The Role of Christians in National Reconciliation

SUNDAY SERVICE 22 SEPT 2013
SPEAKER: DATUK DR DENISON JAYASOORIA
TEXT: 2 COR 5:16-21

Malaysia celebrated the 50th Malaysia Day recently amid controversy and anxiety over the country’s future. Is there a role for the church to play in nation building towards national reconciliation?

In a message that Dr Denison had previously shared at DUMC (see YouTube below), several points were presented anew to us at Hope EFC.


Denison drew attention to his text for the day and looked at the larger implication of Paul’s words for answers.

"God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors..."

As Denison explained, the “in Christ” experience of believers includes the ministry of reconciliation. This work is the expression of new life/new creation, the outflow of spirituality and salvation. Just as we have been reconciled to God, we are now commanded to extend reconciliation within the community we live in: we have been reconciled to be reconcilers.

Animosity and division among people - such as Malaysian society – arise as a result of many reasons. Hostility towards people of different race and religion may come out of ignorance and prejudice. How do we overcome this state of affairs? When a person has peace with God within himself, he will extend peace to others.

Jacob and Esau –Jacob’s deceit drove the two brothers apart. An encounter with God brings peace to a person and enables Jacob to make peace with his brother.
Zaccheus – Luke 19 records how the tax collector’s conversion led him to return money that he had gained through cheating. An encounter with Jesus leads to restitution as a way forward towards reconciliation.
Nelson Mandela – After 27 years in jail, Mandela learnt to surrender fear and anger to serve his own community and work towards national reconciliation.

An outstanding local example of the ministry of reconciliation is found in the work of William Shellabear. Shellabear came back to Malaysia and Singapore where he had served as an army captain and became a missionary. He mastered the Malay language, wrote books in Malay including Sejarah Melayu, a dictionary of the Malay language as well as a guide to Malay grammar. (Note: Shellabear was also the founder of MPH Bookstore in the 1890s)

According to Shellabear’s biography by Robert Hunt, the former army captain turned Methodist missionary left an exemplary legacy for the Malaysian church because of a genuine love for the people, motivated by religious conviction and not exploitation or fear.

Denison reflected on the Malaysian church’s entire focus on the Chinese and Indian population during pre- and post-war Malaya and asked: would not ethnic relationships have been better today if God’s people did not neglect the equally suffering Malay community then? 

What can the church do to foster reconciliation today? 

1. Although our personal identity may be multi-faceted, acknowledge that we are Malaysians first.
2. Appreciate diversity and avoid feelings of ethnic superiority. Learn language, food habits, and cultural practices of our neighbours.
3. Avoid being judgmental and do not respond out of prejudice and limited information.
4. Work to resolve ethnic conflict through relational synergy and partnership.

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." Matthew 5:9 
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DATUK DR DENISON JAYASOORIA is the Principle Research Fellow at the Institute of Ethnic Studies (KITA), National University of Malaysia (UKM) and Secretary-General of PROHAM (Society for the Promotion of Human Rights). He maintains a blog at denisonbooks.blogspot

The Gospel: Sign, Light, Sight

SUNDAY SERVICE 15 SEPT 2013
SPEAKER: DR SUNNY TAN
TEXT: John 9

A summary

The blind man’s encounter with Jesus is very much an analogy of a Gospel journey that leads a person from information to salvation .

Sign
John’s Gospel referred to Jesus’ deeds and miracles as a sign.

John 20:30,31 Now Jesus did many other signs...but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

John 2:11 This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him. 

People are always in need of directions, a signpost. A sign is simply a pointer - it could be an event or an indicator of something invisible that may be good or bad. It is not the sign we admire but the thing it points to. So Jesus’ miracles, life, death and resurrection were called a sign of Jesus’ divinity, pointing us to the invisible God.

Light 
Humans do not generate light from within. Our eyes merely receive light, and without light which comes from outside of us, we can’t see.

If Jesus is the 'Light of the World’ it is not that the world is in darkness but that humans also lack the capacity to see.

Sin blinds us to our need for God. In order to see, we need Jesus to bring light to our true human condition, to see what God wants us to see. It is not enough to come to Jesus as the blind man learned; Jesus needs to touch us so our ability to see God is first ’healed.’

Sight
The religious teachers could not see what the blind man saw, and neither could they understand what the healing pointed to.

As in the blind man now healed, our sight too must be enhanced by knowledge to recognise or understand what to see. It is usually the invisible things, the spiritual things that are lost and not missed because we cannot see them.

Sunny quoted Eugene Peterson who explained how Jesus must first be the Way that points to Truth. Life is the consequence of committing to the truth.

As believers, our community ought to be a signpost - or the Gospel - that points to Jesus. But above all, each one of us is always in need of a personal encounter with Jesus. Only then will we begin to see what He wants us to see, in order to possess the life He desires us to live to the glory of His name.

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Rev Dr Sunny Tan is the Academic Dean of Malaysia Baptist Seminary. Both he and his wife Dr Rosalind Lim live in Penang.

ETERNITY - THE WORLD THAT IS TO COME

VIDEO MESSAGE: GOSPEL IN LIFE 8

SPEAKER: TIM KELLER 
SUNDAY SERVICE  8 SEPTEMBER 2013

A Reflection:

Tim Keller began his presentation by pointing out how the Biblical narrative that began in the Garden of Eden ends up in heaven in a city, the New Jerusalem.

By referring to Isaiah 60 and Revelation 21& 22, we get an overview of a heaven few believers think about or imagine. It certainly provokes reflection as many Christians refer vaguely to heaven as a “better place” or a place where the saved are dressed in white gowns, singing worship songs without end!

But Keller provides an enticing suggestion that this popular picture may not say everything about how grand eternal life promises to be. According to passages in Scripture, the fact that heaven is a city suggests there’s more to eternal life than idle bliss.

A new quality of life, blessed by the beauty of art, music, architecture, labour, creative endeavours, etc – now all purged and purified to glorify God surround believers before His presence.

There will be a renewed culture, a restored shalom, in the intimate presence of the Lord whom we love and worship. There are no tears, no pain or suffering; there is justice, and a new community. In this city where the shekinah glory of God (the visible manifestation of the divine presence) shines, there is light and beauty forevermore while we bask in the joy of his presence!

Isaiah 60:19 The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory.The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. 

C.S Lewis' words from The Last Battle anticipates a story that goes on and on, where each new page we turn is better than the last one:

“This is the end of all the stories, and we can most truly say that they all lived happily ever after. But, for them, it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world ... had only been the cover, and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on Earth has read: which goes on forever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.” 

But more importantly, how does our assurance of eternity affect our present life? We live in the moment, imperfect as it is, but we look forward to eternity.

For instance, how does our understanding of heaven as an eternal city of holy activity impact our witness and the work we do?

Certainly, gospel shaped believers must now live in a community that gives non-believers a foretaste of heaven. In our home, our workplace, in church, etc, the glory of life lived in the presence of God and where Jesus rules must be evident.

May this vision of eternity drive us and our community to meaningful action for God's glory!

JUSTICE: A PEOPLE FOR OTHERS

VIDEO MESSAGE: GOSPEL IN LIFE 7



SPEAKER: TIM KELLER 
SUNDAY SERVICE 1 SEPTEMBER 2013

A REFLECTION

“This is not fair!”

 What’s fair? Is it the same as what’s just?

A person is said to be decent and ‘fair’ or play ‘fair’ when he doesn't cheat, follows the rules, shows equal treatment for all concerned. Surely a God who does not see the difference between right and wrong cannot be worthy of our trust.

Without going into details, it would be ‘fair’ to say that the God of the Bible is more often referred as being just, and not fair. So we are told He is just and holy. He is the righteous judge of all humanity. Yet we are told that his wrath has fallen on his own Son Jesus, so that humanity’s sin may not be held against them. We are told God has done this out of love for us, extending grace and mercy to undeserving sinners, which is not necessarily ‘fair’.

 As King David observed: “He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.” (Ps 103:10)

This withholding of judgment is conditional upon believers taking hold of Jesus who took our place on the cross. Which is the backdrop to Tim Keller’s simple declaration that, "Justice is love in action. It is bringing shalom.”

In Luke 7:41-47, a woman who is likely Mary Magdalene washes Jesus’ feet with tears and perfume to the surprise of Simon and other more ‘upright’ visitors. Jesus responds to his host’s displeasure by telling a parable.

Then Jesus told him this story: “A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other. But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?”

Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt.”

“That’s right,” Jesus said. Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume.

“I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.”

For the Christian, God’s character is the basis for true justice. But our attitude and acts of justice are also informed by God’s grace and mercy. As forgiven sinners who have tasted the immeasurable love of God, we now lovingly work to bring grace to those who have suffered injustice, and contribute to reform social structures that are unjust.

"No, the Lord has told us what is good. What he requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God." Micah 6:8

Calling all LEGO lovers!

Do you have a LEGO lover in your home? 

If you do, come and join us, and bring your LEGO lovers/fanatics/maniacs to our first LEGO CLUB get-together for a time of playing and learning together. Kids will get to work together and cooperate to build their own LEGO creations. Then they will get a chance to present their piece and talk about what they have built!

We will also have other fun LEGO games and activities too. Open to all homeschooling kids aged 5-12 yrs. This is purely a hands-on play session, so no pencil or paper is required. 

Date/Time : 16 Sept 2013, 2.30pm - 4.00pm 

Venue : HOPE EFC (near WangsaWalk) 

No.6-1, Jalan Wangsa Delima 10, 

Wangsa Link, 53300 Setapak 

What to bring : 
1. Your own bucket of LEGO bricks with a good assortment of bricks, wheels and axles.
2. A mat - to lay your LEGO bricks on.

And while we play and fellowship, do check out our library of homeschooling and parenting resources (some of our books are in the picture below) you can borrow!

Note: The inaugural LEGO CLUB is another initiative of Hope EFC to support families who are homeschooling their own children. For more information, please call Chee Keong at 0126354311