Luke 17-18

Bible Passage:  Luke 17-18

ast night Brother Kong spoke about seriously reflecting on our life of faith as we lead our lives as Christian.

And as I read today’s passage, I could not help but think that today’s passage reveals many areas in which we should really make an effort to consider where we stand.  Let me share with you some of the aspects of faith that I have to carefully examine once again.

Sin

We start off with a topic that many of us try to avoid talking about or dealing with… Sin.

Luke 17:1-4 starts off with a stern warning that we should be careful that we are not the reason or the cause for another borther of sister to sin.

Very often when I read these few verses, I do not think that it refers to me.  After all, I have not led anyone to commit sins or crimes of the 杀人放火 nature.  And everyone has to be responsible for their own actions right?

But upon more reflection, the words of Paul came to mind…

1 Cor 8:9

But beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak.

Paul was talking about eating food offered to idols.  But by the same extension, have I abused my freedom in Christ and have done things which misled brethren and have hence become a stumbling block to others?  Many a times, the more ‘active’ we are in church and holding more responsibilities, we do not realise that many of our speech, actions, conduct, opinions etc have become a stumbling block to others in their faith.

This is one big area I need to reflect upon now.

There is another warning concerning Sin in these few verses…. it is equally important to forgive someone who has sinned against you (Luke 17:3-4), especially when they come to seek your forgiveness in repentance.

I have a few friends who somehow always end up making me angry, frustrated and disappointed.  Despite forgiving him or her many times, the same olf problems keep on appearing again and again.  And each time, the ability to forgive gets harder and harder.

Maybe for some of you, you have the same kind of friends too.  And you do feel at times you want to give up and stop being their friend.  You cannot take it anymore and you feel hypocritical about your friendship.  I know how you feel, cause that is how I feel too.

But when I think of how I have sinned constantly against Jesus and yet He always forgives when I come back with my tail between my legs, seeking forgiveness once again, I cannot find any reason why I cannot do the same.  After all, if we want God to forgive us, we must forgive others.

And through it all, I always echo the words of the disciples… “Increase our faith!” (Luke 17:5)

Faith

We all know that faith is a key characteristic of a true disciple.  Where do I stand with respect to my faith now?

Luke 17:6-10 reminds me that faith and obedient service is of paramount importance.  But it is also of vital importance that we avoid getting ourselves into a bargaining position with God.  We should not think that just because we have faithfully done some work for God, we should be getting more to do or be promoted in what we do.

In fact, we should not have a reward mentality at all.  We serve God because of who He is, and because He is worth service.

It does not matter what we do or have done.  We must not be demanding or expect anything in return.  Service, obedience and duty are natural outgrowths of a true relationship with God and appreciation of His act of grace in saving us.

So another big area for me to think about is why and how do I practice my faith and Christian virtues?

I read about the rich young man who did everything right… except his faith in his actions was not matched by the faith in his heart.  Then I read about Zaccheus whose actions showed that his faith was from the heart – one whose trust is God and no longer mammon.

We need to recognize that everything we have is from Him.

Gratitude

The story of the 10 lepers (Luke 17:11-19) is also a good reminder for me.

We may often say, “Thank the Lord” or “感谢主” when we talk about someone about things that happen in our life.  But the thoughtless lack of response of the nine reminds me of how easy it is to take God’s grace of granted.

Zaccheus showed his true repentance by responding with gratitude.

We lament that we are neglected, friendless, graceless but the truth is, we have not taken the effort and time to delibrately reflect on what God has done for us – and to remember to thank Him.  And I am very sure if we did, we will never feel depressed or unhappy.  One more thing to learn!

Prayer

Luke 18:1-14 is a famous passage on prayer.  And we all know the stories and teachings so well.

The parables call for unrelenting prayers.  We are to pray ernestly for God’s justice and the salvation of the world.  But do we do so as a church?  Very often we do not do so… only coming together to pray for special occassions.

In Acts 4:23-31, the church was called to pray together to God to ask for the strength, ability and grace to be able to do what God had called them to do… even in the face of persecution.

And the tax collector and Pharisee shows a marked contrast – both in the verbal and body language of the two pray-ers.

The real danger of pride is that it blinds people to their true standing before God.  The prayer God hears is the call for mercy.  Those who exalt themselves will be humbled but the humble will be lifted up.

We need to reflect where we stand on prayer?

It is actually quite scary that when I started reflecting and asking myself, I find that I am far short of God’s standards in many areas.

May the Lord God help us in our walk of faith.

Shabbath Shalom!