Sunday Morning

I had a nice dream last night. Better write it down before another week resumes...

And it's okay if you have go away
Oh just remember the telephone works both ways
And if I never ever hear them ring
If nothing else I'll think the bells inside
Have finally found you someone else and that's okay
Cause I'll remember everything you sang

Jason Mraz - You and I Both

Thought of the Day: Creation

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities - all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister." Colossians 1:15-23

With a bit of paragraphing, this passage does have a chronological flow in literary sense. It is about the hope for all Christians when Church history comes to an end.

'Old' Creation: Genesis; Christ as the "firstborn of all [over] creation".

"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities - all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church..."

New Creation: Resurrection; Christ is the "firstborn from the dead". As promised, the 'firstborn' won't be the last. We who will soon be "dead", or in my humble view, already "dead", will be born again one day.

"...He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross."

Church History from Old to New Creation: "And you"; what it means for me as participants in this process that Christ's death has enabled and started.

"And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister."

Sometimes, I do wish that He will just come down and kickstart the whole process of a new order. Sometimes, I wish my life span is shorter so that I can leave this world in which I have been an alienated, hostile, and sinful member of. I'm reminded that there is great hope in the gospel, that if I keep my faith in Him, I will be presented to him holy and blameless one day. No more business with this sinful flesh, this embodied self. I'll eventually be free someday.

Thought of the Day: Confidence

"Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves... Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you." Luke 10:3, 19

Maybe I'm influenced by what I study, but I like to think how the wolves think. Not just in terms of missionary works per se, but in how this secular world operates in general; its culture, values, principles, rules, norms, embodied in bureaucracy, hierarchy, competition etc. Working out my salvation in fear and trembling involves a constant review of the world that I am born into, and the worldview that has been developed through how I have interacted with this society. But I think maybe the 'lamb' is a pretty dumb animal. It probably really doesn't think too much into the internal logic of the wolves community. Simplicity is not stupidity though, for the bible is pretty complex when I dwell into it as a form of literature, with its history, prose, poetry, parables etc. Living - by the Word - become an art. Living in a culture that overwhelms our aesthetic senses must take into consideration the Word which is full of human complexity; between God and Man, and within Man himself. My faculties and nerves are dead if I let this society take control of my hands to do the things that it wants me to do, through the ideas of 'rationality' and 'logic'. Art is dead without the Word. If the Word promises a sense of confidence in the midst of the wolves, it just might be possible to simplify life without stupefying it.

Thought of the Day: Faith

Was it in the bible which says that faith is trusting in God in things that have yet to be seen or heard? While walking back home today, I thought maybe faith, in this new age, is to trust in God despite of things that I have seen and heard. We bear with us many assumptions and historical baggages since we were young. And sometimes, our worldviews are basically projections of our own assumptions. So maybe we have seen bad marriages, experienced disappointing moments with God, or heard about the irrelevancy of Christianity in modern culture. What I have internalized but sublimated as 'truths' are externalized in a indifferent attitude towards God, society, family and myself. Faith is to stand against my own assumptions. Faith is to unlearn the things that I have learnt.