Tag Archives: death

mmmm 1 corinthians 1 mmmm

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Mmmm Fresh Chinese Tofu at Yumcha Mmmm

In Australia, we have amazing, authentic Asian food!

But that’s not the only food that is mouth-watering.

At Bible College this semester, I’m eating the delicious New Testament.

18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing,
but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
19 For it is written: ‘I will destroy the wisdom of the wise;
the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.’
20 Where is the wise man? Where is the scholar? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?
21 For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe.
22 Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom,
23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling-block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles…

1 Corinthians 1:18-23

We have started learning about the 1st letter to the Corinthians in class.

Corinth was an important trading centre in Ancient Greece.

Greek culture was focussed on philosophy, education and knowledge.

Paul wrote to the newly established church about the gospel of Jesus.

Jesus died on a cross so that his followers could be saved from eternal death.

Christians cannot save themselves but rely solely on Jesus.

No one can earn their way to heaven by being good – it’s impossible.

Instead Jesus is the only way to heaven and eternal life.

This concept seemed crazy to Greeks in Corinth.

They preferred human wisdom and human philosophy.

But all their accumulated knowledge did not prevent them from dying.

Fast forward 2000 years to the modern age we live in now.

There have been incredible advances in science and technology.

Our educated society admires highly intelligent professors and doctors.

But they still haven’t found a cure for death.

Humans think they are so smart that they don’t need God in their lives.

In reality we are not in control of our lives and cannot predict when we will die.

The message of the cross and faith in Jesus seems foolish to modern scientists.

But even modern scientists are powerless in the face of death.

Christians rely on the power of God to save – this is true wisdom.

God’s wisdom gives hope and comfort in an unpredictable world.

Christians aren’t afraid of death because it is the doorway to eternal life.

Are you afraid of dying?

Will all your knowledge and education prevent death?

What will happen to you after you die?

mmmm Bible mmmm

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mmmm 1 samuel 8 mmmm

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Mmmm spicy Chinese beef with Italian Farfalle & Parmesan Mmmm

I love cooking Fusion Food that mixes my Asian heritage with Aussie flavours!

But that’s not the only food that is mouth-watering.

At Bible College, I’m eating mouthfuls of Old Testament this semester.

4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5 They said to him, ‘You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to leadus, such as all the other nations have.’ 6 But when they said, ‘Give us a king to lead us,’ this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord told him: ‘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.’

1 Samuel 8:4-7

The book of 1 Samuel talks about Israel’s first king.

The elders of Israel don’t want a repeat of the anarchy when Israel was led by Judges.

So they ask Samuel for a king just like the neighbouring nations have.

This idolatrous request is a slap in the face of God as we read in the verses above.

Israel has rejected God as their king.

In the rest of chapter 8, God warns that a king will enslave and tax them.

The elders refuse to listen to wisdom and stubbornly repeat their request for a king.

Like other parts of the Old Testament, God gives the Israelites over to their sinful desires.

God is still sovereign: He uses kingship as a mechanism to judge and bless Israel.

So what does this mean for us today?

Verse 7 above reminds me of the popular Gospel tool: 2 Ways To Live.

God created the whole universe and is rightfully king over all peoples on earth.

But all humans reject God as their king.

Instead, we appoint ourselves as “king” and try to rule our own lives without God.

But we fail to rule the world properly and control our own lives.

God will punish us for our rebellion with death and judgement.

God sent Jesus to die in our place and take God’s punishment that we deserve.

God raised Jesus to life as King of the Universe and He will return to judge all people.

So we now have 2 choices:

1. Accept Jesus as our king and rely on his death to pay for our rebellion.

2. Continue as “king” and suffer the consequences of our rebellion: death and judgement.

Which way do you choose to live your life?

mmmm Bible mmmm

mmmm revelation 21 mmmm

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Come for a delicious journey through God’s Word with a hungry Sydney Bible College student!

Do you hunger for something more filling than yumcha?

If so, read on ….

Revelation 21:1-4 (NIV 1984)

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

What do you look forward to?

I look forward to actually meeting God face-to-face and living with him in his city.

Imagine a place where there is no:

  • War
  • Death
  • Sickness, Cancer, Arthritis
  • Pain
  • Mourning & Crying

Our current earth is only a shadow of things to come and we are only passing through. This is not our permanent home. There is something better to look forward to.

The problems of this world only serve as a reminder not to place our hope in our own abilities.

We cannot fix man-made Climate Change. Our world is dying from pollution. We haven’t cared for our world properly and face major environmental problems – erosion, deforestation, salinity & land degradation.

There has always been conflict in some part of our world as peoples war against each other. Today it is Syria & Afghanistan. Yesterday it was Iraq, Lebanon, Vietnam, Korea, Germany. There have been mass-shootings in the USA and Norway in the last few years. Recently, an innocent woman was brutally raped and murdered while walking home, shocking the city of Melbourne in Australia.

It is obvious that as humans we fail to control our world and find a solution to our countless social problems. There is crime, domestic violence, divorce, depression, homelessness & unemployment. We try to escape our problems by turning to alcohol and drugs. But this is no solution.

Wouldn’t you feel cheated if this is all the world had to offer you?

Jesus conquered death and offers us life with him. There is hope beyond this world. Our old world and its problems will disappear. It will be replaced with a beautiful new world.

mmmm Bible mmmm