Bible Reading: A prophet who sees eight visions

The Bible is God’s Book. Genesis tells us God began our history. Revelation tells us God wins. We also find ourselves becoming major characters in God’s development of this history book and His plan for lives on this earth. It is therefore important to read this Book and find out what God has planned for us.
THE BOOK OF ZECHARIAH  Author:  1:1 the Prophet Zechariah. Date of Writing: between 520 and 470 B.C.
Purpose of Writing: God has used His prophet to teach, warn and correct His people, also showing glimpses of God's future glorious plan.
Key Problems: Refusal to listen to the Holy Spirit through the prophets; disobedience to God's word resulted open doors to spiritual attacks- manifestations of  evil conducts and hardships: economic failure, physical enemies' threats, moral breakdowns,breakdown of social-economic, political, legal and religious system. 

Big Picture: The people of God did not know God or the word of God. They departed from the plumb line of God and tried to meet their needs by swinging to either sides of the plumb line: Rejection (due to unbelief) or Rebellion (due to pride), becoming victims or the criminals. 
Result of Refusal to listen to the Holy Spirit
7:5-6 "Say to all your people and your priests, "During these seventy years of exile, when you fasted and mourned in the summer and in early autumn, was it really for Me that you were fasting? And even now in your holy festivals, aren't you eating and drinking just to please yourselves?" 12 "They made their hearts as hard as stone, so they could not hear the messages the Lord sent by His Spirit through the earlier prophets." 7:13, "'When I called, they did not listen; so when they called, I would not listen,' says the LORD Almighty." 14 "They turned their land into a desert."

SOLUTIONS OFFERED BY GOD for their immediate problems:

(1) A Call to Return to the Lord: establish right relationship with God (rebuild the Temple and right worship)

Zechariah 8:10 " Before the work on the Temple began, there were no jobs and no money to hire people or animals. No traveler was safe from the enemy, for there were enemies on all sides. I had turned everyone against each other." 11 "But now I will not treat the remnant of My people as I treated them before" 12 "For I am planting seeds of peace and prosperity among you."
Zechariah 1:3, "Therefore tell the people: This is what the LORD Almighty says: 'Return to me,' declares the LORD Almighty, 'and I will return to you,' says the LORD Almighty." 1:4 "Turn from your evil ways and stop all your evil practices." 1:6, "But everything I said through My servants the prophets happened to your ancestors, just as I said." 2:6 "The Lord says, Come away! Flee from Babylon..."

(2) A Call for Justice and Mercy: establish right relationship with each other

7:9-10 "Judge fairly, and show mercy and kindness to one another. Do not oppress widows, orphans, foreigners, and the poor. And do not scheme against each other. "
9:16-17 "But this is what you must do: tell the truth to each other. Render verdicts in your courts that are just and that lead to peace. Don't scheme against each other. Stop your love of telling lies that you swear are the truth. I hate all these things, says the Lord."

(3) God promised that this can be achieved by the Holy Spirit (they must be led by the Spirit and not by flesh)

4:6 "This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by My Spirit, says the Lord Almighty.
4:10 "Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel's hand."
8:6 "All this may seem impossible to you now, a small remnant of God's people. But is it impossible for Me? says the Lord God Almighty. "
10:12 "By My power I will make My people strong, and by My authority they will go wherever they wish. I, the Lord, have spoken."

Management pearls for Christians according to Jack

Background
Jack has been practicing management since 1970s. He has been through many facets of various management fields. To him, management is like a part of life and indeed encompasses many daily living aspects whether one knows it or not.
After his career as a corporate employee he has branched into training and coaching others (business owners and employees). He also did postgraduate studies in health (physical, emotional and mental) and social behavioral management. All this while, he has been active in church (organizational and spiritual) and other similar non-profit organization management counseling as well. Due to the nature of his job, he has had numerous encounters with public sector management/administration practices.
He has now sensed an increasingly urgent need to put down some of his thoughts (in bullet form) on the management of life in view of such a lot of management messes out there even for Christians. 

 Management according to Jack (part one)
1. Management is part of daily living. You can live on comfortably by managing effectively.
2. You manage effectively by identifying values, setting goals and priorities, and act on them accordingly.
3. The most important thing is to identify your values. If tomorrow is end day what would be the one thing you do today? Give top priority to do that one thing.
4. Focus your resources on doing the one thing that guarantees to bring you to your goals.
5.  Do not manage by documentation or theory. Manage by practice (e.g. act on your faith, be doers of the Word, walk by the Spirit.)
6. Manage lives (people) and not dead things (system).
7. Admit that there is no perfect plan or program or man (woman). There is only one perfect Savior (God).
8.  Build on solid foundation. Who is your foundation (your real Rock)?(Don't be like the foolish man who built on sand).
9. Use one management manual that lasts, the Word of God.
10. Be accountable (to yourself, family, human authorities, and the ultimate Authority in heaven).

Chapter Seventy-Three: The Holy Spirit cries out, “What I do have I give you: in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”

After much soul searching and praying about finances and whether to invest further in a particular stock, Jack heard clearly the verse from Acts 3:6. The Apostle Peter told a beggar, “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.” He immediately read the chapter about this revelation. It was indeed amazing how the beggar, a grown man, who had been lame from his mother’s womb received strength in his feet and ankle bones immediately, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with the Apostles, walking, leaping and praising God!
The man had never walked or worked all his life. He depended on others to lay daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple. Suddenly he could stand up, walk and leap! How he must have rehearsed these movements in his heart as he watched others since he was a toddler with helplessness and despair, knowing that he would never be able to experience the freedom others had!
After reading aloud and pondering on this verse, Jack was led to hear a message from Malachi 4:2, wherein the Lord proclaimed, “But to you who fear/revere My name, the Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healings in His wings; and you will go out and leap like the claves released from the stall.”
A stall is an enclosed small area set off by walls for special use. We all have stalls in our mind, called mind-set. One mind-set is unbelief.
Even Christians have such mind-set. But the Lord promises that those who revere His name (the name of Jesus Christ of Nazereth) will be set free from such bondages and oppressions. They will see the Sun of Righteousness arising with healings on His wings. They will go out and leap like calves released from the stall!
Jack knows his own mind-set. He repents and faith arises in his heart. He sees the greatness in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazereth. He believes the power of that name. The Bible clearly says that there are no other names but that name by which anyone can be saved (healed, delivered, blessed and prospered in all aspects: spirit, soul and body). How dull and foolish his heart had been in thinking that that one name was only powerful in one area and not in all others. He repents deeply.
What happened to that investment? Jack made a decision based on his fresh mind-set. He has made a commitment not to use the Lord’s name in vain. He has determined in his heart to use the Lord’s name with belief. It was wonderful and liberating.
Life suddenly brightens up and his heart leaps like calves released from the stall, under the bright light of the Sun of Righteousness!
Acts 3:16 “By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see.”
Thank you, Holy Spirit!

Chapter Seventy: Prosper through The Seed (Word of God) and Water from Heaven (the Holy Spirit)

One day Jack was strongly urged in the spirit to do a search on all the verses about the rich provision of God. What was revealed has transformed his whole perspective about the blessings of God. He discovered that indeed God has supplied seeds and ensure material security and provision growth for all God’s children.
He is overjoyed to see how God provides the seeds for the sowers and food for them as well. The Lord supplies the resources he needs, ensures the right circumstances and environments and produces the abundant end results / fruits and profits of his labor/investment.
However, there is one crucial key: the whole operation process requires the pouring of the Holy Spirit! It is all about the Holy Spirit bringing forth the blessings (as covenanted with Abraham and re-validated by Jesus) and making them materialized. The word of God is the seed and the Holy Spirit is the water.
Isaiah 32:15 “Until the Holy Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is counted as a forest.”
Isaiah 32:20 How blessed you will be, sowing your seed by every stream. (The word of God and the Holy Spirit go hand in hand!)
Deut 32:2 Let my teaching fall like rain and  my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plant.
Those who believe will be richly and abundantly blessed by these verses!
Isaiah 30:23-26 God will provide rain for the seeds you sow. The grain that grows will be abundant. Your cattle will range far and wide. Oblivious to war and earthquake, the oxen and donkeys you use for hauling and plowing will be fed well near running brooks that flow freely from mountains and hills. Better yet, on the Day God heals his people of the wounds and bruises from the time of punishment, moonlight will flare into sunlight, and sunlight, like a whole week of sunshine at once, will flood the land.
Isaiah 55:10-11
10 “ For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven,
And do not return there,
But water the earth,
And make it bring forth and bud,
That it may give seed to the sower
And bread to the eater,”
11 “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
It shall not return to Me void,
But it shall accomplish what I please,
And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”
Psalm 65:9-13
9 You visit the earth and cause it to overflow;
You greatly enrich it;
The stream of God is full of water;
You prepare their grain, for thus You prepare the earth.
10 You water its furrows abundantly,
You settle its ridges,
You soften it with showers,
You bless its growth.
11 You have crowned the year with Your bounty,
And Your paths drip with fatness.
12 The pastures of the wilderness drip,
And the hills gird themselves with rejoicing.
13 The meadows are clothed with flocks
And the valleys are covered with grain;
They shout for joy, yes, they sing.
Psalm 104:13-14
13 He waters the hills from His upper chambers;
The earth is satisfied with the fruit of Your works.
14 He causes the grass to grow for the cattle,
And vegetation for the service of man,
That he may bring forth food from the earth.
Psalm 72:6 He will be like rain falling on a mown field, like showers watering the earth. In his days the righteous will flourish; prosperity will abound till the moon is no more.
Psalm 72:16 Let grain abound throughout the land; on the tops of the hills may it sway. Let its fruit flourish like Lebanon; let it thrive like the grass of the field.
Psalm 144:13 Your barns will be filled with every kind of provision.
Psalm 147:14 He grants peace to your borders and satisfies you with the finest of wheat.

Power from heaven for financial freedom (1)

Introduction

Why do I agree to give a talk on finances? In this time of increasing global turmoil with intensive destructive forces at work, the hearts of people are being crushed under a greater sense of uncertainty and emptiness. Indeed, even a Christian feels lost at times. When I think of such big issue like life and death which hits upon every family and even every life without notice, my heart feels heavy and wordless.

The more I think of this subject of financial management, the more I realize it is not management practice that matters. What matters is the way we treat our lives. When people are dying like flies, or worse, what is the value of lives? Can a life be measured by monetary value? Why, indeed why do people who have gone through a great disaster choose to live on even when all their loved ones have died and all that they have established in life had vanished and there seems no foreseeable physical and emotional relief from their pains?

How does finance come in? Can money solve their problems? If so why did not money prevent such disasters? Why is there such great a disparity between the opulent rich and the poor living below poverty line? The matter is not management. It is value.

So I intend to talk about value when I talk about financial management.

The fact that you are reading this or listening to this talk means that you are not yet the opulent rich. This message is therefore for those who are still in want and still feel they lack.

When I asked my prayer partner what make people feel that they still lack, she thought that all should feel contented with what little they have (and have-not) and there is no such word as bare minimum. When I search my deepest soul, I realize that it is a matter of security craving. Different people look for different thing to fill their security vacuum. The thing may be love, friendship, companionship, sense of achievement, self-esteem, others’ respect and acceptance, physical comfort etc. Many think that a lot of these can be bought with money. That is why money becomes a prominent object of want.

The goal of a money talk is therefore to facilitate people to find ways to feel more secure.

So the focus of this talk should be on value.

What is your value in life? What is the life purpose of a Christian? An average Christian would know the answer easily. We live to glorify God, to fulfill God’s plan for us on earth. We believe that God has a good plan for each Christian. We believe He can help us to live and complete that plan. So why are we still lacking in security? Why do we still feel we lack?

When we see this life goal we realize that we are on a different track from the race track God has set for us. All those men and women of faith who had completed the race before us had run on another track, the track of faith. If we run on a wrong track we would never reach the same destination as they did. No amount of money and/or capable financial management could transfer us to that goal.

How do we know we are not on the right track? When we feel that we are in financial want.

How do we go back to the right track? Here are the seven steps: (7 Rs in brief)

1. Repent and renounce your past and present money mismanagement.

2. Be Reconciled with God in your value in life. A humble and contrite heart He will not overlook.

3. Renew your mind (not be conformed to the world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you know what the good, acceptable and perfect will of God is).

4. Review: review and assess your current damaged situations, the ruined walls -your assets and liabilities, and ask God for an effective plan to address them.

5. Rebuild: ask God for fresh strategies, supplies and support to rebuild your new financial security.

6. Restore: ask God to restore with seven folds what the enemy had stolen from you.

7. Reap the harvest of your financial management. Continue on the right track of faith, led by the Holy Spirit.

There are three absolute conditions for successful implementation of the above steps:

1. You must be led by the Holy Spirit.

2. You must have faith.

3. You must focus on the author and finisher of faith: Jesus Christ Himself.

How to be led by the Holy Spirit?

Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you answers to the above seven steps.

Spend time in the presence of God. Worship Him in Spirit and in truth. Read His words. Wait for Him to speak to you (through His words, dreams and visions). In quietness and stillness wait upon Him. Attend prayer meetings where there is a strong presence of the Holy Spirit and consistent focus on Jesus and the love and grace of God. Have Holy Communion with other Christians with clear focus on Jesus (His shed blood and broken body on the cross and what they mean). Attend church where only the words of God (the full Gospel of Jesus Christ) are being preached (not man’s words or man’s philosophy). Attend church where the Gospel messages are being followed by signs and wonders (healing, deliverance and transformed lives).

Practice living the words of God and take a step of faith in the Spirit (practicing the gifts of the Holy Spirit; practice praying in the Spirit, speaking in tongues). Do not doubt or let the sin of unbelief cripple your spirit. Never grief the Holy Spirit by denying His power in you.

Only the Holy Spirit can convict us of sins, of self-righteousness and of judgment. Only the Holy Spirit can transform and renew our minds and reveal God’s will to us. Only the Holy Spirit can make and do all things (working together for our good). He is the sanctifier and edifier. He is the grace and blessing of God, comforter, helper, and finger of God. Read all scripture about the Holy Spirit.

Word of caution: do not think that you are led by the Holy Spirit in your rational mind. What you reason out may not be from Him. He works perfectly without your mental input. You cannot take credit for what He has done.

How to have faith?

Faith is given by God to every Christian, in the same measure and precious as the one given to the Apostles. Jesus said all you need is faith as small as a mustard seed. It is not how much or how big your faith is that counts. What works miracles is simple faith not off-set by unbelief. Faith is a substance and certainty in itself. Just have faith. Do not doubt. Remember: when you can see the obvious result you do not need faith! Read all scripture about faith and start practicing faith.

Why must one focus on Jesus?

Jesus is the one who has won the battle for us on the cross. He has redeemed us from sin and death. He has borne the curse (including the curse on Adam that he had to toil on the ground before he could eat of it) for us. Jesus is the only one entitled to every blessing from God. He is the only righteous one. Without His sacrificial blood we cannot have any access to God. There is no way any Christian can finish his race on the right track without looking to Jesus! Do not let others fool you into thinking that you only need to acknowledge Jesus once (on the occasion of receiving His salvation) and thereafter conveniently put him aside. He is our every blessing!

Jesus said, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. “ He also warned that many would say they had done a lot of works and wonders in His name, but His answer for them on that day would be, “I never knew you. Depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matt. 7:22-23)

One pastor challenged his congregation: “If you do not have a habit of seeking God and staying close to Him, what makes you think you will suddenly be ready one day when Jesus comes to take His own people with Him to heaven?” Think about that. The matter is far more serious than having a good financial report on earth.

Remember the story about a beggar called Lazarus who went to heaven and an unnamed rich man who ended down in hell? Jesus knew the beggar by name. But the rich man remained unknown as far as Jesus was concerned.

To stay close to Jesus and be known by Him is absolutely essential!

2010-01-26