Heart & Mind on Things Above

 ¹ Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ² Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. ³ For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. ⁴ When Christ, who is your^[a] life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. - Colossians 3:1-4

Marriage - A Sacred Covenant

Our study of the divine institution of marriage and of the teachings of the prophets, Jesus and Paul, regarding marriage, has shown us how the Scripture consistently upholds marriage as a sacred and permanent covenant, witnessed and protected by God. We have found that as a sacred covenant, marriage was effectively used in the Old Testament to portray God’s relationship with Israel and in the New Testament to represent Christ’s relationship with His church. If God used marriage as a metaphor to represent His commitment to His people, He must surely have thought of it as a sacred, permanent covenant.

The recovery of the Biblical view of marriage as a sacred and permanent covenant, witnessed and guaranteed by God Himself, is indispensable in counteracting the secularization of marriage. This trend has influenced many Christians to view marriage as a temporary social contract governed by civil laws, rather than as a permanent covenant, witnessed and guaranteed by God Himself. To counteract this trend, it is essential for Christians to recover and accept the Biblical view of marriage as a sacred covenant. The conviction that it is God Who has united our lives in holy matrimony and Who will help us to stay together will motivate us to persevere in preserving the unity of the marriage covenant.

Reference Link

Three Enemies of our Souls

Do not love the world nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever. 
~ 1 John 2:15-17

Homosexuality is God's Wrath!

Here's the only True God speaking through Paul - 

Romans 1

 ¹ Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God— ² the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures ³ regarding his Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David, ⁴ and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. ⁵ Through him and for his name’s sake, we received grace and apostleship to call people from among all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith. ⁶ And you also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.

 ⁷ To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints:

   Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul’s Longing to Visit Rome

 ⁸ First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for all of you, because your faith is being reported all over the world. ⁹ God, whom I serve with my whole heart in preaching the gospel of his Son, is my witness how constantly I remember you ¹⁰ in my prayers at all times; and I pray that now at last by God’s will the way may be opened for me to come to you.

 ¹¹ I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong— ¹² that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith. ¹³ I do not want you to be unaware, brothers, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other Gentiles.

 ¹⁴ I am obligated both to Greeks and non-Greeks, both to the wise and the foolish. ¹⁵ That is why I am so eager to preach the gospel also to you who are at Rome.

 ¹⁶ I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. ¹⁷ For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

God’s Wrath Against Mankind

 ¹⁸ The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, ¹⁹ since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. ²⁰ For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

 ²¹ For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. ²² Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools ²³ and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

 ²⁴ Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. ²⁵ They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

 ²⁶ Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. ²⁷ In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

 ²⁸ Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. ²⁹ They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, ³⁰ slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; ³¹ they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. ³² Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

Blessed Fathers' Day!

God took the strength of a mountain,

The majesty of a tree,

The warmth of a summer sun,

The calm of a quiet sea,

The comforting arm of night,

The wisdom of the ages,

The power of the eagle’s flight,

The joy of a morning in spring,

The faith of a mustard seed,

The patience of eternity,

The depth of a family need,

Then God combined these qualities,

When there was nothing more to add,

He knew His masterpiece was complete,

And so, He called it … Dad

~ Author Unknown

An Encouraging Passage this week

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 3:14-15, New International Version)

To be WHEAT, not weeds...

  Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.

    “The owner’s servants came to him and said, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?’

    “‘An enemy did this,’ he replied.

   “The servants asked him, ‘Do you want us to go and pull them up?’

    “‘No,’ he answered, ‘because while you are pulling the weeds, you may uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.’” (Matthew 13:24-30, New International Version)

Summer is here and it is the season of the year to be mowing your lawn. My friends, ask yourself this: "Are you the WHEAT or the weeds? Do you prefer to be burned or be in Jesus' barn?"

for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:13, New International Version)

ISRAEL, the apple of YHWH's eyes

 ¹ The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.
 ² “I will make you into a great nation,
   and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
   and you will be a blessing.
³ I will bless those who bless you,
   and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
   will be blessed through you.”
 (Genesis 12:1-3, New International Version)

Once the United States refuses to stand with Israel and begins to 'curse' Israel, basically, the LORD (i.e. the God of the Bible) will indeed curses the United States as well. See link.

Folks, TODAY ain't Rapture Day...

 ¹ Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. ² I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles.

 ³ Above all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. ⁴ They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” ⁵ But they deliberately forget that long ago by God’s word the heavens came into being and the earth was formed out of water and by water. ⁶ By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. ⁷ By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.

 ⁸ But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. ⁹ The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

 ¹⁰ But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.

 ¹¹ Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives ¹² as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. ¹³ But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.

 ¹⁴ So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him. ¹⁵ Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. ¹⁶ He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.

 ¹⁷ Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. ¹⁸ But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen. (2 Peter 3, New International Version)

Let's just continue to TRUST, OBEY and WAIT upon Christ Jesus and be ready for His promised 2nd Coming.

A Psalm that moves my heart

For the director of music. With stringed instruments. 
A maskil of David.
 ¹ Listen to my prayer, O God,
   do not ignore my plea;
 ² hear me and answer me.
My thoughts trouble me and I am distraught
 ³ because of what my enemy is saying,
   because of the threats of the wicked;
for they bring down suffering on me
   and assail me in their anger.
 ⁴ My heart is in anguish within me;
   the terrors of death have fallen on me.
⁵ Fear and trembling have beset me;
   horror has overwhelmed me.
⁶ I said, “Oh, that I had the wings of a dove!
   I would fly away and be at rest.
⁷ I would flee far away
   and stay in the desert;
⁸ I would hurry to my place of shelter,
   far from the tempest and storm.”
 ⁹ Lord, confuse the wicked, confound their words,
   for I see violence and strife in the city.
¹⁰ Day and night they prowl about on its walls;
   malice and abuse are within it.
¹¹ Destructive forces are at work in the city;
   threats and lies never leave its streets.
 ¹² If an enemy were insulting me,
   I could endure it;
if a foe were rising against me,
   I could hide.
¹³ But it is you, a man like myself,
   my companion, my close friend,
¹⁴ with whom I once enjoyed sweet fellowship
   at the house of God,
as we walked about
   among the worshipers.
 ¹⁵ Let death take my enemies by surprise;
   let them go down alive to the realm of the dead,
   for evil finds lodging among them.
 ¹⁶ As for me, I call to God,
   and the LORD saves me.
¹⁷ Evening, morning and noon
   I cry out in distress,
   and he hears my voice.
¹⁸ He rescues me unharmed
   from the battle waged against me,
   even though many oppose me.
¹⁹ God, who is enthroned from of old,
   who does not change—
he will hear them and humble them,
   because they have no fear of God.
 ²⁰ My companion attacks his friends;
   he violates his covenant.
²¹ His talk is smooth as butter,
   yet war is in his heart;
his words are more soothing than oil,
   yet they are drawn swords.
 ²² Cast your cares on the LORD
   and he will sustain you;
he will never let
   the righteous be shaken.
²³ But you, God, will bring down the wicked
   into the pit of decay;
the bloodthirsty and deceitful
   will not live out half their days.
   But as for me, I trust in you. (Psalm 55, New International Version)

CMV Men's Retreat

Behold, how good and how pleasant it is
For brothers to dwell together in unity! ~ Psalm 133:1

I am really glad to have spent the weekend with fellow brothers in Christ! Praise GOD. Amen.

A wretch I am

A guy was tailgating me since the light changed to green. He eventually overtook me and gave me a stern look. I didn't know this guy but Jesus knows him. Jesus not only knows him but also died for him as well at the cross of Calvary. 

Jesus loves him as much as He loves me.

The big question is, "Does this guy know Jesus Christ as his Savior?"

Until the day when the Holy Spirit Himself opens up my eyes to see Him, I never knew what a wretch I am.

Subaru - Experience Love

Considering Proverbs 16 for GE 2011

Proverbs 16

 ¹ To humans belong the plans of the heart,
   but from the LORD comes the proper answer of the tongue.
 ² All a person’s ways seem pure to them,
   but motives are weighed by the LORD.
 ³ Commit to the LORD whatever you do,
   and he will establish your plans.
 ⁴ The LORD works out everything to its proper end—
   even the wicked for a day of disaster.
 ⁵ The LORD detests all the proud of heart.
   Be sure of this: They will not go unpunished.
 ⁶ Through love and faithfulness sin is atoned for;
   through the fear of the LORD evil is avoided.
 ⁷ When the LORD takes pleasure in anyone’s way,
   he causes their enemies to make peace with them.
 ⁸ Better a little with righteousness
   than much gain with injustice.
 ⁹ In their hearts humans plan their course,
   but the LORD establishes their steps.
 ¹⁰ The lips of a king speak as an oracle,
   and his mouth does not betray justice.
 ¹¹ Honest scales and balances belong to the LORD;
   all the weights in the bag are of his making.
 ¹² Kings detest wrongdoing,
   for a throne is established through righteousness.
 ¹³ Kings take pleasure in honest lips;
   they value the one who speaks what is right.
 ¹⁴ A king’s wrath is a messenger of death,
   but the wise will appease it.
 ¹⁵ When a king’s face brightens, it means life;
   his favor is like a rain cloud in spring.
 ¹⁶ How much better to get wisdom than gold,
   to get insight rather than silver!
 ¹⁷ The highway of the upright avoids evil;
   those who guard their ways preserve their lives.
 ¹⁸ Pride goes before destruction,
   a haughty spirit before a fall.
 ¹⁹ Better to be lowly in spirit along with the oppressed
   than to share plunder with the proud.
 ²⁰ Whoever gives heed to instruction prospers,
   and blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD.
 ²¹ The wise in heart are called discerning,
   and gracious words promote instruction.
 ²² Prudence is a fountain of life to the prudent,
   but folly brings punishment to fools.
 ²³ The hearts of the wise make their mouths prudent,
   and their lips promote instruction.
 ²⁴ Gracious words are a honeycomb,
   sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.
 ²⁵ There is a way that appears to be right,
   but in the end it leads to death.
 ²⁶ The appetite of laborers works for them;
   their hunger drives them on.
 ²⁷ A scoundrel plots evil,
   and on their lips it is like a scorching fire.
 ²⁸ A perverse person stirs up conflict,
   and a gossip separates close friends.
 ²⁹ A violent person entices their neighbor
   and leads them down a path that is not good.
 ³⁰ Whoever winks with their eye is plotting perversity;
   whoever purses their lips is bent on evil. 
 (Proverbs 16, New International Version, ©2011)

Listen to People, O Government

1 Kings 12:1-15 (New International Version, ©2011)

1 Kings 12

Israel Rebels Against Rehoboam

¹ Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. ² When Jeroboam son of Nebat heard this (he was still in Egypt, where he had fled from King Solomon), he returned from^[a] Egypt.³ So they sent for Jeroboam, and he and the whole assembly of Israel went to Rehoboam and said to him:⁴ “Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but now lighten the harsh labor and the heavy yoke he put on us, and we will serve you.”

 ⁵ Rehoboam answered, “Go away for three days and then come back to me.” So the people went away.

 ⁶ Then King Rehoboam consulted the elders who had served his father Solomon during his lifetime. “How would you advise me to answer these people?” he asked.

 ⁷ They replied, “If today you will be a servant to these people and serve them and give them a favorable answer, they will always be your servants.”

 ⁸ But Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him. ⁹ He asked them, “What is your advice? How should we answer these people who say to me, ‘Lighten the yoke your father put on us’?”

 ¹⁰ The young men who had grown up with him replied, “These people have said to you, ‘Your father put a heavy yoke on us, but make our yoke lighter.’ Now tell them, ‘My little finger is thicker than my father’s waist. ¹¹ My father laid on you a heavy yoke; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.’”

 ¹² Three days later Jeroboam and all the people returned to Rehoboam, as the king had said, “Come back to me in three days.” ¹³ The king answered the people harshly. Rejecting the advice given him by the elders, ¹⁴ he followed the advice of the young men and said, “My father made your yoke heavy; I will make it even heavier. My father scourged you with whips; I will scourge you with scorpions.” ¹⁵ So the king did not listen to the people, for this turn of events was from the LORD, to fulfill the word the LORD had spoken to Jeroboam son of Nebat through Ahijah the Shilonite.

Israel rebelled against King Rehoboam because he not only did not listen to the counsel of the elders but also his people. As I pray for the government of Singapore to be truly leading under the Lordship of Christ, I also hope that it will heed the voice of the people before it is too late. May LORD Jesus watch over the results of the Singapore’s Polling Day on May 7.

Chee's Hor Fun Mee

Time - A Finite Resource

Living in a time and space dimension as human beings, time is a resource and also a common asset to every single one of us. Every one of us is given 24 hours each day and it is up to individuals to use it.

Having attended some time management courses earlier part of my life, I learnt about the analogy of managing time like money. Every one is like given a new load of $24 each day. It really depends how you will like to spend this $24. How much are you willing to invest on certain things like on Facebook, Television programs and even mandatory stuffs like eating and sleeping? For example, I am probably likely to spend thirty minutes of my life presenting this argument to you.

Every morning, I am reminded of God’s Mercy and Grace again. Every time I wake up, I am given yet another day of His Grace and thankful for another day of opportunity for my family to come into knowledge of Jesus Christ. However, I do not know when I will not be given this day of Grace. I really do not know when the curtain of this stage will be drawn and Jesus is back to judge mankind. I am really glad that Jesus waited for me to know Him and I am praying real hard that He will also give this opportunity to my family to know Him too.

If you are reading this post and thinking about getting to know more about Jesus Christ, please feel free to logon to this Global Media Outreach website: http://www.jesus2020.com/. You can also email me if you will like to correspond with me on a one to one basis. I pray that as you wake up each day; know that you are presented with another valuable resource to get to know the Savior. Please do not waste this resource. Invest this resource into finding out more about Jesus Christ today.

The Sign of Earthquakes

Matthew 24

The Destruction of the Temple and Signs of the End Times

 ¹ Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings. ² “Do you see all these things?” he asked. “Truly I tell you, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”

 ³ As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

 ⁴ Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵ For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. ⁶ You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁷ Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are the beginning of birth pains.

   ⁹ “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. ¹⁰ At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, ¹¹and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. ¹² Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, ¹³ but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved. ¹⁴ And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

   ¹⁵ “So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’^[a] spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand— ¹⁶ then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ¹⁷ Let no one on the housetop go down to take anything out of the house. ¹⁸ Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. ¹⁹ How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! ²⁰ Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath. ²¹ For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.

   ²² “If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened. ²³ At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. ²⁴ For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. ²⁵ See, I have told you ahead of time.

   ²⁶ “So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the wilderness,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. ²⁷ For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.  Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.

²⁹ “Immediately after the distress of those days “‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light;  the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’^[b]

   ³⁰ “Then will appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven. And then all the peoples of the earth^[c] will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.^[d] 31And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.

   ³² “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. ³³ Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it^[e] is near, right at the door. ³⁴ Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. ³⁵ Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

The Day and Hour Unknown

    ³⁶ “But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,^[f] but only the Father. ³⁷ As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ³⁸ For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; ³⁹ and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. ⁴⁰ Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. ⁴¹ Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.

   ⁴² “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. ⁴³ But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴ So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.

   ⁴⁵ “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? ⁴⁶ It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. ⁴⁷ Truly I tell you, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁸ But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’ ⁴⁹ and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. ⁵⁰ The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. ⁵¹ He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

So… excuse me, where do you see an exact date for Jesus’ return? Please just stay faithful in your walk with Him.