Never Give Up... Go Near God!

1 Samuel 21:10-15

Our greatest weakness lies in giving up. The most certain way to succeed is always to try just one more time! ~ Thomas A. Edison.

  

Emmanuel, God with us, is a reality in the life of the disciples of Jesus. God is near His people. Israel was the chosen nation of God. The Ark of the Covenant, the Pillar of Fire, and the Pillar of Cloud were all signs God gave to His people revealing that He was near them. To the followers of Jesus today, the Holy Spirit dwells in us. But the enemy is also very near; he wants to destroy, kill and steal life from us.

Israel had many enemies: Babylon, Assyria, Egypt, Amorites...etc. But among them, the Philistines were their most formidable enemy. Many of Israel’s downfalls were caused by the Philistines. Most notable among the Judges was Samson. As a protector of Israel, he was a symbol that revealed that God was among His people. But he fell in the hands of Delilah, a Philistine harlot. There were 12 tribes of Israel but the tribe of Dan suddenly disappeared. Why? Philistine. Saul was the first king of Israel and he would perish in the hands of Philistine. In 135 AD, Emperor Hadrian would change the name of the region, Province of Judea to Province of Palestine. Palestine means the Land of Philistines! Hadrian must have known the history of Israel and its relationship with Philistine well.

David was known to have defeated Philistines. He even killed the Philistine champion Goliath. But in 1 Samuel 21, we find David in a strange predicament! 1 Samuel 21:10 And David rose and fled that day from Saul and went to Achish the king of Gath.

David runs to the Philistines in order to escape Saul’s murderous intentions. In the political world, this was a very shrewd decision. He ran to the enemy of the one who wanted to kill him. It’s pretty strategic and a politically savvy choice. But he immediately realized that he had made a wrong decision.

v. 11 | And the servants of Achish said to him, “Is not this David the king of the land? Did they not sing to one another of him in dances, ‘Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?”

The servants of Achish were saying, “Isn’t this David, the king of the land?” His enemies reminded him of his calling. They were calling David the king of the land, even though Saul was the king of Israel at the time. When David feared Saul and was running for his life, he had forgotten his calling to be the king of the land. But after hearing the servants of Achish, he began to remember Samuel’s anointing, knocking Goliath flat on his face, the people’s shout of victory... floods of memories washed over him. At that very moment, his calling was clarified and he realized his identity as the king of the land! For a brief moment, David had forgotten his identity. But once he realized who he was, he knew exactly what to do.

He had two choices: give up his calling as the king of the land or change his decision and run towards his calling.

Giving up is not an option for followers of Jesus. We must have a "whether I live or die, I will live for the Lord" attitude. It’s the only road to victory; otherwise we will fall for traps laid by the enemy. If you give up you will lose grip on the most exciting life and adventure custom made just for you. 

Instead of giving up, pray! When people want everything everyone else has, that’s not necessarily due to greed; it’s because they don’t know who they are. Once you know who you are, your needs and wants will be clarified. If you know who you are, a follower of Jesus, you will pray. That’s who we are. If Christians get together to pray, there is power. Where there is prayer, there is power of God. Prayer shows we rely on God!

Matthew 18:18 says that what we bind on earth will be bound in heaven. What an amazingly powerful verse. Jesus says that where two or three are gathered, there He is in the midst of them. If we pray each day, will God not answer us? I believe God is calling churches to pray in these last days. He is calling churches to fast and pray! Upper Room, our Friday night prayer, is just the beginning. I foresee a day when Christians will be so hungry and thirsty for Jesus, so longing for Jesus’ reign over our cities, followers of Jesus, that the disciples of Jesus will pray and fast for His presence. Don’t relinquish your prayer power! I feel it in my inner man, to fast and pray for a greater measure of God’s anointing over our church! Don’t settle for comfort. Disciple Church, I pray that fasting and prayer will be a lifestyle for all followers of Jesus.

Psalm 34:4-7 | 4 I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. 5 Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed. 6 This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. 7 The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. 

When we want to do the work of the Lord, ‘Philistines’ come as well. The greater the work you do for the Lord, the greater the number of enemies that will surround you! Don’t give up! Instead trust in the Lord, “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him and delivers them.” Remember victory belongs to those who trust and fear the Lord! Perhaps some of you are struggling at this moment. Run to the Lord. Get on your knees and earnestly seek His face! God will meet you for His promise is that when we go near Him, He will come near us! Blessings.

Let Us Go to the House of the Lord...

David steps into the biblical scene with honor and glory. How many people in the Bible have one of the greatest prophets personally visit them to anoint them and declare kingship? Not only that, soon after, David enters a battle scene and with a few stones he KO's Goliath and instantly becomes Israel’s super hero!

But God does not leave him to revel in his glory. God immediately guides him to a ‘wilderness’ experience where he must run for his life from a jealous and power hungry king named Saul. On the surface, Saul is a hindrance to David’s future; but if we go a layer deeper, we realize that God is the one who allows the difficulties and interruptions to exist in David’s life.

This is similar to our own experience. We have people in our life of whom we think, “I’d be happier if she/he were out of my life!” But if God had not allowed these people in our lives, they wouldn't be there. All circumstances exist in our life because God allows them. God allowed David to go through the wilderness experience. Why? Although part of the reason was to mature and groom him to become the next king, God also knew that no matter how difficult life may get, the victory belongs to Him. God was saying, "Trust me. I will take care of you. I will uphold you. I will swoop down to carry you! Victory belongs to Me! The final victory is always Mine!"

Have you heard of how eagles teach their babies to fly? Somewhere along the line the mama eagle decides it’s time for the baby eagle to learn how to fly. She takes the little eagle out of the nest and flies up as high as she can go. At this point, she drops the fledgling. The fledgling has never flown in his life. The ground is coming up, his heart is ready to burst, and he knows there is no way he is going to survive. But, the mama eagle is watching closely and at the last moment she swoops down and catches the baby eagle. The mama eagle then flies back up and lets go again. She does this until he learns to fly.

The Bible says that God bore the Israelites on eagles' wings. When they had no water or food, He swooped down and provided it for them. When Moses faced the Red Sea, God swooped down and parted it. When the walls were falling down in Jericho, God swooped down and saved Rahab and her family. When you were wandering lost in life, He swooped down and saved you through Jesus. God always leads His people to victory!

In 1 Samuel 20, David is separated from his best friend Jonathan. David realized Saul’s intentions to kill him. So David ran. But in reality, where could he have run?  When your king is searching for you, there aren't many places to run. Chapter 21 tells us he ran to Nob, where the temple of God and Ahimelek the priest were. 

This is an interesting fact because most people instinctively run to their hometown. Detectives say that when people are chased by the law, they eventually end up in their hometown [home], which is where most criminals are caught. So we could expect David to run to his hometown, Judah; but instead he ran to the temple of God. In one of the most difficult times of his life, David sought to run to the temple of God or in our days, the church. He ran to the church. It’s as if David’s spiritual hometown was the church!

People often say I want to be like David. Then learn this, David loved the church! And when life got tough, he always found himself in the church.

Psalm 122 gives us a glimpse into David’s perspective of the church. David writes this song in praising the city of Jerusalem, where the temple of God stands. 

v.1 | I rejoiced with those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.”

David says he rejoices with those who ask him to go to the house of the Lord. It’s like one of your friends asked you to come to Disciple Church and you rejoice because this is the house of the Lord. We can flip this and say, he enjoyed asking people to come to the church for it is the house of the Lord! I pray that is the case with us as well. May you rejoice in coming and serving and loving Disciple Church! May you rejoice in asking people around you to join you in the House of the Lord!

v.6-7 | Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May those who love you be secure. May there be peace within your walls and security within your citadels.”

David says to pray for peace... the church is the center of God’s grace and peace. 

When I was a young believer, I went to the church to pray in the morning before school. And on the way home, though it was out of the way, I would stop by the church to pray. I prayed all night at the church with my brother and friends. I prayed with my mom at the church. 

I remember as a college student, our church was renting a building. One night, due to some misunderstanding, the owner of the building came to our worship service and drove us out of the building. Our college group went to my friend's church and we cried together to the Lord, “Give us a place to worship freely.” Through difficulty we learned the preciousness of church. When David faced hard times, he ran to the church. May we become like him. May we love the church. May our church become your solace, place of comfort, place to meet Jesus, place of shalom, and place of joy! May we rejoice in asking people to come to the Disciple Church for this is the house of the Lord! And may we enjoy calling our friends in Disciple Church to come to the church for this is the house of the Lord, where His presence is. May we all become lovers of God’s church, the bride of Christ. Blessings!

Grace Leads to Victory...

When we read the Bible, we realize God enjoys and desires what is first. He desires the first born. He desires the first fruit. The first, the best is offered to the Lord. As I reflect upon our New Year's Eve worship, I am glad we gave our first hour, our first moment in 2013 to the Lord as we celebrated Him as His church!

Exodus 34:26 | Bring the best of the firstfruits of your soil to the house of the Lord your God.

Grace is the most fundamental understanding of Christian living. Grace leads to victory. What I realize as I walk with the Lord is that when we hold on to grace, victory comes in His time.

In the Bible, we find a woman name Leah. She had deficiencies. She had self image issues. The Bible says that her eyes were weak. She was not attractive. No man would turn their head to check her out. In comparison, her younger sister was feisty and was beautiful. Men whistled when she passed by. And Rachael was loved by Jacob, husband to both of the women. So to Leah, her sister Rachael was a life-long rival and an 'enemy'. And to a certain extent, it was a losing battle for her. But what we find is that when Leah holds on to grace, she finds victory in God! What did she do? How did she handle her situation?

1. Leah focused on what she had!

The Bible says that Leah was not loved by Jacob, her husband; and yet, she kept her role as a wife faithfully. She could have said, "I've had it with this man. I am done! He does not love me. I am leaving!" But she stayed and remained faithful; and God honored her. God gave her children as an expression of His approval of her faithfulness while Rachel was barren for a period of time. When you study the cultural understanding of the time, to not have a child, is to not have anything. So Rachel, who seemingly had everything: beauty, a man, love, etc; in fact, had nothing. 

We tend to focus on what we do not have. We tend to exaggerate our weaknesses. We harbor 'poor old me' attitude. But rather, let us hold on to the grace of God. Allow His grace to set a fire upon what you already have! Don't despair, rather stay faithful where you are and look forward to what God will do through you as you move and carve your future in 2013. Life is not about what I don't have or what I lack; but it's about what we do with what God has given us. 

2. Leah Prayed

Leah in her despair and desperation, found her solace in God through prayer. We find this in the way she names her children. Her first child was named, Reuben, which simply means 'a son'. Her faith is developing but not there yet. But the second son's name, Simeon, means "one who hears." Levi, her third child, means "attached!" This is the group by which God will receive glory as the Levites are the priestly tribe. But as we reach her fourth child, she names him Judah - "praise!" You can see the progressive development of her prayer as she continues to conceive. Leah relied on God. But Rachel relied on her looks and Jacob. In the 30th chapter of Genesis, Jacob gets extremely angry at Rachael when she asks of him only what God can do! Friends, prayer is simple! You don't have to make it complicated. Prayer shows on whom we rely upon! In 2013, the fundamental rock we must know and live by is God. It's not our skills. It's not our wealth or health! It's not even our availability! It's going to be God who will continue to fuel our lives to pursue His vision to make disciples of all nations to impact the world! It's God who will continue to lead us towards planting more churches like ours so that God's name may be honored and glorified throughout the Bay Area, and not just in Milpitas! When we rely on God, we can do in five minutes what we alone will not be able to do in 50 years! May 2013 be a year in which we rely on God for all things!

3. Leah was approved by God!

When we read the story of Leah in the book of Genesis, we can't help but to empathize with her. She lived in a house where she was not loved by her husband. She lived under the shadow of her sister's beauty! She did not have good image of herself. Yet when Leah sought God's grace, God recognized her! 

We are all desperate and hungry for recognition. We want recognition from people we respect. When we do not receive recognition from God, our lives often feels void. We often say, "Is this all there is to life?" 

In the end, it was Leah that the Lord approved as the wife of Jacob, not Rachel! Leah had six of Jacob's twelve children from her own womb. Her fourth child would begin the line of kings and ultimately bear Jesus Christ Himself. The Levites were the tribe who were given God Himself as their inheritance. 

Finally, we know that the approval came when Jacob sought to be buried in the cave of Machpelah! The  cave of Machpelah was where Abraham and Sarah, and Isaac and Rebecca were buried. If one was to be considered to be in the linage of Abraham, one needed to be buried in this cave. 

Genesis 49:29 | Then he gave them these instructions: “I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my fathers in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite, 30 the cave in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre in Canaan, which Abraham bought along with the field as a burial place from Ephron the Hittite. 31 There Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried, there Isaac and his wife Rebekah were buried, and there I buried Leah. 32 The field and the cave in it were bought from the Hittites.

Jacob loved Rachael, but it was Leah God approved as his wife! At the end, even Jocob himself saw Leah as his wife. How are we going to receive and live in 2013? Let us hold on to one of the most fundamental realities in following Christ, grace! When we hold on to grace, even when our circumstances seem desperate, God will lead us to victory! My prayer and hope is that as we continue to pursue Jesus through Disciple Church, we will worship fervently because of grace; we would seek discipleship to follow Jesus fervently because of grace and we would seek the movement of the Holy Spirit in and through us fervently because of His grace! May we return to fundamental grace as we grow and build the church of Jesus - Disciple Church!

Pelican Story

Pelicans are amazing birds. Recently, I read a story about a female pelican. Momma pelican used her pouched beak, not only to catch food, but to store food for its chick for the cold winter when food is scarce. If the food runs out before the winter is over, momma pelican will tear its chest muscles to feed its chick. If a baby chick is sick, momma pelican will tear its own veins in order to feed its blood to its sick baby. Momma pelican literally kills herself in order to save her chick. What an amazing bird!

With this story, I am reminded of our own mothers and their sacrificial love.  A mother’s love gives without wanting anything back. A mom will not get jealous because her child is famous or prosperous. A mom will not get hurt because her child is becoming a "somebody." In fact that is her prayer, that her child will be respected and loved by many. If something is good for her child, she’ll give up her life a hundred times over without a blink of an eye. A mother's joy is to see her child prosper. A mom’s regret is not that she has given, but that she hasn't given enough! Who can resist respecting and bowing to an aging mom?

I guess a question can be asked at this point. Will a mom give up her life for her neighbor’s child? How about her enemy’s child? How about her enemy? Will she give up her child to save her enemy? The answer is obvious. Human love has its limitations. 

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 | If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

The Bible says that God gave us His Son for us while we were His enemies. While we were sinners, Christ died for us! This is the ultimate demonstration of God’s love for us.  What an amazing God we worship. God, indeed, is love!

The Bible says that the world will know that we are Jesus’ disciples by our love! Not by might, power, nor elegant speeches, but by love! Our love for God is expressed through loving our neighbors. Someone who says, “I love God, but I hate Christians” does not know what love is. Someone who says, “I love Jesus, but not the church” does not know what he or she is talking about. Jesus says that ultimately His followers will be known by the way they love! Are you a disciple of Jesus? Then let us love!

Let us love one another friends. May our neighbors know that the Disciple Church loves God, loves each other and loves them. Our prayer is that all who come to our church will feel the love of God through us! Do you see someone today who is new? The way to show love is to introduce yourself and make that person feel like a VIP! Show her around. Let her feel at home. She is not here by accident. God led her here! Do you see anyone who left our church but has come back? The way we show love is by embracing him back to the community by expressing our joy of having him back in our fellowship. Do you see anyone who should be here but is not? The way we show love is to call her to see if she is okay and invite her to the fellowship!

Friends, love is not taught as much as it is caught. Love is a verb, shown through life.

May the love of Jesus that was declared so loudly upon the cross, ring loudly and clearly through you as we lay the foundation of Disciple Church! Let us love one another, and by this love, show the world that we are Jesus’ disciples! Jesus loved us to death and He died for us. May we love His church to death, and give up our time for her!

Matthew 25:40 | ...‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’