Pentecostal Devotions

A Model Wanted

by Victor Chandra

Join with others in following my example [model], brothers,

and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. Philippians 3:17

For four weeks in a row Dr Parker has been lecturing on the Book of Philippians. It was incredibly outstanding! With the help of such an awesome lecturer the class has come to an understanding that not only is the Philippians a first-century letter of friendship but also a letter of moral exhortation. It is interesting to know that moral instruction in the first-century community is most commonly given by way of providing examples to follow, and that Paul offers himself, Jesus, Timothy, and Epaphroditus as positive paradigms to imitate.

In this verse Paul appeals to the church in Philippi (to brothers and sisters) to become imitators of him, that is, to imitate him in their behaviour. The picture is like a pupil who learned not simply by receiving instruction but by putting into practice the example of the teacher. Having said this, people need a teacher or leader who really can show integrity in his or her words and deeds, or else no one will follow them. In the case of the apostle Paul, he is pretty much confident in what he says to the church in Philippi, “following my example,” simply because he has proven himself to be a good follower of Christ who is nothing less than the self-giving God (Philippians 2:6-8 cf. 1:1).

The question for us as the twenty-first century church however is “Are we still able to say with confidence to our generation, even to the generation to come, ‘join with others in following my example?’” Likewise, could we be a positive model for the people surrounding us (e.g., our fellow students/mates, parents, teachers, etc) in what we say and do? Lastly, if Jesus is the perfect model for the church to emulate, and he certainly is, what about us as his disciples? Have we become another positive model for our society or community to follow? While people are seeking a man and woman of integrity whom they can imitate, would they find such a person in the Church?   

From Beginning to End: Love

by Paul Tan

Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. 1 John 4:7

It is interesting to note that after years of fruitful ministry in the early church age, the apostle John sees it fit to come back to the greatest commandment of all time as outlined by Jesus Christ – to love God and to love people. John writes this towards the end of his life on earth after shepherding the early church since the ascension. It seems that love is both the beginning and end of all ministry for God, and that at the end of the day, we will never outlast the need to love each other.

In this passage the apostle John states something that is pivotal for our engagement with ethical and moral dilemmas of our day; that love comes from God. When it comes to our love for other believers, John is stating that we are to love them not from our own selves, with the love that we in our fallen state can provide, but with the love of Christ. This is a supernatural love, one that does not find its origin within our own selves but from the One who lives inside of us – God. In our interactions with people, both Christian and non-Christian alike, we are not to live out of our own selves with our own love, our own wisdom and our own understanding. Instead, let’s allow the love of God to flow through us more and more as we are changed into His likeness. It is His love that changes lives, sets the prisoner free and binds up the broken-hearted.

Search Me, Oh God

by Frigian Reyes

We read in John 8:1-11 the story of a woman caught in adultery. The scribes and Pharisees brought her to Jesus to tell and ask Him what her deserving punishment is for such sin.

The beginning of the story reminded me of the many times we Christians find it easier to see other people’s weaknesses, shortcomings, character flaws than our own. We can easily hear and watch preachings and messages about change of character and think that someone we know, it instead of us should be hearing. We could easily look at other people and expect something to happen to them so they can change or learn their lesson.

However, when we come face to face with Jesus and His words, a real encounter with Him, achieve through constant devotion and prayer. We like the scribe and Pharisee will realise that we ourselves have weaknesses, shortcomings and character flaws. Jesus’ love, grace and mercy look through on all of these things that we have in our lives that are not pleasant but He also help us overcome all of them so that we can live the life that He wants us to live for His glory.

The story is a wonderful reminder that we need to have the same quality of love, grace, mercy, compassion and forgiveness Jesus showed to the imperfect people like ourselves as we encounter everyday.

It is also a great encouragement for us to pray the same prayer David wrote in Psalm 139:23 -24 “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” This searching would help us to be aware of our own frailty and keep us from becoming judgmental towards others.

A lot of times it is hard to be faced with the truth of our character, but it’s only the way for us to be free to be all that God has created us to be.

Judgement and Eternal Life

by Marcus Henningsson

And I saw the dead, the small and the great, stand before God. And books were opened, and another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead in it. And death and hell delivered up the dead in them. And each one of them was judged according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the Lake of Fire. This is the second death. And if anyone was not found having been written in the Book of Life, he was cast into the Lake of Fire. Revelation 20:12-15

Life on this planet has an end; life on the other side, past our earthly death is eternal. The mindset of the secular world is to be forever young. Secular society and science is constantly striving to overcome death and prolong human life, in the end make it eternal here and now. It is easy for us Christians to be consumed with this here and now only mindset of the world. Death is a natural part of life on this planet. Our mission is to remind people that life on this planet has an end and that life continues on the other side, either in hell or heaven.

This scripture has been a firm reminder in my life about the seriousness about our life. It is a reminder to us as Christians, to reach out to our community, to do what we can to communicate the Gospel to them. However, it is also a wake up call to those that haven’t received Christ yet, that the decisions that we make here and now have eternal consequences. Our challenge is to communicate this truth in such a way that they don’t view God as evil because he doesn’t let everyone into heaven. To communicate the Gospel today is cross-cultural communication. We might speak the same language, live in the same city but the Christian worldview is far removed from the mindset of secular society. The only absolute truth according to the secular society is that there are no absolute truths. This is what we need to be aware of in our evangelism. The mission might seem impossible and it truly is if we do it in our own strength. Let us not forget the empowering of the Holy Spirit in our mission. Let us pray for the unsaved and pray that the Holy Spirit will give us the anointing when we talk to those that don’t know Christ yet. Hell is a reality and the day of judgement is coming closer every day. Every person is responsible for their own actions, however our mission is to go the extra mile, love and do everything that we can in order to reach every person with the Gospel. The Holy Spirit has been given to us, so that we can do whatever we can in order to reach everyone with the love of Christ.

The Dummy or the Real Thing

by Amanda Huthnance

How hungry are we for God? How hungry do we get for those encounters? Are we leaving the presence of God changed then from when we went in? God is calling us to fulfill a great destiny and complacency is something that can come upon us and stop us from moving forward. But if God is calling you to a life of GREATNESS why settle for just Good!

When babies are hungry they cry out to their parents… as do we cry out as Christians to God. To stop the crying the baby is often given a dummy. The Encarta dictionary says that a ‘dummy’ is a small rubber or plastic object with a teat that a baby is given to suck for comfort. The baby becomes content with the dummy and stops crying… although the baby is comforted and temporarily is satisfied… they soon realise that it isn’t the real thing.

When we get hungry we desire to be fed. And unfortunately like babies we can sometimes settle for the dummy instead of the real thing. We lose our momentum and enthusiasm to dive deeper within our relationship with God - to go to the next level. Unfortunately church to some Christians is the dummy – they go and worship God and get comforted and it only satisfies them for a short time.

Food is the source of nutrients for living beings, it provides us with energy and growth, as does our communion with God satisfy our spiritual hunger. Once we step up into the next level of maturity and growth spiritually, we must realize that worshipping God isn’t a ‘comfort thing’ – we are to be worshipping God in every aspect of our lives during the week (Romans 12:1 – give your bodies to God because all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice- the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him - NLT).

We need to continually be fed so we can grow, mature and develop in our walk with God. As we spend that one on one time with God our relationships will be strengthened. God is waiting for us to commune with him so he can build us up and equip us to do all that he has called us to do. In John 4:34 – Jesus explained: My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work (NLT).

Let’s not be people who stay on the dummy for comfort but realise that Christianity isn’t supposed to be comfortable. It’s about doing what God has called us to do. An example of something that pushes us out of our comfort zone is fasting. It is a sacrifice of the flesh to develop spiritual growth and a deeper connection with God. We deny our flesh food so we can focus on feeding our soul – our spiritual food.

How comfortable do we get in the presence of God?? How comfortable are we to worship God?

Worship isn’t always going to be comfortable either; it’s a sacrifice of praise. It’s about pushing through and giving praise to the one who is worthy. We should be worshipping and serving God because He is who He is and deserves it rather than for the way it makes us feel. God is crying out for our attention. He wants us to want him. He wants us to choose to spend time with him. He desires us to be with him.

If we are getting ready training and equipping ourselves to be and do what God has called us to do then we need to be consistent in our feeding, not only getting it on Sundays but every day. We need to be courageous and willing to take the next levels into a deeper intimate relationship with God. He is waiting for us and he doesn’t what as to be satisfied with the mediocre life – he wants us to experience the real thing, this will empower us to move forward. Let’s not settle for the dummy but be hungry for the real thing.

Ethics of Godly Leadership

by Steve Wall

…Jesus rose from supper, laid aside his garments, and girded himself with a towel. Then he poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which he was girded…(John 13:3-4)

In these verses, we see a single act that marks out our Saviour’s leadership ethic and sets it apart from the way that leadership is taught in some churches today. Jesus taught that no servant is greater than their master, and yet he knelt before his disciples and exemplifies the above leadership principle for them to follow. His leadership was not one of “serve the leader” but that the “greatest is not above serving”. What Jesus did was confirmation of a statement that he made in Mathew 23:11. Jesus was not only putting actions to his words, he was spinning the leadership principle of his day up on its head.

Jesus laid aside his garments, and here I see the miracle of servanthood; I use the word miracle because in that culture it was not normal for the superior to serve the inferior, but Jesus went against the culture of his time and showed that the greatest must be able to be the servant of all. This was more than just a duty; his servant leadership ethic messed with their heads as Jesus knelt before them. Peter’s words “you shall not wash my feet” show this.

I see a miracle of humility; Our Lord made himself vulnerable; he humbled himself when he removed his outer garment, placed the towel about him, and then crouched down to wash their feet with that very same towel. It was this humility in service that Jesus expects us to follow - in fact it is a command (See Vs 15).

I see the miracle of love; Jesus picked up their smelly, dirty feet, and began to wash. Probably looking into their eyes with compassion and genuine love. Do we allow Jesus that intimate gaze towards us? – Have you connected with others in this way lately?

Does it mean, as leaders we do all the work and carry everything out? No! This is not talking about work; it is talking about position and attitude. No servant is greater than their master, yet the master is to be the servant of all by example. As tomorrow’s leaders, in preparation today we need to learn the principle of serving those that God allows us to lead. We do not lord it over people, demanding and pressurizing that they do as we say but not as we do, rather we have been given the greatest opportunity to gladly serve them in doing acts that show love, humility and servant heartedness.

Do This in Remembrance of Me

by Ann-Elise Koerntjes

When I went back to Melbourne in the holidays I saw my Grandpa for the first time since Christmas. But he didn’t see me... I walked into the room but there was no flicker of recognition, no spark of joy at my presence. Instead he kept the same bewildered look on his face, the same look that has been on his face for weeks…for months. A look that reveals nothing but emptiness…

Doctors call it Alzheimer’s, a crippling disease that renders an individual with no past, no present and no future. A tragedy yet nothing can be done about it. Family are left helplessly watching the devastation that this disease ravages on their loved one returning them to the helpless stage of infancy.

Watching this forced me to think. How many people around me have spiritual Alzheimer’s? Do I? Just as there is spiritual blindness and deafness perhaps there is an equivalent to the tragedy that destroys the man of joy, strength and laughter that once was my grandpa. I think I have suffered from it myself. If not then why was Jesus so passionate about us commemorating a tradition whenever we fellowship in memory of Him?

When you have lost your memory, you lose your identity. My Grandpa has no idea of where he has come, or where he is going, and even the people who mean most to him are becoming total strangers. If we forget what Jesus has done on the Cross we lose our identity as Children of God, we lose our future as part of His coming Kingdom and we lose our family, fellow heirs in Christ. We lose all ability to worship, to acknowledge who God is and celebrate what God has done, is doing and will do in us and others.

When Alzheimer’s begins no one is aware, it subtly enters and begins its destructive course. In the same manner, we can easily allow ourselves to forget what God has done, who He is and who we are in Christ. When facing tough times, sometimes the only way to get through is to live on the memory of what God has done in the past, and a knowledge of His character as revealed in Christ, otherwise we will fail.

History proves this true. When the children of Israel were wandering through the desert, they continually forgot these very things. Despite God’s continual reminder of His presence in the tabernacle, a routine of worship and a system of laws involving every aspect of life, they continually forgot the mighty miracles that God has worked among them and for them and his great provision and longed for a life they remembered, their spiritual infancy of Egypt. It is as if their encounter with God had been wiped from their memory, Alzheimer’s of a spiritual variety.

I think that one of the most poignant aspects of communion is its call to remembrance. A call that God made time and time again to the children of Israel. A call that Jesus was sure to ensure that we received loud and clear. "As often as you come together do this in memory of me."

As any act of worship, communion is a choice. A choice to remember, to focus on Who God is, what He has done in Jesus and our new identity as His Child an inheritor of the love and grace of God. If there is any form of antidote to spiritual Alzheimer’s it must be found in our worship, and what could be more appropriate than the very action that Jesus initiated to sustain our memory?

Go and Do Likewise

by Andrew Stewart

(Luke 10:25-40)
In response to the lawyers’ loaded question  ….
“WHAT AM I TO DO to inherit everlasting life?”

Jesus draws out the answer;
“Love God with all your being -
all your strength of heart, soul and mind
and love your neighbour as yourself”

The lawyer continues further
“Who then is my neighbour?”

Jesus relates one of the most well known of illustrations - but remember it wasn’t just an imagined illustration; Jericho Road was notoriously dangerous, the story could have sounded like a news update to the listening crowd!

Jesus ends the account with another question
“Who (by his actions) proved himself neighbour?”
The answer? (a no brainer or is it?)
“The Samaritan, of course.”

Jesus wraps it up
“Go and do likewise.”

Every follower of Jesus will confront situations along their path where the question “WHAT AM I TO DO?” must be asked because there will be risks, delays, cost, inconvenience…. The response(s) will reveal character.

Jesus specifically identifies the exemplar as a Samaritan (regarded as inferior by his Jewish audience) and the ‘certain’ man as a needy, unknown Jew on the Samaritans’ path.

The compassion, pity and mercy shown are Christ-like attributes of the heart, of the inner man; character demonstrated in practical self denying actions:

• accepting inconvenience and risk - delaying the journey and stopping on the road despite the obvious danger of similarly falling victim to the thugs
• dressing the wounds - bringing pain relief, healing and comfort
• putting the wounded man on the donkey - giving up his own seat and choosing to walk
• paying - taking responsibility and staying with the need despite the cost as well as ignoring accepted prejudices

It is pretty simple - what’s inside (character) will be demonstrated by practical action on the outside.

“WHAT AM I TO DO?”    

“Go and do likewise.”

Worship Beyond Rituals and Locations

by Sharon Ingram

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice,

holy and pleasing to God - this is true worship.

(Romans 12:1)

To worship is to honour, reverence and show adoration to a divine being. As Christians, the object of our worship is God. We see precedence for worship in the Old Testament. The Israelites’ worship tended to take the form of building altars and offering sacrifices to God. They had set places they had to carry out their rituals of worship.

It is important to understand however, that while our worship today does include rituals (prayer, singing, fasting etc); it is not limited to these. It is also not something that has to be done in a particular place. In John 4 Jesus told the Samaritan woman that the time was coming when the Father would not be worshipped on the mountain or in Jerusalem, and that He would be worshipped in Spirit and in truth. We can see that the location of the worship is not the important thing, but rather the attitude of the worshipper. God is looking for heart-felt worship, not words or practices done merely out of duty.

In Romans 12:1 Paul tells us that true worship is to present our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God. We are to present our whole self to Him to be used as He desires. This means that worship can, and should be, part of our daily lifestyle. We can express our worship through the words we speak, the actions we do throughout the day, and the decisions we make, if these are consistent with the lifestyle God has called us to live. When we submit our will to God’s will and are obedient to Him, even when it means we have to make a personal sacrifice - this is worship! Let us all consider what act of worship we can do today to express our love, gratitude and devotion to God.

Fasting For Love

by Karina Rodriguez

Establishing and strengthening the souls and the hearts of the disciples, urging and warning and encouraging them

to stand firm in the faith, and [telling them] that it is through many hardships and tribulations

we must enter the kingdom of God. And when they had appointed and ordained elders for them in each church

with prayer and fasting, they committed them to the Lord in Whom they had come to believe

(Acts 14:22-24 - AMP).

Throughout the Bible, we see the theme of Fasting repeatedly. In the Old Testament we see Moses, Esther, Isaiah and Daniel fasting .In the New Testament we see Paul, John and our Ultimate example Jesus, who we are all called to pattern our lives after, also fasted.

But why do we as modern Christians fast? Why is it so important to our lives today? There are many reasons why we fast today. We may be fasting for a breakthrough in our lives and ministries; we may be fasting for the souls of the unsaved and many other countless reasons. Fasting in our lives is important however, it only works when pray as well as fast.

When we pray it is an act of submission to God, it is our way of showing dependence on him. Prayer and fasting releases blessings into our lives, as well as bringing us closer to God. It is like a spring clean of our minds. Though we should renew our minds daily, fasting with prayer unclogs our minds of things that have been left unattended. Ultimately fasting and prayer are ways we show our love for God by setting time apart for him and abstaining from things in our lives that distract us from him. It is a discipline that we should practice in our lives and although it is not a commandment set by God, it is expected of us. Therefore as Christians in this modern world we live in today let us show our love for the King of Kings, The Holy One of Israel, Our Father and God and fast not just for gain in our lives but as act of our love and submission to him