Yang Education

The Business of Christian Education XXXVI: The Tender Love of God

2012-01-18T09:24:00.000-08:00

וַיַּעַשׂ֩ יְהוָ֨ה אֱלֹהִ֜ים לְאָדָ֧ם וּלְאִשְׁתּוֹ֛ כָּתְנ֥וֹת ע֖וֹר וַיַּלְבִּשֵֽׁם

Which means:

“The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and (he) clothed them.” (Genesis 3:21)

There was a young boy who did a terrible thing. He burned his father’s house. The fire killed his mother and his four siblings, and destroyed the entire property. Only ashes remained. The boy was nearly killed as well, but he managed to escape the fire, but his clothes were burnt. His father came home and found him naked in front of the piles of rubble, which used to be his home. When he found out that his son had caused this tragedy, he was furious and engulfed in sadness at the same time, for in one day he lost his wife and his four lovely children. His son disobeyed his simple command: “Do not play fire in the house, for it will burn down the house and destroy everything.”

If you are the father, what would you do? In the midst of your fury toward your son, and the sorrow and agony for the lost of your loved ones, what would you do to your son?

The joy and laughs and love that used to fill his house is now gone. Only silence and pain filled his imagination. The peace that used to reign in his family is now disrupted by the image of flames burning his family. The beautiful colors that used to decorate his memory are now darkened with the blackness of ashes. The fragrant smell of flowers is now replaced by the stinking smell of burning rubbles. He looked at the only one remained from the perfect home, his son, who also was the cause of all this. Despite his unsettled feeling, he took off his own clothes and clothed his son who was standing naked in front of him. The heaven and the earth are witnesses of the tender love of the father toward his son.

God gave a vivid command to Adam not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for on the day he eats it he will certainly die (Genesis 2:17). The command was broken in Genesis 3, which resulted in God punishing the serpent, and Adam and Eve. The entire world suffers ever since. The destruction that was ushered in is still haunting the world today. Everywhere we witness evil. The death of our loved ones breaks our hearts inevitably. Injustice is rampant in the world. Corruption causes great suffering to many nations. Everyday people lost hope of life because of famine and pandemic. Poverty ravages the land and destroys the naïve. The rich and powerful manipulates and enslaves the needy. Nature marches against humankind. Earthquakes, volcano eruptions, tsunami, hurricanes, and all other natural disasters overwhelm the world every year. Death has become the reward to all mankind. Death stays with us since the Fall. God was angry and sad at the same time. His broken heart we can never comprehend. God has to do something to save us. And that something he does breaks his heart even more. He has to sacrifice his one and only Son. Through the death of Jesus Christ, God forgives us. Jesus died for us so we will not need to die. The ultimate condemnation for disobeying a direct command of the Almighty was taken up by Jesus Christ on our behalf through his obedience. The sacrifice of His one and only Son encases the love of God to us.

With all that in clarity before God, his gentle hands made garments of skin for Adam and Eve. I believe God made the most beautiful clothing that day. If humans can create beautiful garments today, no doubt God could create a million times more beautiful garments than what we can. Versace, Christian Dior, Gucci, and all those world famous designers can’t compete with the LORD, the God of heaven and earth.

“And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” (Matthew 6:28-30)

Adam and Eve wore the most beautiful garments humans could ever imagine of making that very day they caused the fall of the world. For even Solomon in all his glory could not outshine the beauty of the lilies of the field. If we could find the garments God made for Adam and Eve that day, we would be in complete awe of its design. Those were not labeled with human names, but with the name of God. From that prototype, all humans on earth have learned how to create beautiful clothes. However, “the garment of holiness” that was lost was even more beautiful than any garments can be made from the earthly materials. The first clothing God made for Adam and Eve was made in earth, but the one lost was made in heaven (Genesis 1:26-27).

God did not just make the garments for them, but with gentleness he clothed them. When we see a baby just born, naked, the first act of love from the parents was to clothe the baby. So with tender love God clothed Adam and Eve. He replaced the ugly garment design Adam and Eve made from leaves and bushes. For God wanted Adam and Eve to still have the dignity and honor as son and daughter of the Almighty. Do you remember the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15:11-32? In verse 22 Luke records:

“But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet.”

The son returned to his father and he was in terrible condition. But, his father forgave him by clothing him with the best robe and ring and shoes. Such gesture from the father restores the dignity of the lost son. God did the same thing to Adam and Eve and thus to the rest of us. God already forgave Adam and Eve when he clothed them, and thus he restored their dignity and honor. Such is an act of love that God did to Adam and Eve, even after they caused havoc in the world.

God did not stop at covering Adam and Eve with the best garments humans can ever imagine, but he has planned on clothing us with the spiritual garments, which is the glory in Jesus Christ. The love of God no one can measure, no one can fathom. Praise be to God, forever and ever.

The Business of Christian Education XXXV: A Leader’s Dilemma

2012-01-08T14:48:00.000-08:00

To hasten or to halt? To move or to wait? To go or to stay? To do or to refrain? To speak or to be quiet? To accept or to refuse? To compromise or to uphold principles? To intervene or to allow? To instruct or to listen? To keep or to let go? To fight or to make peace? To admit or to deny? To save face or to be honest? To march or to retreat? To punish or to forgive? To struggle or to sit still? To overlook or to defend? To create anew or to repair? To nurture or to rebuke? To expand or to deepen? To sacrifice or to save oneself? To imitate or to be original? To be angry or to be patient? To bind or to free? To continue or to cancel? To reveal or to conceal secrets? To unite or to divide? To add or to reduce? To dominate or to serve? To compete or to collaborate?

Those are the questions all leaders raise and at times finding themselves difficult to make the right decision. The reflection always goes: “How can I be sure that my decision is right?” or “How can I be sure that my decision will bring good?” The biggest question is always: “What is the truth?” Truth guides us to make the right decision. The problem of human race is always on getting hold of the truth. The quest of philosophy is to seek the truth. Humans are always hunger for the truth. But, since the fall, humans always have difficulties of being certain of which data or information is true. But the thirst and hunger for truth is undeniable. Deep down in our soul we know that without the truth we are trapped. All those questions above would not be answered right. Even if there are only two obvious options to choose from, when doubt clouds the decision making process, one can’t run from being haunted with the question: “What if I make the wrong decision?” Especially when much is at stake. Without the truth, humans will never be free. The task of leaders is heavy. Jesus said in John 8:32,

“καὶ γνώσεσθε τὴν ἀλήθειαν, καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια ἐλευθερώσει ὑμᾶς.”

Translation: “And you will know the truth, and the truth will free you.”

The Greek word that is used for “knowing” is “γινώσκω” that is similar to the Hebrew word: יָדַע. The meaning is “to know”, but it is not just to know a proposition. The knowing projected here is the knowing in the intimate sense. Those words both in Greek and Hebrew are used to mean “having intimate relationship” (between husband and wife). So to know the truth as Jesus said cannot mean just knowing a propositional truth, but truly having an intimate relationship with the truth. Only and only then, the person knowing the truth may be set free. If we only know a propositional truth, we are still trapped in uncertainty and doubt. The truth that is meant by Jesus must relate to his word. John 8:31 gives clue to this.

“ἔλεγεν οὖν ὁ Ἰησοῦς πρὸς τοὺς πεπιστευκότας αὐτῷ Ἰουδαίους• ἐὰν ὑμεῖς μείνητε ἐν τῷ λόγῳ τῷ ἐμῷ, ἀληθῶς μαθηταί μού ἐστε.”

Which means: “Then Jesus spoke to the Jews who had believed him: “If you remained in the word of mine, truly you are my disciples.” Then Jesus continued to say to them: “And you will know the truth, and the truth will free you.” The immediate context provided shows clearly that the Jews couldn’t be Jesus’ disciples without remaining in his word, and without it they wouldn’t know (have intimate relationship with) the truth, and certainly they would still not be free. The gospel of John is unique in that it wonderfully connects the spiritual understanding of Jesus as God, as Logos or the WORD (John 1:1), and as the TRUTH (John 14:6). So, we can safely interpret that what Jesus meant was one must believe in him (for he is the WORD) in order to intimately know the truth (which is Jesus) that will set him/her free from the bondage of doubt, uncertainty, sin, and death. John 14:6 also highlights the fact that Jesus is not only the TRUTH, but he also is the WAY, and the LIFE. Confucius talks about Dao (the way) but he never found it. He points to the way, but he is not it. Jesus provides the WAY, for he is the WAY to the Father. And when one follows Jesus (remaining in his word – he is the WORD), who is the WAY, one finds the TRUTH, and in the TRUTH one finds LIFE and thus liberated from sin and death.

The leader’s dilemma can lead to frustration. Both the leader and the follower and also all who are affected by the leader’s decision will be trapped in frustration. Whoever has the truth becomes the leader. The problem, however, is not that simple. Finding out which one is true which one is not is the real problem. In the case of Adam and Eve, there were two conflicting statements. One was from God and stated that the day Adam eats the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he dies. The other is from the serpent which stated that eating the fruit will not cause death, but they will be like God, knowing good and evil. Earthly speaking, it seemed like what God said was not true and what the serpent said was the truth, for Adam and Eve were experiencing exactly what the serpent said, their eyes were opened, and most importantly, they did not die. However, eternally speaking, what God said was the truth, and what the serpent said was misleading, for we all have died in God’s eyes. Besides, we have not become like God, but instead we become outcasts, thrown out from heaven. If we ponder further Adam and Eve’s case, we should have realized that Adam was supposed to be the leader. For Adam was the one receiving God’s direct order not to eat the forbidden fruit. So he was supposedly the one knowing the truth. However, Adam did not remain in God’s word, he deviated. He listened to Eve. Eve did not listen to God, but she listened to the serpent. So in a way, Eve remained in the serpent’s word, and therefore she knew (had intimate relationship with the lie), and thus bound in sin. Sin led them to death. Adam could have cancelled Eve’s decision, for he had higher authority, but the problem was he did not believe in God’s word, so the truth was not in him, and that made him confused. Such confusion made it difficult for him to make any decision. That led Adam to submit to Eve’s decision, instead of him making the decision based on the truth, which is the word of God.

We inherit Adam’s dilemma. Making the right decision over just two options proves to be draining all our energy. Only when we know the truth making decision becomes easy. We tend to make decisions only based on the set of knowledge that forms our worldview. We regard the set of knowledge as the truth. While it might be the case, that we know some truths, many times those truths are not the entire thing. That is why Jesus provided the WAY. So we may consult with him always. Jesus knows the entire thing, so consultation with him is wise. But we will never be able to consult with him without believing in his word, and thus remaining in his word. Only when we remain in his word we know him, who is the TRUTH, and the TRUTH will truly set us free. A leader, especially, is in a great urgency to know the truth, otherwise he/she is in a grave danger of frustrating self and others. Adam was caught in this dilemma, and he made the wrong decision, and the effect is deadly, not only to him and Eve, but also to the whole world. So God, as the ultimate leader, had to make the decision to remedy the situation. Therefore the promise in Genesis 3:15, the seed of the woman will crush the serpent. God doesn’t have any dilemma, for he is the truth. But we are not God, so we will always have the dilemma.

Therefore, all we need to do is to trust God. But we have to believe him for him to dwell in us and free us. In the world where many people do not believe in God we live in frustration. Our intuition drives us to seek the truth, but it is always difficult for us to make the right decision for there are so many competing information claiming to be the truth. For example, just in the case of our origin, there are several stories floating in the world. In the scientific post, many scientists tend to believe evolution theory. On the Christian post, we believe God’s word. Other posts have different stories to tell. If you are the head of your family, and you have to choose what to teach your kids, which story would you implant in your kids’ heart? For me, I believe in God’s word. Remaining in his word is essential for me, for it is life. We don’t live on bread alone, the Bible says, but through every word coming from the LORD. Adam and Eve made the deadly decision, because they did not live on God’s word. They lived on the serpent’s word, so they were bound to eternal death. Leaders must be aware of this. Not knowing the truth will only lead to death. The stronger the leader’s determination, the more ambitious the will of the leader, and the smarter the leader is, without the truth, death is imminent and the destruction effected will be greater than great. A leader is blessed when he/she knows the truth, but is cursed when not knowing the truth. The dilemma can be handled. The solution is by remaining in the WORD, and you will know the TRUTH, and the TRUTH will set you free, free from death, which means LIFE.

λέγει αὐτῷ [ὁ] Ἰησοῦς• ἐγώ εἰμι ἡ ὁδὸς καὶ ἡ ἀλήθεια καὶ ἡ ζωή• οὐδεὶς ἔρχεται πρὸς τὸν πατέρα εἰ μὴ διʼ ἐμοῦ.

Jesus said to him: “I AM the WAY and the TRUTH and the LIFE, no one comes to the Father if not through me.” (John 14:6, my translation)

The Business of Christian Education XXXIV: The Significance of Promise

2012-01-02T15:43:00.000-08:00

Many political leaders today know the power of promise. In order to get the number of votes they need, they speak promises to the people. As leaders they are, often, untouchable. In other words, if they break their promise, the people cannot lay claim on them. They have great power and authority over a lot of people. By default, leader gets all the privileges exclusive only to a small number of people. With so much power, they are looked up by the people under them, who believe in them. Sadly, in today’s world, many leaders are corrupted. The way of the world has slipped into their hearts that they easily utter promises and easily break them as well. Many of them know the power of promise and thus use it to manipulate the mind of the people or their subordinates, just for the sake of gaining their support or for getting the people or their subordinates to do their bidding. Once they get what they want, they don’t feel any obligation to keep their promises. The poor and the powerless are those who are affected the most. The leaders, even though they break promises, they stay untouchable.

When the LORD promised Abraham, he swore an oath in a very dramatic way. In the Old Testament time, when someone made a covenant with another, they showed the weight of their promises expressed in the cutting of clean animals. The OT people understood well that their fate would be like the cut animals if they would not keep their promises. In Genesis 15, when God gave his promise to Abraham, he ordered Abraham:

“Bring Me a three year old heifer, and a three year old female goat, and a three year old ram, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.” (Genesis 15:9)

Abraham obeyed.

“Then he brought all these to Him and cut them in two, and laid each half opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds.” (Genesis 15:10)

Then, in a vision, Abraham saw something extraordinary.

“behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a flaming torch which passed between these pieces.” (Genesis 15:17)

The vision shows that God himself passed through the cut animals to ensure that he will surely keep his promise or his fate will be like the cut animals. The seriousness of making promise is underlined in the ancient times.

“On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the river Euphrates: the Kenite and the Kenizzite and the Kadmonite and the Hittite and the Perizzite and the Rephaim and the Amorite and the Canaanite and the Girgashite and the Jebusite.” (Genesis 15:18-21)

If we study the Bible, we will immediately find that God never breaks his promises. Not even when his own people were evil. After Israel was led out of Egypt, they grumbled against Moses and God. In the 40 years journey in the wilderness, they never stopped doing evil in God’s eyes. But God did not break his promise to Abraham. Through Joshua, the LORD brought Israel into the Promised Land, fulfilling Genesis 15:18-21. When God promised, he swore in his own name.

"For when God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself, saying, “I WILL SURELY BLESS YOU AND I WILL SURELY MULTIPLY YOU.” (Hebrews 6:13-14)

He put himself on the line. There is no being greater than God. So God swore by himself, in order that if he did not keep his promise, he would be judged by himself. God does not dishonor man, even though they are mere dust. God honors those insignificant compared to him. He shows this by keeping his promise.

But today, leaders of the people do not follow God’s example. They act as if they were God, but they don’t have even a millimeter of God’s honor and ethics. They treat people with contempt. They break their promises very easily, of which even the true God himself never breaks any promise he utters no matter how difficult it is to fulfill it. The death of the Son of God on the cross is the ultimate proof of God’s promise fulfilled. Many leaders today do whatever they want to their subordinates as if the true God doesn’t exist. The bottom line is, they do not fear God, and worse, they do not respect God at all. But know for sure, that such leaders will be judged by God himself and their cup will be found empty.

If you are a leader, be sure to imitate God. You do not own the life of those under you. They are entrusted to you by the true owner of their life, the LORD. If you have made promises, keep them and fulfill them. If you cannot keep and fulfill your promises, you better step down and leave your post before you are forced to do so by the giver of authority. Honor is rare nowadays, especially if you try to find it among today’s leaders. Honor is a rare jewel these days, for the hearts of many leaders have been corrupted by the way of the world. Everyone desires a leadership position, but they despise the responsibilities that come with it.

Promise can be used to manipulate the mind of people. Leaders know this trick. They learn the trick when they are prepared to be leaders. They call the trick, wisdom. But I will remind you that using promise and not willing to keep it is evil. Promise must be spoken with a true intent to keep and fulfill it. Wedding vows are not too important anymore in the 21st century. Divorce rate spiking is the proof of it. That’s how evil the way of the world is. On the other hand, the way of the LORD is good. God was never forced by anything to utter any promise, yet when Adam and Eve sinned in the Garden of Eden, he immediately uttered a promise, which is not for his own benefit but for the benefit of man. Many leaders today promise for the sake of their own gain. Employers utter promises to the employees so the company profit can be doubled or tripled, but sadly many of those promises would never be enjoyed by the employees for they are broken by the one who speak them. Nation leaders do the same thing. Their promises are on sale when their eyes are fixed to the “throne”, but sadly once they sit on the throne, they bite the very people who support them. But God utters promise for the sake of man, and in the process of fulfilling the promise God goes through suffering. Many leaders today despise suffering. They think it is stupid to suffer for the sake of keeping their promises. The world’s wisdom dictates that what is smart is to redirect the suffering to the receiver of the promise. In other words, rather than sacrificing oneself, a leader is smart when he/she can sacrifice others instead. But see, that’s the difference between the world and God. God does not sacrifice man in order to redirect the suffering. God sacrifices himself for the sake of man. We can judge clearly that man deserves to be thrown to hell forever. But to man, undeserving they are, God swears an oath by himself to keep them alive and to grant them eternal life through Jesus Christ. But to their fellow homo sapiens, today’s leaders swear an oath that they themselves shall not suffer, even at the expense of their followers. But you o wicked leaders, take heed of the word of the true God:

“VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,” says the Lord.” (Romans 12:19)

That word is quoted from Deuteronomy 32:35, the song of Moses before he passed away before the LORD. God will protect his people, so whoever dares to mistreat God’s people, they will face God himself.

Praise the LORD. Hallelujah!!

The Business of Christian Education XXXIII: God Teaches

2011-12-27T12:54:00.000-08:00

“The whole commandment that I command you today you shall be careful to do, that you may live and multiply, and go in and possess the land that the LORD swore to give to your fathers. And you shall remember the whole way that the LORD your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, that he might humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep his commandments or not. And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. Your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years. Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the LORD your God disciplines you. So you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him.” (Deuteronomy 8:1-6)

In the book of Deuteronomy, Moses instructed the Israelites, who were about to enter the Promised Land, concerning the Law of the LORD. In this important passage, Moses revealed a great mystery. This mystery is not understood by any other belief system. For there is no God like the LORD. The LORD is personal. He relates himself to his children. Moses pointed out that the LORD, as magnificent and glorious He is beyond our wildest dream and causing us to tremble in fear, is a loving father. “Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his son, the LORD your God disciplines you” (v. 5). An alternative translation of Deuteronomy 8:5 is: “And you shall know with your heart that like a man disciplines his son, the LORD your God is disciplining you.” The Hebrew word that is used for discipline, “יָסַר” can also be translated as teaching or training or admonishing. The idea is that God teaches. No other belief system would allow their gods to have an intimate relationship—father and son/daughter relationship—like what is portrayed here by Moses. Like a father teaches his children, the purpose is not the death of his children, but so that his children may live. For if you read the next few verses you will know that God was bringing Israel to the land of “life.”

“For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, flowing out in the valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey, a land in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills you can dig copper. And you shall eat and be full, and you shall bless the LORD your God for the good land he has given you.” (Deuteronomy 8:7-10)

Education without the purpose of giving life to the learners, is not education. That is why education is never meant to be reduced to merely the training of certain skills and the mastery of certain knowledge. Education must aim at life, and life to the fullest as defined by God as the creator of life. The mood of relationship in education should be that of a loving relationship, like what is modeled by the LORD. However, I shall remind all of us that I do not refer to the puppy love or romantic love that is always full of flowers and good feelings. One must understand that when a father loves his children, he sometimes must use the rod of discipline. Moses referred to how God humbled the Israelites while in the wilderness for forty years:

“And he humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna, which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he might make you know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” (Deuteronomy 8:3)

God did not pamper his people. He gave them difficulties. God literally starved his people so they will depend on God instead of the means of the world. The famous quote:

לֹא עַל־הַלֶּחֶם לְבַדּוֹ יִחְיֶה הָאָדָם כִּי עַל־כָּל־מוֹצָא פִי־יהוה יִחְיֶה הָאָדָם

Translation: “Not on bread only man shall live, but on every word of the mouth of the LORD man shall live.”

Jesus quoted this, in Matthew 4:4, when rejecting the devil’s first temptation:

ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν• γέγραπται• οὐκ ἐπʼ ἄρτῳ μόνῳ ζήσεται ὁ ἄνθρωπος, ἀλλʼ ἐπὶ παντὶ ῥήματι ἐκπορευομένῳ διὰ στόματος θεοῦ.

Translation: “And he answered, he said: it is written: not on bread alone man shall live, but on every word coming out through the mouth of God.”

The sole purpose of the 40 years education in the wilderness was for the Israelites to learn to live by God’s word. Tragically, after 4000 years, the world today teaches man to live solely on bread. The material world is dying, and so those who depend on it. God never dies, and so those who depend on him. It is an important lesson to learn, very important indeed. So God went through all the trouble to teach his children just that, so that they may live. What is the point of learning if the ultimate end is death. Only life is worth all the trouble of learning. God did not take this education lightly. No sane father wants the death of his children. The father knows the secret of life, and that is the very thing he is teaching his children, so they may survive and live life to the fullest. The world, the devil, doesn’t care about our life, and thus lures us to the temptation of death. The devil’s aim is our death. He deceived Eve by twisting God’s word for the very purpose of destroying humans. God knows exactly the secret of life, for he is the creator of all life. The Pentateuch is filled with amazing interconnectedness. God created the world by his word. Life comes into existence through his word, for God is life (cf. John 14:6). So, consequently, life is sustained through his word and not through bread. The dead can only be resurrected by the word of God, not by bread (remember Lazarus). Remember when Adam was first created, did God feed him bread to bring him to life? No! God breathed the breath of life so Adam became alive (Genesis 2:7). And man’s life is sustained by the word. On the other hand, man’s death is caused by rejecting the word (cf. Genesis 2:17 and Genesis 3:4-6).

Dependence on God is crucial. One requirement is a humble heart. Without humility, one will never learn to depend on God. Rejecting God’s word is done with pride. This pride brings down humanity to the lowest state. Adam and Eve wanted to be God, and so they rejected God’s word, and thus they died. And the entire humanity is inaugurated to death. Man needs to be humble to understand that we are not God. Our life depends on God. Acceptance of God’s word brings life. This is the secret of faith. Israel was very stubborn, even though they were just liberated from slavery. God had to humble them again and again so they would understand their total dependence on him. God used the most primitive of our instinct, the craving for food, in order to bring us to our knees. Israel were used to have plenty of food while in Egypt. They did not realize that they ended up in Egypt was also due to God’s intervention through Joseph so their life was spared from famine (Genesis 50:19-21). 400 years after Joseph, God intervened again so Israel would be freed from destruction. But Israel had to learn to depend on God. So God brought them to the wilderness, detached from any source of food. Their bread was rained down from heaven for forty years (scientifically impossible). Therefore their life was preserved not by the presence of manna, but by the providence of God.

“Your clothing did not wear out on you and your foot did not swell these forty years.” (Deuteronomy 8:4)

Living in the desert for 40 years and yet their clothes did not wear out and their feet did not swell, even though they walked around for 40 years. All these sign are scientifically impossible. Even with the best technology we have today, we won’t be able to preserve our clothes to stay fresh for 40 years.

All this teaching was necessary for Israel. They were about to enter a land, of which giants lived in there, peoples with great warriors defending their cities. Without total dependence on God, Israel would never capture Canaan and take possession of it. Remember the fall of Jericho? Did the wall fall by the might of Israel’s heroes or by the hands of God? We know the answer. And do you remember how Israel fell to the insignificant city of Ai? Do you remember the story of Gideon with his 300 warriors? The battle of Thermopylae cannot compare to this. For the 300 Spartans were all dead, while all 300 of Gideon’s warriors all alive. The famous story of David and Goliath is a perfect reflection of total dependence on God. All those who are trained in hand to hand combat know the odd of David winning the fight against Goliath. Even Saul knew that this was slaughter, so he let David “die.” Of all those battles, God fought for Israel. Israel just needed to believe. The difference between Saul and David was right there, the dependence on God. Saul depended on “bread” but David depended on God’s word. Saul could not bring himself to the fact that he won the war because God was behind him. Saul believed his might brought him victory. He was the fairest and the tallest of all Israel after all. That’s why he couldn’t make peace with the song sung by the people when welcoming David from a victorious battle: “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands” (1 Samuel 18:7). In other words, Saul’s pride brought him to reject God’s word, as he rejected God’s command through Samuel, which resulted in his rejection as king over Israel.

God teaches his children to live accordingly. God taught Adam to obey so he might live. God’s education is aimed at our life to the fullest. But often we prefer death (life as this world defines) instead of life (as God defines it). Moses reminded Israel of God’s teaching so they all might live abundantly in the Promised Land. God reminded all of us through his Scripture of his teaching so we all may live abundantly in his kingdom. This can only be achieved when we obey him.

“So you shall keep the commandments of the LORD your God by walking in his ways and by fearing him.” (Deuteronomy 8:6)

Amen!

The Business of Chrisian Education XXXII: Jesus Christ – Son of Man and Son of God – God over all

2011-06-21T05:59:00.000-07:00

“Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen.” Romans 9:5

The gospel of Matthew recorded the genealogy of Jesus Christ from Abraham, the first patriarch of Israel, until Mary. The gospel of Luke also recorded the genealogy of Jesus Christ from Joseph until Adam, who is the son of God. But one thing is clear in the gospel of Luke that Joseph is not Jesus’ real father, that’s why he added “so it was thought” (Luke 3:23). The gospel of John plainly shows that Jesus Christ is God (John 1:1-18). Our verse today is considered controversial due to different translations and interpretations. But the orthodox line always believes that Jesus Christ is God. Heretics such as Jehovah’s Witnesses argued strongly based on our verse today that Jesus is not God. That the designation “God over all” is not meant for Jesus but for the Father alone. However, we are not going into the technical detail of the argument against the doctrine of Trinity. But, following the Scripture itself, the apostles, church Fathers, theologians of all ages in the evangelical stream, we will not take this verse as controversial but we will simply take it as is, that Jesus Christ is God.

Accepting the truth that Jesus is God is never easy, especially for the Jews. The concept of the Trinity was not recognized by the Jews at that time. The formulation of the doctrine of the Trinity was formulated hundreds of years after Jesus. But we can see clearly in the Scripture the evidences of the concept of a Triune God. Before we look at the evidences in the Scripture, I would like us to get acquainted with some theories of Trinity.

Many attempts have been used in order to explain the concept of Trinity, but none is satisfying. Some explained that God is one but assumes three roles, so just like a man with three different roles: 1) as a father in his family, 2) as a director in his office, and 3) as a driver in his car. So, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are actually one person. But the problem is that God is one God with three different persons: the Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is not the Father. Other tries to explain God using an analogy of the sun. Sun is one, but it can be experienced differently. We can see the sun bright and shiny. We can feel the heat of the sun. We can see things because of sunlight. So, the sun itself is like the Father, the sunlight is the Son, and the heat of the sun is the Holy Spirit. Different forms but one sun. The problem with this analogy is that sunlight is not sun, the heat of the sun is not sun. But the Son is God and the Holy Spirit is God.

Some people just dismiss the idea of Trinity because mathematically it doesn’t make sense. 1+1+1=3. So if the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God, then there are three Gods. Or, since God is only one, then the Son and the Holy Spirit are not God. Therefore, based on the mathematical equation either there are three gods or the other persons are not God. Frankly, the concept of Trinity is not an easy one to digest, even for Christians who believe in it. Simply because they could not put God in their box, many people reject God altogether. Among many explanations of the Trinity, for or against, I find the explanation of one church father to be much better.

Gregory of Nyssa was very keen in explaining the Trinity using the categorical theory by Aristotle. I think his explanation is the clearest of all other attempts. Without going through the technical philosophy, his theory is actually simple. In Aristotle’s philosophy, all things have attributes. The most important attribute is what he called as substance. There are two levels of substance: primary and secondary. Primary substance points out the uniqueness of the thing as it stands out among many. The secondary substance points out the essence of thing that is shared with others. Practically, Sam is different than Helen and their difference is due to their primary substance that governs their uniqueness. Sam is not Helen and Helen is not Sam. However, Sam is a human being, the same as Helen is also a human being. This is understood through the concept of secondary substance. Sam and Helen are both human beings, in which they share their humanity. In the same way, the Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is not the Father. Their uniqueness is understood through the concept of primary substance. Even though they are unique in their persons, they are One God. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. This is understood through the concept of secondary substance. Gregory added that the unity of the Trinity is the original that in the Trinity we find the perfect unity, since even though there are three persons in the Godhead, they are only One. In humans, we know that Sam and Helen share their humanity, but they are still counted as two humans, not one human. But in the Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit IS ONE. Humans are united in their secondary substance but their unity is not as perfect as God. This can be explained through understanding that we are created in the image of God, so we reflect God, but we are not God.

In our verse in Romans 9:5, Paul was sad because the Jews rejected Jesus Christ the Son of God. He was very sad because Jesus was born through Israel, as was planned by God since the beginning. Jesus was rejected by his own people (remember John 1). No wonder Paul argued that Jesus Christ’s ancestry could be traced through the Jews. The genealogy by Matthew and Luke showed clearly Jesus’ ancestry rooted in Israel. So it was truly a very sad experience that Paul had to suffer. But in the midst of his sadness he pointed out that Jesus Christ is God. Paul acknowledged that Jesus Christ is God, the very truth that brought Jesus to the cross. In the gospel of John we see many times Jesus claimed that he was God and the Jews wanted to kill him. “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” At this they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds (John 8:58-59). In that passage, Jesus claimed that he is Jehovah. By using the term “I am!” he referred to Moses’ first encounter with God when he asked the name of God. In that encounter, God answered that his name is: “I am who I am” or “I will be who I will be.” “God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you’” (Exodus 3:14). The same term “I AM” was used by Jesus on that occasion, no wonder the Jews picked up stones to stone him because they thought that Jesus could not be God.

“I and the Father are one.” Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus said to them, “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” “We are not stoning you for any of these,” replied the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God.” Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I have said you are gods’? If he called them ‘gods,’ to whom the word of God came—and the Scripture cannot be broken—what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’? Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does. But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” Again they tried to seize him, but he escaped their grasp (John 10:30-39). Jesus’ claim that he was God’s Son brought him to the cross. The passage in Matthew 26:63-66 points that out: “The high priest said to him (Jesus), “I charge you under oath by the living God: Tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” “Yes, it is as you say,” Jesus replied. “But I say to all of you: in the future you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” Then the high priest tore his clothes and said, “He has spoken blasphemy! Why do we need any more witnesses? Look, now you have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” “He is worthy of death,” they answered.” The heretics, especially Jehovah’s Witnesses, try very hard to disprove Jesus’ divinity. With the overwhelming evidence in the Scripture, the only way they can disprove Jesus’ divinity is by deliberately ignoring the evidence. The fact that Jesus was sentenced to death on the cross for the reason of blasphemy is powerful evidence that even the Jews understood Jesus’ claim that he was God. The Jews picked up stones to stone him many times (stoning is a death sentence ordered in the Law of Moses for breaking the Law and for blasphemy) for the sole reason of blasphemy.

Jesus said clearly: “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:44). “On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? What if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled him.” From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him” (John 6:60-66). They have seen Jesus’ miracles, they even have experienced his miracles, but yet their hearts were so dull, they did not believe.

Let us look at the next passage. “The Jews gathered around him, saying, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered, “I did tell you, but you do not believe. The miracles I do in my Father’s name speak for me, but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:24-28). The reason the Jews did not accept Jesus was simply because they did not belong to Christ. Those who accept Christ belong to Christ. The Father enabled them to accept Jesus as their savior, Lord, and God. The Jews did not want to accept Jesus because if they were to accept him, they would have to deny the comfort they were enjoying (cf. John 11:45-53). Like the Jews, many people don’t want to accept Jesus, his salvation, and acknowledge his Lordship simply because their life as they know it will be turned upside down if they believe in him. This is not an easy challenge to respond to. If we reflect upon our own life, what are the things that stop us from believing in him? For the Jews, they could not bring themselves to leave their tradition, their security within the tradition, the comfort of knowing what’s next within the tradition, their belief in God according to their interpretation and imagination, and their control over the tradition that they have practiced for a long time. Jesus said: “No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, ‘The old is better’”(Luke 5:36-39).

The question for us is: “Do we believe that Jesus is God?” Paul claimed that Jesus is God over all. The gospel of John also argued explicitly that Jesus is God, the Creator, the Logos. Again the question is: “Do you truly believe that Jesus is God?” Believing that Jesus is God cannot merely by our intellectual ability. When one believes that Jesus is God, then his entire life must be transformed. He must practice Jesus’ words (cf. Matthew 7:24-27). The Jews did not wish to change their way of life, their lifestyle, their belief system, and their life practice. They’d rather give up the truth that Jesus is God than changing their meaningless life. How about us? Would we give up our meaningless life in exchange of the fullness of life in Jesus Christ? Paul exhorted Christians: “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ” (Colossians 2:8). If we believe that Jesus is God, then our life must be changed in accordance with His pattern.

The Business of Christian Education XXXI: The Resurrection of Jesus Christ as the Victory over Death

2011-04-29T18:56:00.001-07:00

We live in a world that terrifies us with the imagination and reality of death overpowering life. Every day we hear the news of death, and such news overwhelms us. The portrayal of death in this world provides a vivid picture that death is much more powerful than life. In the event of the current disastrous earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan, none of us can deny the reality of the power of death in our life. Realistically we ask, "Is there hope? Why can't life be more powerful than death? What is the point if all ends in death? Is it true that death is the final destiny of all the living?"

“Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance. So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.” John 20:1-10

“Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers and sisters at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.” 1 Corinthians 15:1-8

“But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” 1 Corinthians 15:12-20

“I declare to you, brothers and sisters, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: “Death has been swallowed up in victory.” “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:50-58

John 20:1-10 describes the historical event of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The fact of the empty tomb and the witness by Jesus' disciples, John and Peter, were recorded in that passage. Truthfully Jesus was resurrected on the third day after his death, exactly fulfilling what was spoken about him in the Scripture. This shows that the resurrection event was undeniable. The gossip and rumor that were deliberately spread by the chief priests, “While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day” (Matthew 28:11-15) was proven as it were, gossip and rumor, not fact, not the truth, a one big lie. The passage in John 20 clearly shows, and many other passages in the Scripture as well, that Jesus' disciples did not steal his body, but they themselves were surprised by the fact that Jesus was raised just like what he said.

1 Corinthians 15:1-8 talks about the truthful witness of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Paul was sent as his apostle to speak of this truth and the evidence of his resurrection, he appeared to the people in his glorious body, which was witnessed by many different people in several different occasions and at one time by more than 500 people. Therefore the witness is credible and thus the truth of his resurrection is valid and sound. People believe in this truth and ready to die for this. 1 Corinthians 15:30-32, “And as for us, why do we endanger ourselves every hour? I face death every day—yes, just as surely as I boast about you in Christ Jesus our Lord. If I fought wild beasts in Ephesus with no more than human hopes, what have I gained? If the dead are not raised, “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”, showcases the drive of the heart of the believers, especially Paul, in their belief of the message of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, so they dared to endanger their lives even to the point of death.

The discussion in 1 Corinthians 15:12-20 is the theological reasoning of the significance of Jesus' resurrection for our faith. Here Paul argued against some people who did not believe in the resurrection of the dead. These kind of people were well known as the Sadducees. “That same day the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. “Teacher,” they said, “Moses told us that if a man dies without having children, his brother must marry the widow and raise up offspring for him. Now there were seven brothers among us. The first one married and died, and since he had no children, he left his wife to his brother. The same thing happened to the second and third brother, right on down to the seventh. Finally, the woman died. Now then, at the resurrection, whose wife will she be of the seven, since all of them were married to her?” Jesus replied, “You are in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God. At the resurrection people will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. But about the resurrection of the dead—have you not read what God said to you, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’? He is not the God of the dead but of the living. When the crowds heard this, they were astonished at his teaching" (Matthew 22:23-33). So Paul was battling the belief that there is no resurrection. Jesus declared that the Sadducees' theology was mistaken. Paul argued using a philosophical reasoning, that if the dead are not resurrected, then Jesus was also not resurrected. Meaning, Jesus is still dead. If Jesus is dead and not resurrected, then all the witness for the faith in Christ as the savior is futile. Not only the witness is futile, but more than that the witness is a big lie. If such is the case, then we live without hope and meaning. Paul added that if we believe in that message, then we are to be pitied, so living as Christians is not only difficult but also extremely dangerous, especially in the time of the apostles. It is unreasonable for Christians to stake their life if the truth is Jesus was never resurrected and is still dead. There is not good reason whatsoever to continue to have faith in Jesus Christ if there is no resurrection. Precisely for this matter that Paul battled so seriously for the truth of the matter is Jesus was resurrected. That's why Paul declared in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 that his message is of first importance, that Jesus died and was raised on the third day. Paul also argued here that Jesus is the firstfruits of those raised from among the dead. The Jewish theology understands the concept of firstfruits that all firstfruits belong to God signifies that all fruits belong to God. So, when Jesus is said to be the firstfruits, then it means that all believers will be raised like Jesus in absolute certainty because they all belong to God and God will not let anything jeopardizing his plan.

1 Corinthians 15:50-58 discusses the truth that through the resurrection of Jesus Christ death is defeated. John Owen in his book "The Death of Death in the Death of Christ" points out that the power of death has been nullified through the death of the Son of God on the cross. One thing must be made clear, that is that Jesus did not remain dead, but he was resurrected. His resurrection is the evidence that the power of death has been broken. Death has no mastery over Jesus Christ. “We tell you the good news: What God promised our ancestors he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm: “‘You are my son; today I have become your father.’ God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said, “‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’ So it is also stated elsewhere: “‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’ “Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay. “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Through him everyone who believes is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses” (Acts 13:32-39). This means that the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ cannot be separated. It's a one package occurring. The death of Jesus MUST be followed by his resurrection. And there is no resurrection without death. If he remains dead then the entire foundation of Christian faith is meaningless. If he did not die, then there is no evidence that death has been engulfed in his resurrecting power. The last enemy to be defeated is death (1 Corinthians 15:26). Death is the penalty of sin as was declared by God in Genesis 2:17. So ever since Adam and Eve fell into sin, human life is actually death. The power of death controls the life of man, so we don't actually live, we are already dead. Since the fall, all man are perishable. What is perishable cannot inherit the kingdom of God, for the kingdom of God is eternal. The perishable must be made imperishable before it can live in God's eternal kingdom. And the only way to transform the perishable into imperishable is through Jesus Christ. Therefore Jesus must die. So, in a little while Jesus experienced the power of death. Death was made real in Jesus Christ. Not only the physical death over his humanity on the cross, but more than that, the spiritual death when he shouted "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachtani!" The separation from the Father is the ultimate death, which in the theological sense is the cut off from the source of life. The reality of death is not non-existence, but the reality of death is when one is left alone by the source of all life. That's precisely what Jesus experienced on the cross that prompted him to cry out to the Father in the most agonizing manner. The good news is that Jesus did not remain separated from the Father, for the quality of the Son of God destroys death from top to bottom. The book of John is the one to consult in this matter. John 1:4 declares: "In him was life, and that life was the light of men." And in John 11:25, Jesus claimed: "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies." Jesus proves that he is greater than death and that he is the source of life cannot be destroyed by death. The most dreadful enemy of man is now completely obliviated in Jesus Christ.

Clearly, it won't be easy to spot the spiritual death that Jesus experienced on the cross through the eyes of sinful man, but for sure anyone will catch the reality of the physical death that Jesus went through. Being risen from the physical death is the easy part. Don't you remember the event when Jesus raised Lazarus from death? But to be raised from the spiritual death is another matter. The Son of God must experience the eternal separation from the Father. This is a mystery. How does the separation actually take place in eternity? I don't know. This is what I know, if we are the one to be left alone by God we won't survive. We will completely die, and that is the full meaning of hell. The fact that Jesus lives on shows that he truly is the Son of God and the one and only that can save us. This also shows that in Jesus is life and the life that he has is not derivative but the life that he has is his own, so death can never overpower him. In other words, instead of the gruesome image of death overpowering life, just like what we witnessed every day in this temporal world, we witness life overpowers death. Jesus proves that fact by his resurrection. Our perishable life, that is the life that is condemned to death cannot continue to live in the kingdom of God. Therefore, our life, which is actually death in Adam, must be put to death. The only way to put death to death is through the death of Jesus Christ. If we die on our own, we will eternally perish. But when we die in Jesus Christ, who is the firstfruits of all who will be resurrected, we put death to death. Meaning the death in us is made powerless over our life in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. So, Jesus Christ, who is imperishable must bring us together in him, be united in him, and thus cover our perishable life with the imperishable. Once we are in Jesus Christ, death cannot overpower us anymore, and we are to receive the eternal kingdom of God.

Therefore, all who are in Christ no longer fear death. In Christ we will live even though we die. The fact that he defeated death, both the physical and the spiritual, is a guarantee that if we are in him we will live eternally with God. With that knowledge, Paul urged all of us to give ourselves "fully to the work of the Lord" because our labor in him is not in vain, since we will be raised in Jesus Christ with the same glorified body that Jesus had when he was raised from the dead. In Jesus Christ we have the victory over death. And with that understanding we now celebrate Easter. Soli Deo Gloria!

The Business of Christian Education XXX: The Necessity of the Cross of Jesus Christ

2011-04-27T00:19:00.000-07:00

"Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” Matthew 27:39-40

"About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”–which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Matthew 27:46

One of the most difficult temptations is when we are challenged to show who we really are. The cross is the worst place to be tempted because of its most agonizing pain inflicted by the stretching of the arms and legs, the nails on the hands and feet, the scorching heat under the sun, the unrest due to the court procession and the sores due to the flogging and beating, the shouting and yelling of the guards and the people mocking, the shame of the nakedness, the law of gravity that pulls down the body weight that causes the person to work so hard every time he has to breathe - not to mention the pain on the hands and feet because of the nails. Jesus experienced all those pains, and moreover he knew what he was going to experience a few hours later, that is the separation with his Father. In that condition, Jesus was challenged by the people that he healed, fed, and taught the mysteries of God. The challenge was for Jesus to show his full divinity. This is a kind of temptation in a crucial moment. The moment when normally, if we look at it from our human perspective, all of us would want to silence our opponents by showing them our glory and dignity, Jesus surprisingly did not reveal his shining glory even though he had every right to do so. He spoke no words, until the time to speak came, the time of judgment from God.

The temptation launched by the people reminds me of the temptation by Satan. They used a similar formulation, the "if" attack. The basic strategy of the attack employs doubt as the main engine. In other words, they did not believe that Jesus was the Son of God, so in their disbelief they plainly mocked his very claim of his divinity, which is his nature. Satan also tempted Jesus in a similar fashion. Satan used the "if" attack twice with the intention to lure Jesus to doubt himself. Praise God Satan's attack was never going to succeed in the first place. And praise God that Jesus did not come down from the cross the moment he was tempted by the people, for he truly was the Son of God who obeyed his Father completely. The most steady proof of Jesus' identity as God's Son is not if he comes down from the cross and show his superpower, but on his obedience to his father.

That single moment alone shows clearly that the cross is necessary. Jesus' choice to stay put and not responding to the challenge of the people makes it necessary. For me personally, the momentum of the crucifixion cannot happen in any other time, but it must happen in the time that God has set from eternity. The crucifixion happened precisely at the age, year, month, day, hour, minute, and second that God has planned from eternity. God did not miss even one second. So where does the necessary meaning of the cross lie? It can be found on Jesus' most disequilibrating statement: "Eli, Eli, lama sabachtani?" Jesus never called his Father God, except on that moment. What is the significance of calling his own Father, God? And why did Jesus say that God has forsaken him? What's going on in that moment?

I believe it was Gregory of Nyssa, one of the most famous church fathers, who pointed out that the doctrine of the Trinity shows the true unity of the Godhead. Our secondary substance, which is our essence as human being (our unity as humans) can only reflect a fraction of the unity of the Godhead. For example, there are Paul, Peter, and John. Their primary substance dictates their uniqueness as individuals, but their secondary substance dictates their oneness as one species: human. However, there is 1 Paul, 1 Peter, and 1 John, and they are still 3 humans. But for God, even though for each person in the Trinity, their primary substance shows their uniqueness as individuals, but their secondary substance points out their oneness: God. But there are not 3 Gods. There is ONE God, but this ONE God has three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The perfect unity is in the Trinity. Given this understanding of the doctrine of the Trinity, who can fathom a moment when the Father and the Son is separated? The perfect unity must not allow any separation. In other words, the Trinity is inseparable, the three persons IS ONE!

In that kairos, Jesus cried out to his Father, calling him God instead of Father, and asking the most torturing question of why he was forsaken. But the Father did not return and save his Son from the pain. Jesus had to call his Father, God, in that moment because it was the moment when he bore the sin of the world and became THE representative of the elect to be judged as a sinful man. He himself did not commit any sin whatsoever, but "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5:21). It was the moment God poured out his full wrath of judgment, and God's full wrath is eternal death - eternal separation with the source of life. Only by looking at the cross of Jesus Christ can we fathom the gravity of sin. For sin brought the perfect, holy, beautiful, and righteous Son of God to Calvary - hell. The perfect unity of God prompts Jesus to cry out for the separation is unbearable. Exactly for that moment that the cross of Jesus Christ is a necessity for the salvation of God's people. For only in that momentum that atonement is made, and whoever believes in the salvation in Jesus Christ will be saved and receives eternal life. Eternal death has been paid in Jesus Christ. Now, whoever believes in Jesus has been united in his death. It's a one package deal. Whoever is united in death with Jesus Christ, is also united in his resurrection (victory over death) and eternal life forever with his Father. Outside of the cross of Jesus Christ there is no salvation. Salvation belongs only to God, and God has chosen the cross of Jesus Christ as the sole means of salvation.

John Owen wrote a book called "The Death of Death in the Death of Christ." In that book he described that only the death of Jesus Christ can put death's effectiveness to oblivion. So, Jesus' death is a necessity to quench the power of death in human life. Only in the cross of Jesus Christ is death rendered powerless. So, if we believe in Jesus we need not fear death anymore. For in Jesus, death no longer separates us from God who is the source of life. In fact, death now brings us closer to God.

The moment of "Eli, Eli, lama sabachtani" is the moment when all humans must undergo due to sin. God's holiness cannot tolerate sin, so his attribute of justice must be satisfied by the pouring out of his total wrath. Jesus took the stand and he replaced his people to receive the death penalty (cf. Genesis 2:17) that was supposed to be given to us. It is extremely crucial, therefore, for Jesus to be nailed on that cross and suffered the eternal death and at the same time went through the physical death that we all so fear of. On the cross of Jesus Christ we witness the greatest paradox. God's justice meets his love at the same moment. Remember John 3:16 that talks so vividly of the love of God. Knowing our depravity, having experienced the worthlessness of sin, we understand that we are completely meaningless. But God values us so highly that he is willing to sacrifice his one and only Son, whose value to the Father cannot be compared to anything in the world. Business wise, God is completely not making any sense by investing what is most valuable for the sake of the valueless, us. We probably would ask, what was God thinking? He is doing something against any human logic. The only reasonable explanation for God's act is love. That is why Jesus did not come down from the cross when he was challenged to show his full divinity at that very crucial moment. He composed himself, even in the most impossible situation any human can experience, and delivered the most elegant response ever in the history of mankind. He boldly faced the most dreadful moment nobody would want to go through, the separation with God the Father. On that day Jesus spoke but nobody listened. There was one occasion during the transfiguration that shows the confirmation of God the Father that Jesus was THE only one to be listened to. "While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” Matthew 17:5. But on that day, at the cross, nobody listened to him, even the Father did not.

If you can understand this, then God is already at work in you. He has touched your heart making the cross of Jesus Christ effective for your salvation. Would you accept now God's love and forever live in his embrace? God went through all the trouble and he still is working for your salvation. Let us be silent for a moment, and reflect on his great love to us.... Let us quiet down our soul and listen to his comforting words of hope and salvation.... Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6).

The Business of Christian Education XXIX: Jesus is the One

2011-04-25T00:24:00.001-07:00

“After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves, There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light. Just then appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus. Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters—one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah.” While he was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matthew 17:1-8).

In an unusual setting, the three disciples witnessed one of the most important events that never happened before and is never repeated in the history. Simon Peter was the first disciple to speak in response to what they saw. He proposed to build three tents, one for Jesus, one for Moses, and one for Elijah. But his proposal was cut short, because God the Father interrupted him with an immense cloud covering them so they were overwhelmed by the glory of God. They bowed down in the presence of the holy God and they were terrified as the Father's voice was heard: "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!"

They did not understand the significance of the event. They did not understand the difference between Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. They thought that the three holy persons standing in front of them were equal. Day after day they saw Jesus in his most ordinary way. Jesus looked like a common man. He did not even look like a royalty. Even though his manners, speeches, and attitudes were divine, his appearance was still ordinary. And in that special day, Peter, John, and James witnessed the change in Jesus' appearance. "His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light." Obviously Moses and Elijah looked as brilliant as Jesus so Peter desired to build three shelters. The disciples did not see Jesus unique. They did not recognize that Jesus was supreme beyond even two of the greatest leaders in the history of Israel. They still saw Jesus as ordinary. His rank was the same as Moses and Elijah. Jesus performed miracles, and so did Moses and Elijah. Moses performed great miracles: the ten plagues, the dividing of the Red Sea, the water from the rock, manna from heaven, quail in the desert, the bronze snake, and many more. Elijah performed great miracles as well: the victory over Baal on mount Carmel, the judgment on the king of Samaria's captains, the dividing of the Jordan river, the ascension to heaven. Compared to what Moses and Elijah did, Jesus' miracles were quite ordinary. The disciples' eyes were fixed on the earthly things. So they did not understand.

Such ignorance should not be nurtured. It had to be corrected. God the Father took the initiative to correct it. So God came down in a cloud and surrounded the disciples with the bright cloud. Then God spoke. He spoke the very words that he spoke earlier during Jesus' baptism. "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." But in the transfiguration scene, God added: "Listen to him." And in the transfiguration scene, after the voice of the Father then the voice of Jesus was heard that said: "Get up, don't be afraid." The disciples did not see anyone else and did not hear any other voice except Jesus. The message from the Father was clear. Jesus was superior to Moses and Elijah. In fact, Jesus was superior than any other great people. To no other person on earth has God ever said "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." The disciples should listen to Jesus and not be distracted by anything else.

In the gospel of John we found that Jesus is not a mere man. He is the Logos, the living Word, in whom everything was created (John 1:1-3). If we may entertain abstraction a bit here, if you would allow me, let us see Jesus from another perspective. Jesus is the Word himself. God created the entire world by uttering his words. So, clearly the entire world is created in Jesus, who is the Word. Now, we are created after the image and the likeness of God. And we know that the perfect image of God is Jesus Christ (Colossians 1:15-20). In the very fabric of our being we will find the trace of the Word, for we are created in that image. The fact of the matter is, biologists have found that in our DNA there are 600.000 pages long of written codes or information, or I would say written words. We are made of words, so to speak, and the reference of the words in us is the very Word himself, the Logos, Jesus Christ, who is the true pattern of our being. The very construct of our being is words, and consequently, since words in us are created and not eternal, we cannot live without the True Word. For to define the words in us, to interpret our being, we need the original, and the original pattern of the image of God is Jesus Christ. Independent from Jesus means death, the words in us will wither, they will wander off without meaning. No man can live without meaning. The serpent's cunning way to temp Adam and Eve to sin was by usurping twisted words (non-words of God) into their minds. The flow of God's words in them were interrupted. Although the interruption was minor, the damage was great. A single alteration of the code in a computer program may destroy the program completely. We are being of words, and not of any words, but the words of God.

Even in the age which ascribes meaning carelessly and defines our existence ignorantly, the tendency of our being is to find meaning. That meaning, THE MEANING that we all search for cannot be found in anyone else but Jesus Christ. Thus Jesus says: "Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4). Our life depends on Jesus, the source of our very existence. That explains why the Father told the disciples to listen to Jesus, and not anyone else. Even the words that Moses and Elijah spoke of came from Jesus. Peter rightly admitted: "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life" (John 6:68).

So, the importance of the transfiguration event is not only found in the transfiguration alone. What happened after the transfiguration serves as an important clue to decode the message. The misconception of Peter about the standing of Jesus Christ, the interruption of God the Father of Peter's proposal, the words of encouragement by Jesus, and the fact that after everything that happened Jesus was the only one that remained, the series of sequences clearly portray the imminence of Jesus Christ. The message is clear even for us today that none is greater than Jesus. Napoleon indicated that his kingdom and Alexander's were inferior to Jesus', because Napoleon's and Alexander's were the product of the power of might, but Jesus' was won in the hearts of the people by the power of love. None in the world can be greater than Jesus. Paul points out: "Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ" (Romans 10:17). A survivor of the brutality of the Nazi concentration camp in Auschwitz, Viktor Frankl, who remained dignified even after the depersonalization and dehumanization process at the camp, found that man will continue to search for meaning in order to survive. We will continue to find meaning even in the most painful of suffering, in the most glorious of our status, in the midst of uncertainty or richness, in the emptiness of our loneliness or in the warmth of our family love. Regardless of our circumstances, our search for meaning is undeniable. But, and this is a big BUT, what meaning are we searching? God the Father, through the events succeeding the transfiguration, pointed out to Jesus, the Son whom he loves, and whom he is well pleased. In Jesus alone rests the eternal meaning of life which all man long for. So, listen to what Paul said that faith comes from hearing the message that is in the words of Jesus Christ. Only through faith one may be saved and find eternal life.

Jesus is the one. No other religious leaders ever pointed to himself and claimed that he is the way, the truth, and the life. Jesus is the only one to have the confidence to do so. Jesus was not delusional when he spoke such word. He is the very meaning all man is searching forever, for our being is made in him. He is the Logos, his words are true. Remember that we are created in the image of Jesus Christ, who is the truth himself. So, running through our being is the tendency to find the truth. All philosophers throughout the ages are searching for the truth, which they never find if they don't meet Jesus. Our soul is restless until we find the truth. Jesus is the one. The one who defines what is truth and what is not. All truth comes from him. The work of the serpent was to confuse Adam and Eve of what is true. Once twisted words entered into their system, they will need to stabilize themselves by finding the equilibrium. The true equilibrium can only be achieved by staying in the word of God. Unfortunately, they chose to stray from God's word, which results in the alteration of the system. The alteration produces malfunction in the deepest sense, or in John Calvin's words "total depravity." Nietzsche was searching for the one, the übermensch, but by denying Jesus, he could never find it. He mistakenly thought that the physical, the appearance is what matters. God showed that the spiritual provides a greater meaning than the physical. The physical transfiguration was easily misunderstood by Peter, but God's words remain forever and the meaning penetrates even the thickest wall. Somehow humans are easily seduced and tricked by appearance. Often we abandon that of greater values in order to gain the lesser ones. Even the wisest does the same thing. Take a look at Solomon. He exchanged the eternal for the temporal, and yet he is well known as the wisest among man. Instead of listening to other words, we need to go back to the source and embrace the Word. God said: "Listen to him (Jesus Christ)."

The Business of Christian Education XXVIII: The Supremacy of the Word of God

2011-04-10T21:32:00.000-07:00

“Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” (Matthew 4:4)

“Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching. Do not neglect your gift, which was given through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you. Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.” (1 Timothy 4:13-15)

Paul charged Timothy to devote himself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching, and to teaching. Paul's charge has one important purpose, which we can find in Ephesians 4:11-13: “It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” The building up of the church of God is the single aim of Paul's charge to Timothy. Timothy has been given the gift of the Spirit. This gift is not for the satisfaction of one's ego, or what Abraham Maslow called as self-actualization. The gift given to Timothy carries a heavenly purpose, which is to build up the body of Christ. This is serious business. It is not just a simple task a director of a company gives to his employee. This is the task given by the God of heaven and earth to his child to shepherd his people.

There are three important tasks Timothy was to do in Ephesus. These tasks had something to do with his gifts that God gave him through a prophetic message - through the blessings of the elders. Timothy was to be diligent in doing all three: 1) public reading of Scripture, 2) preaching, and 3) teaching. The order Paul arranged in the charge is important to heed, because through the order we know the important clue of what to read, to preach, and to teach. Paul did not advice Timothy to publicly read any book, but the Scripture. Paul did not advice Timothy to preach any message, but the message from the Scripture. Paul did not advice Timothy to teach any subject, but only what is taught in the Scripture. The question is why? Why the preaching and teaching of the Scripture is necessary for the building up of the body of Christ?

The key is in Matthew 5:17-20: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished. Anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus emphasizes in this passage that the Scripture is much more valuable than the entire world. The world may pass, but the word of God will stand forever. Moreover, the word of God sustains our spirits, “Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4). We are created in the image of God, and the perfect image of God is Jesus Christ, who is the Logos, the Word. “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 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 and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross” (Colossians 1:15-20). “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made” (John 1:1-3). Thus, in the very core of our being lies the pattern of God's word, which can only be nourished and nurtured by the word of God. Since the beginning of time, humans never tire of the search for meaning. And the way we search meaning is by dwelling in words. There is somehow a mystery surrounding words. No animals may speak words like we do. We struggle, meditate, reflect, upon words. If we ponder further, words are magical. They can build our strength, but they also possess the power to destroy. A great hero with unsurpassed physical prowess may be conquered by mere words. Example? Easy... Samson! Over the ages, humans are thirst for words. We look for THE WORD, but we cannot find it anywhere else except in the Scripture. Our construction requires us to listen and speak of words. Words live in us, and our soul demands it. Imagine we live in a world without words... Mute... Silence... Can we live? Words are within us. If we carefully search within and diligently analyze our being, we cannot escape the fact that we have in us the pattern of the word of God. Our genetic makeup is remarkable. Within our DNA we will find written codes, information that construct us they way we are. And the length of information in our DNA, if written, is about 600 thousand pages. Or there are 600,000 pages long of the written words within our DNA. From the theological perspective, I would say that they are the words of God written all over our construct. Since we are created after the perfect image of God, who is Jesus Christ, the Logos, the Living Word of God, then without doubt our very being is constructed by words of God. Therefore, logically and necessarily, humans can never live without God's word. Just like bread sustains our physical body, God's word sustains our spirits.

After the Fall, humans no longer search for the true words of God. We have been confused of who we are. Not only we cannot recognize the written words in us, but also we cannot recognize THE WORD, who is the true pattern of our being. We still long for words, but we cannot find the right one anymore. Just like a computer program is disrupted by a virus, in which the written codes that order the program to behave in a certain way is being redirected by the virus to behave differently. The virus prompts the program to stray away from the original design by the programmer. So the programmer must come up with an anti virus if to make the program works accordingly. God sent Jesus Christ, who is the anti virus of our sin. Sin has been infecting our core being and redirects our image to behave differently from the original plan. So, THE WORD came to purify the written words in us in order to guide us to behave according to the original pattern. Only by shedding his blood on the cross can Jesus re-formats our infected image in order to be restored into God’s original intention. After the atonement by Jesus Christ, we may receive his salvation. Then the nourishment of our restored image can only be done by God’s every word that comes from his mouth. And, only the word of God can keep us from straying away. God's word is the standard of whether we behave accordingly or not. Jesus Christ is the ultimate standard of how we should live. So, again, no human, be it from the original plan or from the present status, can live without God's words. Jesus sacrificing himself by pouring out his blood to us is necessary. We know that in blood is the life of all living being. If our being is depraved, then the blood in us is depraved. I’m talking beyond the physical blood now. The pure blood of the original pattern of the true image of God, who is Jesus Christ, is desperately needed to purify our nature. So, we now have the blood of Jesus Christ running through our veins. We may live with God the Father only because the blood of Jesus is in us. The implication is that we are now brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, since we all have the same blood type. The blood of Jesus Christ is loaded with the word of God, for he is the WORD himself. Jesus, the Logos, said: “I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you. This is to my Father’s glory that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples” (John 15:5-8). So, our very creation is in Jesus Christ, the Logos, and our re-creation is also in Jesus Christ, the Logos, which makes our construct inseparable from God’s word. How much more, in our re-creation, Jesus himself lives in us – through his blood.

If a teacher is to teach, he needs the content of his teaching. If the content of, say, math, can satisfy one's soul, how much more the content of the Bible, which is the very word of God himself. Our soul is created to match God's word. Our soul cannot live without God's word. Non-Christians don't understand this. In fact, many Christians don't get it either. But Jesus' words stand, that man does not live on bread alone but by every word that comes out from the mouth of God. Analogically, parents always want their kids to be healthy. In order for their kids to be healthy, they need to carefully provide good intake of food. So, parents will sort out the content of their kids' food. Wise parents will not allow their kids to eat junk food. Wise parents know that junk food will destroy their kids' body and health. Parents will strive for healthy and nutritious food for their kids. Therefore, the content for teaching one's spirit cannot be junk words. Only the word of God has the necessary nutrition our spirit needs. Especially, with the knowledge that is now revealed in us that we are restored in Jesus Christ through his blood, which makes us alive again. To sustain our new life, God’s words are the necessary food.

Jesus commanded his disciples, and that include all of us who dare to identify ourselves as Christians, to teach everything that he has taught us. Before one can teach, he has to learn. Thus the study of God's word is a necessity. Before one can teach math, he must first learn math. Only after one masters the subject to be taught then he may teach. None would want to be taught by someone who is ignorant. Christians are given the secret of God's word, and we are to pass it on to all nations. Jesus told his disciples: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus wants all nations to live, and the only food that can give them life is God's word. God's word is truth, and the truth will set whoever takes it free (John 8:32). Free from sin, free from death. God's word brings life.

Jesus did not let the disciples stay clueless in interpreting God's word, but he carefully and patiently explained the true meaning of the Scripture to them. Remember what happened to the two disciples walking down the road to Emmaus? “He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. …. They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:25-27, 32). The disciples felt alive afterwards. The Scriptures were written for the purpose of being read. Jesus read the word of God from Isaiah when in the synagogue, and he explained the meaning, which brought life to all the hearers (Luke 4:16-22). In fact, when he was tempted, the word of God was his sole defense (Matthew 4).

The word of God is indeed the foundation of life. “Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68). Jesus' words are the words of eternal life. Anyone taking in God's word will live forever. But who may understand such mystery if there is nobody preaching it? The Apostle Paul argued, “’Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” …. Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:13-15, 17). The word of God is the source of life. Don't you remember that when God spoke the world came into existence? And when the Son of God was on earth, he claimed that he was the life! Jesus was the Logos, the Word. We all need God's word. Paul knows this and that's why he charged Timothy to preach it. Without the living word of God we all die. God's servants are responsible to feed his people (cf. John 21:15-17). Paul was entrusting Timothy with God's people. They needed to be fed, and the only nutritious food was God's word.

Timothy, therefore, must devote himself in his study of God's word. Only then could he read God's word in public, preach it, and teach it to be put into practice by his people. Now, the implication to all of us today is that we are all charged with the same responsibility, that is to read, preach, and teach God's word. Consequently, we must study God's word. There is no excuse. We should never say because I'm not a pastor, or an evangelist, or a seminarian, then I do not study the Scripture. If the command of Jesus Christ our Lord applies to us to disciple all nations, then it is imperative for all of us to devote ourselves to the study of the Scriptures.

Listen to what Paul said in Philippians 3:8-9: "What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ-the righteousness that from God and is by faith." Nothing is more important than the knowledge of Jesus Christ. For knowing God and Christ means eternal life (John 17:3). Through what one may know God? We all know the answer, through God's word. No other knowledge can bring us salvation. No other knowledge can bring us eternal life. Only through the knowledge of God, which we may gain through his word, may we have eternal life. No wonder Paul boldly claimed that all other things he considered rubbish compared to the knowledge of Christ. No wonder, Paul commanded Timothy to devote himself to the ministry of God's word. Nothing is more important than this.

When the Holy Spirit is sent by Jesus Christ, he speaks of God's word. He teaches God's word (John 16:13). If we examine our purpose of life and be honest about it, ask yourself: what is more valuable than proclaiming God's word? We may be great physicians, but a preacher of God's word is greater than that. Jesus was a living proof of that. He did not come to the world to be a physician, although certainly he is the greatest, but his purpose was to preach and teach God's kingdom. We may be great politicians, but we can't be greater than a teacher of the word of God. Jesus, again was a living proof of it. Only a few months in the public ministry, and people wanted to make him king. But Jesus did not come to claim the physical throne, so he withdrew. Know that Jesus never withdrew himself from preaching and teaching the word of God. We may be great professors of certain subjects, but we will never surpass God's servant who preach and teach his word in greatness. Jesus was also a living proof of it, for he was the only person on earth who possessed the ultimate knowledge of all things. Yet he did not claim the place among scholars, even though no scholars could ever come close to his wisdom. He was content of being a simple rabbi who teaches God's word without any claim to honor and prestige. We may be very successful businesspersons, but even the smallest preacher and teacher of God's word are greater than that. Jesus was a living proof of that. Jesus was the most successful businessman ever lived on earth. His business was the soul of man and he gains 100 percents of what he set out to do. Jesus claimed: “While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled” (John 17:12). No other businessman has ever achieved 100 percent of his goals. Who can compare to Jesus in business? Nada! Yet Jesus did not call himself a businessman, instead he called himself a teacher, for he did not call employees, he called disciples.

Of these important matters, Paul exhorted Timothy to be diligent (1 Timothy 4:15). No laziness is to compromise the ministry of God's word. If you understand the seriousness of this task, you will understand why diligence is necessary. Underlying Paul's charge to Timothy is the importance of God's word in life. Paul did not tell Timothy to preach and teach philosophy or any other subject available that might attract many minds in the Greek community. But Paul pointed Timothy to the Scriptures, even though Paul knew clearly that "Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles" (I Corinthians 1:22-23). The Scriptures are not a popular subject matter demanded by the market. The risk of preaching and teaching God's word is so great, for the preacher and teacher might get killed. Yet Paul told Timothy to do so. The question for us is: Would you do it? Would you "waste" your time to study God's word? Would you "waste" your life to preach and teach his word? If you are ready to answer no, let me remind you of his words: "Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it" (Matthew 10:39). And also be reminded of his life that he gave for fulfilling God's word.

Amen and Amen and Amen!

The Business of Christian Education XXVII: The Greatness of God’s Love

2011-03-19T16:44:00.000-07:00

“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you.” (Isaiah 49:15)

God told Israel through his prophet Isaiah an impossible situation underlining God’s love to his people. Naturally, for a mother to forget her baby that is nursing at her breast is impossible. The natural tendency for a mother is to cherish, to embrace, and to caress the baby she has borne. In the same way, God cannot forget Israel, for Israel is God’s child that he regards as his precious. Even if a mother may forget the baby, God will not forget Israel. This emphasis puts the depth of God’s love at the center of God’s action toward Israel.

Let us consider the natural proceeding after a baby is born. We will not go into detail, but just discuss what is common. At the end of the pregnancy and early days after the child is born, the mother’s breasts produce colostrum. To many mothers, the production of colostrum is a surprise because colostrum doesn’t look like milk at all. Inexperienced mothers would panic if in the early days after giving birth their breast milk does not come out as they would expect. When they see a kind of thick yellowish liquid comes out of their breast instead of milk, they would wonder why and start making the wrong conclusion that their breasts don’t produce milk. Furthermore, when they find out that the thick yellowish liquid drops only a teaspoon each time, they would immediately think that the baby won’t get enough food. Not many mothers know that colostrum is in fact designed by God exactly for the newborn for their first days. Colostrum is packed with nutrition and antibody necessarily needed by the baby. The amount of the colostrum that comes out from the mother’s breasts is exactly what the newborn can take in, for newborn stomach’s capacity is very small. 1 day old baby can only take in 5-7ml, 3 day old baby can take up to 1 oz, and 5 day old baby can take up to 2 oz. By the fifth day usually the mother’s colostrum would stop coming out and is replaced by breast milk.

Many inexperienced mothers, due to the unexpected look and amount of the “breast milk” in the first days after birth, decide to abandon breastfeeding altogether thinking that their breasts can’t produce milk. So they replace breast milk with formula believing that formula can provide what’s needed by their newborn. Such decision is very unfortunate. Not only the huge different of substance between colostrum/breast milk and formula milk but also the process of breastfeeding itself provides the basis for the closeness of the mother and the baby, which formula feeding is lacking. A few mothers understand that formula milk is hard on the baby’s digestion, while colostrum and breast milk is very easy on the baby. Mothers who never experience breastfeeding would not know what they are missing. The connection that is built during the breastfeeding process cannot be replaced by anything else. Through breastfeeding, the bond previously built in the womb between the mother and child is continued in a different environment. In the womb, the baby feels the warmth of the inside of the mother’s belly, but through breastfeeding their skins touch each other and a different experience of warmth is understood. The continuity of the protection, safety, care, and love of the mother previously felt inside the womb, now is assured even if the baby is outside the womb. The life flow from the mother through the placenta is continued through the breastfeeding experience, strengthening the bond between the mother and child. Thus love is communicated, especially in the baby’s early experience of insecurity outside the womb. This experience cannot be replaced by anything else. Usually, mothers understand that newborn suffers a lot when their skin first exposed to air or other materials, their lung filled with air, and their stomach starts growling demanding food for the very first time. So, newborn needs enough sense of protection and safety, and more importantly love. So naturally, through breastfeeding, love between the mother and the child is engraved in the mother’s memory so deep that the mother can never forget her baby.

God knows this. God knows that naturally mothers cannot forget their newborn babies who are nursing at their breasts. Mothers will always have compassion to their babies they gave birth to. God’s love is greater than the love of the mother to her baby, for even though a mother may forget the baby, God will not. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). God proves his love to his people by sacrificing the one he loves so much. This love of God will never be surpassed by any kind of love humans may produce.

It is easier to say that God loves us when everything goes well with us. But it won’t be so easy to say that God loves us when we suffer. In the height of the tsunami that hit Japan a few days ago, many people would question God’s love. In fact, over the centuries, God’s love has become such a hot topic that many would attack it in order to defend their doubt of God’s very existence. We all know that the greatest good is love. Consider the most famous problem of evil propositions: 1) God exists, 2) God is all-good, 3) God is all-powerful, 4) Evil exists. If we affirm the first three, then we must deny the fourth. For a good God would not allow evil to thrive and a powerful God would have no problem preventing evil in the world. However, we cannot deny the existence of evil. So either a) God is not good, which explains why he allows evil, or b) God is not powerful, which explains why God cannot stop evil, or c) God is neither good nor powerful, or d) simply that there is no God. By definition God must be good and powerful, or otherwise he is not God. So, the conclusions a, b, c lead to the conclusion d, that God doesn’t exist. When we talk about good, we all know that the greatest good is love. There is nothing greater than love in this matter. God’s love has been under attack since the beginning of time.

I’m not going to go into detail on how to refute the above philosophical argument on the problem of evil against God’s existence. But instead I would just show you that God’s love is real despite the problem of evil. We must admit that we humans are limited in our understanding of this world. And no one would bravely claim he knows all about love. Who are we to pretend that we know all about God? We cannot even pretend to know God comprehensively, how much more truly knowing him comprehensively. Job did not doubt God’s existence even though he suffered a ridiculous disaster. Jesus himself said: “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” The Son of God who is dearest to the heart of the Father felt abandoned by his own Father. But Jesus never doubts his Father’s existence. The thing is, we may feel like we are abandoned or not loved or suffer the most evil, but it cannot be the basis of claiming that God doesn’t exist. Consider the fact that we sometimes also feel unloved by our parents, especially when our parents punish us for our wrongdoing, but our feeling unloved cannot disprove our parents’ existence. Now, as long as we live in this broken world, evil will always be there to taunt, test, and break us piece by piece. But know that through Jesus Christ, God shares our suffering. Jesus, who is God himself suffered evil. He shares our humanity and through it he suffers with us in the face of evil. Let us not forget that we are created in the image of God, so in a way we are reflecting God when we suffer because of evil. Our reflecting God shows that we truly are God’s instrument, that we are his image. Through our tears we see the tears of God. Through our agony the world understands God’s agony. So, instead of explaining why we suffer, God shares it, said Nicholas Wolterstorff. Such is the love of God. For, when we feel sad, we won’t want our friend to explain why bad things happen, but we want our friend to sit with us and share our sadness as a prove of love. When God shares our suffering, it’s a showcase of God’s love to us.

“God is love” (1 John 4:8) says the apostle John. When we suffer, we often think that we are entitled to be saved from the suffering immediately. We think it is our right to not suffer. Especially when we think we are good people. We reject the idea that bad things also happen to good people. We tend to believe that only good things must happen to good people and bad things to bad people. One theologian, who was well known as a good person throughout his entire life, once said that while many ask the question: “Why bad things happen to good people?”, he would ask the opposite: “Why good things happen to bad people?” By his question, he was trying to educate his readers that we are essentially bad, for we are sinners. And we, despite our badness, continue to receive good things in our life. The sun never stops shining on us, the rain never tries to avoid us, oxygen is always free to inhale, etc. So, God does not stop his blessings to us regardless of our sinfulness. The theologian understood that his goodness was not good at all in the eyes of God. He understood that he was a sinner and thus a bad person. Therefore the theologian pointed out that the question raised by many was wrong. The right question is: “Why good things happen to bad people?”

God is love. God cannot not love. He will continue to love regardless. We often feel being loved when after doing a grave mistake we are forgiven. In Psalm 51, David pleads with God to forgive his sins. God reinstated David and in that way God showed his great love to David. According to the Law, David must die for his sins. But God poured out his mercy and grace on David, so David did not have to die for his sins. However, we must understand that God’s love costs him his own Son. So, David’s sins were wiped out only by the blood of Jesus Christ. This means that God’s Son must shed his blood on the cross in order for salvation to take place. Now, remember your sins and reflect on God’s embrace of you, wouldn’t you feel his warm love in your heart? God’s love is great. He does not ask anything in return. When he demands for us to come back to him, it’s not for his own sake, but for our sake, so we will live a full life in him, the very life we were designed to live in, which is the only proper life for us. God’s love goes beyond our understanding. His sacrifice for our goodness is selfless. Instead of offering the world to us, he offers himself. Instead of offering silver and gold, God offers eternal life with him. Instead of offering fame and power, he offers membership in his family. To what can we compare God’s love? Nothing… nothing….

The Business of Christian Education XXVI: A Costly Choice

2011-02-10T22:40:00.000-08:00

“Isaac prayed to the LORD on behalf of his wife, because she was barren. The LORD answered his prayer and his wife Rebekah became pregnant. The babies jostled each other within her, and she said, “Why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the LORD. The LORD said to her, “Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger.” (Genesis 25:21-23)

“Not only that, but Rebekah’s children had one and the same father, our father Isaac. Yet, before the twins were born or had done anything good or bad—in order that God’s purpose in election might stand: not by works, but by him who calls—she was told, “The older will serve the younger.” Just as it is written: “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated.” (Romans 9:10-13)

In this saga, Isaac was obviously in favor of Esau even though God already told Rebekah that Jacob was chosen and Esau rejected. Isaac chose to bless Esau when he told Esau to prepare tasty food before the blessing. According to the belief in the ancient time, the firstborn will receive the inheritance of the father, just like Isaac received Abraham’s estate. Isaac saw Esau as having the right to the inheritance. Favoritism plays trick in this matter. Isaac did not know that Esau sold his birthright to Jacob already (Genesis 25:29-34). Only after Isaac blessed Jacob, Esau revealed that Jacob took his birthright (Genesis 27:36). Had Isaac not favor Esau over Jacob, Isaac would have obeyed the Lord by blessing Jacob and spared both of them the grief that they had to endure later on. But Isaac made a costly choice by continuing to favor Esau, even though Esau himself did not value his birthright.

We don’t know what would happen if Jacob did not take Esau’s birthright and if Rebekah and Jacob did not conspire to deceive Isaac in order to steal the blessings from Esau. We know that Rebekah and Jacob should not have deceived Isaac for whatever reason. Rebekah did make a costly choice as well when she told Jacob to follow her plan. Esau made a costly choice as well when he sold his birthright over a bowl of stew. By following his mother’s plan, Jacob made a costly choice. Rebekah never saw Jacob anymore after he left for Laban’s house. Jacob never again saw his parents after he left and he was stuck with a disgraceful title “deceiver.” Esau, obviously, lost the blessing he was entitled to had he not sold his birthright. Isaac caused all the drama due to his stubbornness favoring Esau over Jacob.

Despite all the deceptions and pains caused, one thing in this story strikes me. Jacob was always in pursuit of Isaac’s blessing. The blessing that Isaac received from his father Abraham was the one that Jacob wanted. He might not know clearly what the blessing entails, but he knew that it was what he wanted. He knew that it’s bigger than wealth or health. I have no doubt that Rebekah told Jacob of God’s answer to Rebekah’s inquiry when she was pregnant with the twins, that the older will serve the younger. Such blessing from heaven was what Jacob after, and not some earthly riches. This blessing has something to do with God’s covenant and promise to Abraham and Isaac. So Jacob sought a way to gain the birthright, because he knew that only the firstborn would get the blessing. Jacob knew the value of the birthright, but “Esau despised his birthright” (Genesis 25:34).
When Jacob left for Paddan Aram following the advice of his mother to stay away from Esau, because Esau determined to kill Jacob, and the command of his father to marry only with people of his own kind, Jacob did not bring anything except the blessings of his father: “May God almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples. May he give you and your descendents the blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where you now live as an alien, the land God gave to Abraham” (Genesis 28:3-4). The formula of “being fruitful and increase in numbers, fill the earth and take possession of the land” appears again in this blessing (cf. Genesis 1:28; 9:1, 7; 17:6-8; 26:2-5, 24; Exodus 1:7). This shows that the original blessing and command of God given to mankind is to be continued in the line of Jacob. The blessing that Jacob was after was the very blessing that God intended for all people. So Jacob left without bringing any earthly wealth, he left with the heavenly blessing. Arriving in Laban’s house, Jacob had to work his way in order to live. On the other hand, Esau inherited all the wealth Abraham and Isaac had accumulated. This scenario was striking to me because our common paradigm sees blessings as always relate to material and earthly wealth. But Jacob did not chase such kind of blessing, but instead he was after something heavenly. He paid a huge price for it, but he chose the best part. In this case, Jacob followed God’s will that was revealed to Rebekah.

The second thing that strikes me is the fact that Jacob received the first blessing from Isaac by deception. Isaac asked Jacob: “Are you really my son Esau?” And Jacob answered: “I am” (Genesis 27:24). Isaac wanted to bless only Esau, but the blessing should have been given to Jacob. However, Jacob took the blessing by falsely testifying that he was Esau. So, in Isaac’s mind he was blessing Esau, but in reality he was blessing Jacob. In reality Jacob received the blessing, but he knew that Isaac was actually blessing Esau, not Jacob. There is confusion here, which needs to be fixed. The second blessing that Isaac gave to Jacob (Genesis 28:3-4) was given in full conscience of who received the blessing, which was Jacob not Esau. But the first blessing was still a mess and in need of repair. So when Jacob came back from Paddan Aram, God fixed it.

“So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with man and have overcome.” Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there.” (Genesis 32:24-29)

God reinstated Jacob. He asked his name and this time Jacob did not say “Esau,” he correctly answered that his name was Jacob. Then God changed his name to “Israel,” which means “he struggles with God.” Later on God confirmed the name Israel on Jacob: “After Jacob returned from Paddan Aram, God appeared to him again and blessed him. God said to him, “Your name is Jacob, but you will no longer be called Jacob; your name will be Israel.” So he named him Israel” (Genesis 35:9-10). The blessing was given to the right person with full consciousness. God fixed the confusion that happened when Isaac first blessed Jacob. God knew exactly that it was Jacob he blessed, not Esau. Jacob, with clear conscience, knew that he did not deceive anyone with a false name in order to get the blessing. He only needed to acknowledge who he was, Jacob. No more deception and no more stubborn favoritism. So God made it right.

This saga started with Rebekah being barren, and then Isaac prayed to God, then God gave them twins. God also made a costly choice. God chose Jacob over Esau, even before they could do anything, whether good or evil. So God’s election was not based on human merit, but on His freedom and sovereignty. All people have sinned, for through Adam all have sinned. God granted mercy to Jacob, but not Esau. God was preparing a remnant. A remnant of the Imago Dei. For through Jacob the true Image of God was born, Jesus Christ. Through Jesus Christ, God’s plan of salvation was fulfilled. His promise to Adam and Eve that the offspring of the woman will crush the head of the devil is fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Now everyone who is in Jesus Christ will inherit the Kingdom of God. God’s costly choice sent his one and only Son to the world. The Son of God had to die on the cross. The Lamb of God was sent among wolves. But God’s costly choice is different than Isaac, Rebekah, Esau, and Jacob’s. God’s choice is holy as it does not spring from sin. Even though God’s choice is costly, it is also worth it, for through the sacrifice of God’s Son, His elects are redeemed. As his redeemed people, we now may approach the holy throne of God. God dwells in us for eternity. Praise be to God forever and ever.

The Death of My Father: 29th January 2011

2011-01-29T08:37:00.000-08:00

Today my father, whom I called Aciok, passed away. He is 68 this year. My heart sinks very low because he is not on earth anymore, but yet elevated knowing that he is with the Lord Jesus Christ. I dreamed about him last night. I saw him young and strong. God showed me a vision of him happy with the Lord. I saw relief in his eyes that the burden he carried for so long is now left on earth. This paradoxical feeling is hard to explain. If you have ever felt happy and sad at the same time, then you would understand what I am trying to communicate here. Deep down in my heart, I still want him here. But on the other hand, having known his pain and suffering while on earth, my heart is liberated for now he suffers no more, and this time, for eternity. I saw him smiling at me, waving goodbye, and I told him: “Goodbye my father, you have been a good father to me, until we meet again, soon. But not yet, for I still have some things to do here. So Aciok, goodbye for now, we will meet again in the house of our Lord.”

Two weeks ago I was there beside Aciok’s bed, holding his hand. It was the day he was admitted in the hospital. I flew from Jakarta as soon as I heard the news that his condition has worsen. He was weak, lying on that hospital bed. I told him I came. He woke up and asked for water several times. So I gave him water to drink. My mom was there too, and also my brother and his wife, my cousin was also there. I stayed there for some hours before heading back to Jakarta. In the period of two weeks, his condition was up and down. Yesterday, I checked again, and I got news that his condition has improved. He was conscious. He talked to my cousin and my sister in law. I had planned to go and visit Aciok bringing my wife and kids on the Chinese New Year. But his time is up and God had called him sooner that I would hope.

I remember Aciok was very strong. He carried me when I was only a boy. He taught me chess. He taught me how to drive a car. He told me folk stories, stories about heroes of old. He taught me Chinese history. He taught me our Chinese heritage. Most importantly, he taught me how to be a man, although he himself was a simple man. I remember him clearly and vividly. Then he got sick. His body was betraying him. His body refused his command. He could not move as swiftly as before. He was not as strong. But he never complained. I never heard him complain to God about his condition. He took it with great endurance. He faced his pain with courage. He endured his suffering as a man.

One day, after my first year of study at Calvin, Aciok expressed his willingness to go to church. I was very happy. God answered my prayer. We had a long conversation. I found out that he knew the Lord when he was young. But then he was disappointed with the church. Now he wanted to come back. I gladly brought him to GRII Ngagel Jaya. I introduced him to Rev. Andi Halim. Aciok felt very comfortable there. He faithfully went to church every Sunday even when I was not there, because I had to go back to Calvin to finish my study. After I finished my study at Calvin, I got admitted at the University of Michigan. But then I had to come back due to my father’s serious accident. Aciok fell from the second floor, on the stairs. His neck bone was broken and he had to have a major surgery in China. So I left University of Michigan to go back to Surabaya to be with Aciok. I was glad I did that. I finally had to forfeit my enrollment at University of Michigan because I decided to stay longer with my dad for his recovery. He never asked me to stay. He was the same strong person I knew when he was still young. Only this time it’s not the body strength, but the strength of his soul. I admired him for that.

Then at the end of my two years after I graduated from Calvin, I got married. My dad was there with my mom, healthy and sound. It was one of the happiest moments in my life. We had to be separated again soon after because my wife and I had to go to the US for my study. At the airport, my dad escorted me until the gate. I hugged him knowing that it would be long before I could see him again. We managed to communicate on a weekly basis via phone. Thank you technology. My first daughter was born in the US and she grew up there. We visited Surabaya again when my daughter was 1 year old. We celebrated her first birthday together. Aciok was very happy to see Sasya, my daughter. He hugged her and carried her around. We were very happy.

I had not finished my study, so my wife, my daughter, and I had to go back to the US one more time. Again, Aciok and I were separated. But we both knew it was necessary. Three years later I came back to Indonesia. I stayed and worked in Surabaya, one of the reasons was to be with my family, mom and dad. We rented a house at first and finally bought a house in Citraland, thinking that we might settle down there for good. Aciok visited our house often, even though it was quite a far trip from his house to mine. We had lunch and dinner together when we were there. We also visited Aciok often. Oh yes, Aciok gave us a present, he bought us a small car, a Chery QQ. Aciok loved China, so he was proud of the product from China. We were happy with that gift, so we used it every day. But then we had to move to Jakarta. We couldn’t bring the car with us because we were afraid that it wouldn’t survive Jakarta, for I have heard about the routine flood. It seemed that Aciok was a bit disappointed, but he understood the reasoning. The last present he gave me was also a car, which we used for more than a year before we thought it was time to trade the car for a newer one.

Aciok’s death was sudden. It was unexpected in a way because just yesterday his condition was improving. I missed him… In the first week of January, I visited my mom and dad in Surabaya. We had a dinner together. It was a good dinner. That was the very first time, Aciok, my mom, and I had dinner together, just us. It was like a goodbye dinner by my dad. It was the last proper food he ate. My mom told me that Aciok did not feel like eating actually, but because I came he ate until finished. I loved him just like he loved me.

Death is our enemy. The only hope I have is in Jesus Christ. For in him death is defeated. The total lost in death has been changed to glory in the eternal life with God through the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. With such hope I will meet Aciok again. When I meet him in our Father’s kingdom, Aciok will be young and strong again. Aciok and I will enjoy life to the fullest eternally in God with the new body, the new heaven, and the new earth. “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen” (Romans 11:36).

The Business of Christian Education XXV: The Providence of God

2010-12-21T02:28:00.000-08:00

There were two events in the life of Abraham that God intervened in order to protect him. The first one is recorded in Genesis 12:10-20, and the second one is recorded in Genesis 20. These two events are similar in nature, whereas Pharaoh in Genesis 12 and Abimelech in Genesis 20 wanted to take Sarah as their wives. Abraham obviously was holding one important truth that Sarah was his wife, because he was afraid that he would be harmed. But on those two events God intervened. In Genesis 12 God inflicted diseases on Pharaoh’s household because he was going to take Sarah as his wife. Eventually, Pharaoh realized that Sarah was Abraham’s wife and then he returned her to Abraham.

The event with Abimelech was similar. Abimelech wanted to take Sarah as his wife, not knowing that she was married to Abraham, because Abraham did not reveal her status on purpose. “But God came to Abimelech in a dream one night and said to him, “You are as good as dead because of the woman you have taken; she is a married woman” (Genesis 20:3). Again, eventually Abimelech returned Sarah to Abraham. So God protected Abraham in those events, and no harm befallen Abraham and his company, and instead they were blessed with riches.

God also protected Jesus with a similar intervention. God appeared in Pilate’s dream to warn Pilate to be just. “While Pilate was sitting on the judge’s seat, his wife sent him this message: “Don’t have anything to do with that innocent man, for I have suffered a great deal today in a dream because of him” (Matthew 27:19). However, the result here was a contrast to the Abraham’s. Pilate did not make the right decision. Instead of heeding his wife’s warning, and thus God’s warning, Pilate was more afraid of the crowd. Instead of trying to please God, Pilate chose to please the crowd. So Pilate sent Jesus to be crucified and died on the cross.

If we compare the two, we might be bewildered. I know I am. When God protected Abraham, Abraham was purposefully lying to Pharaoh and Abimelech, and yet God intervened in his behalf. Our sense of justice might say that Abraham did not deserve to be protected in that way due to his act of deception. But God chose to protect Abraham and inflict troubles to both Pharaoh and Abimelech. In the event of Jesus, instead of inflicting Pilate with diseases, God let him make a decision that led to the crucifixion of the Son of God. Honestly, I am puzzled when comparing those events. Jesus was more righteous than Abraham. In fact he was innocent on all accounts. He was sinless. He deserved to be saved more than Abraham. But yet, Abraham got away with his lies, but Jesus was punished for his innocence.

There are a couple of things that need to be reflected carefully. First, obviously God did his part in protecting Jesus even though Jesus was vividly destined to die a gruesome death on a cross bearing the sins of the world. God also did his part as God protected Abraham and rescued him from the hands of Pharaoh and Abimelech. But the results are different. This shows that God does not like it if something is not right. Pharaoh and Abimelech’s intentions to marry Sarah were wrong because Sarah was Abraham’s wife. So God had to intervene regardless of Abraham’s lies. God also did not allow Pilate to feel at ease sending Jesus to the hands of the wicked. God had to warn him so he would know that the only right decision was to let Jesus go. So the fault was on Pilate completely when he handed Jesus over to the crowd to be crucified.

Secondly, we tend to want to be like Abraham, rescued by God even though we might have committed a sin. We don’t like the event of Jesus before Pilate to be experienced by us, which is being innocent and yet suffer greatly due to injustice. But look at Jesus. Did he complain? Did he say to the Father: “Where is justice?” or “Why Abraham was rescued and I am not, even though I am purer than Abraham?” Jesus took it in his heart without complains at all. Clearly, no one would want to suffer. But the question is, if suffering is necessary, would we complain to God for our unfortunate experience? The Bible honestly shows two events of two contrast results. Two men of God, one is greater than the other, but yet the one greater suffers but the other one does not. Jesus suffered when he maintained his innocence, while Abraham gained fortune and was protected even after he lied. Upon our reflection, do we want to be like Jesus or Abraham?

Thirdly, the call is for us to be like Jesus and not like Abraham. “We will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ” (Ephesians 4:15). To be like Christ, frankly speaking, is not in everyone’s dream. We tend to like it when we are like Jesus in glory, but we tend to run away if to identify ourselves with his suffering. We cannot be like Jesus if we don’t share his suffering. The suffering caused by evil is actually the path to knowing evil without committing sin. Adam and Eve chose the wrong path to know evil, which is by committing evil. For many people, they ask: “How can we know good and evil without actually eating the fruit?” The answer is that there is another way to know evil, that is through suffering it, just like Jesus Christ. Jesus knows evil but he does not commit any evil.

Fourthly, Many times we doubt God in times of trouble. We complain to God and even question God’s genuine love to us. Even Abraham put his faith completely in the Lord when he let Pharaoh and Abimelech take Sarah away. Abraham let God work his part. In our life, we seldom wait for God. We tend to be impulsive and take matters in our own hands. We always want to be in control and not allowing God to work his wonders. Many people, because of this, have lost their faith. Our faith is tested when trouble comes. When our life is merry and happy, we don’t know if we even have faith. Sometimes, trouble is needed for us to know who we really are. But Jesus taught us not to ask for trouble. Asking for trouble is the same as wanting to be in control. This is the same with doubting God, for instead of relying on God we want to win over the trouble so we don’t need to rely on God anymore. The right action is when trouble comes we should depend on God and not doubt him.

God’s providence is real. Even when Jesus was supposed to be sentenced to death, God did intervene to show his holiness, righteousness, and justice. In this way God declared Jesus’ innocence. The end result might not like what we have in mind, but the fact that God does his part remains. We should never doubt God even if the situation might have shown otherwise. I do not want to pretend I understand this mystery, nor pretending that I have experienced enough suffering to qualify for speaking of this matter. But the Bible speaks clearly that leaves us no room to pick and choose our favorites. What the Bible plainly tells us, we must ponder comprehensively. Many Christians love to pick and choose situations that fit their experience. This is where we must learn to grow to be like Christ. This journey is difficult. But God promises his company to stay with us forever. Praise the Lord!

The Business of Christian Education XXIV: Multiplying Imago Dei in the Abrahamic Covenant

2010-11-17T17:17:00.000-08:00

“Now Joseph and all his brothers and all that generation died, but the Israelites were fruitful and multiplied greatly and became exceedingly numerous, so that the land was filled with them” (Exodus 1:6-7).

God is consistent with his message. He keeps repeating his special command to human beings in creative ways. First God spoke to Adam and Eve directly to multiply the Imago Dei (Genesis 1:26-28). Then God spoke to Noah and his family after the destruction of the evil image and the saving of the Imago Dei (Genesis 9:1 and 7). Hundreds of years after that, God again commanded the multiplication of Imago Dei through a very creative way.

God began his creative communication through calling Abram: “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you” (Genesis 12:1). Then God promised Abram: “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. 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 12:2-3). God began fulfilling his promise to Abram by changing his name to Abraham and his wife’s name to Sarah. Then God gave Abraham and Sarah a son, Isaac, through an impossible situation. Sarah was barren and old, but at 90 she gave birth to Isaac. This is clearly God’s doing. No humans are able to do this.

God established his covenant with Abraham and Sarah. The sign of the covenant was circumcision. “Then God said to Abraham, “As for you, you must keep my covenant, you and your descendants after you for the generations to come. This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and you” (Genesis 17:9-11). So God made a distinction between Abraham’s descendants and the rest of the world. Through Abraham God created a nation, a people distinct from the rest of the world. Through Abraham God kept and multiplied the Imago Dei.

After the death of Abraham and Sarah, God continued his covenant with Abraham to Isaac. The same promise that God said to Abraham that he would be a great nation. “The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do no go down to Egypt; live in the land where I tell you to live. Stay in this land for a while, and I will be with you and will bless you. For to you and your descendants I will give all these lands and will confirm the oath I swore to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and will give them all these lands, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because Abraham obeyed me and kept my requirements, my commands, my decrees, and my laws” (Genesis 26:2-5). Then God was with Isaac, keeping him and protecting him.

God then continued his covenant to Jacob, Isaac’s son. “There above it stood the Lord, and he said: “I am the LORD, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All the peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you” (Genesis 28:13-15). God said this when Jacob was leaving Canaan running away from Esau. Then when Jacob came back to Canaan, God blessed him and changed his name to Israel (Genesis 32:27-28).

Then when Jacob was afraid to go to Egypt, God appeared to him saying: “Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there” (Genesis 46:3). Jacob was afraid because he knew that God once spoke to Abraham that his descendants would be enslaved and mistreated by a foreign country in a foreign land for four hundred years (Genesis 15:13-16). So God had to assure Jacob of his promise. Through Jacob, God brought forth the twelve tribes of Israel and eventually God made Israel into a great nation in Egypt.

God promised Abraham and Sarah, who were barren and old, to make them able to multiply. The multiplication that God ordered to all humans through Adam and Eve was now initiated by God himself because Abraham and Sarah were incapable of multiplying on their own. Important for us to remember is that in the time of Noah, people multiplied but they did not multiply Imago Dei, so God had to wipe out mankind from the face of the earth. God saved Noah, who was obviously the remnant of Imago Dei. Now in the time of Abraham, God had an initiative to create a people who would bear the image of God and be a blessing to others. In a way, Abraham and Sarah was the remnant of Noah, Imago Dei, but they were incapable to multiply. So God had to intervene. The impossible situation that Abraham and Sarah faced emphasized the hands of God in this saga. Obviously, God’s command must be accomplished, and when his remnant couldn’t, God’s love and compassion took charge. God did the impossible through Abraham and Sarah.

The changing of names of all three generations showed that they belonged to God himself. The names of Abraham and Sarah (Genesis 17:5 and 15), the name of Isaac (Genesis 17:19), and the name of Israel (Genesis 32:28). They became the descendants of Adam and Eve, and thus of God. They are the remnant of the Imago Dei.

In Egypt, God blessed Israel so they were fruitful, multiplied greatly and be exceedingly numerous, and filled the land. This is the formula of God’s command to Adam and Eve and Noah: “to be fruitful, increase in number, and fill the earth.” Israel did just what was commanded. Therefore, God’s special blessing rests with Israel, who is the remnant of Imago Dei.

Through a creative way, God continued his command of multiplying Imago Dei. It is obvious that God did not order the multiplication of other image. God ordered only the multiplication of Imago Dei. God went through a great deal to get his message across and to get his plan done through impossible situations. The preservation of the remnant of Imago Dei is at the heart of God’s plan. In the days of Noah, God saved the remnant and through him he repeated his command to multiply Imago Dei. Through Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, God preserved and miraculously multiplied the remnant into a great nation with numerous people.

Therefore, make no mistake that God does not order humans to multiply just for the sake of multiplication. This multiplication is not merely for the biological multiplication so the earth will be filled with many people. God is concerned with what kind of people that would inhabit the land. For the world belongs to God and thus his rules must be obeyed. With the incident in Noah’s time, God showed clearly that none should be left alive who don’t follow God’s command. Every human being born in God’s land bears a certain responsibility to follow God’s law, just like every child born in our house must follow our rule. When people multiply but they don’t follow God’s law, they are as good as dead in God’s eyes. So multiplying cannot just be seen as biological reproduction. The multiplication of human beings must take into account the education of Imago Dei. Multiplying Imago Dei as God’s command to all humans stands and cannot be negotiated. The will of God himself will see its completion as was shown through his work in Abraham, Isaac, and Israel.

The Business of Christian Education XXIII: Multiplying Imago Dei in the Noahic Covenant

2010-10-22T19:58:00.000-07:00

“Then God blessed Noah and his sons, saying to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.” (Genesis 9:1)

“As for you be fruitful and increase in number; multiply on the earth and increase upon it.” (Genesis 9:7)

God is very creative. He speaks of the same thing in a different way. As with this covenant that God established with Noah and his descendants, God once spoke of the same thing many hundred of years before to Adam and Eve. God told the first humans to be fruitful and increase in number. God specifically commanded Adam and Eve to multiply the Imago Dei on earth. However, since sin entered the world, no longer Imago Dei that has been multiplied but the broken image and the image of the devil. So God’s command could not be carried out due to humans’ confusion and incompetence. When Noah was 500 years old, “The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time” (Genesis 6:5). So God was grieved and said: “I will wipe mankind, whom I have created, from the face of the earth—men and animals, and creatures that move along the ground, and birds of the air—for I am grieved that I have made them” (Genesis 6:7). People breed evil instead of good. People breed imago Satan instead of imago Dei. Only Noah and his family were the remnant of the imago Dei (Genesis 6:8).

“Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth” (Genesis 6:11-13). Then God ordered Noah to build an arc, which was completed in 101 years, for God was going to destroy the entire world with water. After the completion of the arc, God united the water above and below, which was once separated in the creation of the sky (Genesis 1:6-8). So water covered the entire world and every living thing was destroyed. Only those in the arc were saved from the flood. Noah and his family, eight in all were the only humans saved. Consistent to his command to multiply imago Dei, God destroyed all the non imago Dei but saved the remnant. God, then, commanded the multiplication of imago Dei to the remnant. He did not renew the command to be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth to the non imago Dei, for it would be a disaster if the earth was filled with evil. The original intention in the creation of man has been reemphasized, so there is no confusion of God’s intention for all humans to multiply only imago Dei. God’s creative communication and punishment to evil provide an important understanding to all of us today so we may understand the real intention of procreation of the human species. Make no mistake, in our procreation, God’s command stands, which is the multiplication of imago Dei.

To Adam and Eve God said his command plainly without any dramatic prologue. But to Noah and his family, God said his command with the most dramatic prologue in the world. The destruction of the whole world, all the humans and animals, by the unification of the water above and below was the greatest grief in the human history, second only to the crucifixion of the Son of God. God made a very vivid statement by destroying all the wicked people, while saving Noah, for in God’s eyes “Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time and he walked with God” (Genesis 6:9). Then God ordered Noah and his family to be fruitful, increase in number, and fill the earth. If we put the prologue together with the account of Noah and God’s command, then we got a crystal clear statement from God that his command for humans to be fruitful, increase in number, and fill the earth, means for the imago Dei to be multiplied, imago Dei to increase in number, and imago Dei to fill the earth. For sure God doesn’t want the evil image to be multiplied, increase in number, and fill the earth. That’s why I call this as God’s creative way of communicating his command and punishing the wickedness.

Twice God’s command of multiplication was commanded to two different families, one was commanded to Adam’s while they were sinless, and the other was commanded to Noah’s after the dramatic prologue of the saving of the remnant of imago Dei within the sinful world. Therefore, when people procreate only biologically and care not for the bringing up of the divine image in the human soul, they are guilty of sin. God abhors the wicked and saves the righteous. Nothing can be clearer than the account of Noah in that matter. So Noah was like the second generation of the imago Dei to bear the responsibility to breed divine image. Noah was in a different era than Adam’s era in the Garden of Eden. Both commands actually state the same thing. Only because the world has changed, then God’s way of communication to humans also changed dramatically in order for the message to get through. God could not plainly say the same command in the time of Noah due to the blurry perspective of human state under sin.

God established the covenant and his commands to Noah and his descendants, which means all of us on earth are bound to the same covenant and commandments. We are all the descendants of Noah and Adam, and therefore God’s command to breed divine image is for us and our descendants as well. The problem now is on the knowledge of imago Dei. Philosophers, religious leaders, theologians, are all in the quest of finding the concept of an ideal man. While they have reached great understanding, they have also failed to conclude according to God’s will. Some say that the ideal man follows the way of nature, and thus conforms to natural way. But some say that the ideal man leaves his fingerprints in nature, meaning making nature obeys him and making use of nature properly, and thus devises technology for the betterment of humanity. Still some say that the ideal man is free from the bondage of any religion, for God does not exist for them. Others say that the ideal man is united with the spirit world, making him able to defy nature and thus super. Others say that the ideal man is living for himself, while the counterparts argues that the ideal man is giving himself out for others. There are still many versions of the ideal man in the world of philosophy. But let me tell you a secret that God has revealed to all of us. The true image of God is Jesus Christ himself, for “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. 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 and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross” (Colossians 1:15-20).

Therefore, if we are to fulfill God’s command to multiply imago Dei, then we ought to find the pattern in Jesus Christ. All of us are to be transformed in his image. Then we ought to educate our descendants to follow the pattern of Jesus Christ. This requires faithfulness, discipline, patience, endurance, and full dependence in God. God alone knows the completeness of the true imago Dei. Our education to be provided must be the divine education as ordered by God according to his holy scripture. Amen.

The Business of Christian Education XXII: The Love of the Father and the Deception of the Serpent

2010-09-25T06:50:00.000-07:00

“Now the LORD God had planted a garden in the east, in Eden; and there he put the man he had formed. And the LORD God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground—trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food. In the middle of the garden were the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil” (Genesis 2:8-9).

“And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die” (Genesis 2:16-17).

“You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves” (Genesis 3:4-7).

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel” (Genesis 3:15).

“And the LORD God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever” (Genesis 3:22).

God told Adam not to eat the fruit of one particular tree, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Even though God made all the trees “pleasing to the eye and good for food,” including the forbidden tree (2:9), it was clear that God forbade Adam to eat it. God gave the reason why he did not allow Adam to eat the forbidden fruit, “for when you eat of it you will surely die” (2:17). No doubt that Adam passed that information to Eve, for when the serpent talked to Eve she cited God’s words to Adam (3:2-3). However, Adam and Eve decided to eat the forbidden fruit. The big question is obviously: “Why?” “Why would the perfect humans make an unwise decision that caused the entire world to fall?” “Why did the perfect humans decide to disobey the God who loved them very much?”

The serpent, which obviously is not an ordinary animal, made a contrary statement to God’s. The serpent, who we all know is the Lucifer, confused Eve by claiming that eating the fruit would not result in death, but in knowing good and evil, just like God. Now, Lucifer was an archangel, but he fell, and now he is known as the devil, Satan. Satan is very smart. In the short conversation between Eve and the serpent, Eve did not argue with him even though God’s words to her was clear. Right after the serpent told Eve that death couldn’t be the result of eating the forbidden tree, Eve took the fruit and ate it. There was no struggle at all on the part of Eve. This somehow shows how cunning Satan was in his rhetoric. Adam was with Eve at the time, but he did not help Eve with the confirmation of God’s clear message. Adam was obviously not a dull person. He was extremely smart, given his task to name all the living beings on earth. Giving a proper name to a thing is not an easy work to do. But Adam did the naming duty perfectly. When researchers write a journal article, a thesis, or a dissertation, one of the biggest tasks is to give a proper name of the process, event, or result of the things they research. I imagine Adam named all the beings effortlessly since there was no mention that Adam was in trouble with his job. Therefore, it’s very surprising that the smartest humans ever lived on earth could not handle a simple rhetorical trick Satan played on them.

If we ponder more clearly on Satan’s trick, we will find out that it was not very simple indeed. God said that when they eat the fruit they would die, but Satan said that they would not. After Adam and Eve ate the fruit, clearly they did not die instantly, but instead “the eyes of both of them were opened” (3:7), exactly like what Satan said. Moreover, the devil said that not only they would not die after eating, but also they would be like God, knowing good and evil. If we compare this to what God said in 3:22, even God himself confirmed that they have become like God, knowing good and evil. So far it seems that all that the serpent said came true. If Satan was right, then does it mean that God was wrong? Undoubtedly God said himself that Adam would die after eating the fruit (2:17). What seemed to be a simple rhetoric obviously was not.

We all know that God did not lie, so what he said must be true. If God did not lie, then Satan must be the one lying. But how are we to explain this bizarre phenomenon? I’ll try to explain this difficult problem. What Satan said was half-truth. It was true that Adam and Eve eventually knew good and evil after eating the forbidden fruit. But there was something that Satan hid and covered it with something that appeared very tempting. The temptation looked very sweet and irresistible, for it caused Eve to finally use her eyes to make a judgment instead of listening to God’s words. Eve made a decision to take the fruit and ate it based on her sight. For sure the fruit was pleasing to the eye and looked good for food, for God made it purposefully that way. But that’s not a good foundation for deciding to eat the fruit that God has forbidden to eat. In fact it was not a good foundation at all to dismiss God’s words. What made it worse was that Eve did not just use her eyes to judge, but she also added a false truth that the fruit was good for gaining wisdom based on Satan’s argument about being like God in knowing good and evil.

The center of Satan’s deception was on his statement that Adam and Eve would not die after eating the fruit. Adam and Eve died eventually regardless of how long they lived on earth. For God who is eternal, they die hundreds of years after eating is the same like die the same day of eating. God is beyond time, yesterday, today, and tomorrow is always present for God. So, when God was in the Garden of Eden in the time of the incident, God was also in the time when Adam and Eve died. So, what God said was true that when they eat the forbidden fruit they die. But Adam and Eve did not know this, for they were bound to the constraint of space and time. For them it felt like they did not die. In the eyes of God, they already died. Their problem was that they did not believe in God’s words, they believed in their own experiential judgment.

Secondly, Satan hid a very important truth about the knowledge of good and evil. This is the kind of knowledge that one cannot know just by theory. To know good one must experience good. The same goes with evil. To know evil one must experience evil. So when they ate the fruit, they opened up a way to experience evil, and in that way they knew evil. But they did not know this. Satan deceived them by implying that when they eat the forbidden fruit their eyes will be opened and instantly they will know good and evil. The fact of the matter is they did not immediately know evil until God punished them and death slowly claimed their very life. The ultimate evil is death, and in order to know evil, they must suffer death. This is exactly what God said that when they eat it they will surely die. Therefore, in order for Adam and Eve to know evil, it is necessary for them to go through the suffering and ultimately die. Only then they can know what evil is. This was a sad event, but clearly they made their own decision based on their own judgment. Since then evil never parts its way from humans.

But God did not leave Adam and Eve alone to their fate. God made an executive decision to bring good to the human race. In 3:15 God immediately blessed humans by creating an enmity between the devil and humans. This is a good thing. This means that God pulled humans toward his side instead of leaving them to stay on the devil’s side. God separated the two beings. And since then there is always the war between humans and the devil. Living with God is obviously better than living with the devil. So this is God’s act of mercy toward humans even though they have rebelled against their creator. Humans don’t deserve anything good from God, but God decided to give them the ultimate good. So God initiatively protected humans from the devil’s harm by considering getting them into God’s side. The good news of the gospel was started by God when he proclaimed that the heir of the woman will crush the head of the serpent and the serpent will strike his heel (3:15). We all know that God spoke of Jesus Christ who redeemed his people from the bondage of sin. We also know that Jesus Christ is not an ordinary man, he is God himself coming into the world in the form of man. The greatest being gave himself up to die for sinful humans, such is the greatest love. There is no news better than this.

The next good thing that God did was to throw Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden. God prevented them from eating from the tree of life. This is truly an act of love. Children usually don’t understand when their parents forbid them to get something. As the result, they tend to react angrily or with sadness. Many times they don’t know that their parents forbid them for their own good. For example, it seems to be a lot of fun to play right next to the street, but the parents know the danger so they forbid them to play near the street. In the case of God throwing Adam and Eve away from the Garden of Eden, God was doing them a favor. For it would be terrible for Adam and Eve to live forever in their condition under evil. If they took and ate the fruit from the tree of life with their sinful state, then they will live forever with evil. God knows that such condition is undesirable. Adam and Eve might not understand this, but God knew, so out of his love he kicked them out of the garden in order to preserve their life. God wants them to live forever, but not living forever suffering evil. God gives them eternal life through Jesus Christ. For only through Christ humans may live forever properly. Knowing this truth, we ought to be thankful when God did not allow the first humans to take the fruit from the tree of life. Moreover, we ought to thank God for his beautiful plan in granting us the true eternal life even though we don’t deserve it at all.

Contemplating on what God bears by taking humans to his side and dying for them, it is truly unbelievable to find anyone would purposefully defy God and befriend Satan. If there is such person, then their condemnation is right. The greatness of God’s love and wisdom are displayed in his blessing and promise in Genesis 3:15, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” God gave the honor to the human race, the honor of destroying the devil completely. The offspring of the woman will crush Satan and destroy him forever. A mere human cannot complete this promise, and so God sent his one and only son to be born on earth as a man. Furthermore, the manner of Jesus’ battle is far from any imagination. We tend to imagine the glorious battle where the Messiah would raise his sword while riding his mighty horse, striking Satan in the form of a dragon, and cut off his head to claim the victory. But the imagination is shattered once we know that the battle is won by suffering and death on the cross. Dying on a cross is the most humiliating death and it signifies defeat instead of victory. But God uses the most humble means to destroy a very powerful enemy, any human won’t dream of defeating at all, in order to show his true might and glory. At the same time, by giving the honor to the human race through his son, God shows his ultimate love and wisdom. Proverbs 21:30 said: “There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the LORD.”

In such humble manner to defeat Satan, God defies all human logic and calculation of probability. “God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so no one would boast before him” (I Corinthians 1:27-29). Therefore, in one strike God accomplishes his grand purpose to get his chosen people to live eternally with him, to demolish Satan forever, to humiliate the strong and the wise, and to grant honor to the lowly being—humans (cf. Hebrews 1 and 2). All this God does because of his great love for us (John 3:16). Satan would never imagine his defeat came through the death of the Son of God on the cross, for it seemed so impossible for the victory of salvation to come through the suffering and death of the Messiah. What more can we say? Only Soli Deo Gloria.

The Education of the Future - Back to Divine Education: Deconstructing Industrial Revolution

2010-09-09T03:23:00.000-07:00

We all know that education defines the success of a country. Its magical attraction can only be found through the wisdom of the people who graduate from it. Education leaves its footprints through the formation of every son and daughter of the nation. Therefore it is imperative to secure the perimeter of education, be it the informal, non-formal, or formal. Sadly, the noble course of education has been disrupted by the great success of industrial revolution. Since the dawn of industrial revolution in the 18th century, education has gone downhill. Despite all the enhancement of technology and the advancement of knowledge like never before since then, education is no longer as noble as it was before. Industrial revolution changed holistic education into partial education. Thence education has become more partial than ever, leaving learners with partial knowledge like never before.

In the formal education setting, all educational goals have been for the gaining of academic knowledge and skills needed to operate machineries. Schooling has been transformed from producing the greatest minds into producing machine operators. The booming of industry forces people to abandon the pursuit of character education. What is more important is the mastery of the partial knowledge that drives the economy. The demand of the society is for schools to produce machine operators fast. The industry is desperately in need of machine operators in order to cope with the market demand while at the same time people are desperate to graduate faster in order to gain economic security through securing a job in the industry. The more sophisticated the knowledge of the machine, the higher the pay. Thus schools no longer produce the philosopher king and the wise, like what Plato and Confucius had in mind, but instead schools can only produce the memorizer and the smart. The noble purpose of human heart no longer drives formal education, but the machine does.

In the informal education setting, parents no longer have time to educate their children the values of life. Soon the degradation of understanding of the value of informal education has contributed greatly to the moral degradation of the next generation. Since parents work very hard day and night in order to survive economically, children are left without the wisdom of the parents. Parents pay too much attention to the fulfillment of the physical needs, and thus the family value has shifted from character orientation to the economy orientation. Parents feel more obligated to fill the stomach with food rather than filling in the mind of their children with good knowledge. The industrial era has brought the biggest gap to the family in the history of mankind. Industrial revolution starts the greatest family brokenness by sharpening the gap between the parents and children.
When the failure of informal education weds the transformation of the formal education, we reap a dysfunctional generation. Today we ask the question why in the most advanced era where we have the smartest people yet we fail to establish good in almost every aspect of life. The never ending war in many parts of the world, the widespread of AIDS through immorality, the corruption of many governments in the world, the natural disaster caused by human negligence, the food scarcity due to the contaminated resources and the wasting of it in the midst of the most advanced science and abundant production of food, and many other things that put human race in the brink of major disasters. Today we must reconsider and reflect how much damage industrial revolution has contributed in our world. If we continue to endorse such way of life, then soon we won’t have anymore good left in the hearts of man. My greatest concern is when I see people pursue education only for the sake of financial security. The saddest thing is when all eyes turn to formal education for the character education while at the same time formal education can only do so much for the purpose of equipping learners to be ready to work in the industry. Parallel to it is the neglect of family education that leaves children to be raised valueless. The responsibility of parents to instill values in the children’s hearts has been long abandoned. The school now is charged to put values on the curriculum menu with its severely limited capacity. What good may come from such a terrible rendition?

The thing is, the more successful we are at forming the next generation to embrace partial knowledge the further we are from our dignity as humans. This calls for holistic education. And with holistic education, I mean an education that puts a solid foundation of life into the hearts and minds of man. To make the foundation solid, undeniably we need to embrace faith-based education. Humans are closer to God than animals. Science argues that we are closer to animals and that there is no God. This is where I think science is wrong. There is no nobility in animals like what we may see in man. If we think of the best human, then deep down in our heart we won’t be able to put humans and animals in the same category, for we far surpass all animals. There is no comparison. We are in a different league altogether. There is no explanation in science as to why humans are extremely far superior than animals. The explanation can only be found when we consider religion. God himself told us that we are created with the dignity of the divine. We are called his image, his children. Again, if we look at the best of humans, we can only say that we are divine. I honestly can never say anything divine in animals. If we ponder this carefully, then our education cannot run from teaching who God is. The famous question by Immanuel Kant: Who is man? precisely points to what I call as the divine education.

Faith-based education is truly the way to go. Without knowing who we are and who our creator is, we will only learn to destroy ourselves and the lives of our children. But when we come back to the very dignity that God has put within each one of us, we can do noble things. Only by knowing our origin in God we can salvage the destruction that industrial revolution has set for more than 200 years. Education can no longer follow the pattern of industrial revolution. Industry should never again drive education, but instead divine education should drive industry. Faith-based education should direct the course of life, including economy and industrial supply and demand. The kind of education that acknowledges God and that gets us back on our feet as God’s children is the necessary education in our time. This is the time we rise as God’s children and act accordingly. This is the time we take over education from machine. This is our time to regain our dignity that has been degraded for so long by the machine world. Through divine education we can retake our life and put values once again in the hearts of our children. Only then we have hope. Only then we may hope for the better future. This is the education of the future: the divine education.

The Business of Christian Education XXI: Jesus Christ Our Model

2010-06-25T20:08:00.000-07:00

Reflecting upon the life of Jesus, truly one may find an extraordinary or even beyond outstanding kind of life a human being may live. Before Jesus Christ, no one would consider dying on a cross as an act of obedience to God, or an act of honor, or an act of love. Jesus gave us more than just an example of holy life. Many religious leaders today honor Jesus, but they don’t honor him enough. They merely think that Jesus is no God, he is a mere man, and a mere model for good and honorable living. Jesus is God. Before him, no one would touch the cross and consider bearing it as the purpose of his/her life. But Jesus gave many people a model that life on earth is not measured by whether our body is comfortable or in pain. Before Jesus, people would pursue wealth and health as the summum bonum. Wealth and health were considered the sign from heaven that God is in favor with humans. When God is not in favor with someone, people before Jesus always thought that God would smite that person and make his/her body destroyed. No wonder the Jews thought that Jesus was cursed on the cross because he sinned against God. God proved them wrong. Jesus’ resurrection surprised the Jews. No sinful person may be resurrected honorably and gloriously like what Jesus experienced. Jesus’ resurrection was the proof that Jesus was innocent.

Modeling a life like Jesus requires a great faith. Jesus is God, and he is also a man. Walking on the path of the cross is not easy. Jesus had a great faith that his Father, after abandoning him on the cross, would glorify him. Now, if you were bearing that cross, and God abandoned you, would you still have faith in God? Would you then believe every single word written in the Bible while you were in your deepest agony, you body was broken, every person insulted you, and the God you worshipped abandoned you right when you needed his help the most? After all the miracles, after all the service, after all the sermons, after all the good works that Jesus did, on the cross no mercy was given him. Jesus took all with faith. His faith to his father never faded. His last word on the cross was his total surrender to his father: “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit” (John 23:46). Such great model broke through every human wisdom. This kind of life had never been modeled before. Jesus’ act provided a light to all people after him to follow. His disciples dared to live a life no person at their time wanted.

But the model is passed on from generation after generation since Jesus Christ. Only a select few would take up Jesus’ model. Others would not take it because the life Jesus modeled is too difficult for them. For those who dare to walk on Jesus’ path, they can only bear it by the grace of God. Only by being born again by the Holy Spirit one can live such life. Jesus’ model of life is not for everybody. Many people would consider Jesus’ way to be stupid. Others consider Jesus’ way to be misguided. Still others consider Jesus’ way to be dangerous. Jesus’ model of life is in many ways undesirable, especially for our generation today. With the world offering pleasure, easy life, enjoyment of living, material wealth, convenience, the way of life that Jesus offers compete with what the world offers. But little know that what the world offers leads to death while what Jesus offers leads to God. Even among those who profess to be the followers of Jesus still try to marry the way of life offered by the world and Jesus. I do not propose that Jesus’ followers must be nailed to the cross, or must lead a miserable life, but what I mean is the mindset. When we say we follow Jesus, are we really ready to live a difficult life? Perhaps our battle is when we hold on to the right principles, justice, love, righteousness, holiness, truth, mercy, honor, goodness, rather than physical. When such battle arrives, are we clinging to comfort, pleasure, material wealth, power instead?

Jesus did not cling to any of the convenience the world offers. He rejected the offer from the prince of the world. He did not want any of what the world offers. He walked on the path that his father prescribed for him, even though the prescribed life was full of pain. Many of us today want to be acknowledged by God but yet do not wish to let go the contract of the world. Don’t we know that signing a contract with the prince of the world means death? Even though the pleasure the world offers is hard to beat. God did not offer such pleasure, but he offers peace—shalom. “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives” (John 14:27). God provided the model in Jesus Christ. Even though Jesus’ life was full of pain by the world standard, he did not allow himself to be judged by the world. Jesus shows to the entire world that the life on earth is not judged by how much money you have, by how much power you posses, by how honored you are by the people, by how healthy you are, by how successful you work is, but by how you obey God. Jesus also shows that the life after this earthly life is more important, contrary to the world which proposes ultimate enjoyment and pleasure of earthly life at the expense of the heavenly.

Of course, the kind of life that Jesus modeled is not on high demand. His kind of life is undesirable. Even among Christians, not many would take up his model. Some pastors would teach their congregations to embrace wealth for Jesus became poor so we may become rich. Many people, even those considered to be Christian leaders, don’t quite get what God meant when Jesus became poor so we may become rich. Don’t we know that it is not about material gain? Don’t we know that it is about being rich in the sight of God? But yet, truly, some pastors claim that Jesus became poor (without money) so we may become rich (wealthy). There is nothing wrong with being wealthy. But when our eyes are fixed on it, then there is something wrong with our core being. To be rich financially, a lot of sacrifices are needed. People don’t just get rich like money comes down from heaven. To run your business and get the best profit you can get, you will probably have to sacrifice your time with your family, with your God, or probably you will sacrifice your own health, or other people’s health, or other people’s family time. When you sacrifice your time with your family, for example, perhaps what you do is neglecting your wife/husband and children. One may pamper his/her spouse with so many expensive gifts. One may hire the best nanny to care for his/her children. However, don’t we know that even infinite expensive gifts can’t replace a single drop of love? Don’t we also know that even the super best nanny in the world is not the children’s parents whose love no one can replace, not even grandparents?

You see, our limitation forces us to prioritize. The question is what is our priority? Where do we set our heart upon? Jesus said where your treasure is there your heart will be also. What do we treasure? Do you treasure the worldly treasure? Then there your heart is. Jesus treasured his heavenly treasure, which is his father in heaven and so he obeyed his father, even though it was an extremely difficult life. Many people become Christians for all the wrong reasons. One agrees to be baptized so he/she can go to heaven instead of hell. So he/she becomes Christians because of the fear of hell, not because wanting to be with God. Another wants to be a Christian because the pastor says that Christians will be blessed with the worldly riches. Still another embraces Christianity so he/she will be healed from his/her illness. Where your treasure is there your heart will be also. Where is your heart?

Jesus opened a new way of living that was unimaginable for people. He did not just talk about it, but he walked his talk. He proved with his own life that the life he conducted was not futile. He proved with his own life by putting his life in the highest risk possible and showed to the world that his life is granted the highest meaning by the owner of life himself, God. Since then, people no longer live in the dark. We have seen the light. And the light was kindled on the cross. Before Jesus, the cross was the symbol of darkness, of death, but after Jesus, the cross becomes the symbol of salvation, of life. Before Jesus, poverty was the symbol of God’s curse, but after Jesus, poverty because of not wanting to accept the offer of the world means richness in the sight of God. Jesus gave birth to a new lifestyle. The life of holiness, of truth, of love. Many people desire it but got distracted with pleasure, money, and power. Many people wrote books about how to get rich, how to be powerful, how to be successful, and so on. Whose model of life are you going to take up? Jesus? Or those people who promise you pleasure, money, or power?

The Business of Christian Education XX: The Knowledge of the Holy Spirit

2010-05-09T06:01:00.000-07:00

“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.” (John 14:15-17)

“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (John 14:25-26)

“When the Counselor comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth who goes out of the Father, he will testify about me. And you also must testify, for you have been with me from the beginning.” (John 15:26-27)

“But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.” (John 16:7-11)

“I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of Truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you.” (John 16:12-14)

Who can better introduce the Holy Spirit to us than Jesus the Son of God himself? In John 14-16, Jesus took the initiative to introduce the third person in the Trinity to his disciples. This event is an extremely important event due to the coming events of the death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ.

Jesus’ introduction of the Holy Spirit begins by recognizing him as “another Counselor.” This recognition clearly shows that there is a Counselor prior to the Holy Spirit. In Isaiah 9:6, Jesus was introduced as the “Wonderful Counselor.” Obviously, the Counselor prior to the Holy Spirit, who is the “another Counselor,” is Jesus Christ himself. Through this kind of recognition, Jesus points out that the Holy Spirit is equal to him in stature. The Holy Spirit is God. And the Holy Spirit is also a Counselor, like Jesus Christ. This is important to remind all of us that we should not take the Holy Spirit lightly. Jesus rebuked the Pharisees when they called the Spirit that resides in Jesus (cf. Matthew 12:17-21) as the prince of demons. Matthew quoted Isaiah 42:1-4 to recognize Jesus as God’s servant of whom the Holy Spirit is within him. Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:16). Jesus then said something unexpected: “And so I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come” (Matthew 12:31-32).

Jesus also reveals that the Holy Spirit will reside with all the believers forever. Jesus is going back to the Father, but the Holy Spirit will stay with us forever. Through the Holy Spirit, the believers will be made one with God, the Father and the Son (cf. John 17:20-26). Jesus’ presence in the hearts of all believers is made possible through the work of the Holy Spirit that God poured out in the day of Pentecost. In his human form, Jesus can only be at one place at one time. But through the Holy Spirit, Jesus is present with all the believers forever. This truth is important that in the midst of tribulation, Jesus stands together with all believers. This truth also has a tremendous implication that relates to the duty of the Holy Spirit. For example, Jesus also called the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Truth, in which one of the duties is to guide all believers into all truth (John 16:13). And the truth is the truth that Jesus teaches (John 14:26). This means that we will be reminded all the time by the Holy Spirit of the truth, which is the teaching of Jesus. Unlike the Old Testament time, the Holy Spirit dwells within the believers’ heart for good. God will not take the Holy Spirit from us. Once he is in our hearts, he never gets out anymore.

Jesus calls the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Truth (John 14:17, 15:26, and 16:13). This Spirit of Truth, Jesus says, the world cannot accept. Only those that have been born again in the Spirit can accept him (cf. John 3:5-8). The world knows not the truth for they don’t accept the Spirit of Truth. For the Holy Spirit testifies about Jesus and Jesus is rejected by the world (cf. John 1:10-11). And Jesus is the truth (John 14:6). In other words, those who don’t accept Jesus are the world, and those who accept Jesus are not of the world (cf. John 17:14). The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, is given only to those who believe in Jesus. The Spirit of Truth is to guide all believers into all truth so all believers will be sanctified in the truth (cf. John 17:17). Jesus did not send a spirit of confusion, but instead the Spirit of Truth is sent to us. This shows how serious Jesus was. He did not send an angel. He did not send a human being. He sent God, the third person of the Trinity, to seal the deal. The best work can be done only by God. And precisely for that reason, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, to be our Counselor so we all may know the truth. If we are about to seal a business deal and make sure that everything goes right with a very important person, we won’t send our representative, but we will come ourselves or we will send someone equal to our position. Jesus did just that.

The Holy Spirit will not come unless Jesus ascends to heaven. Therefore it is necessary for Jesus to ascend to heaven, so the Holy Spirit may come. One of the most difficult duties the Holy Spirit assumes is to convict the world of guilt (John 16:7-11). This duty is threefold for the conviction deals with three aspects namely sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin because the world does not believe in Jesus. “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son” (John 3:18). Many people would find this conviction absurd. They say that God has no basis for condemning those who don’t believe in Jesus. For they think that believing in Jesus is optional. For they think that one may choose to reject believing in Jesus, who is the truth, and thus embraces the lies, and get away with it. They think that they are free to ignore the truth. They think they have the authority to judge which is the truth and which is not. They think they are equal to God so the truth of God can be argued. Therefore God sends the Holy Spirit to convict the world of its sin for not believing in Jesus, God himself, who is the creator of the world. Therein lies the irony. The world does not believe in its own creator. The world, therefore, deserves to be condemned.

The Holy Spirit convicts the world of righteousness because Jesus goes back to the Father. Jesus is not lying when he claims: “”I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “before Abraham was born, I am!” (John 8:58). Jesus applies the name of God that was introduced to Moses by God to himself: “God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:14). But the people who heard Jesus’ claim did not believe and they threw stones to him to condemn him, who is God. If Jesus were a liar, then Jesus would never go to the Father. If Jesus were a liar, he would be condemned in the deepest hell, for he deceived with the greatest deception. But instead, Jesus goes back to the Father. This shows that everything that Jesus claims is the truth. The Holy Spirit is working to convict the world of guilt based on this truth because it condemns Jesus, who is God, to death simply because he says the truth (cf. Matthew 26:63-66). If Jesus were a liar, the High Priest’s sentence would prove true, and Jesus would not rise up from the dead, moreover ascended to heaven. But the truth is Jesus speaks the truth, and he is now at the right hand of God the Father, which proves that the High Priest was guilty for condemning an innocent man, and the entire world is guilty for calling the truth as untruth. Jesus said: “As it is, you are determined to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God” (John 8:40).

The Holy Spirit convicts the world of guilt in regard to judgment because the prince of the world stands condemned. This is extremely important because Satan has deceived humans into believing in his lies. By believing his lies, the truth of God is rejected. Jesus accused his opponents: “You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). The world chooses to believe in lies rather than believing in the truth. Jesus said: “Yet because I tell you the truth, you do not believe me!” (John 8:45). Jesus’ word reveals the irony of the human heart. Humans are supposed to believe in the truth, but yet when Jesus tells the truth, people do not believe. They have embraced a deception that they regard as the truth and this is the sole reason why they cannot fit in the truth that Jesus says in their system. Of this matter the Holy Spirit convicts the world of guilt, for the deceiver is condemned by God, and so all who believe in his deception.

The Holy Spirit will not speak wildly out of the boundary of Jesus’ teaching (John 16:12-14). Many people now believe that the Holy Spirit will speak things that are not in the Scripture. They disregard what Jesus said that the Holy Spirit will only speak what he hears from Jesus and what Jesus teaches. So, when people believe in what they call as the holy spirit but that spirit does not speak what Jesus teaches, they believe in lies and that spirit is not the Holy Spirit. This matter cannot be taken lightly. The apostle John reminds us: “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (I John 4:1). The way to test spirits is by following Jesus’ explanation of who the Holy Spirit is. One important way to test is by checking whether what people claim as the spirit speaks only the truth that Jesus teaches. Many people nowadays claim that the Holy Spirit is in them but yet they don’t speak the truth that Jesus speaks. Based on what Jesus said, those people don’t have the Holy Spirit, but instead a different spirit that masquerades himself as the Holy Spirit. Paul warned the church of Corinth: “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light” (II Corinthians 11:14).

Such is the Knowledge of the Holy Spirit.

The Business of Christian Education XIX: The Knowledge of Christ

2010-03-15T02:46:00.000-07:00

“Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. … I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. … I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given to me, for they are yours. … My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message” (John 17:3, 6, 9, 20).

In order to know God, one must know Christ. This is the main reason why Jesus said that eternal life is the knowledge of God and Jesus Christ. This does not mean, however, that Jesus Christ is not God. The Gospel of John makes it clear that Jesus Christ is God himself.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. … The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1, 14).

Make no mistake, Jesus Christ is God himself. But He differentiates between himself and God, whom He always addresses as His Father. This is the mystery revealed regarding the uniqueness of God, who is One but has three persons. When Jesus introduced this knowledge to the people, He was totally rejected. Jesus claimed: “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30), but the Jews wanted to stone him, so Jesus asked: “I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?” (John 10:32).

Since his appearance in his early ministry, people have been asking him: “Who are you?” (John 8:25). And Jesus has revealed who he is, but people don’t believe in him. “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, ‘before Abraham was born, I am!” At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds” (John 8:58, 59). Jesus’ claim was terrifying for the Jews. Because the word “I am” that Jesus used to describe himself was the very word that God used to introduce himself in Exodus 3:13-14.

“Moses said to God, “Suppose I go to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ Then what shall I tell them?” God said to Moses, “I am who I am. This is what you are to say to the Israelites: 'I AM has sent me to you.’”

But Jesus did not back down even if the road led to death on the cross. Miracle after miracle, discourse after discourse, claim after claim, and rejection after rejection, murder plan after murder plan, betrayal after betrayal, but Jesus kept his pace steady. In the midst of the short life Jesus went through on earth, He asked a very important question: “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” (Matthew 16:13). His disciples’ answers were varied: “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets” (Matthew 16:14). People did not know who Jesus was. They were guessing. They did not have the right information. What they did not know, Jesus revealed to the world. He asked his disciples: “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” (Matthew 16:15). Simon Peter answered bravely: “You are the Christ,the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). Only on Peter’s correct information Jesus confirmed: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven” (Matthew 16:17). The weight of the answer is not on Peter’s right information, but on Jesus confirmation. For without Jesus confirming Peter’s answer, his answer would not be recognized as the right one. Without Jesus confirming Peter’s answer, no one would know that all the other answers are wrong. So it was the Father in heaven that revealed the truth in Peter and it was Jesus Christ himself who confirmed the revelation that Peter spoke.

Jesus is the Christ. He is the Son of the living God. His presence on earth was prophesied all the way back to the beginning of history.

“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:15)

And God made it clearer through Isaiah:

“For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
Of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end.
He will reign on David's throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice and righteousness
from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the LORD Almighty
will accomplish this.” (Isaiah 9:6-7)

Nobody on the face of the earth would be able to bear the four names that God revealed through the prophet Isaiah, except God himself. And no man on earth has the nature of God except Jesus Christ. Jesus brought to the ignorant world, the precious knowledge of the greatest being in the whole world. Jesus knew full well that while he was on earth, only a few would believe in his message. Jesus held eternal life in his hands, but when he opened his hands to give it to the people they wanted a different kind of life. Jesus introduced the most precious knowledge and the rarest mystery of God, but people despised it and scorned Jesus the Logos himself.

Stephen Tong said that the most important question the whole world should take heed is the question: “Who is Christ?” For in that knowledge hangs the balance of the entire universe. More than this physical universe, the spiritual reality is also impacted greatly by his presence. Two thousand years ago Jesus revealed the greatest mystery, but in our era today we still struggle trying to answer Immanuel Kant’s question: “Who is Man?” The reduction of the meaning of man that the modern philosophy did has devastated the entire understanding of life. The modern philosophy tried to explain this world by its smallest parts. In that genuine attempt to try to explain the world’s mystery, people have lost themselves. They have been confused of who they are. They have been confused with their role in this world. They have been confused with their duty as moral agents. Now in this postmodern world, they are even confused of whether their senses are reliable. They don’t know anymore what is real and what is not. On that account, scholars have attempted to explain what is reality, but unsuccessful. Every theory is refuted by yet another theory. Even the wisest among scholars is unable to identify which is which. This happens because people reject the most precious knowledge God has been trying to tell people since the beginning of time. People are busy chasing after knowledge they think to be important while at the same time burying the only knowledge that brings eternal life to the knower.

It is an irony that people are busy mastering a certain kind of knowledge hoping for a good life. The business people master knowledge concerning transaction, negotiation, buying and selling, demand and supply, in order to profit from what they do and sustain their life. The medical doctors master knowledge concerning medicine, human anatomy, diseases and the symptoms, cure and healing procedures, care of human body and psyche, in order to save life. The physicists master knowledge concerning the physical world, energy, materials, time, velocity, etc. in order to improve life. But yet many of them consciously ignore the most important knowledge that truly sustains, saves, and improves life, not only in this world but also in the world to come.

For the very reason of sustaining life, saving life, and improving life that Jesus came to earth and brought the only knowledge that means eternal life, the knowledge of God and of Christ. And there is only one requirement from God that humans must do: “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent” (John 6:29). We can have the right information but not believing it as the truth. Both the right information and the right faith must meet in order for one to believe in the truth. In our information era we are bombarded with tons of information. And in our confused era, we are confused as to distinguish which information is right and which one is wrong. Without an authoritative figure telling which one is right and which one is wrong, people will be totally confused. The only solution is to believe in the authoritative figure, and this is where the knowledge of Christ becomes extremely important. Jesus knew this and that’s why he was bringing the knowledge of God and of Christ, for only God and Christ could tell which one is right and which one is wrong.

Therefore, the knowledge of God and Christ is the most important knowledge human beings ever need. God knows and he makes sure that this knowledge is known by his people. God initiates the revelation of this truth since the beginning of time, and Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God, brings himself who is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” into the world, and the Holy Spirit is sent to dwell in the hearts of his people to remind them about the teachings of Christ. All three persons in the Trinity is working to ensure the knowledge of God and of Christ arrives in the hearts of his people. God takes this very seriously, that is why he does it himself. He did not send an angel to bring this knowledge to the people. Even when he sends us, his disciples, to bring this knowledge to the world, he makes sure that his Holy Spirit dwells within our hearts. If God takes this seriously, then as his children we ought to take this very seriously as well. May God grant us strength and wisdom to fulfill his will. Amen.

The Business of Christian Education XVIII: The Secret of the Knowledge of God

2010-02-23T23:34:00.000-08:00

“Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. … I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. … I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given to me, for they are yours. … My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message” (John 17:3, 6, 9, 20).

The secret of the knowledge of God is revealed by Jesus himself to his disciples. Jesus then charged his disciples to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). So the secret of the knowledge of God will be passed on continuously in every generation. Paul speaks of the ministry entrusted to him: “For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts, to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:5-6). Therefore, the ministry of the kingdom of God is to bring the knowledge of God to all people who would believe in God.

And this knowledge of God means eternal life. Adam and Eve lost eternal life when they chose the tree of the knowledge of good and evil over the tree of life. Since the beginning, the greatest knowledge is the knowledge of God. In the case of Adam and Eve, once they ate the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they have lost the knowledge of God. The Bible records how Adam and Eve responded negatively to God. When God “called to the man, “Where are you?” (Genesis 1:9), Adam did not respond to God properly, but instead he answered “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid” (Genesis 1:10). Adam did not answer God’s question properly. Instead of explaining to God his whereabouts, Adam stated his fear of God. Eve too did not respond to God properly. God’s question: “What is this you have done?” (Genesis 1:13) was answered incorrectly “The serpent deceived me and I ate” (Genesis 1:13). God did not ask Eve what the serpent did to her, but God asked Eve what she did. Instead of telling God what she did, Eve told God what the serpent did. This incident proves how Adam and Eve no longer knew God.

Since then, the entire human race has had difficulty knowing God. What we have lost, Jesus brought back through his incarnation. The true knowledge of the living God is again introduced through Jesus. When one embraces this true knowledge, one gains eternal life. This knowledge is the greatest knowledge. One may be a physicist who understands the secret of quantum theory, or a biologist who knows the secret of genetic code, but without the true knowledge of the creator of the universe, one is lost. The only knowledge that will bring us eternal life is the knowledge of the true God. So Jesus did not come to the world to be the greatest businessman, or the greatest physicist, or the greatest biologist, or the greatest mathematician, or the greatest politician, etc. but Jesus simply chose to become a teacher, a rabbi. And the knowledge that he brought was simply the knowledge of God.

This knowledge is at the heart of Christian education. To know other things without knowing God is futile. Therefore Christian education rejects any knowledge that does not acknowledge God. This great “treasure,” Paul called it, is entrusted to us who are imperfect. Paul said it wonderfully: “But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). The greatest knowledge is entrusted to broken vessels like us to carry and proclaim. The value of the treasure does not depend on the jar. The treasure is still valuable even though the jar is worthless. However, the value of the jar follows the value of the treasure. Many people in our modern era buy things because the wrap looks very good even though the inside is garbage. No wonder that the wrap industry grows very fast due to the demand in the market. People can’t see pass the wrap. So people buy the wrap, not the actual thing inside. Paul pointed out that the wrap is nothing. The jar is broken, but the treasure is priceless. So suffering or death does not scare him from continuing his proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the true knowledge of God that brings eternal life. Paul considered his own life as worthless compared to the treasure of heaven.

But let me correct a mistake often people take following this understanding. Some people argue that because this jar of clay is worthless and that the treasure’s value does not depend on the jar, then one can degrade his life and still carrying the valuable treasure of heaven. People got it wrong. The value of the jar follows the value of the treasure. When the treasure is entrusted to the jar of clay, the jar must be chosen. The jar cannot be a rebellious jar. The jar must be an obedient jar, so whatever the owner decides, the jar will obey. This jar must first be chosen and then go through a cleaning process for it to be considered worthy to hold the treasure. The choosing and cleaning procedure can only be done by the owner of the treasure and the jar. The jar can’t choose or clean herself. The jar can’t force the owner to fulfill her demand to hold the treasure. The freedom of the owner determines what jar will be entrusted with the treasure. The same like our life. We are all jars of clay. God is the potter. God chose those who He will entrust with the knowledge of the true God. But to be able to hold on to the true knowledge, one must believe in God. But no one can believe in God, except if chosen by God and then saved in Jesus Christ. Once one is saved in Christ, the old life must be abandoned, for the new life is already given. One can’t claim to be saved in Christ but still “wearing” the old life as his dearest. Therefore, the chosen can’t live a worthless life and carry the knowledge of God. For the person carrying the knowledge of God will be transformed by the knowledge so that he/she will not live a worthless life. Back to the argument above, that the treasure’s value does not depend on the jar. This concept is true. The meaning is that the treasure’s value can’t be judged by the actual value of the jar. The treasure is far more valuable than the jar. It is the jar that has increased in value when the treasure is put inside it, not the other way around.

Jesus sacrificed his life for the purpose of the knowledge of God to be revealed to his people. Paul, received his commission from Jesus himself, sacrificed his life for the purpose of the knowledge of God to be passed on to his fellow believers. All the apostles, the prophets, and the saints of God of all ages, sacrifice their lives for the knowledge of the true God to be spread to the ends of the earth. Thus, as Christians, as educators, we are all carrying this treasure to be proclaimed to all people, and to be passed on to the next generation of believers until the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Consequently, all Christian educators must know this knowledge. We must accept it by faith, and we must let this knowledge of the true God penetrate and transform our lives. We should no longer live like when we were still in the dark. The light of the knowledge of the glory of God has lightened us up, and the life we live now must be the life of light.

The secret of the knowledge of God is that this is the only knowledge that brings the knower to eternal life. But one cannot know without believing. But one cannot believe without totally committing his/her life to the owner of the knowledge. For one cannot pick and choose what piece of the knowledge to be kept and what is not. To accept the knowledge of God, one must accept its entirety. It’s a one package deal. Either one accepts it whole or not at all. Therefore, Christians carry in us eternal life. No life can be compared to this. Eternal life is the greatest life. Humans’ course during life is to learn a certain way of life. Whatever we deal with if it does not deal with life, then it is meaningless. All philosophies always deal with life as the ultimate value. There are many ways of life that is being offered in our world. But the knowledge of the true God offers a certain kind of life that might not be desirable for some people. This knowledge cannot be accepted easily by all people. Only the chosen can accept this knowledge. This fact bears consequences. Since this true knowledge is unpopular, then rejection of this knowledge is common. Rejection does not stop at merely rejecting the formal knowledge, but rejection usually escalates to the rejection of the person carrying the knowledge. This happens because this knowledge deals with the very core of our human life. Rejecting this knowledge means rejecting the eternal life. The weight of the rejection presses heavily not on the knowledge but on those who reject the knowledge. However, the messenger suffers an effect of the rejection, for many times the rejection manifests itself in the removal of the messenger from the face of the earth.

A simple knowledge, the knowledge of the true God, determines one’s life and death. This knowledge of the secret of the knowledge of God should have made us Christians to be more eager to proclaim it. Not only to proclaim the knowledge but to live the transformed life accordingly for the confirmation of the treasure entrusted within us. Paul’s defense to the Corinthians is an important defense due to the fact that false teachers were attacking his character for the sake of refuting the gospel that Paul was entrusted with (2 Corinthians). The false teachers threw cheap shots to undermine Paul’s integrity and assassinate his character so his message could be discarded in Corinth and replaced by the message the false teachers were bringing. Paul’s appeal to the church at Corinth was for them to embrace the real truth that they belong to God. Paul did not defend himself for the sake of his own fame. But Paul defended himself so the church of Corinth would not abandon the one true God. Paul argued strongly for the Corinthians to truly know the value of the treasure without judging it according to the jar. Not surprising if Paul wrote the love letter to the Corinthians to convince them of the truth. In fact it is God who wrote the letter through Paul to express his true love to the church. To illustrate Paul’s defense as actually an act of love, I will use the analogy of the family. Say that a kid is being raised by his parents and his parents love him very much. Then one day this kid goes to school, then in school his teacher tells him that his parents are fake. Then when this kid goes back home, he immediately raises the question whether his parents are his true parents. What would you feel if you are his parents? As a parent if my kid suddenly raises a question like that because of the information she got from a certain teacher, I would definitely defend my integrity and reveals in detail that I am truly her parent. My act of defense is not for the sake of my fame, but it’s for the sake of my kid to know the true truth. And it can’t be named differently other than an act of love. In the same way God through Paul (Paul himself) loved this church that he defended his paternity and Paul defended his credibility as God’s apostle.

The Fatherly love of God is being expressed here so his children will embrace eternal life, so one day they will be together with God forever. God would not compromise the true knowledge of God. This is the one knowledge that determines life and death. Such is the secret of the knowledge of God and it is the business of Christian Education to continue to pass it on.

The Business of Christian Education XVII: The Chosen

2010-01-27T23:46:00.000-08:00

Jesus said: “You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit—fruit that will last” (John 15:16). Christianity is unique. One of the uniqueness of Christianity can be found in the election of the followers. The way of this world is the complete opposite of the way of Christianity. Just like a person chooses who will be his/her soul mate, so the plants choose their farmers. Today we can see more vividly that students choose their teachers, employee choose their employers, servants choose their masters, followers choose their leaders, vassals choose their suzerains, people choose their politicians/presidents/prime ministers/kings/queens, and believers choose their gods. But only Jesus said: “You did not choose me, but I chose you.”

Twenty five hundred years ago Confucius set out a long journey touring the entire China with the sole purpose of finding the wise prince who would do the way of humanity and be obedient to the mandate of heaven. After fourteen years Confucius went home empty handed. Amazingly, he could not find anyone under heaven who would uphold the way of humanity. Confucius, known as the wisest man ever lived in Asia, was looking for a wise master but could not find any. So he went home disappointed. When Jesus came to the world to seek His people, the world that He created rejected Him. He sacrificed Himself for His people. Instead of coming home to heaven disappointed, He brought home victory, the greatest victory the world will ever know. Confucius went looking for a master, but Jesus came looking for His disciples. Confucius went home empty, Jesus went home successful. Christians are privileged because the Master came down to seek us. While for Confucius, no Master sought him.

The way of the world dislikes the way of God. God’s way is for God to choose His people. The world’s way is for the people to choose their gods. Samuel was crying when Israel demanded a king. Samuel thought he was rejected as God’s prophet. But God said to Samuel: “it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you” (I Samuel 8:7-8). The fall of Adam and Eve marks the first democracy. And ever since the fall, humans’ tendency is to choose for themselves rather than allowing others, even God, to choose for them. Even little kids tend to refuse the wiser or better choice their parents make for them and insist on the poor and foolish choice they make for themselves. The way of the world as we have inherited from Adam and Eve has contributed greatly to the chaos, the pain, and the turmoil we endure on earth. Just a simple matter causes a great trouble, and this simple matter is about choice. Jean Paul Sartre, an existentialist, argues that the meaning of life resides on human choice. Our life is meaningful only when we make our choice. If we can’t choose, then life is meaningless. But we should also understand that the true meaning of life can also be robbed when one makes the wrong choice. Sartre falls short of his perspective because he does not believe there is a God. If God doesn’t exist then all our choices can only be measured by our own standard. The problem is how one can judge others' choice while all humans are equal? This leads to each person for him/herself. Eventually this leads to all the problems of humanity. Since we choose by our own standard, so no one should intervene. We become our own standard. Our own individual self becomes our own standard. We choose who we want to become. If we want to be a mechanic, then nobody can stop us from becoming one. If we want to eat hamburger, then nobody can stop us from eating. If we want to become gay, then nobody may forbid. However, there are many things in life that we cannot choose, but given. And such condition does not constitute meaninglessness. Moreover, the given condition that does not depend on our own choice, many times, constitutes the deepest meaning of our life. For example, we can’t choose our parents. We can’t even choose our physical appearance. We also cannot choose our gender. We cannot choose our racial heritage. Some people do try to change themselves in many ways so to depart radically from their original condition given since their existence. But yet they can’t betray their origin. As different as they have changed themselves, their origin can’t be altered. One can’t turn back time and change history. Our origin and many other things that make us who we are are a given.

The Scripture starts with God creating the world in the beginning. Our nature is created in such a way that everything we are depend on God. We are chosen to be humans. God chose for us. When I was a kid I thought to myself: “Why am I not a monkey? Why I am a human? Why am I not a tiger?” and so on. Nobody can answer such question. The Word of God only can answer it. I am who I am because God chose me to be. My nature can’t be altered. Once a human forever I am human. A radical person tried to change her appearance by tattoo. She wanted to look like a tiger, so she made her entire body tattooed in such a way so she would look like a tiger. But as much as she tries so hard to change her appearance, her very being does not change. She is still a human being. God’s choice gives us meaning. We might deflect from the meaning God has given us, but our action does not make it better. Once we deny the meaning God gives us, then we have lost the true meaning, even though we choose our action.

There is another secret I want to expound to you. This is a deeper secret. The apostle Paul points out: “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will—to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. …, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession—to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:3-6, 13-14). Jesus came to the world and sought His people. He went back to heaven victorious. The people belonging to Jesus were chosen by God even before the existence of the world. The decree of God was made in eternity before there is time and space. God has made a choice regarding us even before we came to be. This shows how God’s people have been a priority in the mind of the One true God. How can one love someone who is not yet in existence? But yet God has loved us since before we existed. This is the deep secret. As God’s people, as Jesus’ disciples, we are chosen by God. Being chosen by God surpasses any meaning we can create through our choices. Even if we are given an infinite number of choices to make, and even if all our choices are good ones, none or not even all our good choices combined can be compared to THE CHOICE made by the God of heaven and earth for us to be adopted as His children for eternity. God’s choice surpasses all. This is the glory of God.

God is very serious with His choice. The chosen is given the best of the best. God did not send an angel or a human being to secure our salvation. He sent His one and only Son, who is God. God sent God to secure our salvation. Who can be greater than God? The blood of God the Son was shed to purchase us. Then God sent the Holy Spirit, who is also God, to seal His promise of our full glory. God sent God to seal His people. Who can be greater than God? The Triune God works himself to make sure His choice comes to pass. He wants no failure. He sent the second and third persons of the Godhead to seal the deal. No failure indeed! God chose His people. Humans try to fight off God and flee from His presence in order to choose for themselves their meaning of life. Democracy defies what should be. Israel’s demand of a king defies what must be. Our method of choosing someone to be our authority defies what is natural. The people of Israel crafted the golden calf and called it their god. They didn’t want the true God because they could not control Him. But the golden calf they could control. Humans want the choice for themselves so they can control everything. We betray our very nature when we do it. We are created to depend on God. Our natural way of life is supposed to be obedience and submission to God. Jesus showed exactly what obedience and submission is. As God’s chosen people we are to follow Jesus’ example. In Christ we find the true meaning of life. When we opt to deny Jesus, we lose our meaning. God’s choice instills the greatest meaning in our life. Therefore, being the chosen carries the greatest privilege and at the same time the greatest responsibility as God’s own. We don’t choose Jesus. We can’t choose Jesus. There can only be Jesus chose us.

The Business of Christian Education XVI: The Divine Calling

2010-01-20T19:46:00.000-08:00

Both the calling and the education of God’s children are crucial in God’s kingdom. The calling will determine the education. Calling someone to believe in Jesus Christ must not be underestimated. We must pay attention to the manner of the calling, as well as its method and content. Just like the process of labor contributes to the health of the baby, which in turn will determine the education of the baby, so the calling of Christians contributes to the health of their faith and so their education as God’s family. For example, if the process of labor is done improperly then the baby’s life will be at risk. If, say, the labor is starting, but instead of helping the mother to deliver the baby the nurse instructs the mother to delay the labor because the doctor is late, then the baby might be at risk of not getting enough oxygen to the brain. If the baby does not get enough oxygen to the brain, brain damage might be lurking. If the baby is born with brain damage, the education of the baby will be greatly affected. One cannot teach a baby with cerebral palsy, for example, the same way like teaching a baby that is normal. Babies with cerebral palsy need special treatment that will accommodate their shortcomings. Extra attention is needed in order to make sure the progress is not delayed. However, special treatment might not help improve or fix the damage that is already done. Once a baby is born with cerebral palsy, usually the brain damage is permanent. The irreparability of the damage caused by a mistake during labor dreads many parents. In the same way, we must be very careful when calling Christians. Once the calling is done improperly, the newborn Christians might suffer an irreparable damage that will cripple their faith for life.

Many people underestimate calling and think that one can call Christians carelessly. Often people think that God will clean up their mess and make sure that everything works smoothly and perfectly. When they do that they don’t treat God properly. They insult God by placing God as the cleaning service who will clean up after their mistakes. Jesus had to pray carefully before selecting His disciples. He did not do it lightly. Jesus did not call His disciples to follow Him because He would make them wealthy and healthy, like what some people are doing. What do you think would happen if a preacher calls people to believe in Christ Jesus because, that preacher said, Jesus promises wealth and health to those who would believe in Him? This is what I think would happen. First, no one can be certain of the sincerity of those who respond to such calling. There will always be suspicion that they believe in Christ because they want to be rich and healthy. Second, obviously, we might predict reasonably that those who respond to that calling are those who are either very poor or unhealthy or greedy or want to live forever. Now, do we seriously think that Jesus wants people believing in Him based on such motivations? I have never found in the Scripture that Jesus called His followers in that way. So how in the world preachers nowadays are calling people to come to Jesus by luring them with the promise of wealth and health? Don’t they know that if they do that, they are going to give birth to a Christian with very serious faith damage? The next question is: “How can we repair such damage?”

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t doubt the power of the Holy Spirit. However, the task of calling believers is entrusted to us by Jesus Himself. The Holy Spirit will give the second birth to the chosen regardless of what humans do. The chosen will be born again, not by the power of man, but by the power of God. However, we partner with God in the delivery process. Such partnership is entrusted by God to us (cf. Romans 10:9-17). This knowledge calls for careful treatment of how we call people to come to faith. We must not call people in the wrong manner and then leaving the mess we create to God to handle. We are responsible fully for what we do. All the apostles called people very carefully. They did not call people carelessly. Peter called people in the day of Pentecost speaking of the truth and only the truth. Peter did not lure people with the promise of wealth and health, but instead Peter said clearly that people sinned greatly because they killed Jesus who was sent by God (Acts 2:22-23). Peter risked his life telling the truth. That truth is necessary to call people to come to faith in Christ. Peter did not compromise the message entrusted to Him by his Master. The Holy Spirit blessed the calling, and some three thousand people gave themselves to be baptized that day. If our work to call believers is not important, and the only one important is the Holy Spirit who gives new life, then why would God be angry at false teachers and prophets? If our work is not important, then we can be as careless as we want, even to the point of heresy, knowing full well that God will fix our mistakes later and so everything will be well. If so, then we can also neglect calling, teaching, caring, and continue believing that God will do everything so all will be well. Such conclusion will bring this world to chaos, don’t you think? Know that we are not called to bring chaos into the world, but instead we are to bring about shalom.

The fact of the matter is we are entrusted with this ministry by the God of heaven and earth. God has taught us the truth and in the right way, thus we must continue to pass the truth in the right way to the next generation. When we do things correctly, we don’t rob God of His power, but instead we please Him because we do what He wants. This is not the debate about supernatural versus natural. All things we do in the spiritual realm are supernatural, because without God’s work in and through us, nothing will be accomplished. When Jesus commissioned His disciples, He promised that He will be with them to the end of the age. Since His promise pertains to all believers, then He will also be with us all until the end of the age. Faithfulness is big in this kind of ministry. We don’t work in God’s kingdom because we can get all the fame. We don’t work in God’s kingdom to compete on how many people will fill the local church we lead. We don’t work in God’s kingdom to show off how rich our local church is in material wealth. Jesus himself dismissed about five thousand followers because they followed Jesus for the sake of food (John 6). If we call ourselves the followers of Christ, than we do not seek what Jesus does not approve. If we bypass Jesus’ approval and create our own standard, then we are not His followers. Who knows whose followers we are? With that being said, we don’t call people using worldly marketing strategies in order to gain fame to ourselves, or to bring many people in our local church, or to get money from them to achieve our ambitions. But instead, we call people to follow Jesus Christ, which means to deny ourselves, to take up our cross, and then to follow Him (Luke 9:23). The calling must be done in the right way just like how Jesus would call people to follow Him.

Honestly, I’m horrified at how daring many preachers call believers today. They don’t call believers to believe in Christ for the sake of Christ, but for the sake of many other things so remote from God’s will. One preacher calls people to believe Jesus so they can be richer than they are. Another calls people to come to Christ so they can be healthy. Still yet another calls people to embrace Jesus Christ so they can have “supernatural” power. Or there are preachers who call people to believe just so they may escape hell and enjoy heaven for themselves. All those modes of calling are geared toward one thing, which is to indulge our own selfish desires. Many preachers today don’t call people to obey the Lord, but to manipulate God for the sake of their own gain. Many preachers use bombastic slogans in order to impress their hearers and hope by being impressed they will believe everything they say. A preacher went too far as to claim he was shown hell by God. He said that he saw how horrible hell was. He told the stories of his “journey” as if it were true. He told that while in hell he saw the devil and his demons torture unbelievers with agonizing pain. And people believed what he said that he was a holy pastor given supernatural experience by God. Do you know that he is a false prophet? In the Scripture nowhere it is said that the devil and his demons torture unbelievers in hell. The Scripture teaches us that the devil, his demons, and all unbelievers will be punished in hell. How come that preacher’s testimony claims that the devil and his demons are the ones punishing unbelievers? Yet many Christian “babies” did not understand the truth yet but being led astray by such heretic testimony that the preacher claimed in the name of God. That preacher is like an irresponsible doctor who does not carefully help the mother to deliver the baby in a healthy way. Those Christian “babies” who believed what he said suffered a great deal of damage in their faith. Such carelessness is comparable to an ObGyn doctor who is careless in the process of labor and causes the baby to suffer brain damage. How would one mend a brain damage? How would one mend a faith damage?

Once the baby is born with brain damage, he/she needs a different treatment and education. Once a Christian “baby” is born with faith damage, he/she will demand something totally different than what a healthy “baby” would demand. For example, if new believers come to Christ because they believe their preacher who said that the reward of believing is becoming richer, then they will demand that their desire to be rich is to be fulfilled by God once they believe in God. Their faith orientation is not toward God but toward self gain. Again I will ask: “How would one mend such faith damage?” Some people might argue that such condition is not faith damage, but instead is a no-faith. In that way, there are many no-faith who claim they do have faith in Christ. Their church is big and full. Those no-faith faithfully come to their church hungry for “spiritual food” that will fulfill the desire of their no-faith-ness. Do you see this phenomena? But for me, instead of calling them no-faith, I prefer looking at them as being born with a faith damage. Again, there is a huge difference between educating and caring a normal baby and a brain damage baby. The thing is, if we know how serious is the implication of being careless during calling, then we should avoid being careless at all cost when calling. This duty to be careful does not apply only to calling, but also to educating believers in the faith. Horace Bushnell in his book Christian Nurture has demonstrated how crucial it is to educate believers in the faith.

It actually is not too difficult to call in the right way. That’s why I said above that in this kind of ministry faithfulness is big. We are called to be faithful. We just need to be faithful to God’s will in order to call people in the right way. But yet it is very easy to fall. Sometimes our worry, fear, and ambition are bigger than our desire to follow God’s will. Many times our ego is greater than our submission to God. But may I remind all of us once again that what you do when calling will affect greatly the newborn Christian babies’ spiritual life onward. Therefore, it is not too much to say that it is the Business of Christian Education to carefully call believers into faith in Christ, in such a way that the calling will not cause faith damage to the newborn. This should make us even more submissive to God for this ministry is His from beginning to end. Let us please God by being faithful to His will.

The Business of Christian Education XV: The Divine Education

2010-01-04T03:10:00.000-08:00

The hyped work of evangelism through crusade usually is alive only a short time. A few weeks following the crusade the hype is taking a drastic slide to the lowest. Those who raise their hands during the crusade and make a once in a lifetime commitment to the one and only God of heaven and earth tend to fade away the following weeks when the feeling of the heightened spiritual sense is gradually de-intensifying. The hard work of evangelism seems to be futile soon after the last light of the stadium is turned off. All the preparation, the publication complexity, the promotion frenzy, the place check and recheck, lighting provision, sound system accuracy, liturgy perfection, and the chain prayers together with the diving into books, articles, many sleepless nights devoted to thinking for the preacher, all seem to cool down extremely fast only after the campaign is over. People soon forget all about the content of the sermon, the commitment, the spiritual feeling, or the promises. Why is that so? Why can’t crusade-like evangelism be as effective as it can be? Billy Graham once said that crusade evangelism is only ten percent of the total work of evangelism and the other ninety percent is the follow up. The hardest work lies on the follow up. Many people tend to neglect the follow up and focus only on the crusade. The split is a mistake. The follow up after crusade evangelism is not a separate work, but instead they both are in the same unit and within the same work. Let me illustrate it in the following paragraph.

The work of evangelism is like the birth labor. Crusade evangelism is the actual labor. All the preparation for the crusade is like all the preparation for a mother to give birth to a human being on earth. Thus the preparation takes all our attention in order to make sure the coming of the new baby is as smooth as possible. We all know that the actual birth labor is a critical process, a dangerous one we might say. Many things can go wrong during labor. That’s why birth labor is treated with the utmost care in the hospital. Two souls at least are at stake during labor, the mother and the baby. The two affect each other in a way that is almost impossible to separate them. If the mother is in trouble, then the baby is also in trouble. If the baby is in trouble, then the mother is also in trouble. If the labor is difficult, the mother and the baby are usually in stress. A certain level of stress is expected during labor, but if the difficulty is prolonged then undesirable stress will occur. If undesirable stress occurs then both the mother and the baby are in great danger. The mother will be exhausted and the baby might not be born in time to breathe the first air. The mother could die, and so the baby, during the prolonged stress. Because of the danger of labor usually people prepare more for it than thinking about the follow up. It is important to pay great attention to the actual labor. We cannot neglect that for sure. However, the after labor is not less important. The follow up requires our devotion and full commitment in order to work properly. If the mother cannot collaborate with the newborn baby for the breastfeeding skill, then both will be frustrated. Taking care of the newborn baby is not as easy as many people might think. Just to meet the physical needs of the newborn is already drawing all our energy, how much more meeting the spiritual, mental, social needs. To care a newborn truly saps our best for proper growth to occur. Caring for our children takes a lifetime. That is why Graham said that the follow up after crusade is ninety percent of the evangelism work. Just like the follow up after labor requires our entire life to ensure desirable growth for our children, so the follow up after crusade should sap the best of us to ensure the proper spiritual growth of the newborn Christians.

The fact of the matter is we often prepare for the birth labor and seldom prepare for the lifetime nurture that must be provided for every newborn. Such is the main reason why the effect of crusade evangelism rarely works as effective as it should be. Secondly, since our main focus is on the birth labor we then treat the nurture process as a separate matter. Most of us think that the big event is the labor and the nurture afterward will come to us naturally. Those of us who have gone through those two processes know that this was not true. Nurturing newborn is not the kind of skill that will come to us naturally after the baby is born. The skill to nurture requires great learning effort on the part of the parents. The newborn also needs to learn to be nurtured. Many people would vote to become parents joyfully if nurturing newborn is that easy and natural. If such is the case then there will be no more abortion case in this world. Parents know how difficult it is to raise children. If what it takes to raise our children is just providing food and shelter, then it is the easiest responsibility humans may face. But since raising children requires “food and shelter” beyond the physical need, then nurturing newborn is extremely difficult. Whose responsibility it is to nurture the “newborn” Christians? Our Lord Jesus Christ has given the task to His Church. The day He went up to heaven, Jesus commissioned His disciples saying: "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age" (Matthew 28:18-20). Jesus did not give this task to merely an individual. He gave this task to whoever would believe in Him. Jesus sent believers into the world just like the Father sent Jesus Christ. And Jesus wanted that all Christians become one in Him just as the Father and the Son are one (cf. John 17). The Church is the body of Christ. Jesus is working in the world through His Church, through us.

Upon reflecting on the task given us, I realize that when Stephen Tong, who is also known as the Billy Graham of the east, founded a Reformed Evangelical Church of Indonesia, he was doing the very commission our Lord Jesus gave us two thousand years ago. Tong was working very hard in crusade evangelism, the one like Billy Graham’s crusade, and called many to Christ. But he realized that those newborn Christians need to be nurtured in such a way for their proper growth. In the midst of the chaos in biblical interpretation and theological debates among many churches, Tong decided to obey Christ by founding a church that would teach the newborn everything Jesus commanded. What Tong did was no easy work. To say that what he did is difficult is an understatement. It is beyond difficult. But just as Jesus promised in His commission, He is always with us every step of the way. To call people to believe in Christ requires our great attention, preparation, and effort. To nurture those who are considered newborn in the faith is the next level that requires even our greater attention, preparation, and effort. It takes a long time to educate a newborn saint to leave the sinning habit and begin a new way of life. It took God hundreds of years to teach Israel to know that there is only one God in the entire universe. It took the sacrifice of God’s Son to educate Israel that the one God has three persons. Through His church, God is educating us to live a life that is in accordance with our status as children of God. This is the Divine education. The business of Christian education is to do both the calling of believers and the nurture of the believers as one unit. A lot of works are required for those two processes to be effective. Preparation needed include preparing the speaker, the worker, and the teacher. This process becomes complex when sound biblical teachings, solid theological doctrines, fervent devotions, true worships, and good characters are at stake. Therefore Christian ministry has developed over the centuries in order to guard and protect the sacred teaching of Jesus Christ. Not only to protect the teaching, but also to practice it. Preparation and execution of the plan must be done accordingly. The first step is to listen to God. The second is to learn what He is teaching us. The third is to continue to walk with Him. And the fourth is to obey Him in everything.

Education is always in the mind of God. Since the beginning God has been working through education. He taught Adam what to do and what not to do. He taught Noah obedience and grace. He taught Abraham faith, justice, and mercy. He taught Isaac to stay in the covenant. He taught Jacob about submitting to Him. He taught Joseph His sovereignty and providence. He taught Moses that He is God and no other. He taught David leadership and love. He taught Solomon wisdom and faithfulness. He taught Esther courage and righteousness. He taught Daniel integrity and holiness. And through His Son, he taught us who He is. The aim of His education is to bring us back to His embrace. We are His children, but without His education we don’t know how to behave. Without His education we don’t even know who we are. Through His education, not only we know who we are, but also we know the highest knowledge, God. Jesus said, “Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent” (John 17:3). The secret of the secret of heaven and earth lies on this one knowledge. The teacher in Ecclesiastes proclaimed that everything is meaningless, except that which is of eternal value. To know God is not meaningless at all. To be rich in this world is meaningless. To be wise is meaningless, although wisdom is better than folly. To be strong is also meaningless. But to know God is the meaning of life. For in the knowledge of God lies the secret of life. Living is not just not-dead. Living must be defined according to the giver of life. We may be not-dead but in the sight of God we are the same as dead, because we don’t live.

Divine education is given to us so that we may live properly according to God’s definition of life. The only one who can teach us the way of life is God as the Life Himself. Jesus commissioned us precisely to teach people the life before the one true God. When one is invited to the white house to meet the president of the United States, briefing about how to behave in the white house is necessary. If we are to live in the Kingdom of God, then education on the way of life appropriate in the kingdom is necessary. If a guest in the white house breaks the protocol, then the secret service might consider him/her a threat, and thus remove that person from the white house. In the same way if someone breaks the rules of the Kingdom of God, then such person will be removed from the presence of God. But thanks be to God that Jesus died for us, so His death, once and for all, covers all offenses we might make in God’s presence. However this does not mean that we may do whatever we want in God’s kingdom including breaking God’s law. Breaking God’s law is punishable in hell. That’s why Jesus underwent hell for us. The thing is living in God’s kingdom means living with Him. Living with God means living in a meaningful relationship with Him. The Westminster Shorter Catechism points out that the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. How can we enjoy God if we don’t have a good relationship with Him? To this end we all need to prepare. Crusade evangelism and the follow up must aim at this kind of life. The fullness of life as shown by our Lord Jesus must be the curriculum. If we all aim at the fullness of life then Christian education will be effective. The framework of Christian education is then the divine education.

The Business of Christian Education XIV: Finding the Lost Truth

2009-12-31T02:29:00.000-08:00

“What is truth?” was the question asked by Pontius Pilate to the Son of God who claimed as “The Way, The truth, The Life” (John 14:6). Nowadays, people either believe that truth is objective and impersonal following Plato’s philosophy or believe that truth is personal meaning individual or subjective and thus not objective. Modernism follows the understanding that truth is impersonal and objective. Postmodernism rejects Modernism and goes on to embrace truth that is subjective and personal. In this postmodern era we often hear people argue that one’s belief is one’s own and so one can believe anything he/she wants. Therefore in a discussion with postmodern believers people who are educated in the modern philosophy often find the discussion futile and often frustrating. Postmodernists would say: “It’s your belief to say so, my belief is different, then let’s just leave it at that. You can believe all you want, and let me believe all I want. All we need is tolerance. Tolerance of that we see things differently.” Modernists would be jumping in disbelief when such statement is put into effect on truth. For example, an ice can’t be hot and cold at the same time. It is either hot or cold. Postmodernists would say that if one believes it is either hot or cold, then so it is for that person, but if another believes it is both hot and cold, then so it is according to that person. Truth is subjective, it doesn’t matter even if it seems contradictory, for truth is defined by who perceives it. At that point, modernists would eat their own hair for such contradiction is greatly disorienting to their logic. It feels like we are as confused as Pontius Pilate in regard to truth even though we are 2000 years more advanced than his time in terms of knowledge, technology, and many other things. What is truth?

The secret of truth cannot be found in any philosophy. To some degree we are foreign to this so called truth. But on the other hand we feel we are very familiar with it as if it resides there in our being. Modernists are right that we cannot have two truths at the same time that are contradicting each other. But postmodernists are also right that truth is personal. How to reconcile the two? The secret lies in Jesus’ claim that He is The Truth. Jesus Christ is “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” (Colossians 1:15). And “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men” (John 1:3-4). The truth of the matter is “God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:27). Jesus Christ is our true pattern and we are created after him who is the perfect image of God. Humans have the quality of the true pattern, that somehow truth is within our nature. But this being said, we must understand that we are not the source of truth, Jesus Christ is. We don’t know for sure how it was before humans fell into sin, but we know that we have fallen and thus our being and nature are totally depraved. Even truth that was once our quality is now broken to pieces. So no matter how close we are to truth, we always battle the foundation of that truth. In other words, we always have doubt, for our very nature is shattered and not whole.

For example, we cannot truly know what is truly hot, for we are not sure of the definition of hot. If we scrutinize further and try to define hotness, then we will find trouble. If we are asked what is hot, what defines hot, what would be our answer? We might answer using science and say that if the temperature is more than 150° F then it is considered hot. If we push the limit of our definition we will see how difficult it is to make a definition. If we say 150, what about 149? 148? 147? Do you see what I mean? Some might answer using common sense and say that if anything touches my skin and my skin burns, then that thing is hot. But, what about if that thing touches other’s skin and it doesn’t burn him/her? Do you also see what I mean? The problem is not on how we measure the hotness, but the problem is on the standard of the measurement. There are two problems that continue to stay even though we perk up our entire intellectual faculty to define things. The first problem is external. The second is internal.

Let us deal with the first before we move on to the second. Scientists know that we cannot measure everything. What we can measure now is not generalizable for all time for who knows that in the future something different might refute our current measurement. The same thing goes for what we measure in our continent might prove different from measurement in other continents. A long time ago people believed that all swans were white and they thought it’s the truth, until some people explored the world and found that there were black swans. Because we cannot gather everything and measure all of them, for we are limited in time and space, we usually go with majority or with certain limited contexts in order to isolate the result of our measurement. Those who go through this route usually believe in the objective truth. Therefore, usually they don’t believe in the subjective truth. If we carefully review all scientific findings, we will find out that none would admit that the findings are subjective. Upon making a statement of truth, scientists must know for sure that their statement reflects exactly what is in the reality. For example, if I see a pen, then if I am to make a statement of truth that there is a pen, I should be able to prove that there is a pen. My proof cannot be because I said so, but my proof must show that a pen truly exists. This is where the complication begins. Since this route requires evidence external to our faculties, then hard evidence must be tested through many other faculties and other people’s faculties. Just as Rene Descartes did with his Cogito Ergo Sum, then every act of proving must start with doubt. In this case, doubt is necessary in order to find the no-doubt ground of which one can stand in absolute certainty. At least that’s how modern philosophers would argue. Descartes was then hailed as the father of modern philosophy due to his methodology in his approach to knowledge and truth. But this is the dilemma. How can external evidence prove the truth? Or let me rephrase it: How can external evidence prove the truth by itself without interpretation? If interpretation is required, then how one can say it is objective? And since truth according to modern philosophy is impersonal, then truth can’t proclaim itself as truth. Truth here needs our assistance to realize its truthfulness. Isn’t it ironic? Humans are trying to find the truth by looking at the external existence, but can’t find it unless determined by humans which is which.

The internal problem is not less fatal than the external. Postmodernists believe that what we believe is truth, and we can believe anything we want. In this scenario, one does not need to prove that a pen exists using external evidence, even though other people might say that the pen does not exist. It doesn’t matter if that pen exists or not in reality, for that pen does exist in the mind of that person who claims it is. Here correspondence between our faculty and reality is detached, and one can just believe internally whatever he/she thinks as the truth. However, we all know that we can’t live in such a world where anyone can believe anything they want. What if one believes that he kills a person because he thinks that person is going to mug him although in fact he is just hallucinating? Which side of the story you are going to believe if you are the judge? If postmodernism is to be applied fully, then our world will definitely be in chaos. People would do anything they want and there is no judgment on whatever they do. Internally humans got a huge problem. We don’t know anymore what is right and wrong, what is good and evil. That is why we can’t agree with each other which is which. That is why we disagree with each other even though we see, hear, touch, taste the same thing. This shows that there is something wrong with our very nature internally. Even if we believe something without external evidence, we are not sure whether to keep our belief for as long as we live. We might change our belief one day and it is fine. Those who follow this route will face many difficulties, for we cannot simply say that black is white or white is black only because we say so.

Our external and internal problems lie on the truth revealed by God himself that the entire human race has fallen into sin. Our image is broken. Our quality of truth is also broken. Since the fall we are confused. We look externally for the truth, but we can’t find the definite answer, because we don’t look at the right place. We look internally for the truth, but we find nothing, because we are totally broken. Pilate’s question “What is truth?” reminds us how troubled we are as humans. Pilate knew that Jesus was not guilty. Pilate knew that the Jews wanted Jesus dead out of envy. Pilate knew that Jesus was not an ordinary man. Pilate knew that he was supposed to free Jesus, but yet his action betrayed his knowledge. His fear for Caesar was greater than his sense of justice. External evidence proved that Jesus was innocent. His internal faculty also showed that Jesus committed no crime. But yet he did not do according to his knowledge. This shows how he did not know what truth is. Thus the question.

Cornelius Van Til indicates that knowledge is true when follows the interpretation of God. Interpretation is still needed, but not our interpretation per se, because our very nature is broken. The truth can only be interpreted by The Truth himself. The truth must proclaim itself as truth, therefore truth can’t be impersonal, for impersonal truth is mute. Truth must be personal, but not on our beings, but on God who is the Truth. What is truth? Pilate was standing in front of the Truth Himself, and yet he could not see it. Pilate was blind to the Truth. For truth to be seen, one must have the Spirit of God to interpret it. John Calvin believes that all truth is God’s truth, and any discovery of truth in this world is only possible when the Spirit of God is given to that person who discovers it. Peter made the greatest confession of faith: "But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am? Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:15-16). And Jesus commented: "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven” (Matthew 16:17). To his disciples Jesus said: “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (John 14:16-17). Jesus continues: "I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth” (John 16:12-13). To know the truth one needs the Spirit of Truth to guide him/her.

In Christ one is made whole again. The image of God is being reconstructed again when one believes in Christ. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17). Paul reminds us that “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22-24). In Christ we put on the new self that aims at the true image, that is we are to be like God. One quality for sure that is being restored is truth. If we are the image of God, and the true image of God is Jesus Christ who claims Himself as the Truth, then we are the image of truth. Truth is both external and internal for us. External because it belongs to God, and internal because we are created in the image of God. Immanuel Kant was trying to grasp this basic concept in his categorical imperative but he was still tangled up with the notion that truth was objective and impersonal. Again, I must remind all of us that although in Christ truth becomes internal, we are not the source of truth. Jesus Christ is the source of truth. Therefore the statement that is made famous in our age today by Arthur Holmes, All Truth is God’s Truth, is clear that the truth belongs to God, not us. Truth is internal in us in Christ only because God Himself makes His dwelling in us. Jesus said: “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you” (John 14:20). Jesus added: "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him” (john 14:23). Only in Christ we can find the lost truth, which once was our true nature and being. Or rather, only in Christ we, who are lost, are found by the Truth. When Jesus Christ finds us, we meet the Truth. Reality is as God defines it. Thus if we don’t know God, we can’t know what is real. Our faculty will forever be in doubt without God. Or we may think we are certain but in fact our thought of certainty is waiting to be deconstructed with a better thought. The problem of epistemology will always haunt us if we don’t meet God, the Truth.

The Business of Christian Education XIII: The Children of God

2009-12-28T04:46:00.000-08:00

One thing that doesn’t make sense to me is the thought that God the Son died on the cross to save humans, who are created from dust. The more I reflect on the fact that humans are dust, the more I don’t get why the great God of heaven and earth would die for us. To illustrate further, if I have a toy and my toy is broken, and the only way to make the toy whole again is by sacrificing myself for it, would I then let myself die for the sake of my toy? I don’t know about you, but honestly, I wouldn’t. I don’t know of anyone who would want to die to save a toy. I don’t even want to sacrifice my dog to save my toy. A toy is a thing and it is worthless compared to a living being. That is why I don’t understand the thought that God sacrificed himself for the sake of dust. Even, in this world, a toy is valued more than dust, and no one would die for a toy, why would one die for dust? Not to mention that this dust dares to mock the creator. A toy that does not do anything negative to the owner is not even worthy of the owner’s sacrifice, and thus a toy who mocks its owner is worthy of the owner’s wrath. If my toy dares to rebel against me, I would destroy my toy completely. So, even if humans do not sin against God, we don’t deserve God’s sacrifice for us. Can you imagine humans, created from worthless dust of the earth, who are broken, morally depraved, and actively rebelling against God, saved by God through the death of His one and only Son? It doesn’t make sense to me.

Some people would argue that God’s salvation is supposed to be beyond our comprehension, so if it doesn’t make sense than it is what it is. However, I don’t think it makes sense in any world to save a thing by sacrificing a living being. It is beyond insanity if the greatest living being must be sacrificed for the salvation of worthless dust that is broken and rebellious. Such sacrificial action would be against any sense of justice and righteousness. If we merely understand God’s sacrificial act as that of a living being sacrifices his life for worthless non-living being, then our understanding fails to accommodate God’s righteousness and justice. How then should God’s sacrificial act to be explained? Is there any explanation adequate to understand God’s salvation that is satisfactory?

I have no doubt that God did sacrifice His Son for our salvation. I fully believe that God’s saving act two thousand years ago was real and historical. I have complete faith that God the Son truly incarnated, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered injustice under Pilate, died on the cross for our sins, resurrected on the third day, and ascended to heaven witnessed by His disciples. However, I don’t think Jesus died just for worthless dust. In my quest to try to make sense of God’s remarkable saving act, I found the secret in the family relationship. The love in the family is amazing if we reflect on it. The love of the parents to the children cannot be replaced by any kind of love foreign to the bonded family. Therefore, in order to understand God’s sacrificial death, I pondered on how a parent handles a difficult situation befalling his/her children. My daughter got very ill when she was six months old. She got severe diarrhea and the doctor couldn’t find what caused it. She continued to pass fluid for one full month. But the doctor could not identify what and why it was. As her parent, my heart was broken when looking at her lying on her bed weak and pale. I wish I could do something to ease her pain. But nothing could be done. The doctor said that no medicine would help. The only thing could be done was just waiting until the body healed itself, so the doctor added. In desperation I hoped for divine intervention. Then I prayed in my heart that if it might, I was willing to bear her pain so she would not suffer anymore. Up to that point I realized that I would die for my child. My love for her drove me to sacrifice myself in order to save her. Only when I reflect that feeling then I can understand God’s act of love. This is the secret: God counts us as His children. Although we are dust, but He puts His image on us and He called us His children. Only then I can understand why God sacrificed Himself for our salvation, all because we are not worthless dust in His eyes, but instead we are His children whom he loves.

We are nobody, but regarded as somebody by the greatest being none greater can be thought. Isn’t this amazing? King David reflected on this theme on Psalm 8:

O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
above the heavens.
From the lips of children and infants
you have ordained praise
because of your enemies,
to silence the foe and the avenger.
When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You made him ruler over the works of your hands;
you put everything under his feet:
all flocks and herds,
and the beasts of the field,
the birds of the air,
and the fish of the sea,
all that swim the paths of the seas.
O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Only when we understand who we are in God’s sight then God’s sacrificial act starts making sense. I could understand why God bore our pain and suffering if we are His children. Our status as God’s children is given to us long before the existence of the world. God already designed and planned our being in eternity. The love of God is greater than anything in the world. Even if we may understand why He would die for us based on how He sees us as His children, we still can’t begin to fathom how He would die for rebellious children like us. I can understand the worth of my children so I would die for them just because they are my children. But my understanding falls short when considering the worth of rebellious children who disregarded and disowned their parents and considered other things as their parents. How much more to understand children who murdered their parents to be worthy of the sacrifice of the parents, I can’t understand such thing. But through Jesus’ story of the prodigal son, I got a glimpse of the longing of the Father to embrace his son once more as his. The sacrifice of God on Golgotha that day brought us back to the Father’s embrace as His children, not as His rebellious children. We are made whole again through the death of God the Son. Is it worth it? If it isn’t, God would not die for us. His life is far more valuable than ours. Nothing can replace the value of God’s life. But God’s wisdom proves true that our salvation is worth every single drop of His blood, for His love is so great.

As we are called God’s children, redeemed by His most precious blood, how should we then live? The answer is simple, to live according to who we are, the children of God. How is that? Like Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God. We are created in the image of God and the perfect image of God is Jesus Christ. “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” (Colossians 1:15). God’s plan and the execution of His plan is perfect. Our transformation to be like Jesus Christ is no easy work, but God works on it perfectly. The sending of the Son of God to redeem us and the sending of the Holy Spirit of God for the sanctification of our being show how serious God is. God did not send one of His angels, though perfect they are in their nature, to do the salvation and sanctification work. The greatest being sends himself to attend to human affair, God must be extremely serious. Perfection is on His mind.

Richard Pratt is right to say that we are humble and yet dignified creature. For we are basically dust of the earth, which emphasizes our humble origin, but yet we are created in the image of God, which emphasizes our dignity. In many ways we are like God, said Pratt. Since the image of God is in effect, our being resembles that of God, who is the original pattern of our being. But we also must understand that we are no God. Some people crossed that boundary and declared themselves as God(s). What a pity. We are not God, and we will never be God. So we should not live acting as if the entire world belongs to us. Our task is to do His bidding. Our responsibility is to be faithful on the joyful work God gave us. Some people disgrace themselves and think that they are not worthy of anything. Such understanding is also false. Our value is given by God himself, and he called us His children. We are not just a thing belonging to God, but amazingly, though we are dust we are loved as His children. What more can we ask of God than to be called His children. Not even angels are called God’s children. Who are we that we are called the children of God? This is beyond our ability to fathom. This mystery is deep. So by faith I receive the knowledge God gives me. The status as His children nevertheless bears certain consequences. Obviously, as God’s children we cannot live improperly. Our God is great, and He is the King, and naturally as His children we must live up according to the standard of the Kingdom of God. This does not mean that, as some false teachers would teach, we must be rich for our God is rich. This also does not mean that, as some false teachers would teach, we can ask anything and God would give whatever we ask. No! The standard of the kingdom of God is Jesus Christ himself. The proper life in His kingdom is not a matter of material possession, or physical comfort, or free from hurts, but instead a matter of obedience to the will of the Father in heaven. Soli Deo Gloria!

On Christmas

2009-12-24T08:08:00.000-08:00

The atmosphere on earth usually is jubilant during Christmas. People do everything they can to celebrate the 25th of December. Many non believers join in the commotion and busyness of Christmas even without understanding the meaning. They are just following the flow of the mood of the holiday without being aware of whom they are celebrating. The world has pushed what Christmas is actually about to become mere celebration of presents and family togetherness, and put Santa Claus as the mascot. Many imaginations in the secular world today that relate to Christmas have been about anything except Jesus Christ. Shops put on big “sale” banners to attract consumers to buy gifts for family members, significant others, business partners, and even strangers. But sadly, many times the gift idea is never Jesus Christ.

A long time ago in a lowly town of Bethlehem, the God of heaven and earth sent His One and Only Son to the world for the sole purpose of salvation of humankind. God chose a perfect time to come to the world as a baby born in a stable and put on a manger. No place in the world is worthy of the presence of the One True God, but yet when He came the worst place for birthing was the only place available for Him. If you are a king, and your son, a crown prince, is about to be born for you, wouldn’t you want the best place for him? Wouldn’t you order your subjects to prepare the best for the coming of your son? And what would happen if your subjects give your son the worst place ever known? The Son of God came to the world belonging to Him, yet His subjects rejected him from top to bottom. “He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him” (John 1:11). The coming of the Son of God had been foretold hundreds of years before. But yet His own people did not prepare the best for their King. The Magi of the east came to Israel to inquire of the birth of the Greatest King. The secret was given to the Jews, but they were not interested in the coming of their Savior. Worst, Israel’s king, Herod, ordered the slaughter of the Son of God. All male younglings under two years old were murdered in one night, but God sent His Son away from the massacre. Shouldn’t we shudder in the presence of the God of the universe? But the Jews dared to attempt murder of the One and Only Son of God. The Magi, the wise of the East, bowed in the presence of a baby who was God himself. But the Jewish leaders, the religious, the protector of the Law, devised the most wicked scheme to shed God’s blood.

Of course if the story above is to be told to the generations of people, then it wouldn’t be attractive. Kids wouldn’t engage with the narrative. Adults would cringe and frown for the story is grim. Thus they replace the grand story of the true Christmas with the mellow and soft story about Santa Claus and his elves from the North Pole distributing gifts to all the children in the world in one night through every chimney and stock them in socks. Years gone by and soon people forgot the story of God’s sacrifice on the first Christmas. The Santa story is more attractive among the children, and also the adults who are telling stories. With commercialization directing the economy and thus the life of many people, and Santa story sells more than the Jesus story, then the Jesus story becomes a myth and legend while the Santa story is told like it is real. In the 21st century, seldom have I seen a book, a movie, or a story retelling the heartbreaking reality occurred two thousand years ago when Augustus was the Caesar in Rome and Pontius Pilate the governor of Judea. This Christmas, there are many storybooks, movies, written about Christmas, but most of them don’t even touch the truth of God’s love. Almost all cities in the world celebrate Christmas year after year, and God looks from above year after year, what do you think He would find in the hearts of man during Christmas? Will he find Jesus? Or will He find greed, envy, hatred, ignorance, blasphemy, evil?

The true Christmas story is the most difficult story to ponder. Why did God come to the world? Doesn’t He know that He would be rejected on His coming? Of course He knows, He is God. Why then did He insist to come? Doesn’t He always know that not only He would be rejected, but also that He would suffer a most painful death through betrayal, conspiracy, and injustice? Why then did He still persist to come? The God of heaven and earth, who should have received honor and reverence from all the inhabitants of the earth, was instead humiliated during His one time incarnation. This is unthinkable. What does drive God to come and die in the hands of His own creation? God did not suffer defeat by man, for God could have just destroyed the entire universe with a single utterance. God let Himself be butchered by His artwork. For what purpose? Why would a Great God, Wise beyond comprehension, Almighty without comparison, allow suffering upon His own being? Unfathomable indeed. I’m sure all of us, if we were God, would definitely consider annihilating the world knowing full well that the creation would hurt us upon arrival. Fortunately we are not God. The God of heaven and earth did not cast the universe into oblivion, but instead planned for its restoration. The only way, which is the most difficult way-none more difficult is in existence, is for the Son of God to suffer hell to the fullest, beginning from the birth in a stable. God the Son walked that way. The agony of death on the cross, hated by His own creation, humiliated to the lowest, stripped of all the deserving glory, denied life although He Himself was life, engulfed in darkness so His Light could not be seen, wounded the Greatest Healer of all, bled to death the Sustainer of all life, forsaken by His own Father, all these Jesus bore on the cross to the full measure. All for what? "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). All for love.

The greatest action in history starts on Christmas day. But its origin begins before the world began. In eternity God plans the salvation of the world. When the first humans received their souls, God began telling the grandest story of all. If J. K. Rowling’s telltale of a wizard boy named Harry Potter could capture the hearts of millions of people and made her the richest writer ever in the world, how should The True Story of Christmas captivate the hearts of man whom God saves from true death? But again, the true story is not considered as attractive as the imaginative story of an old man in the red suit flying with his sleigh and his magical reindeers. The children are in awe listening to the heroic story of Santa and his adventure year after year coming out of his hiding giving away billions of toys handmade by elves to all the children in the world. So all the Christmas decoration in the world is amazingly uniform with Santa in the red suit and the evergreen coniferous trees stuffed with hanging items and lights and showered with gifts wrapped in pretty boxes and ribbons. So the image of Christmas is no longer a baby wrapped in a cloth sleeping on a manger worshipped by the shepherds, the magi, and the angels. But the image of Christmas is consumerism reflected by Santa and the bag of goodies. The meaning of Christmas is no longer God’s sacrifice for the salvation of mankind, but it has shifted to the human self-centeredness pampered by material gifts. The most beautiful and incomparable gift from heaven, the jewel of the throne of the Kingdom of God, God himself, has been replaced with the low gifts of the world. The greatest present from God that cannot be bought even with all the richness of the entire universe has been exchanged by man with a few dollars worth of gifts. It has been two thousand years, and humans still don’t yet understand the true meaning of Christmas. Unbelievable!

“For to us a child is born,
to us a son is given,
and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)

No human has ever been called with those four names. Only God can bear the weight of the names. Chinese are especially sensitive to name giving. The influence of Confucianism is deep within the Chinese culture. The proper name theory bears truth in all reasonable perspectives. Anything, anyone, must bear the proper name, for the name reflects the true nature of the thing or being. Which child born among humans can be called with all four names: “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”? Not one except Jesus Christ. No human on earth has ever had his/her birth or existence prophesied thousands of years before by numerous prophets and by God himself, except that of Jesus Christ. Christmas is about Jesus Christ. It is not about Santa. The name of the day is Christmas, Christ-mas, and not Santamas, Santa-mas. If even an obvious thing like Christmas has been twisted by the craftiness of man, it shows how deep humans have fallen. The lost meaning of Christmas in today’s world shows why we need Jesus Christ and why Christmas is of the utmost important birth day to remember due to its significant impact for humankind. In Christmas humans are invited to celebrate the birth of God on earth even though there is deep sadness in heaven because God must sacrifice the Son.

O come, O come, Immanuel,
and ransom captive Israel
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.

Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel
shall come to you, O Israel.

The Business of Christian Education XII: Transformed to be Like Christ

2009-12-23T00:55:00.000-08:00

The entire world is searching for a model. A model is more than a standard. A model provides a sense of direction, of meaning, of worth, of what is supposed to be. In the business world, people admire great achievers like Peter Drucker, Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and so on. In politics people feel the charisma of King David Son of Jesse, Solomon Son of David, Chin Shi Huang Di, Han Wu Di, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Jimmy Carter, Winston Churchill, Margaret Thatcher, Corazon Aquino, and so on. In the humanity movement, ethical, and social order, people remember great names like Mahatma Gandhi, Mother Theresa, Martin Luther King, Jr., Desmond Tutu, and so on. In the music world, people refer to Mozart, Beethoven, Bach, Chopin, or even in the contemporary world of Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, Madonna. In art people point to Leonardo Da Vinci, Michaelangelo, Salvador Dali, Claude Monet, Van Gogh, Picasso, and so on. In Philosophy, people study Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Confucius, Mencius, Rene Descartes, Immanuel Kant, Heidegger, Nietzsche, and so on. But a model is hard to come by. Even if such a person lives among us, we might not be sensitive enough to consider. Who among us can be a model for another individual? A model cannot live an unworthy life. A model can’t commit wrongdoings. A model must be perfect. Again, who among us can be a model? Even the first and the oldest of human race can’t be a model for us. Adam and Eve failed miserably.

But God cares to see us succeed. So He provides The Model for us to imitate. He sends His One and Only Son, in whom we are created, to come to the world and to live among us. The true Imago Dei comes down from heaven to visit the other images of God living on earth. In Jesus we don’t just see a model, we see The Ultimate Model. We are, in fact, created after Him. Sin breaks our inherent nature as God’s image. Though the image is not lost, the entire human race doesn’t know how the true image of God should be. The brokenness runs so deep within our soul that we cannot see clearly. Even when the Son of God came, people think that He is an anomaly, unworthy to live with them. Precisely because of our depravity that we all need Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God. Jesus Christ is the perfect model of how an image of God should live. God’s desire is to transform his people to be just like His Son Jesus Christ. But transformation cannot come with force. Transformation must come with voluntary submission. That’s why Jesus did not come with his heavenly army to capture humans and force them to be transformed. Jesus did not put guns on people’s heads or sword on people’s necks to press them to convert. Jesus came with the Word. The True Image of God came with the greatest Love the world has ever seen.

More than just imitating, anyone who submits to Jesus and is willing to be transformed will have the Holy Spirit of God himself reconstructing or recreating us. It all begins with the regeneration by the Holy Spirit which causes us, the broken, the depraved, the dead, to live again. Since Jesus Christ is the Life, then whoever follows Him must live. So the regeneration of the Holy Spirit is necessary. Moreover, the transformation starts from the giving of the new life. Then our being is formed according to the pattern of the Son of God (cf. Ephesians 4:13-15). By giving Jesus Christ, God gives the best us the best of the best. He did not send his angels, Michael or Gabriel, to be our model. God sent the second person of the Trinity, who is God himself to be the Model. God’s standard is Himself. Nothing is greater than Him, so when God gives Himself to be our model, He gives the very best. The transformation must be voluntary and without coercion. Jesus did not come to earth with sword, but He brought his blood to be poured on Calvary. He redeemed His own with His life. The Life himself must suffer death in order to bestow life upon us. To be brought from death to life, we don’t want to come back to the death. So we continue on with the life given to us with joy and thanksgiving. We then submit to be transformed to be like Christ by the Holy Spirit. This transformation takes some time. But the perfection will be complete when Jesus Christ comes the second time. In the mean time we undergo what theologians call as the sanctification.

“We also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope” (Romans 5:3-4). Our transformation requires our perfect submission, for the secret of transformation lies in our participation in the sufferings of the body of Christ. Christ himself was not devoid of suffering. In fact His entire life was full of sufferings. The greatest suffering any human can experience was felt by Jesus Christ. Jack Mezirow found part of the secret of transformation and he explained it in his concept of transformational learning. For transformational learning to occur, one usually suffers disequilibrium, and our nature would prompt us to find the equilibrium in order to free ourselves from being lost in the disorientation. Thus the process of re-equilibrium is crucial for the transformation to happen. Once a person arrives again in the equilibrium, he/she has been transformed. Many times disequilibrium can be found through difficulties, sufferings, hardships. Our sinful nature clings to self centeredness, and often times the way to purge our nature and transform it to be presentable in the presence of God is by sufferings. This knowledge is not a popular knowledge accepted by all the people who say they belong to Christ. Many Christians avoid sufferings at all cost and only desire the “goodness” from God. This is contrary to what the Bible teaches us actually. Many times sufferings provide the disequilibrium necessary for us to grow. As Mezirow has warned educators that the re-equilibrium process must be seriously facilitated through the presence of a skillful mentor who will guide the disoriented person to achieve equilibrium, God has already far ahead. God provides the Holy Spirit to dwell within our hearts as the Mentor so we will not be lost.

The guidance, the safety, the love, the peace, the strength, the Mentor, the Model, even the experience, everything we need are all provided by the God of the heaven and earth in order for us to succeed in our transformation to be like His Son. But one must go through the process of sanctification without reserve if to understand the majesty of our transformation. The gap between our depravity and the perfection in Jesus Christ can be seen more vividly through the process of transformation in Christ by the Holy Spirit. The gradual transformation that brings us from darkness to light is obvious if we trace back our footprints in times of disorientation. Total submission in Christ is key for the transformation to work properly. Our disobedience is not desirable for it will only delay our transformation, and moreover it will disorient more than it should be. It is important to understand that disproportionate disequilibrium is costly to our life structure. The danger of disproportionate disequilibrium is that it may keep us from being in harmony again. The longer we linger in the realm of disharmony, the harder we come back to equilibrium. Our mental capacity can only endure so much disequilibrium depending on how mature we are. If the disorientation is much greater than our mental capacity can handle, then prolonging the re-equilibrium process will only add to the destruction of our mental faculties. Total submission to Jesus Christ, our Master, prevents this unnecessary enlargement of the disorientation and thus avoiding the delay of the re-equilibrium process.

Total submission is easy to say but hard to do. But in the Bible we are given one model, that is Jesus Christ himself. The struggle in the Gethsemane bears witness to the disequilibrium Jesus suffers. However, Jesus did not let himself wander in the disequilibrium too long. He completely submits to His father in heaven. “Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will. … He went away a second time and prayed, "My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done" (Matthew 26:39 & 42). The outcome is majestic. Jesus’ submission to His Father’s will results in the most beautiful action in human history. The Son of God who has all the rights to destroy the world in the flip of his finger, the Son of God who possesses all the power to turn the world upside down, the Son of God who commands the heavenly army, submits to His father’s will and dies on the cross like someone who has no right to live, no power to do anything, no authority over anything, and even more He who has no sin and perfectly holy dies on the cross like a lowly unethical criminal. Who can fathom the love of God? This Model has shown us the way, for He is the Way. He shows us the Way of Life. Whatever He says or does is the truth, for He is the Truth. Just like how He lives, then, we should live. Our sinful nature fails us miserably, but the grace of God in Jesus Christ brings us to the total transformation.

Such is the grand design that God is doing in our life. Praise be to God forever and ever, and to Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior. Hallelujah. Amen!

The Direction of Indonesian Education

2009-12-07T22:33:00.000-08:00

Every time there is a change in the presidential cabinet people expect new ideas, policies, and strategies. Education especially has been on the menu in the news since the new minister was installed. People anticipate fresh air will be introduced to the atmosphere with the new minister in place. But so far the much anticipated deletion of UAN (Ujian Akhir Nasional) for next year has been disappointing due to the new statement from the government that UAN will march on. All hopes are dashed with a single statement. The hyped discussion to radically change the direction of government’s involvement in education sector is only a dream. With such phenomena in view, what should be the direction of our education?

Clearly South-East Asia has been responding aggressively and creatively to the global competition in all sectors, including education. Malaysia and Thailand are trying to pursue Singapore’s crown to be the best formal education provider in South-East Asia. Vietnam has been running as well to upgrade their standard of life through education. Indonesia has been “internationalizing” formal education through the rapid growth of international schools all over Indonesia. With much “internationalizing” going on in Indonesia, are we actually edging the competition of the global education market? Looking from the contour of the education terrain in Indonesia, the answer can’t be yes.

How many of international students actually want to come to Indonesia and study here? Even for specific studies belonging exclusively to Indonesia, such as Indonesian culture and so on. Many of our international students in our schools are stuck here because their parents work here. If given a choice, they might want to go somewhere else other than Indonesia. Furthermore, how many of our teachers, lecturers, researchers, professors, actually go global with their academic journal articles, academic papers for presentation, research projects, and so on? Our global competitive edge in education is measured by how desirable studying in Indonesia is among foreigners.

Given this fact, perhaps the direction of our education is to be open more for the global market. We all know that by opening up to the global market more, we must conform to the international standard more and more. And one particular item that is undeniable for international standard education practice is achievement of excellence. Therefore, Indonesian education can’t tone down the international standard for the excuse to meet the level of Indonesian students. The second item to be considered is the usefulness of Indonesian subject courses in the global market. If our courses can only be used in Indonesia and are not usable for the skills and knowledge required in other countries, then we are not attractive enough for the international students to come and study at our education institutions.

Take for example studying in the US or Europe or Singapore, how much of the skills and knowledge offered through the school courses in those countries is useful anywhere else in the world? With the high acceptance of the graduates from those countries in the global market, it proves that their skills and knowledge are considered useful internationally. The IB or Cambridge programs for primary and secondary education have been accepted internationally because they are able to identify the necessary items useful in the world. The question is, is our Ujian Akhir Nasional (UAN) desirable for global education market? Pardon me to raise this question: “Is it even desirable for our own countryman?” The hurdle of UAN must be resolved carefully if we are seeking to establish our global competitive edge in the international market.

UAN is known to be killing school’s creativity and competitiveness in the so called creative era like we are living today. If UAN is still on the way, then it collides with the creative industry or economy that the economic sector has been promoting vigorously. If UAN is kept, then we should not be surprised to see our economy stays flat. But some people would also ask a fair question: “Should we then shut down UAN?” This is also a difficult question to answer because we also notice that UAN is indeed needed to help schools in the villages to be upgraded. Thus, if UAN is shut down completely, then village schools might never catch up with the high achieving schools in the cities. What do we do then?

Perhaps the answer is not as difficult as it seems. Perhaps what we need is two distinct systems that will accommodate two different educational markets. For those in the high achieving city schools, perhaps UAN is not needed; therefore UAN might not need to be required. For those in low achieving village schools, perhaps UAN is greatly needed. Then, the simple solution might be to require UAN only for those schools that fall below the national accreditation standard. What about those in the high achieving city schools? This is still not easy to answer, but many educators have hinted the answer, autonomy. Obviously, for schools to really develop in the global competitive market, they need to find their competitive edge. And in order to find their competitive edge, they need to be given autonomy. Indonesian schools that are the most developed are those that are not limited by the curriculum set by the government, in this case International schools. In the back of our mind, we know that all other national schools have the same curriculum set as directed by the Indonesian government. There is too little space for them to improve within the national curriculum, especially when the national KTSP curriculum is married to UAN. Therefore, the international schools don’t follow the national curriculum. They break away from the government requirement and thus are able to maintain their competitive edge.

Therefore, perhaps what Indonesian schools needed, particularly the high achieving city schools, is autonomy. Indonesian government will have to grant autonomy with the wish to give them freedom to develop their schools optimally. Does it mean to give them total freedom? Perhaps not total freedom per se, but the Indonesian government might still need to provide the direction, the vision, and mission for Indonesian schools in Indonesia in general. In this way, autonomous schools would not create a curriculum that is evil in nature. For example, there can’t be a school that is designed to produce evil people whose desire is to destroy Indonesia. All the virtues become the moral standard for any school to be founded. The curriculum, the teaching and learning method, the assessment procedure, and so on are free to be constructed in the hands of those autonomous schools. If those schools fail to create a program that gives them a competitive edge, then they will not survive in the global world.

A lot of Indonesian people are actually very smart. They can compete with many international smarts. If the education system can be designed in such a way in order to get the best of them to rise, then the future of Indonesia will shine in the world. With the current education system, I’m afraid we are doing a disservice to the sons and daughters of this nation. For us to achieve the lofty goal of education in Indonesia, our education system must be adapted. We all want to see Indonesia to be filled with smart Indonesians. Moreover, we all want to see Indonesia to be swarmed with wise Indonesians. Only wise people can build a great nation. A great nation will attract wise people of the world to come and invest.

Arise O ye Indonesian Education. Seize the opportunity while it’s visible. One day the day will be dark and nobody can see anything. Make the right decision O government officials, educators, while responsibility is on your shoulder. One day you will not regret your decision when you are no longer in power. Prepare the way O ye people of Indonesia, so your sons and daughters will thank you when their time comes to rule. Make the necessary sacrifice and bear the burden, but don’t sacrifice others and make others suffer for your own satisfaction, you take up the cross and be willing to sacrifice yourselves, so your names will be honored for eternity from generation to generation. Seize the Day! Carpe Diem!

The Business of Christian Education XI: Transforming the Broken Image

2009-11-11T19:05:00.000-08:00

There is an African proverb that says: “It takes a village to raise a child.” But seldom people know that “It takes the sacrifice of God’s Son to transform a sinful man.” Transforming the broken Imago Dei is not as easy as educating them how to live. To transform a sinful man requires the Son of God to suffer the most painful agony. Transforming a sinner must bring all of us to go back to the very foundation of human life. Education is not capable of fixing the problem of sin that Adam and Eve brought to the world. But education may serve as a tool to introduce the sacrificial work of the One true God.

God has a plan to transform people who are supposed to be tossed to hell into becoming His children who will live in His presence forever. The brokenness of Imago Dei is so deep that every area in human life is affected. Moreover, sinful humans must be condemned in hell to satisfy God’s righteousness. In order to transform sinful humans from wretched beings into holy people, something impossible must be done. God’s righteousness demands the sinners to be punished, but in His perfect love God wants to save them from punishment. His righteous punishment will condemn sinners to the ultimate death, but God’s love wants them to be forever alive in His presence. How can God’s righteousness and love be satisfied at the same time, so sinners will be saved and yet His justice shall be satisfied?

There is only one way to satisfy God’s righteous justice and love at the same time. The Son of God must sacrifice himself by taking up the nature of man and be crucified. The punishment that we all are supposed to endure, Jesus must endure in order to satisfy God’s justice. When Jesus is punished, God shows His love for us whom He calls His children. Because in Jesus Christ God’s wrath passes over us so we will not experience the ultimate death. Jesus endures the ultimate death for us. Jesus becomes the representative of those who believe and are saved. This is God’s only way to save us and yet to escape betraying His own nature.

When we are saved, our transformation begins. Our death has been turned into life. We are now living beings in the truest sense. We no longer live like those waiting their turn to be buried. We live a full life in Christ Jesus. This is the very foundation of our transformation. Without this transformation, all education endeavors humans do are futile. Education will only hit the wind if the souls are still dead. The human spirit must be revived in order for education to be truly effective. This is a hard truth to swallow. Rousseau argues that sin is not in individual human but in the society, and so, for Rousseau, the answer for the brokenness of humanity is education. But Rousseau is dead wrong. In the end he has to admit that even for Emile who he has taught and prepared to be the champion of his era, Rousseau cannot guarantee that Emile would be consistent with his goodness. The bottom line is Rousseau eventually doubts that education can save humans. The truth is, no education can save humans. Only God can. True transformation can only be done when one believes in Jesus Christ.

After the souls are revived in Christ, then education becomes effective. The broken image is beginning to be fixed in Jesus Christ. The “dead cells” are now alive. The “newly living cells” are now ready to be shaped for the Kingdom of Heaven. But the complete transformation must undergo a long process of sanctification. This process takes true education. The dead cannot be educated, only the living can. The total transformation will take place when Jesus Christ comes the second time. Right now the believers are walking through the process of being completely transformed through education. John Dewey is right when he says that education is life itself and not just preparing for life. But Dewey did not know what true life is. Only in Christ Jesus we know what true life is. Jesus ordered his disciples, and all of us, to teach those who are just baptized in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, “to obey everything I have commanded” (Matthew 28:20).

The first sin was about being disobedient to God’s commandments. The redeemed people are to learn to obey God’s commandments. This is the job for education. All true educators must teach people the way of the true life, and the true life is only in Jesus Christ. For “through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made” (John 1:3). We are created by God, and therefore we are created in Christ. “In him was life, and that life was the light of men” (John 1:4) and “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6). Jesus Christ is the life. No one can live outside of the source of life, who is Christ. Therefore, if we are to talk about true education, then we must talk about true life. And talking about true life we must talk about Jesus Christ who is the life.

True education must be transformative in nature, following the work of the Holy Spirit in regenerating people from dead to life in Christ Jesus. True education must continuously transform the newly fixed imago dei for the final form that God has in mind. We are to be totally transformed to be like Jesus Christ, who is the true pattern. Our job is to learn the true life, and the educators’ job is to teach us how. Learning to live the true life in Jesus Christ becomes our way of life. Stephen Tong rightly says that believers must have the attitude to learn and to serve in the Kingdom of God. His statement resonates with Jesus’ life and commission. Remember that Jesus came to the world to serve and not to be served and Jesus’ commission for his disciples is to teach the true life, and it requires the believers to learn what is being taught them. Gandhi once said: “Learn as if you were to live forever.” His statement is good but not enough. For Christians, I would say: “Learn because you already have eternal life.” The eternal life that is given to us requires us to learn how to live it. This eternal life is different than the life we know on earth. The eternal life that we have received in Christ can be seen in the life of Christ, and his life is the life of obedience to God the Father (Philippians 2:5-8). This is the true life we are being transformed into, just like Jesus Christ who is perfectly obedient to His Father from start to finish. Soli Deo Gloria!

The Business of Christian Education X: Re-Educating the Broken Image

2009-09-12T23:27:00.000-07:00

The brokenness of our image runs deep within our blood. What once was such a glorious state, now we are in a depraved state. We can never do anything without our brokenness creeps in. Everything in us is affected by our depravity. Our mind, our heart, our action, all are dirty of sins. Given this fact, we are doomed. Humans are in the state of hopelessness. Nobody can save us. We work very hard day and night to get ourselves out of the pit, but we got deeper into it. We turn to our possession, but our richness can’t save us either. We turn to our loved ones, but yet they are powerless. Our parents too don’t have much authority to move us from hopelessness to glory. We force ourselves to believe that science can save us, but science brings us despair more than what we already have. We thought that by connecting ourselves to the world of the spirits, the spirits can grant us power to be holy. We know that they can’t. Our world does not become better, but instead it becomes worse. We see more disasters every day. We hear more crimes committed every second. We understand that teaching the new generation to be good has become more difficult. We realize that the successive generation continues to be more rebellious than the previous one. From age to age we repeat our sinful tendency with much more intensity. Even the amoral and immoral cannot deny this fact.

A few decades ago Karl Marx thought that by reorganizing the society through the ideal of communism, the world would become much much better. But history has proven that communism becomes the most conducive vehicle for corruption, not only in wealth, but also in power, and eventually in justice and morality. The West attacked the idea of communism vehemently and proclaimed that democracy is the answer for every problem in society. Once again history proves humans that the West is wrong. Democracy brings a disaster greater than any natural disaster in the world. The economic crisis that hits the entire world is because democracy fails to administer justice and balance. The corrupt tendency in human nature finds its way to manipulate any system humans can ever devise. Even the destruction of the natural world that we experience at the moment is also the result of the failure of democracy. Don’t we remember that a long time ago, when the world was only populated by 2 persons, Adam and Eve, democracy was chosen and yet failed? The choice was based on the people, but the result was disastrous to all humanity. We can never shake off the result of the first democracy, eternal death.

Understanding our state of brokenness is extremely important. Some people try very hard to deny that we are broken. They think that humans are basically and intrinsically good. They believe in it 100% that they are willing to even stake their necks for it. A quality of the belief that is to be applauded but yet the aim of the belief is terrifying. They call education as the sole medium to fix the problem of the world, but since God is not in their equation, they have to rely heavily on their belief that humans are not broken. Education yet has failed us once again. After thousands of years of much education humans do not grow mature, we keep repeating the same mistakes over and over again. All education has failed. Humans continue to be the source of all the problems in the world. We need to understand that humans are the wildest being on earth. Over the ages wild animals have been tamed, but no one can tame human beings. Educating animals is easy, for their need is only physical. Educating humans is never easy, for humans are very complicated. When we toss away the truth about our brokenness, we miss a very important point. When our education is built upon such assumption, then our education also misses a very important point. No wonder that our education fails miserably. All educators cannot but agree to the failure of education.

Ah yes, religion might be able to fix all the problems. So we turn our eyes to religion. We teach our children under our religious belief hoping that our children will be like angels. Again we are shocked by the fact that many of those that we think to be very religious are among the most wicked people on earth. In the name of God people march to war, remember the crusade war? In the name of God people kill their brothers and sisters, remember the civil war? In the name of God people bomb their fellow human beings, haven’t you seen it on your newspaper and TV lately? In the name of God people abuse the weaker gender, do I have to remind you of this? The bottom line is people misuse the name of God for their own selfish and corrupted desire. They think they can get away with manipulating God. They are wrong! Judgment day is coming when those who think they do something for God will be shown their real motives. Religion? What religion? Religion fails even more miserably than any other in making the world better.

Immanuel Kant asked: “What can I hope for?” Looking at our world today, learning from our history, we know that the answer to Kant’s question is: “Nothing!” The world is going down. Our world is cursed, the same curse that God mentioned: “but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die.” Our world is dying, because Adam and Eve ate the fruit of the knowledge of good and evil. God’s judgment stands, no one can reverse it. That’s why we see our loved ones fall one by one. They die helplessly. In our modern medical age, we cannot even save people from the simple flu. A small parasite can kill even the fittest human. We will surely die! And the entire world follows its prince, humans. The thing is, when we ignore God, we can never have hope. For hope comes from God himself. Hope belongs to God. Only if God offers it to humans then we can have it. Without God’s intervention, humans will surely walk to the grave without hope.

Re-educating the broken image is extremely difficult. Especially when the broken image thinks that he/she is not broken. The broken image must be reeducated of their status. Therefore our education cannot focus merely on the scientific knowledge. For without knowing who we are, our spectacular scientific knowledge is valueless. A Russian cosmonaut went to the moon, and with his scientific knowledge he claimed that there is no God for he could not find him in the moon. The scientific knowledge deceives him. Perhaps he needed to paddle his space shuttle to the sun instead of the moon if he wanted to meet God. As Christian educators, we make it our business to reeducate the broken image. We must not deny our brokenness, for we are what we are. But let me tell you this, we do have hope, and our hope is not an urban legend. Our hope is not a myth. Our hope is real for it rests secure in God’s own mighty hands. Would you believe, is the real question. Would you believe that you are broken and that you need God desperately to get out of your hopelessness? Allow me open up a secret for you; this is a secret of heaven and earth: “Yes you should believe, for it is the truth. And the truth shall set you free!”

The Business of Christian Education IX: Educating the Broken Image

2009-08-16T22:43:00.000-07:00

Since the fall, humans have been enslaved by sin. Whatever we do, or think, or feel, is broken and marred by sin. John Calvin called such state as total depravity. However, this totally depraved being is not as evil as can be. The beautiful image of God is broken and has been broken since Adam and Eve decided to disobey God’s command. This important truth of human sinfulness has been denied and rejected by human sinful nature for a long long time. This denial finally reached a point where humans feel necessary to get rid of God instead of accepting the truth of sin. The ultimate rejection of this truth happened when people decided to murder Jesus of Nazareth two thousand years ago. The murder of Jesus is in fact the ultimate expression of human sinful nature in dealing with the holy God.

From time to time, we have rejected the source of our being. We even teach our children that God does not exist, or that God does not really exist. Or, if he does exist, he does not care about us. When the world cannot accept the fact that humans are sinful, then the world creates an alternate story of our existence apart from God. There are many stories that appeal to human sinfulness. One of them is the evolutionism. People quickly embrace evolutionism and reject that there is a God that created the world. This only shows how deep we are lost. The image of God rejects the God who is the true original pattern of our being. If we look around us today, we will find that many of us have truly become ignorant of our origin. Either we embrace the wrong information, or we simply ignore the right information, or we just don’t care where we came from. Why don’t we learn from our everyday life, that when we don’t know who our parents are, what our true race is, of what heritage do we belong, our identity cannot be whole? Don’t we all know that when our identity is partial, we cannot settle? Being unclear of our identity is one of the greatest disequilibrium any being can face.

No wonder our world as we know it today is full of hatred, war, injustice, destruction, and evil. Knowing who we truly are is extremely important for the step toward re-equilibrium. Calvin argued that the basis of our knowledge of everything is the knowledge of God and self. We cannot know self without knowing God and we cannot know God without knowing self. And how can we know self if we continue denying our sinfulness? How can we know at all if we continue denying that God exists or that humans are created after God’s image? Therefore, in our broken world, it is necessary for us to teach our children about our brokenness. I believe that is why the Scripture, the secret of heaven, starts from the origin of the universe and of humanity. Genesis 1-3 speaks clearly how humans were created and how we fell. The starting point is clear, and such clarity explains the basic foundation of how we get into this mess in the world.

When humans create our own stories and then decide to ignore the true story told by the trustworthy God himself, we are completely lost. In this world, we have many competing stories. The task of Christianity is to tell the true story, the grand story told by God himself. Christians don’t make up stories. We receive the story from the God of heaven and earth. But humans are prone to believe their own stories instead of believing the true story. Why? – Because the true story is painful to swallow. It is extremely hard to admit that we are sinful creatures and that together with our ancestors we have rebelled against the holy God. It is easier to admit that we came into being from billions of years of evolution from the simplest being – one cell being – then we become more complex and then we evolve into homo sapiens, the most complex and most advanced being on earth. It is easier to admit that we have a strong family relation with chimpanzee or orangutan. It is way more difficult to acknowledge that we have a very close family relation with God himself. We quickly identify ourselves with all the other creatures of this world rather than identifying ourselves with the great God of heaven and earth. And when we admit that we are divine, we don’t want God to stand above us, we want God to be gone, and we want to be that God. That’s how confused we are as humans. No wonder St. Augustine pointed out that since the fall we are non posse non picarre – unable not to sin. Calvin’s theology is proven true that humans are totally depraved. We live under slavery and we refuse to be freed from it, because being freed from it requires admitting our wretchedness.

The world hails education as the solution of the problems of the world. Deep down we believe that through education humans will become wise. We hope that when we are wise we will be able to fix all the problems we have. Yet, after thousands of years of progressive education, we don’t yet see any solution to any of our problems. We might have created advanced technologies to upgrade our lifestyle, but yet our world is always devoid of true justice and love. We use advanced psychology to find true happiness, but we find only despair and brokenness. We philosophize aggressively, but we are more confused than ever. We have gone through many scientific breakthroughs, but more weapon of mass destruction is being manufactured. We understand more about our body and the secret of DNA, but we have become more worried with the spread of AIDS, Bird Flu, Ebola, etc. We have become smarter in understanding our role, responsibility, and rights as citizens of the world, but yet we abort the so called “unwanted babies” and call them fetus. Does education bring us closer to our dignity? Or, does education fail to deliver its very noble purpose? Ah yes, humans have fooled themselves. We call ourselves blessed without God’s true blessings. We call ourselves wise without God’s true wisdom. We call ourselves living without being connected to the true source of life, God.

Education will fail and continue to fail uncontrollably. As long as we continue on telling the false story of our origin our seemingly beautiful concept of education will fall. Humans must realize the true story. Humans must know that we are created in the dignity of the divine. Humans must also know that our sensus divinitatis has been broken into pieces since the fall of the first man and woman. Only and only then we can grasp why we need Jesus Christ. Only and only then after we embrace Christ we can know our purpose of life. Only and only then that in Christ we can live truly as true humans. Educating the broken image is not an easy task, especially if the broken image continues to deny their brokenness. But this education must proceed. Therefore, the business of Christian education is to educate the broken image to know who they are. That is why our Scripture starts with our origin. The true story of our origin is the bedrock of all our knowledge. Without it we are lost. And we will continue to be lost until we admit and embrace the true story of our origin as told in the Bible.

The Business of Christian Education VIII: Educating Imago Dei

2009-07-08T23:33:00.000-07:00

One of the greatest thinkers in education, Jean Jacques Rousseau, once proclaimed in his masterpiece “Emile” that the business of education is to educate human beings to be true human beings. For Rousseau, educating humans to be true humans is natural. Therefore, as Rousseau contended, consequently to understand education educators must understand human nature. The Greeks got it right through the famous phrase “Gnothi Seauton” or “Temet Nosce” in Latin, which means “Know Thyself.” However, Gnothi Seauton alone is not complete for understanding human nature, thus to complete Rousseau’s contention we must refer to John Calvin’s argument in his Institutes of the Christian Religion that to know the self, one must know God.

According to Calvin, and to the Christian faith respectively, the secret lies in the truth that humans are created in the Image of God. This secret can be found in the Creation account in the Scripture. No wonder Cornelius Van Til, one of the greatest Christian theologians and philosophers in the 20th century, pointed out that to understand education one must begin with Creation. In the Creation account, God revealed the truth that humans are created by God himself for a clear purpose to rule the world according to God’s will. Humans are created uniquely and distinctly after the Image of their Maker. This is why humans are in many ways like God, as Richard L. Pratt, Jr. contended in his famous Designed for Dignity.

Since humans are Imago Dei, then our education must follow our nature. Now, understanding Imago Dei is very crucial in our quest here, because if we misunderstand it, then our philosophy of education collapses entirely. Nothing can explain and describe humans better than their Maker. So, it is reasonable to refer to the primary source of God’s revelation concerning who humans are and who God really is, the Scripture. Our world today deals with education more on the basis of psychological research rather than on the basis of theological truths. Such statement is not meant to undermine psychology and elevate theology instead. But, while a lot of psychological researches have found truths regarding human nature, my concern is that most of the psychological researches only look at humans as we can observe at the moment. This is a great disadvantage if we are to suggest a holistic understanding of human nature, for with the limitation of psychology we can not know who humans really are apart from God’s truthful and reliable revelation as written by His faithful servants in the Bible.

It is true that since Rousseau’s Emile was published in 1762, the face of education changed dramatically. Even the great Pestalozzi, Froebel, Maria Montessori, and Jean Piaget were indebted to Rousseau in their educational endeavors. Moreover, Rousseau’s call for education to pay serious attention to the understanding of human nature has influenced psychological course tremendously. Timothy O’Hagan concluded that Rousseau’s Emile is a pioneer work for developmental psychology. John Darling and Maaike van de Pijpekamp stated that all the works in progressive education are footnotes to Rousseau. [For further discussion on Rousseau’s philosophy of education, please consult my article on Rousseau: “Examining Rousseau’s Philosophy of Education: A Christian Account,” Christian Education Journal series 3, volume 1, no. 3 (Fall 2004): 80-98, published by Talbot School of Theology, Los Angeles]. The quest to discover humans’ true nature has heightened ever since Rousseau’s Emile was launched. Psychology picked up the call, and has been pursuing it to this day.

With psychology running the race to understand human nature, actually theology should be benefited greatly. Ideally, theology provides the basis for the pursuit of psychological research on understanding our nature. However, regretfully, psychology does not commonly start with theology. Rousseau’s Emile was actually completely rejected by the church, which is very unfortunate. Worse, theology did not answer the need to understand humans the way psychology did. The break up between theology and psychology proves to be fatal. Christians were too late in accepting psychological approach in understanding humans, and this caused psychology to have its foundation merely on the basis of human perspective. The God perspective is thus neglected. Therefore, with theology sidelined and psychology becomes the champion in the foundation of education, the understanding of human nature through the eyes of psychology is partial. Consequently, this leads to the partial understanding of education.

Educating Imago Dei cannot be based merely on our current knowledge of human nature according to psychology. Since the word Imago Dei implies the God perspective, then theology should be taken seriously as the foundation of any psychological research and knowledge. Here I propose for psychology to return to its true role in complementing theology for the understanding of human nature. Starting from accepting the truth that humans are created in the Image of God, then psychology will see our true dignity as human beings. Only then can our noble task of educating Imago Dei be done accordingly. Only then is educating human beings to be true human beings possible. Only then can we understand why we teach, what to teach, and how to teach Imago Dei.

The next article[s] will discuss further the why, what, and how to educate Imago Dei.

The Business of Christian Education VII: The Secret to Become the Biggest Loser

2009-06-06T08:43:00.000-07:00

Since its launch, The Biggest Loser TV show has captured the heart of millions of TV viewers in America and beyond. The Biggest Loser show has helped people to eat healthy and to live a healthy lifestyle. The show also shows that living a healthy life is very possible, for reversing the unhealthy lifestyle has also been proven successful through the show. The show’s participants work very hard to lose their weight. They face difficult challenges and temptations. They learn to be disciplined in every aspect of their lives. And since their weakest spot is food, they are expected to master their will and thus change their habits. As the reality show The Biggest Loser has sparked many Americans to save their lives from obesity, there is an ancient but still relevant truth that saves lives to the very core. The ancient truth of salvation revealed by God through his one and only Son, Jesus Christ, has saved billions of people from the dreadful reality of the true death.

If the secret in The Biggest Loser show is eat healthy and right exercise, then the ancient secret of salvation is to believe in Jesus Christ. As in The Biggest Loser show people win by losing weight, in the secret of salvation people win by losing their old self. ^“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4:22-24). In the show, people can lose weight when they trust their trainers. In salvation, people lose the old self by believing the Messiah, Jesus Christ. As The Biggest Loser participants lose their weight progressively, they don’t intend to go back to their old size. The same goes with the saved people in Jesus Christ, after they lost their old self, they don’t want to go back to be who they were before.

Losing weight asks so much of oneself, how much more losing the self. If there is nothing better to replace the self, one would never let go of it. If the show’s participants don’t believe that their new self after losing weight is much better than their old self, they would not go through all the toil and pain of rigorous discipline. In the same way, if one does not believe that the new self in Jesus Christ is going to be much better than the old self, one would not put off the old self. The key secret is faith. People tend to lay their belief on evidence and reason than on faith. The remark “Seeing is Believing” has been hailed as the fundamental norm of life in our modern society today. But Jesus said: “blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29).

Let me tell you the greatest secret to become the biggest loser in life. The biggest losers are those who believe in Jesus Christ. This knowledge penetrates beyond our earthly existence. This secret points to eternity. The biggest losers in life are those who lose their old sinful self and gain the new holy image in Jesus Christ. And the only way to be the biggest loser in life is through Jesus Christ. For Jesus himself claimed: "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6).

The difference between becoming the biggest loser in life and the biggest loser in the popular reality TV show is work. In the show, the participants must work very hard in order to lose weight and gain their new image. In life, the saved can’t work for the promised salvation. “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). In the show, the work comes before, while in life the work comes after. “For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10). After we are saved in Christ by grace, then we can work. In life, after we accept the new image, then we work to trim the old self, and since we have lost it, then we don’t feel hard to throw the old self away. The Apostle Paul points out:

“But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ—the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.” (Philippians 3:7-9)

The old self is rubbish. We don’t need to keep rubbish. Even in our earthly life we don’t keep rubbish. We throw away rubbish in the garbage can. Why would we want to keep rubbish in our spiritual life? Keeping rubbish in our spiritual life won’t make any sense. However, having said that, I realize that not many people would think that their old sinful self is rubbish. Not all people would think that they need to lose the old self. In the show, only those that are overweight would readily admit that they need to lose weight. In life, admitting one’s sin requires great humility, how much more admitting that our old self is rubbish.

Now, let me tell you the greatest of the greatest secret to become the biggest loser in life. The greatest of the greatest secret is Jesus Christ himself. The link of the transformation of one’s life, from old to new, is Jesus. If the link is missing, then the entire world is doomed. Without Jesus our life is utterly meaningless. Without Jesus everything we do would be of no value. If we want to be the biggest loser in life, then we need to embrace the only one person that can transform our lives, as Peter has proclaimed:

“It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is " 'the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’ Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
(Acts 4:10-12)

The Business of Christian Education VI: Investigating the Murder of God

2009-05-24T17:25:00.000-07:00

From generation to generation people have tried to get rid of God through many ways. Since Adam fell into sin, humans have tried to murder God. Humans’ attempt to get rid of God has evolved from subtle to harsh. Basically there are three kinds of attempts: 1) blaming God as the ultimate cause, 2) rejecting God and replacing God with other gods, and 3) killing God when He came visiting the world. Then after God is considered dead, the world goes on to assume that God does not exist.

Adam committed the sin that brought the entire human race to the brink of total depravity. Instead of admitting his fall, he accused God of being the ultimate cause of his sinful act. God asked Adam: “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” (Genesis 3:11), and Adam answered: “The woman YOU PUT HERE WITH ME—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it” (Genesis 3:12, emphasis is mine). Adam’s answer is his attempt to deflect responsibility of his own sin to God. True that in Genesis chapter 2, God was the one that created Eve to be Adam’s helper. But by putting Eve on Adam’s side, God did not mean for Adam to fall. God’s will was for Adam to not be alone, but so that Adam might find Eve to be his suitable helper. Adam did find Eve to be his perfect companion: “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man” (Genesis 2:23). Adam knew that God did not intend to bring Adam to fall by putting Eve there with him. But yet he blamed God for the good thing God did for him.

Imagine yourself in a situation where you are a good parent and you have a son. One day your son comes to you and seeks your advice for one big matter he cannot solve. He impregnates his girlfriend and now he is confused as to what he should do. His parent gives him a sound advice that he should take the responsibility. After a long discussion he finally agrees to the decision to marry his girlfriend. He and his girlfriend are in their mid twenty. They are not too young for their age to get married. They have been together for quite some time as boyfriend and girlfriend. So actually there is no reason against them getting married. Then they get married. Now, your son falls in love with someone else. He is caught having an affair. Instead of admitting his sin, he blames you as his parent for advising him to marry his girlfriend. He tells you that he actually does not love his wife. If you feel that your heart is being stabbed with a knife by your son, then you might have a glimpse of what God felt the day Adam blamed God for the sin he voluntarily committed. Doesn’t it feel like your son is killing you by blaming you for the good advice you gave him? Wouldn’t it be right to think that Adam was killing God the minute he blamed God for giving him Eve?

Since then, people have gone astray. They don’t know who God is anymore. People have replaced the one true God with their invention. Even God’s chosen people did not want anything to do with Him. Exodus 32 records the event when Israel rejected God and replaced Him with a golden calf. Exodus 32 is an extremely serious account, because God brought Israel out of Egypt. God fought Egypt and destroyed them with his mighty hand. Israel did not do anything. They only watched and witnessed God sent plague after plague to demolish Egypt. But yet, soon after they were out in the desert, free from slavery, they did not want God. They made an idol and declared: “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt” (Exodus 32:4). Similarly, Israel rejected God and wanted to replace God with a king when Samuel was the prophet in Israel. God told Samuel: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you” (I Samuel 8:7-8).

The first account was when God just liberated Israel from Egypt’s oppression, and the second account was when Israel already settled in the Promised Land. On both accounts, Israel made it clear that they did not want God. Imagine again, your son is being beaten by a bully and you defend him and save him. Soon after he is free from the bully, he tells you that you are not his father. Or, imagine, your son’s life is miserable to the point of bankruptcy, and he loses everything he has. Then you bring him to your home, tells all your servants to obey him because he is your son, and you give him authority over your company under your supervision. Soon after he is settled, he kicks you out of your own house and company. What do you feel? It does feel like your son is saying: “Die!” right to your face, doesn’t it? Perhaps that’s what God felt in those two accounts. His own people attempted to get rid of their own God.

The attempt to get rid of God is getting even harsher. Then God sent His own Son, who is also God, to the world. He sent His Son to His own people, the people He created and chose. Instead of welcoming God’s Son, who is God, they killed him. And they killed him for a ridiculous reason:

Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, put their faith in him. But some of them went to the Pharisees and told them what Jesus had done. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees called a meeting of the Sanhedrin. “What are we accomplishing?” they asked. “Here is this man performing many miraculous signs. If we let him go on like this, everyone will believe in him, and then the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” Then one of them, named Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, spoke up, “You know nothing at all! You do not realize that it is better for you that one man die for the people that that the whole nation perish.” (John 11:45-50)

Of course, according to human reason, it is better for one person to be sacrificed than one nation perishes. However, it is not what actually happened when Caiaphas said what he said. He was afraid that the Romans would occupy Israel. That fear is reasonable. No people want to be occupied by other people. Israel knew what it felt to be put under slavery. But know that when all this happened, Israel was already occupied by the Romans. So his reasoning fell short, which means that it wasn’t the actual reason for killing Jesus. Even Pilate knew the real reason they wanted to kill Jesus: “For he [Pilate] knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him” (Matthew 27:18).

This is the harshest attempt humans do to get rid of God. They truly murdered God. They premeditated the murder. This is first degree murder. But in this broken world, they got away with such murder. Evidences are mounted and those evidences are undeniable. That day, His own people shouted: “Crucify Him!” Jesus, the Son of the Living God, was murdered by the craftiest plan and the most evil motive ever. Jesus was no criminal. Even Pilate testified: “I find no basis for a charge against him [Jesus]” (John 18:38). Jesus never did anything sinful. He never wronged anyone. Rather, He healed the sick, he opened the eyes of the blind, he made the mute speak, the deaf could hear again because of His touch, he fed thousands of people miraculously, He cast out demons and unclean spirits, and he raised the dead. Everyday He taught people to repent for the Kingdom of God is near. But yet they murdered the only one holy and sinless. They murdered God himself. His own people that He cared, that he loved, that He protected, devised a plan to get rid of Him forever. Imagine, your son hired a killer and devised a plan and then betrayed you, and so have you killed before his eyes. What do you feel? I don’t think words can describe your feeling anymore.

About nineteen hundred years later after Jesus was murdered on Golgotha, Nietzsche brought back the legendary Zarathustra to proclaim: “God is dead!” This time, Nietzsche did not attempt to murder God. He simply proclaimed that God was already dead. He understood that God was no more, God did not live anymore. Then Nietzsche started his new belief, the Ubermensch or the Superman or the Overman. Nietzsche did not put any effort to murder God. He simply testified that God was dead a long time ago. Dostoyevsky is right when he said in The Brothers Karamazov that if there is no God, people can do whatever they want. People really do whatever they want as if there is no God. But does it mean that God is no more? Nietzsche forgot that although God did die on Calvary, he did rise again on the third day. His proclamation that God is dead is 1900 years late. Jesus really died, but he also rose to live on the third day. All Christians have proclaimed ever since that “God is alive!” He was murdered. God has been murdered many times, but He is alive.

Adam attempted to murder God by blaming Him of the good thing He did. Israel attempted to murder God by replacing Him with an idol and rejecting Him as their ruler. The world murdered God by crucifying the Son of God on Calvary. In the 19^th, 20^th, and 21^st centuries, people assumed that there is no God and that they can do whatever they want. They are mistaken. All they do is destroying the only space in their hearts that can only be filled by God. All they do is poisoning their own minds and thus convincing themselves with the biggest lie that there is no God. All they do is murdering their own conscience that testifies of the existence of God. No human beings can murder God. They can try, but God will live forever. The shame of humanity is on their motive to get rid of the One true God, in order to be god. No one can get rid of God, all we can do is lie to ourselves that we can ignore God or that there is no God or that God is dead.

The one true God that we know in Jesus Christ is a marvelous God. Humans have been treating God so badly. The murder of the Son of God is the worst thing ever happens in this world. Calvary is the worst thing ever happens to a god. But our God has turned the worst of the worst into the best of the best. The Son of God’s death on Calvary has been turned into the salvation of many.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:18)

The Business of Christian Education V: Teacher as the Guardian and Protector of the Secret of Heaven and Earth

2009-04-28T19:56:00.000-07:00

Why teacher holds an important role for the shaping of the next generation? Why teacher plays an extremely significant role for the development of the world? Why teacher is very influential in the formation of our children? Remember that the word teacher does not exclude anyone of which teaching is not their profession. All of us at one time function as teachers of some sort. In such broad meaning of the word teacher that we shall continue to ponder our three questions above. To project the seriousness of the questions we have in hand, I would like to propose another question for us to ponder: “Why the world as we know it cannot continue without the existence of teacher?”

If we observe a bit carefully what is happening in our surrounding, then we might have noticed that even as young as three, humans have demonstrated a remarkable teaching function. I once observed a three year old naturally tried to teach her friends on how to play a board game. In our lifetime we continue to exercise our teaching capacity, many times with no hesitation at all. Obviously, many of us, who are not shy when teaching others informally, tend to be reluctant to teach in a formal setting. Why teach? Why do we naturally teach informally? I think the answer lies in the fact that when we teach we communicate a piece of knowledge that we own and that piece of knowledge is considered not known by those that we teach. In other words, there is a little secret that at that time one knows that the others don’t. Using educational terms, then, there is a little secret that the teacher knows that the students don’t. The three year old knew the secret of the board game while her friends did not, so she taught them the secret.

Through our little observation, it might be plausible to say that in education secrets are exchanged between all parties involved. Teacher, especially, is given a special privilege in the educational realm; because not only teacher is charged with the responsibility to communicate the secret of heaven and earth, but also teacher is responsible to communicate such secret properly. Furthermore, teacher is to draw secrets from all parties to be put on the table so all may observe carefully. In this way, teacher, though loaded with many secrets, can also learn secrets from the students as well. Teacher, being responsible of the secrets, is to be extremely careful in letting whatever secret out in the open. Not any secret is suitable for anyone, any time, any place, or any setting. If teacher just let out any secret without being sensitive to the person being taught, the time, the place, or the setting, then there is the danger of the misuse of the secret, or of the undesirable disequilibrium, or of the possible harm others might experience, or of the distortion of the secret, etc. One of the most dangerous problems in education is when the secret out in the open is not true but accepted as truth. Teacher must make sure that any secret of which he or she is in charge is true. Therefore, teacher’s role in this matter resembles the role of a guardian or a protector of the sacred.

Guarding and protecting the secret of heaven and earth is no small burden. However, even though the burden is huge, it is also sweet. Teacher is entrusted by the God of heaven and earth with its secret. I need to remind the reader again that the word teacher does not apply only to professional teachers, but also anyone functioning as teacher. Being trusted by the one true God is sweet and huge at the same time. Therefore, it is not too much to say that teacher must guard and protect the secret of heaven and earth with all their heart, their soul, their mind, and their strength. If teacher does not guard and protect the secret, then our world as we know it would be in grave danger of utter destruction, for then untruth may rule and all life will be at stake because of it. Imagine, if for example, a pediatrician misdiagnosed a child's condition due to the fact that when he was in medical school he received false truth from his teacher. If then the child died due to the misdiagnosis, isn’t that unacceptable? If half of all pediatricians in the world are like that, what would our world be? What if half of the world is ruled by untruth? But, isn’t it so true that our world as we know it cannot continue on without teacher, for teacher is the link between the secret and the learners? Ironically, we do have many teachers, but if out of the many that we have most are not guarding and protecting the secret of heaven and earth with their life, then consequently our world is in danger. Teacher’s existence is undoubtedly important, but what is more important is that the world needs a certain kind of teacher, that is the kind that will guard and protect the secret wholeheartedly. This is an extremely serious business, and without doubt the title is very appropriate: Teacher is the Guardian and Protector of the Secret of Heaven and Earth. Are you teacher ready to live up to the title given by our one true God? Are you teacher truly the guardian and protector of the secret of heaven and earth?

Bisnis Pendidikan Kristen KeEmpat: Meneruskan Pelayanan Surga dan Bumi

2009-04-27T18:45:00.000-07:00

Salah satu dari diskusi-diskusi yang paling krusial dalam kepemimpinan adalah regenerasi. Beberapa pekerjaan tidak di maksudkan untuk selesai dalam satu generasi. Nyatanya, banyak pekerjaan-pekerjaan penting yang tidak dapat diselesaikan dalam satu era saja. Orang-orang menyerahkan pekerjaan-pekerjaan penting dari satu generasi ke generasi berikutnya, mengharapkan perkembangan dan penyelesaian. Urusan Surga dan bumi adalah pekerjaan yang paling penting di jagad raya ini, dan itu tidak akan selesai sampai Yesus datang kedua kalinya. Menjelang akhir hayatnya, Paulus meneruskan urusan pelayanan tentang surga dan bumi kepada Timotius muda dan memerintahkannya: “Apa yang telah engkau dengar daripadaku didepan banyak saksi, percayakanlah itu kepada orang-orang yang dapat dipercayai, yang juga cakap mengajar orang lain” (2 Timotius 2:2).

Paulus dengan sengaja mengkaitkan gagasan regenerasi ini dengan pendidikan. Ini mengingatkan akan pengutusan Yesus: “Kepada-Ku telah diberikan segala kuasa di sorga dan dibumi. Karena itu pergilah, jadikanlah semua bangsa muridKu dan baptislah mereka dalam nama Bapa dan Anak dan Roh Kudus, dan ajarlah mereka melakukan segala sesuatu yang telah kuperintahkan kepadamu. Dan ketahuilah, Aku menyertai kamu senantiasa sampai kepada akhir zaman (Matius 28:18-20). Oleh karena itu, salah satu dari focus pendidikan Kristen adalah regenerasi. Dan karena manusia secara natural bertumbuh, dan pertumbuhan kita bergantung pada jenis pendidikan yang kita jalani, maka jika kita harus mempersiapkan generasi berikutnya untuk menerima tongkat estafet dari leluhur kita, persiapan tersebut harus bertujuan mengajar semua generasi berikutnya bahwa mereka harus tahu dan menguasai supaya dapat dengan benar memegang tongkat yang akan mereka terima.

Paulus meminta Timotius untuk meneruskan pelayanan ini kepada orang-orang yang dapat dipercayai. Paulus ingin memastikan bahwa rahasia surga dan bumi yang telah diungkapkan kepada Timotius akan jatuh ke tangan-tangan yang tepat. Sangat penting bagi Timotius untuk menemukan orang-orang yang dapat dipercaya dengan rahasia tersebut. Mengapa? Karena rahasia tersebut adalah untuk usaha pelayanan pekerjaan Kerajaan Surga. Tetapi barangsiapa yang kepadanya dipercayakan rahasia kerajaan Surga adalah seperti yang disebut Petrus sebagai “a royal priesthood” (1 Petrus 2:9). Dengan kata lain, rahasia ini harus deteruskan kepada siapa saja yang juga bekerja didalam Kerajaan sebagai warga kerajaan. Garis pekerjaan ini tidak dapat diteruskan kepada orang-orang yang tidak dapat dipercaya. Sama seperti layaknya seorang raja tidak bisa meneruskan tampuk kepemimpinannya kepada seorang pangeran yang ceroboh, Timotius juga tidak boleh meneruskan rahasia dan pelayanan tersebut kepada mereka yang tidak dapat dipercaya. Tidak hanya rahasia dan pelayanan tersebut harus diteruskan secara eksklusif kepada siapa saja yang dapat dipercaya, tetapi kepada siapa saja yang juga berkualitas untuk mengajar yang lain. Oleh karena itu, perintah Paulus kepada Timotius mengandung dua syarat untuk pembawa tongkat yang selanjutnya: dapat dipercaya dan dapat mengajar. Bagaimana caranya Timotius dapat menemukan orang-orang seperti itu di dunia? Jawabannya sederhana. Seperti halnya pertumbuhan kita ditentukan oleh pendidikan yang kita terima, tidak semua pendidikan dapat melakukannya, tetapi hanya pendidikan Kristen yang memiliki semua persyaratan untuk menghasilkan orang-orang yang dapat dipercaya dan dapat mengajar.

Dalam hal ini, Pendidikan Kristen harus mengajar murid-murid Yesus untuk mengajar. Mengajar bagaimana mengajar adalah jenis subyek yang biasanya diabaikan oleh pendidik. Dalam bisnis pendidikan, banyak pendidik yang cenderung berasumsi bahwa mengajar itu wajar. Banyak dari kita percaya bahwa para guru dilahirkan bukan dibentuk. Fakta bahwa banyak professor di universitas yang cuek dengan cara mengajar tidak ada hubungannya dengan apakah mereka dilahirkan dengan bakat mengajar atau tidak, tetapi sebaliknya ada hubungannya dengan apakah mereka pernah diajar bagaimana mengajar. Kita sering beranggapan bahwa mahasiswa-mahasiswa Fakultas Keguruan tahu bagaimana mengajar dan oleh karenanya kita tidak mengajarkan dengan cukup bagaimana mengajar. Karena pengutusa Yesus adalah untuk menjadikan semua bangsa murid Nya dan mengajar mereka segala sesuatu yang Dia perintahkan, berkaitan dengan instruksi Paulus kepada Timotius, adalah sangat penting untuk Pendidikan Kristen untuk mengajar para Kristiani bagaimana caranya mengajar.

Timotius mengikut Paulus dengan sepenuh hati. Paulus mengajar Timotius untuk dapat dipercaya dan dapat mengajar. Paulus mengajarkan Timotius rahasia surga dan bumi. Paulus mengajar Timotius natur dari pelayanan yang akan diteruskannya. Semua ‘apa’, ‘mengapa’ dan ‘bagaimana’ dari pelayanan surge dan bumi dipelajari Timotius melalui Paulus. Lalu ketika Timotius siap, Paulus meneruskan pelayanan kepadanya untuk dilanjutkan. Jenis pelayanan ini hanya berakhir ketika Yesus datang kembali. Suatu pendidikan yang menyatakan dirinya sebagai Kristen tetapi tidak berjuang untuk meneruskan rahasia dan pelayanan tentang surga dan bumi kepada generasi selanjutnya bukanlah pendidikan Kristen. Suatu pendidikan yang menyatakan dirinya sebagai Kristen tetapi tidak berusaha untuk menghasilkan kepercayaan dan kemampuan untuk mengajar orang lain juga bukanlah pendidikan Kristen. Oleh karena itu, adalah urusan pendidikan Kristen untuk secara terus menerus meneruskan pelayanan surga dan bumi kepada generasi berikutnya yang dapat dipercaya dan dapat mengajar sampai kedatangan Tuhan kita Yesus Kristus yang kedua kalinya.

Translated by:
Lea S. Surjantoro

Bisnis Pendidikan Kristen KeDua: Rahasia Surga dan Bumi

2009-04-27T18:43:00.000-07:00

Ketika kita berbicara mengenai pendidikan, kita akan selalu berhubungan dengan rahasia – rahasia. Sebagai orang tua terhadap anak – anaknya, sebagai guru – guru untuk murid – murid mereka, kita menyingkapkan misteri, - yang kalau tidak disingkapkan akan tetap tersembunyi dari para pembelajar. Bisnis pendidikan ini sangat serius. Siapapun yang menjabat sebagai guru – guru atau siapapun yang berfungsi sebagai guru – guru berada didalam urusan membagikan rahasia kehidupan kepada generasi berikutnya. Jika tidak ada para guru, rahasia tersebut bisa saja hilang, dan orang – orang akan harus menemukan kembali kemudinya. Pendidikan itu terlalu serius untuk diabaikan. Membagikan rahasia kehidupan kepada generasi berikutnya merupakan persoalan yang besar. Dalam pendidikan Kristen, kita tidak hanya menyalurkan rahasia kehidupan ke generasi berikutnya, tetapi juga rahasia surga. Itulah yang membuat bisnis pendidikan Kristen menjadi sangat berharga.

Rahasia surga dan kehidupan itu dinyatakan oleh Allah. Tuhan membukakan rahasia kehidupan melalui – yang disebut – pewahyuan umum, dan rahasia surga melalui pewahyuan khususNya. Yang menarik adalah rahasia surga dan kehidupan hanya di nyatakan kepada manusia dan bukan dari ciptaan – ciptaan lainnya. Kehormatan ini ada hubungannya dengan status kita sebagai mahkota penciptaan, karena kita diciptakan serupa dengan gambar dan rupa Allah. Sejak semula manusia diciptakan untuk memiliki kapasitas dalam memahami rahasia surga dan kehidupan yang disingkapkan. Melalui sarana – sarana pendidikan, manusia menyalurkan pengetahuan akan rahasia tersebut kepada keturunan – keturunannya, dan itu sudah sejak lama seperti itu. Karena keharusan untuk mengetahui rahasia itulah penelitian akan rahasia tersebut dirasa sangat penting dalam area pendidikan. Sekali rahasia tersebut diketahui, hal tersebut akan dituruntemurunkan kepada generasi berikutya dengan cara pendidikan.

Dalam kejatuhan kita dalam dosa, kita tidak selalu melihat kebenaran sebagaimana mestinya. Pengetahuan kita ditutupi oleh dosa. Jadi, kehausan akan kebenaran sejati akan tetap ada. Manusia mencoba untuk menyingkapkan rahasia demi rahasia sejak permulaan zaman. Tetapi, semua kembali kepada Allah yang akan memutuskan apakah Dia akan membukakannya kepada manusia. Jadi, selain dari Allah, tidak seorangpun yang akan benar – benar tahu. Sebagai konsekuensinya, apa yang kita pikir sebagai rahasia surga dan kehidupan yang terbuka bisa saja bukanlah kebenaran. Namun demikian, kita menurunkannya kepada anak-anak kita dan menekankan pengetahuan tersebut pada mereka yang mungkin saja tidak benar. Manusia berhati-hati pada kesalahan dan lalu berjuang menjaga supaya tidak ada kebocoran pengetahuan yang salah yang diturunkan pada generasi berikutnya. Ini membuat bisnis pendidikan menjadi lebih berat, karena sekarang ini pendidikan tidak hanya membagikan rahasia tetapi juga mencegah banjirnya pengetahuan yang salah kepada generasi berikutnya.

Menentukan yang mana yang salah dan yang benar jelas – jelas tidak semudah yang terdengar. Manusia memerlukan standar untuk mengukur rahasia yang baru saja tersingkapkan apakah itu termasuk dalam bangunan pengetahuan yang benar atau tidak. Seperti yang sudah dijabarkan di diskusi sebelumnya tentang bisnis pendidikan, kita telah mengetahui bahwa standar kebenaran adalah Kristus sendiri, karena Dia-lah sang Kebenaran. Oleh karena itu, sangat penting bagi manusia untuk mempertimbangkan secara serius mengaitkan Kristus kapanpun kita berhubungan dengan suatu upaya pencarian kebenaran yang sejati. Tidak banyak yang akan dengan siap setuju dengan apa yang saya ajukan disini, akan tetapi saya tidak dapat dan tidak akan menyangkal Tuhan saya hanya karena Dia tidak dianggap menarik oleh banyak pakar.

Penyampaian rahasia surga dan kehidupan diperintahkan oleh Tuhan didalam Alkitab (Ulangan 6: 4-9; Matius 28:18-20). Pemilik rahasia tersebut adalah Tuhan sendiri. Oleh karena itu, sebagai seorang pendidik, saya tergetar dihadapanNya setiap kali saya menghadirkan rahasia surga dan kehidupan kepada siapa saja yang Tuhan percayakan kepada saya sebagai murid – murid saya, entah itu dalam kapasitas saya sebagai seorang guru atau dalam fungsi pengajaran saya. Membagikan rahasia ini kepada generasi berikutnya adalah suatu pengalaman yang terhormat disamping itu juga tidak layak untuk saya. Saya memahami bahwa rahasia tersebut adalah milik Allah dan itulah sebabnya saya tidak dapat menghadirkan selayaknya itu milik saya. Yang kedua, saya tidak dapat mengklaim apa yang tidak benar sebagai hal yang benar, karena nantinya saya akan menghadirkan kebenarannya dengan salah kaprah.

Untuk semua yang menganggap diri mereka para pendidik, saya mendorong Anda untuk menguji diri Anda sendiri dengan seksama sebelum mempresentasikan dan membagikan rahasia surga dan kehidupan kepada murid – murid Anda. Para guru memiliki sejenis kuasa dan otoritas dan juga atribut – atribut dalam diri mereka yang merupakan pemberian dari surga semata. Ketika para guru berbicara, mereka berbicara dengan suatu karisma yang secara natural menarik perhatian para murid. Dalam dunia yang berdosa ini, kuasa seperti itu dapat di salah gunakan dan dapat menjadi salah arah. Bisnis pendidikan Kristen ini sangat serius sehingga Allah mengatakannya di Yakobus: “Saudara-saudaraku, janganlah banyak orang diantara kamu mau menjadi guru, sebab kita tahu, bahwa sebagai guru kita akan dihakimi menurut ukuran yang lebih berat” (Yakobus 3:1), atau kita juga mungkin mau melihat dibagian yang lain dimana Dia mengatakan “Tetapi barangsiapa menyesatkan salah satu dari anak-anak kecil ini yang percaya padaKu, lebih baik bagiNya jika sebuah batu kilangan diikatkan pada lehernya lalu ia ditenggelamkan ke dalam laut.” Bukankah seharusnya kita gemetar ketika kita terlibat dalam usaha pendidikan? Bukankah seharusnya kita gemetar saat kita membagikan rahasia surga dan kehidupan kepada generasi selanjutnya?

Translated by:
Lea S Surjantoro

Bisnis Pendidikan Kristen

2009-04-27T18:42:00.000-07:00

Pendidikan Kristen bertanggung jawab untuk mengubah jiwa manusia. Sebagaimana arti pendidikan dipahami sebagai “memimpin keluar,” maka pendidikan Kristen adalah memimpin jiwa manusia keluar dari ketidakbenaran menuju kepada kebenaran. Tetapi mengapa kebenaran? Mengapa selama bertahun-tahun orang-orang bergelut untuk meraih kebenaran? Pontius Pilatus bertanya kepada Yesus “Apakah kebenaran itu?” (Yohanes 18:38). Tetapi Yesus berkata kepada murid-muridnya bahwa “kebenaran itu akan memerdekakan kamu” (Yohanes 8:32). Banyak orang tidak memahami apa itu kebenaran. Kisah tentang penemuan kebenaran tidak pernah berakhir. Usaha tersebut meguras seluruh waktu, energi, hasrat, dan bahkan menantang inti keberadaan kita. Entah bagaimana jiwa kita gelisah ketika kita berkelana di dunia ketidakbenaran. Seperti yang dipahami banyak orang, teristmewa mereka yang bekerja keras di sekolah, universitas, pusat penelitian, institut, danseterusnya, bahwa pendidikan mengurus pembongkaran kebenaran. Kita hanya dapat menemukan kelegaan melalui penemuan kebenaran, meskipun kebenaran yang kita temukan hanyalah penggalan kecil dari keseluruhan. Namun pertanyaan yang diajukan Pontius Pilatus tetap: “Apakah kebenaran itu?”

Merupakan hal yang ironis bahwa seorang pejabat tinggi dalam suatu bangsa terbesar di dunia pada zaman Yesus, tidak mengetahui kebenaran. Dunia Greco-Roman mengikuti jejak Sokrates dalam perjalanannya mencari kebenaran, namun setelah 400 tahun, orang-orang berkedudukan tinggi yang oleh Plato disebut raja-raja filsuf, tidak mengetahui kebenaran. Kitab Yohanes ditulis dengan mempesona menggunakan ironi di setiap sudut. Bukan hanya “raja-raja filsuf” yang tidak mengetahui kebenaran, tetapi juga mereka yang dianggap sebagai pemimpin-pemimpin rohani kaum Yahudi, yang diidentifikasi sebagai orang-orang yang dekat dengan kebenaran karena di tangan mereka dipercayakan firman yang diwahyukan Allah. Apakah kebenaran itu? Jika kita membaca di dalam Yohanes 8:31-32, maka kita akan menemukan sesuatu yang menarik: 31Maka kata-Nya kepada orang–orang Yahudi yang percaya kepadaNya, “Jikalau kamu tetap di dalam Firman-Ku kamu benar-benar adalah murid-Ku. 32 dan kamu akan mengetahui kebenaran dan kebenaran itu akan mememerdekakan kamu.” Yohanes menyebutkan bahwa Yesus mengatakan kata-kata ini kepada mereka yang percaya. Ini berarti bahwa Ia tidak mengatakan hal ini kepada mereka yang tidak percaya. Ironis bahwa mereka yang mengira mereka mengenal kebenaran, sebenarnya tidak mengenal kebenaran, dan alasannya sederhana, karena mereka tidak percaya dan tidak tetap di dalam pengajarannya dan dengan demikian mereka bukan murid-murid-Nya. Dalam kata lain, hanya murid-muridnya yang mengenal kebenaran.

Orang-orang akan memrotes dan bertanya: ”Jadi hanya orang Kristen yang tahu kebenaran?” Tentu tidak, jika kebenaran yang kita maksudkan mencakup semua penggalan-penggalan kebenaran yang dapat kita pegang. Dalam hal itu, kita harus lanjut dan berkata bahwa orang ateis pun tahu sebagian kebenaran. Jadi apa artinya bahwa mereka yang tidak percaya dan berpegang kepada firmanNya tidak mengetahui kebenaran? Kita kembali melihat kitab Yohanes ketika Yesus berdoa bagi murid-muridnya. “Kuduskanlah mereka dalam kebenaran” (Yohanes 17:17). Sangatlah menarik membaca kitab Yohanes, terutama jika kita memperhatikan permainan katanya. Pada pasal pertama, Yohanes mengidentifikasikan Yesus Kristus sebagai Firman . Yesus sendiri menegaskan bahwa Dia adalah jalan, kebenaran dan hidup” (Yohanwa 14:6). Jadi, jika kita mencoba menyimpulkan arti kebenaran sebagai mana dipahami dalam kitab Yohanes, maka kita harus menemukan bahwa firman Tuhan adalah kebenaran, pengajaran Yesus adalah kebenaran, dan dengan demikian pengajaran Yesus adalah Firman Tuhan, dan lebih dari itu Yesus adalah Firman dan Ia adalah kebenaran. Dan “kebenaran akan memerdekakan kamu” (Yohanes 8:32).

Orang-orang ateis mungkin mengetahui sebagian kebenaran, tetapi kebenaran itu tidak dapat memerdekakan mereka. Hanya kebenaran di dalam Kristus Yesus lah yang dapat memerdekakan orang, karena kebenaran di dalam Kristus adalah Firman itu sendiri, dan Firman yang menjadi manusia adalah Penebus dunia. Orang ateis, orang yang tidak percaya, kemungkinan mengetahui sebagian kebenaran, namun mereka tidak mengetahui kebenaran yang khusus ini, satu-satunya kebenaran yang membawa kepada hidup yang kekal, satu-satunya kebenaran yang mematahkan belenggu dosa dan memerdekakan manusia dari perbudakan. Syarat untuk mengetahui kebenaran ini sebenarnya sangat sederhana, sehingga kita hanya perlu melakukan satu pekerjaan: ”Pekerjaan Allah adalah ini: percaya kepada Dia yang telah diutus Allah” (Yohanes 6:29). Untuk mengenal kebenaran yang dapat memerdekakan kita, kita hanya perlu percaya dan tinggal dalam pengajaran Yesus.

Inilah fungsi pendidikan Kristen. Pendidik-pendidik Kristen dipanggil untuk memberitakan kebenaran, mengajarkan kebenaran kepada dunia, dan mereka yang percaya dan tinggal dalam pengajaran tersebut akan dimerdekakan. Semua kebenaran adalah kebenaran Allah. Ini merupakan tugas para pendidik Kristen untuk mengintegrasi penggalan-penggalan kebenaran menjadi keseluruhan yang terintegrasi dalam Kristus Yesus. Orang-orang dari seluruh dunia tidak dapat berhenti mengejar kebenaran. Kita dilahirkan untuk lapar dan haus akan kebenaran. Tak ada filosofi, tak ada agama, dan tak ada suatu apa pun di dalam dunia ini yang dapat memungkiri kebutuhan kita akan kebenaran. Hal ini disebabkan oleh natur kita yang Imago Dei sehingga kita tidak dapat lari dari pencarian kita akan kebenaran. Bagaimanapun juga, kita diciptakan menurut gambar Allah, yaitu Yesus Kristus. Dan ketahuilah bahwa Yesus Kristus adalah KEBENARAN.

Alihbahasa:
STL

The Business of Christian Education IV: Passing On the Ministry of Heaven and Earth

2009-04-06T23:52:00.001-07:00

One of the most crucial discussions in leadership is regeneration. Some works are not meant to be finished in one generation. In fact, many important works cannot be completed in one’s era. People hand on important works from one generation to the next, hoping for improvement and completion. The ministry of heaven and earth is the most important work in the universe, and it will only be finished when Jesus Christ comes the second time. Nearing his death, Paul passed on this ministry of heaven and earth to young Timothy and instructed him: “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Timothy 2:2).

Paul deliberately connects the idea of regeneration with education. This recalls Jesus’ commission: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20). Therefore, one of the focuses of Christian Education is regeneration. And since humans naturally grow, and our growth depends on the kind of education we undergo, thus if we are to prepare the next generation to receive the baton we received from our ancestors, the preparation must aim at teaching the next generation all there is they need to know and master in order to properly handle the baton they are about to receive.

Paul charged Timothy to pass on the ministry to trustworthy people. Paul wanted to make sure that the secret of heaven and earth he unveiled to Timothy will fall to the right hands. It was necessary for Timothy to find people who could be trusted with the secret. Why? Because the secret is for the ministry in the Kingdom of Heaven. Because whoever is entrusted with the secret of the Kingdom are among what Peter calls as “a royal priesthood” (1 Peter 2:9). In other words, the secret is to be entrusted to those who will also work in the Kingdom as the royal nobles. This line of work cannot be passed on to untrustworthy people. Just like a king must not pass on his crown to a sloppy prince, Timothy must not pass on the secret and the ministry to those whom cannot be trusted.

Not only the secret and the ministry must be passed on exclusively to those who are trustworthy, but to those who also are qualified to teach others. Therefore, Paul’s instruction to Timothy contains two qualifications of the next bearer of the baton: trustworthy and able to teach. How in the world Timothy would ever find such people? The answer is simple. Just as our growth is determined by the education that we receive, so the secret of the answer rests with education. For the ministry of the heaven and earth, not any education can do it, but only Christian Education that possesses all the qualifications to produce trustworthy and able to teach people can.

In this context, Christian Education must teach Jesus’ disciples to teach. Teaching how to teach is the kind of subject educators tend to neglect. In education enterprise, many educators tend to assume that teaching is natural. Many of us believe that teachers are born not taught. The fact that many professors in the university are ignorant of the how of teaching does not have anything to do with whether they are born with the gift of teaching or not, but instead it has everything to do with whether they are ever taught how to teach. We even often assume that Teachers’ College students know how to teach and thus we do not teach them enough how to teach. Since Jesus’ commission is to make disciples and teach them everything He commands, then in light of Paul’s instruction to Timothy it is imperative for Christian Education to teach Christians how to teach.

Timothy followed Paul wholeheartedly. Paul taught Timothy to be trustworthy and to be able to teach. Paul taught Timothy the secret of heaven and earth. Paul taught Timothy the nature of the ministry he was about to pass on. Paul taught Timothy how to pass on the ministry of heaven and earth by way of teaching. All the what, the why, and the how of the ministry of heaven and earth are learned by Timothy through Paul. Then when Timothy was ready, Paul passed on the ministry to him to continue. This kind of ministry only ends when Jesus comes back. An education that claims itself to be Christian but does not strive to pass on the secret and the ministry of heaven and earth to the next generation is no Christian Education. An education that claims itself to be Christian but does not strive to produce trustworthy and able to teach people is no Christian education as well. Therefore, it is the business of Christian Education to continually pass on the ministry of heaven and earth to the next generation who are trustworthy and able to teach until the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Business of Christian Education Part III: Multiplying IMAGO DEI

2009-03-18T19:19:00.000-07:00

George Knight contends that the grand purpose of Christian Education is the restoration of God’s image. The Imago Dei that was first created in Adam and Eve was depraved when they fell. Since then the entire human race never lives apart from sin. In 2 Corinthians 5:19-20, Paul shows Christians that we all are given “the ministry of reconciliation” by God. There is no argument against this in the realm of the Kingdom of Heaven. The ministry of reconciliation as stated by Paul does not only deal with humans, but also with the entire creation. This overarching reconciliation, therefore, prompts us to revisit Genesis 1:26-28 where we found our being created in the Image of God.

Genesis 1:26 states clearly the purpose of humans being created as Imago Dei. Because our purpose is to “rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground,” God created us in His Image and thus endowed us with all the necessary means for accomplishing the stated purpose. Genesis 1:27 records that God created the Imago Dei according to the plan in verse 26. Genesis 1:28 God blessed the Imago Dei and commanded them to do exactly what they were made for.

In Genesis 1:28 there is a slight difference if compared with verse 26. In verse 28 God added His command “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it.” Or in other words, God ordered Adam and Eve to multiply the Image of God. This is not mentioned in the original plan in verse 26. This begs the question: “Why?” There are two clues that we will ponder a bit. First is Genesis 1:22, where God also commanded the animals to multiply and fill the earth. Thus perhaps to contain the animals, humans also need to increase in number. But why Adam and Eve alone couldn’t do it? Weren’t they created in the image of God himself? To answer this let us take a look at the second clue in Exodus 23:28-30 that says: “I will send the hornet ahead of you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites and Hittites out of your way. But I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you. Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land.” The second clue provides a clear understanding that multiplication is a necessity for fulfilling our duty to rule over this vast world. By nature humans do need to increase in number in order to rule.

Another question emerges, however, that if God’s order is clear for humans to multiply, then what about those that cannot bear children? Are they transgressing a direct order? Aren’t they punishable then for not being able to complete the order? Those that are not able to bear children would be guilty of a great sin then. We don’t need to panic. Our God provides us a way out. Didn’t Jesus himself have no children? Our great Master, Redeemer, Son of the Living God bore no children. And wasn’t he sinless? How, then, Jesus got a way with God’s command to multiply? The answer lies deeply in the meaning of multiplication and our state after the fall.

In our fallen-ness, humans don’t automatically multiply God’s image when they have children biologically. We are reproducing broken images every time we procreate since the Fall. This broken image is vulnerable to be formed in many different ways. God wants us to be Imago Dei. It is his grand plan and masterpiece. Our own broken image will be passed on to the next generation, and thus definitely we are not following God’s original plan. Even more horrifying if the image we are multiplying is the image of Satan (cf. John 8:44). The key of God’s command in Genesis 1:28 is that we multiply Imago Dei and not any other images.

In our sinful condition, we are still charged with the same command given to Adam and Eve. So whoever we are, can bear children or not, our charge is to multiply God’s image. For those that can bear children biologically, they are not off the hook regarding God’s charge to multiply. They are to educate their biological children in such a way that their children will grow in the image and likeness of God and not the likeness of the world or the devil. For those that have no children biologically, they are also charged with the same command, and thus they can have no biological children but produce Imago Dei. When the childless people multiply God’s image in the lives of children not their own, they are blessed, much more than those who have children biologically but fail to multiply God’s image in the lives of their own children.

Jesus, although he had no biological children but he did not sin, since he obeyed God’s command to multiply by multiplying the True Image of God. All of us who are called Christians, or the followers of Christ, or the people of God, or the children of God, are in a sense Jesus’ offspring. We are the result of Jesus obeying God’s command to multiply Imago Dei. In the same way, we are also charged to multiply the same Imago Dei. This charge is seriously highlighted in the business of Christian Education. Multiplying Imago Dei is a must in Christian Education. Christian Education is the only education that bears the responsibility to multiply Imago Dei. Conscious or not, we all are multiplying images, but whose image is the big question. We are, by nature, created with the ability to multiply. But we need to be aware as whose image we are passing on to the next generation, to our children, to those entrusted to us. God’s charge remains, that we are to multiply Imago Dei, and fill the earth with Imago Dei, and subdue the earth according to the nature of the Imago Dei, for the glory of God, who is the Original and the true owner of the world.

The Business of Christian Education Part Deux: The Secret of Heaven and Earth

2009-03-03T00:38:00.000-08:00

Whenever we talk about education, we will always deal with secrets. As parents to their children, as teachers to their students, as mentors to their disciples, we unfold the mystery that otherwise remains hidden from the learners. The business of education is very serious. Those holding the position as teachers or those functioning as teachers are in the business of passing on the secret of the universe to the next generation. If there are no teachers, the secret might be lost, and people will need to reinvent the wheel. Education is too serious to be neglected. Handing down the secret of the universe to the next generation is a huge deal. In Christian education, we don’t just pass on the secret of the universe to the next generation, but also the secret of heaven. That makes the business of Christian education very honorable indeed.

The secret of heaven and earth is revealed by God. God opens up the secret of the universe through the so called general revelation, and the secret of heaven through his special revelation. Interestingly, the secret of heaven and earth is only revealed to humans and none to other creatures. This privilege has something to do with our status as the crown of creation, for we are created in God’s image and likeness. Since the beginning humans are created to have the capacity to understand the revealed secret of heaven and earth. Through the means of education, humans pass on their knowledge of the secret to their descendents, and it has been like that forever. Because of the drive to know the secret that research is considered extremely important in the realm of education. Once the secret is known, it will be handed down to the next generation by way of education.

In light of our fallenness, we don’t always perceive the truth as it should be. Our knowledge is marred by sin. Thus the thirst for the true knowledge remains. Humans try to uncover secret after secret since the beginning of time. But it is up to God whether he will open it up to humans. Thus apart from God nobody can truly know. Consequently, what we think as the unfolded secret of heaven and earth might not be the truth. Yet we pass it on to our children and impose upon them such knowledge that possibly is not true. Humans are aware of the flaw and thus strive to guard the leak of the false knowledge to be passed on to the next generation. This makes the business of education even harder, because now it is not merely passing on the secret but also preventing the flood of false knowledge to the next generation.

Determining which one is false and which one is true obviously is not as easy as it sounds. Humans need standard to measure the newly uncovered secret whether it belongs to the true knowledge fort or not. As elaborated in the previous discussion about the business of Christian education, we have known that the standard of truth is Christ himself, for he is the truth. Therefore it is imperative for humans to seriously consider bringing Christ in the equation whenever we engage in an endeavor to search true knowledge. Not many would readily agree to what I’m proposing here, however I cannot and will not deny my Lord just because He is not found to be attractive by many scholars.

The passing on of the secret of heaven and earth is commanded by God in the Bible (cf. Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Matthew 28:18-20). The owner of the secret is God himself. Therefore, as an educator myself, I tremble before the Lord every time I present the secret of heaven and earth to whoever God entrusts to me as my disciples, whether in my capacity as a teacher or in my teaching function. Passing on the secret to the next generation is both an honoring and humbling experience. I know that the secret is God’s and thus I cannot present it like it belongs to me. Secondly, I cannot claim what is not true as true, for then I would represent his truth falsely.

For all who consider themselves educators, I urge you to carefully examine yourselves before presenting and passing on the secret of heaven and earth to your disciples. Teachers have in them a certain kind of power and authority and attributes that is endowed from heaven alone. When teachers speak, they speak with a certain kind of charisma that naturally should captivate the students. In this fallen world, such power can be abused and might result in misdirection. The business of Christian education is very serious that God said through James: “Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly” (James 3:1), or we might also want to take a look at what he said elsewhere “But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a large millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea” (Matthew 18:6). Should we not tremble when we get involved in the education enterprise? Should we not tremble when we hand down the secret of heaven and earth to the next generation?