PASTORAL CHAT
My Dear Readers
This is my third message to Calvary Pandan, “A man after His own heart”, God choosing of David as King of Israel and rejection of Saul. Saul being a self-willed upstart, David a lover of God and a disciple of obedience 60 chapters of his life are recorded plus 150 of his psalms. The ancestry of our Lord is traced to David. I would vote for him to call him man of the O.T. as I would call Paul man of the N.T.
The virtue of David is manifested particularly in Psalm 139 far above his obedience in his holy hatred against God’s enemies. “Do not I hate them, O LORD, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee? I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies.” Such holy hatred is well acceptable to God so David calls upon God to search his heart and thoughts to see if there be any wicked way in him.
The record of these sentiments are found in I Sam. 17 where David was moved with indignation against Goliath who hurled insults against the army of the living and true God. God helps those whose hearts are true, and with one sling of a smooth stone it sank into the forehead of the enemy. David having no sword cut off Goliath’s head with his own sword. Here we learn how God gives us courage when we stand up for Him.
Jesus the Son of God and the greater David was confronted by all kinds of enemies, Herodians, Sadducees, Pharisees, scribes (theologians) and chief priests and they all plotted to kill Him. worst of all were the Pharisees. They assailed our Lord with blasphemous words, defying their own consciences. They accused our Lord in utter falsehood.
Once our Lord cast out of one possessed with a devil, blind and dumb and He healed him so he could speak and see. Immediately the Pharisees retorted, “This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.” Jesus answered with His irrefutable logic, “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand: And if Satan cast out Satan, he is divided against himself; how shall then his kingdom stand? …..Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.”
The Pharisees especially would try to entangle Jesus in his talk because since they would not believe He is the Son of God and since Jesus was a mere man they could win. Are the enemies of Christ today like the Pharisees of Jesus’ day? Yes, they are the liberals and modernists. They never come to Jesus like the harlots and publicans. They never repent of their sins and are already saved. They do not believe a perfect Bible. They deny the Virgin Birth of Christ. They deny His miracles and Blood atonement to pay for the penalty of our sins. They deny Jesus’ Resurrection and coming again.
I studied in Anglo-Chinese School. When I was in Senior Cambridge my teacher was an American Methodist Bishop. We never heard one single word of the Gospel from his lips. But it was reported how he ridiculed the Bible in his preaching when he went to Sarawak. “If you believe that the whale swallowed Jonah, you can believe Jonah swallowed the whale.” God raised up a witness against modernism in the United States in the 1930s. His name is Dr. J. Gresham Machen. He declared, “Modernism is not a form of Christianity but a totally different religion.” He hates modernism.
We have discovered in David “a man after His own heart”. How is he such a person so loved by God? It is his hatred against God’s enemies, e.g. Goliath. Jesus’ enemies are particularly the Pharisees and we also are against them. As far as I am concerned I have written a booklet by the title, “How Jesus Taketh Puny Man by his own craftiness”. In our day there are those who take God lightly but exalt their own “scholarship”. We cannot compromise with them. Like David we must count God’s enemies our enemies.
Your affectionate pastor
T T
FEBC Lord’s Day Service 1st Bible Camp atMersing
June 15-18, 2004
By Tai Mei Lan
Mersing beckoned yet again when on the morning of June 15, after Pastor Tow led in prayer for God’s blessings and journey mercies, 110 campers set off in a convoy of 2 coaches and 6 cars 100 miles up north for our first Bible Camp. Following a scrumptious lunch at the 5th mile Mersing, we happily arrived at the magnificent Resort Lautan Biru facing the ever-alluring South China Sea.
Pastor put to us the all-important question in the Forward to the camp manual: “Why do we come to Bible Camp?”, and he enlightened us with a 3-point answer.
“The first thing is to hear, learn and do God’s Word”. The Lord greatly bestowed us with a blessed time of bountiful spiritual feasting on His Word. Pastor Tow exhorted us in the mornings with teachings from the book of Titus, on how to be elders, members and citizens of good character and good works. It was at once delightful and sobering when Pastor shared with us God-given recipes for godly Christian living.
Rev. Errol Stone was, in Pastor’s words, charged with the Holy Spirit when he stirred us up with powerful messages on our God who created, saves and keeps, and whom we serve and will meet one day. In essence, we were challenged to “Prepare to meet thy God” (Amos 4:12), which was our camp theme.
Campers hungering and thirsting for the Word of God were thus fed and filled by the Lord speaking through His servants, who both emphasised what was of paramount importance: namely the salvation of our souls. Praise the Lord for a young boy of seven who indicated by raising his hand during the children’s Bible class that he wanted to be sure of his salvation. “Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.” (Luke 15:10)
“The second is to get away from drudgery for a few days for our tired bodies”. This cannot be more pertinent for stress-laden weary Singaporeans! Also, what better place of retreat than the Resort at Mersing, brainchild of our Pastor. Designed according to Pastor’s architectural prowess, the Resort captivates with its open courtyard and majestic facade. No wonder that after lunch, not a few campers simply continued to relax in their dining chairs on the porch, looking out to the garden and the sea, and enjoying the gentle yet invigorating sea breezes. Others took short leisurely strolls to the beach to discover miniature crabs and pretty seashells, and take in stunning views of the vast South China Sea. Just being in the serenity of the Resort’s surroundings and marvelling at God’s wondrous creation was like chicken soup for our tired bodies.
“The third is to get to know one another better to be of service to one another”. Closer ties and sweet fellowship were generated among the campers as we ate together, played together, prayed together and learnt God’s Word together. That a spirit of brotherly love and kindness prevailed was evident in many ways: campers going out to explore Mersing town would return with ample chendol and fruits to share with others remaining at the Resort; brothers would help carry heavy metal food containers from the caterer’s car to the dining porch; and sisters would help clean the tables and wash utensils after meals.
A most heartwarming incident was when one brother bought all the durians a Mersing stallholder had on the last evening of camp, making the stallholder sing his way home early that night, and surprising fellow campers with a hearty durian feast for supper. “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” Psalm 133:1
Finally, as another brother shared during Testimony time, attending Bible Camp gives us a foretaste of heaven while we are here on earth. We have found this to be true, and should the Lord tarry, we look forward with great expectation to Bible Camp at Mersing again next year!
Bible Camp at Lautan Biru Resort, Mersing, 15-18 June 2004
