to me, "Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each at the shrine of his own idol? They say, 'The LORD does not see us; the LORD has forsaken the land.'" Therefore I will deal with them in anger; I will not look on them with pity or spare them. Although they shout in my ears, I will not listen to them." [Ezek 8:1-12 NIV] Even a God of infinite mercy will not tolerate the sins of men forever!

“……If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. And if what was fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts! Therefore, since we have such a hope, we are very bold…….And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. [2 Cor 3:7-18 NIV] The glory of God will become more and more evident in God’s people before the end. They will be anointed by God to do His bidding, blessing and condemning as God wills!

Let us heed the advice of the Lord. “You who are simple, gain prudence; you who are foolish, gain understanding. Listen, for I have worthy things to say; I open my lips to speak what is right. My mouth speaks what is true, for my lips detest wickedness. All the words of my mouth are just; none of them is crooked or perverse. To the discerning all of them are right; they are faultless to those who have knowledge. Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold, for wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her. [Prov 8:5-11 NIV]

Amen and amen!

Weeks 17 & 18 (11) - Blessings of Divine Guidance

I touched on Marketplace Ministry in my last message as strategic in end-time evangelism. I believe it is God’s calling for me at this time after 12 years of church planting in the UK.

In Feb 2010, God opened a door for me to return to Hong Kong to work for one of the top consultants AECOM on the prestigious West Kowloon Terminus of the Express Rail Link to China. I was Project Manager for the iconic Station Entrance Building, project managing a multi-disciplinary team comprising Aedas (Architect), Buro Happold (Structural Engineer, Environmental Engineer), Meinhardt (M&E Engineer), MVA (Traffic & Transportation Engineer), EDAW (Landscape Architect), Quantity Surveyor (Widnell), ALT (Cladding Specialist), BMT (Wind Engineering), AECOM (Civil Engineer, Geotechnical Engineer, Construction Planner, Fire Engineer). The client was MTRC. It was a great opportunity to meet many senior professionals in the Marketplace and an excellent start to the Marketplace Ministry.

I thought it was God’s will for me to continue with AECOM when I learnt that its CEO is a committed Christian leading the Engineering and Construction Fellowship (ECF) in Hong Kong. I became a member of ECF, but so far there was hardly any activity. Also after my 6-month contract with AECOM expired, it was not renewed.

I spent the following 4 months job hunting, and God used that time to help me set up the BBC School.

In January 2011, God opened a different door, allowing me to join a smaller consultant as a Director. The work nature is very different, working on a large number of much smaller building projects.

Somehow I sense that God is showing me a principle that our desire may not be what He has in mind. My idea of Marketplace Ministry in a big company proved to be not what God had in mind.

Indeed His ways and His thoughts are higher than ours. His will may not be the same as ours. The key is to submit to His will and willingly to do what He calls us to do.

So far, I have a lot of opportunities to incorporate God’s principles in management:

1) I started monthly meeting for the staff and I used that opportunity to teach

2) Besides teaching some topics on structural engineering, I have taught best practices in project management

3) I introduced some management tools in making resource planning more effective

Going forward, I will incorporate more teachings that directly apply God’s principles. In fact, I gave a talk on The Principles of Good (Biblical) Leadership yesterday. :)

A few weeks ago, I witnessed to the big boss over dinner on the essence of the Gospel. Soon after that, he asked me to accompany him in a lunch time meeting organized by the church where his wife attends. I believe he is interested to know more. It would be great if he accepts Jesus as his Lord and Saviour one day!

Living in a world with a “can’t wait” mentality, waiting is unacceptable to most people. Yet, God’s timing is different from ours. Very often, He expects us to be patient. “I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the LORD. Blessed is the man who makes the LORD his trust, who does not look to the proud, to those who turn aside to false gods. Many, O LORD my God, are the wonders you have done. The things you planned for us no-one can recount to you; were I to speak and tell of them, they would be too many to declare…….Yet I am poor and needy; may the Lord think of me. You are my help and my deliverer; O my God, do not delay.” [Ps 40:1-17 NIV]

Soon after I joined Hope some 18 years, God gave me the gifts of prophesy and intercession. I saw the importance of intercession soon after I went to Europe for church planting. God has made me a watchman during the time in Europe, a bit like God’s calling for Ezekiel. “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me. When I say to a wicked man, 'You will surely die,' and you do not warn him or speak out to dissuade him from his evil ways in order to save his life, that wicked man will die for his sin, and I will hold you accountable for his blood. But if you do warn the wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his evil ways, he will die for his sin; but you will have saved yourself [Ezek 3:17-27 NIV]. Some 2 years ago, I warned a church pastor in obedience to God’s Word so that God would not hold me accountable. Sadly, he did not heed my warning and, today, he ended up getting his marriage and his family in a mess!

I count myself privileged to be given the opportunity to serve the King of all kings, the Lord of all lords. God has blessed me as tentmaker all this time and as one who gave up the right of support from the churches I planted. “If others have this right of support from you, shouldn't we have it all the more? But we did not use this right. On the contrary, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ. Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible…….To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.” [1 Cor 9:1-12,19-23 NIV]

A Psalmist has put these questions to us. “Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Who has gathered up the wind in the hollow of his hands? Who has wrapped up the waters in his cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name, and the name of his son? Tell me if you know! "Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.” [Prov 30:4-6,32-33 NIV] Thank you Lord for your eternal Word!

Amen and amen!