PENTECOST • 22

What’s So Amazing About Grace?

SONGS FOR PRAYER

SET PRAYER

In your Son you seek out and save the lost, O God,

and invite us to the banquet of your eternal home.

Visit your people with the joy of salvation

that we may rejoice in the riches of your forgiveness

and reach out in welcome to share with others

the fest of your love.

Amen.

reading for: Tuesday Night, 25 October

Luke 19:1-10

Grace is Amazing because it is Saving

  • READ

    “He entered Jericho and was passing through. And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.’ So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully. And when they saw it, they all grumbled, ‘He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.’ And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, ‘Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.’”

    Each of the four gospel writers intentionally chose and arranged different stories in their gospel in order to highlight a particular picture of Jesus they like us to see. Some of the stories are similar and some are different. Today’s reading takes us to the story of Zacchaeus – a story that is unique to the gospel of Luke. Hence, as we read through Luke 19:1-10, it is helpful to consider the picture of Jesus that Luke is trying to draw through the story of Zacchaeus. Let’s look at the hints Luke left us.

    First, Luke tells us that Zacchaeus is a chief tax collector and that he is rich. In other words, Zacchaeus belongs to a cancelled group of people in Israel. We know that tax collectors were some of the most hated group of people in Israel. They were Jews by birth but chose to work for Rome and had made themselves rich by squeezing their own people dry. Hence, if Zacchaeus is a rich chief tax collector, he must have been greatly despised. 

    Second, Zacchaeus is seeking Jesus. He wants to see him and is keen to learn more about him. However, his sight is hindered by his height. Due to his height, Zacchaeus’ view is blocked by the crowd. He wants to see but is not able to see. But that did not stop him. He resolved to climb up a tree to see Jesus. God is at work in the life of a crooked and undeserving rich chief tax collector who is going the distance to meet Jesus.

    Third, when Jesus finally arrives, he calls Zacchaeus by name and declares that he is staying over at his place. It is easy to miss the twist in the plot. Zacchaeus went looking for Jesus only to realize that Jesus came looking for him. And not only is Jesus looking for Zacchaeus, he knows and calls him by name.

    Fourth, we read that Zacchaeus joyfully receives Jesus into his home and confesses his wrongdoing while the crowd protests against Jesus’ choice of company. Over dinner, Zacchaeus comes before Jesus in repentance and promises to make amends for his sin.

    Lastly, Jesus declares that salvation has come and reiterates his mission to seek and to save the lost. The story ends on a high note – Zacchaeus who was once lost has now been found!

  • REFLECT

    Zacchaeus is a traitor who got rich by betraying his own people. Think about the men in World War II who secured their own lives by selling out their own countryman to the Japanese. That’s how the Jews felt about the tax collectors who secured their own livelihood by selling out their own countryman.

    Nonetheless, such is the scandal of grace and the picture of Jesus we see in this story. This story demonstrates the grace of God and that nothing is impossible with him. The rich can be saved. The crooked can be straightened. The small can be seen. The lost can be found. The sinner can be forgiven. The incorrigible can be redeemed.

    No one is too far to be reached. If you’re feeling lost and distant, take a step towards God (if it means climbing a tree, let it be so) and he will make up for the distance that you’re unable to cover on your own. If you have been praying for someone and feel like giving up because he/she seems to be beyond salvation, do not lose heart. God is able to save. And for the rest of us, may God give us a heart for the lost among us.

reading for: Wednesday Night, 26 October

Isaiah 1:10-18

Grace is Amazing because it is Splendid

  • READ

Isaiah is one of the longest serving prophet in the history of Israel. He prophesied for about 55 years during the time of the divided kingdom – Israel in the north and Judah in the south.

The general target audience that Isaiah is speaking to is Judah. By this time, the Northern kingdom had sinned greatly against God and the southern kingdom was headed in the same direction. They have been perverting justice, oppressing the poor, turning to idols and looking to pagan nations for help rather than God. Hence, the first 39 chapters of Isaiah carry the message of God’s judgment on Israel.

Isaiah 1:10-14

“Hear the word of the Lord,

    you rulers of Sodom!

Give ear to the teaching of our God,

    you people of Gomorrah!

‘What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices?

    says the Lord;

I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams

    and the fat of well-fed beasts;

I do not delight in the blood of bulls,

    or of lambs, or of goats.

When you come to appear before me,

    who has required of you

    this trampling of my courts?

Bring no more vain offerings;

    incense is an abomination to me.

New moon and Sabbath and the calling of convocations—

    I cannot endure iniquity and solemn assembly.

Your new moons and your appointed feasts

    my soul hates;

they have become a burden to me;

    I am weary of bearing them.’”

God begins by comparing Judah to Sodom and Gomorrah. If we recall, the city of Sodom and Gomorrah were completely destroyed and her inhabitants completely wiped out as a result of their wickedness. And now God is asserting that the people of Judah has fallen as low as the people of Sodom and Gomorrah, and therefore deserving of the same judgment.

The LORD then reveals his displeasure and the hypocrisy of Judah. The whole idea behind the sacrificial system was so that the people of God can be made clean and thus, able to live in the presence of God. The offerings and sacrifices are not it. Judah brought their offerings and sacrifices but not their hearts. In reality, their hearts were corrupt and unclean. Their lives were at odds with what God has instructed.

Hence, God rejects their worship and points out that he takes no delight in their offerings and sacrifices. An outward expression of worship without an inward reality of faith is useless to God. He is done with their hypocrisy and distorted form of godliness.

Isaiah 1:15-17

“When you spread out your hands,

    I will hide my eyes from you;

even though you make many prayers,

    I will not listen;

    your hands are full of blood.

 Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean;

    remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes;

cease to do evil,

     learn to do good;

seek justice,

    correct oppression;

bring justice to the fatherless,

    plead the widow's cause.”

In light of the many sins of Judah, God declares that he will no longer listen to the prayers of his people. Judah has failed in her responsibility as the people of God. Justice has not been sought. The vulnerable among them is not being protected. No amount of sacrifices and offerings can make up for their blood stained hands. Their worship is bankrupt and their heart is corrupt. God will not relent unless his people repents. God will not accept their prayer until they turn from their evil, and seek justice and do good.

Isaiah 1:18

 “‘Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord:

though your sins are like scarlet,

    they shall be as white as snow;

though they are red like crimson,

    they shall become like wool.’”

There is still hope. Despite the depth of corruption and length of evil that Judah has committed, God is prepared to forgive. God promises that though their “sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool”. The sins of the people can be removed. God will forgive and make them clean again. He will accept their worship and listen to their prayer. All that is required is genuine repentance and humble obedience.

  • REFLECT

    Ultimately, the purpose of the various judgments is to lead Judah to repentance. Judah was meant to bear the light of God in an ever darkening world. God desires his people to turn from their evil ways and to follow His way – to seek justice, love mercy and walk humbly before God.

    Tragically, we know that the people of God did not heed the warnings of Isaiah and God’s judgment came to pass. Israel was completely destroyed.

    As you read this passage today, take a moment to seriously examine your life. God takes no pleasure in empty worship and meaningless offerings. If our heart is corrupt and unclean, everything that we do is an eyesore to the Lord. Ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart and reveal areas where you have fallen short. Confess, repent and ask for forgiveness.

    All of us have to stand before God one day and account for how we have lived. And none of us wants to be found at the receiving end of God’s judgment and wrath. But grace is amazing. No matter how fallen we are, God is quick to forgive and to restore. Such is the grace that is available to us and we can receive it today.

reading for: Thursday Night, 27 October

2 Thessalonians 1:1-4, 11-12

Grace is Amazing because it is Sufficient

  • READ

    “Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy,

    To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

    Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

    The church in Thessalonica was established by Paul, Timothy and Silas in Paul’s second missionary journey (Acts 17:1-10). However, due to persecution, they had to leave. Hence, Paul, Timothy and Silas wrote letters to the church to continue the work they had begun.

    In the first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul offered words of comfort and encouragement. Less than a year later, Paul wrote the second letter from Corinth. In between the first and second letter, Paul had received good news that the church was growing in faith. However, he also received bad news that persecutions was escalating and false teachings about Christ’s return were spreading in the church.

    Many in the church were confused about the second coming of Christ and because of mounting persecution, they had concluded that the Day of the Lord must be imminent, and therefore, they interpreted Paul’s first letter to mean that the Second Coming would be at any moment. This misunderstanding caused many to persist in being idle and disorderly, hiding behind the excuse of waiting for Christ’s return.

    Hence, Paul wrote this letter to encourage the church to persevere despite the trials and tribulations that they are going through and to clear up the misconceptions associated with the second coming of Christ.

    2 Thessalonians 1:3-4

    “We ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore, we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring.”

    After beginning with a personal greeting and prayer for the church, Paul proceeds to give thanks. Instead of jumping straight into his main agenda – to combat and correct false teachings in the church, Paul took time to affirm and appreciate the Thessalonians.

    Paul’s heart is filled with thanksgiving and joy because their faith is flourishing and their love for one another is multiplying – in the midst of harsh persecutions and severe afflictions. What a testimony! Thus, he cannot help but mention them to the other churches. Paul regards the church in Thessalonica as an exemplary example of  faith, love and steadfastness that others should imitate. Paul is extremely proud of them.

    2 Thessalonians 1:11-12

    “To this end we always pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling and may fulfil every resolve for good and every work of faith by his power, so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ”

    After assuring the Thessalonians that their suffering is not in vain and God will one day set the record straight (vv5-10), Paul ends his introduction in prayer. In view of their unrelenting suffering, Paul prays for the church. He prays for their lives to be worthy of the Gospel and for each of them to become and fulfil all that God has intended for them to be and to do.

    And he ends his prayer by asking for grace and for the name of Jesus to be glorified through the witness of the church in Thessalonica.

  • REFLECT

    There are real challenges to overcome and problems to tackle in the church. False teachings will lead to false beliefs and false beliefs will lead to faulty behaviours. It is an important issue. And that is why Paul spends the rest of his letter confronting the issue.

    However, for our reading today, that is not the main concern. The main concern for us today is – how should believers respond to suffering? Today’s reading may be short but it nonetheless offers us a picture of a church that flourishes in the midst of suffering.

    Frankly, most of us will never experience the kind of persecutions and sufferings that the believers in Thessalonica did. We can only imagine how intense it was. That does not mean our sufferings are insignificant or that we should be dismissive about it. What it does mean is that we ought to learn from their exemplary example. How should the people of God approach suffering? The answer is – faith, love and steadfastness. And that the grace of God is sufficient for us to go through it.

    And just as Paul prayed for the church, we too must pray. We must pray for ourselves and for one another. We must pray that suffering will not diminish our light but rather, enliven it further. And yes, we are saved by grace but that’s not the end of it. Not only does grace saves, it empowers us to endure persecutions and sufferings.

    Today, let us pause to pray. Pray for those who are suffering and who are going through a difficult time. If you yourself are going through it, ask for grace to see through another day. His grace is truly sufficient. And remember that our Lord is coming back again. That is the ultimate hope in the midst of suffering.

    For the rest of us who are in good times, are our lives prayer-full or prayer-less? A prayerless life is a powerless life. Let’s seek to grow in prayer and move together with God into 2023. Let’s seek to be heavenly-minded that we may be of much earthly good.

reading for: Friday Night, 28 October

Psalm 32: 1-7

Grace is Amazing because it is Secure

  • READ

    “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven,

        whose sin is covered.

    Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity,

        and in whose spirit there is no deceit.

    For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away

        through my groaning all day long.

    For day and night your hand was heavy upon me;

        my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. Selah

    I acknowledged my sin to you,

        and I did not cover my iniquity;

    I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”

        and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah

    Therefore let everyone who is godly

        offer prayer to you at a time when you may be found;

    surely in the rush of great waters,

        they shall not reach him.

    You are a hiding place for me;

        you preserve me from trouble;

        you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah”

    Psalm of repentance, thanksgiving, confession. David expressed the joy of forgiveness. He forgives disobedience, puts sin out of sight, and clears our record of guilt.

  • REFLECT

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