mackjao

[mackjao]

“The more the Church is distinct from the world in her acts and in her maxims, the more true is her testimony for Christ, and the more potent is her witness against sin. We are sent into this world to testify against evils; but if we dabble in them ourselves, where is our testimony? If we ourselves be found faulty, we are false witnesses; we are not sent of God; our testimony is of none effect. I do not hesitate to say there are tens of thousands of professing Christians, whose testimony before the world is rather injurious than beneficial. The world looks at them, and says, ‘Well, I see: you can be a Christian, and yet remain a rogue.’ ‘Ah!’ says another, ‘you can be a Christian, I perceive; but then you will have to be doleful and miserable.’ ‘Ah!’ cries another, ‘these Christians like to drink sin in secret behind the door. Their Christianity lies in not liking to sin openly; but they can devour a widow’s house when nobody is looking on; they can be drunkards, only it must be in a very small party; they would not like to be discovered tipsy where there were a hundred eyes to look at them.’ Now, what is all that? It is just this,—that the world has found out that the Church visible is not the unmixed Church of Christ, since it is not true to its principles, and does not stand up for the uprightness and integrity which are the marks of the genuine church of God. Many Christians forget that they are bearing a testimony: they do not think that anybody notices them. Ay, but they do. There are no people so much watched as Christians. The world reads us up, from the first letter of our lives to the end; and if they can find a flaw—and, God forgive us, they may find very many—they are sure to magnify the flaw as much as ever they can. Let us therefore be very watchful, that we live close to Christ, that we walk in his commandments always, that the world may see that the Lord hath put a difference. But now I have a very sad thing to say—I wish that I could withhold it, but I cannot. Unless, brothers and sisters, you make it your daily business to see that there is a difference between you and the world, you will do more hurt than you can possibly do good. The Church of Christ is at this day accountable for many fearful sins. Let me mention one which is but the type of others. By what means think you were the fetters rivetted on the wrist of our friend who sits there, a man like ourselves, though of a black skin? It is the Church of Christ that keeps his brethren under bondage; if it were not for that Church, the system of slavery would go back to the hell from which it sprung. If there were no slave floggers but men who are fit for so degrading an office, if there were not found Christian ministers who can apologise for slavery from the pulpit, and church members who sell the children of nobler beings than themselves, if it were not for this, then Africa would be free. Albert Barnes spoke right truly when he said slavery could not exist for an hour if it were not for the countenance of the Christian Church. But what does the slaveholder say when you tell him that to hold our fellow-creatures in bondage is a sin, and a damnable one, inconsistent with grace? He replies, ‘I do not believe your slanders; look at the Bishop of So-and-so, or the minister of such-and-such a place, is not he a good man, and does not he whine out ‘Cursed be Canaan?’ Does not he quote Philemon and Onesimus? Does he not go and talk Bible, and tell his slaves that they ought to feel very grateful for being his slaves, for God Almighty made them on purpose that they might enjoy the rare privilege of being cowhided by a Christian master. Don’t tell me,’ he says, ‘if the thing were wrong, it would not have the Church on its side.’ And so Christ’s free Church bought with His blood, must bear the shame of cursing Africa, and keeping her sons in bondage. From this evil, good Lord deliver us. If Manchester merchants and Liverpool traders have a share in this guilt, at least let the Church be free of this hell-filling crime. Men have tried hard to make the Bible support this sum of all villanies, but slavery, the thing which defiles the Great Republic, such slavery is quite unknown to the Word of God, and by the laws of the Jews it was impossible that it ever could exist. I have known men quote texts as excuses for being damned, and I do not wonder that men can find Scripture to justify them in buying and selling the souls of men. And what think you is it, to come home to our own land, that props up the system of trade that is carried on among us? I would not speak too severely of Christ’s Church, for I love her; but because I love her I must therefore utter this. Our being so much like the world, our trading as the world trades, our talking as the world talks, our always insisting upon it that we must do as other people do, this is doing more mischief to the world, than all our preachers can hope to effect good. ‘Come ye out from among them; touch not the unclean thing, be ye separate, saith the Lord, and I will be a father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters.”

— Charles H. Spurgeon, “Separating the Precious from the Vile,” in The New Park Street Pulpit Sermons (vol. 6; London: Passmore & Alabaster, 1860), 6: 154–156.a

[mackjao]

Stay humble, no matter how much you changed for the better.  Stay kind, no matter how many people broke your heart.  And stay hopeful, no matter how many times you’ve been let down.

The Most Important Thing in Life is… (via yesdarlingido)

[mackjao]

People grow when they are loved well. If you want to help others heal, love them without an agenda.

Mike McHargue (via onlinecounsellingcollege)

[mackjao]

People do not drift toward Holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated.

D.A. Carson (via bsparky)

[mackjao]

Prayers for you and me

Sleep escaped me again so spent a few hours re-reading 4+ years worth of spur notes and letters. It’s crazy how easily I forget about all the many people who were there for me throughout my life, the ways they were praying for me, encouraging me, challenging me, affirming me, and all in all, loving me.

Tumblr isn’t the best way to share this prayer but I currently lack the courage to reach out to everyone who I would like to say this to in person so this will do for now.

God, you alone remember everything that has ever happened, all the ways you’ve used us to touch each other’s lives, even if it was only for the briefest of moments. We thank you for the relationships that we still have. For those short touches (which are especially so sad for us since we have no idea if our paths will connect again) I pray that even in our sorrow we will still praise you.

For the people who are no longer a part of my life, I desire to be reconciled (if necessary) and to be able to see them again if not now, then definitely when the new heaven and earth comes. But I also trust that you hold their lives gently in your hands and that your will will be done in their lives. May we all run the race and at the end be told “you have done well, my good and faithful servant.” Isn’t that the best we can hope for?

Thank you that you are good, even if I am stubbornly unable to see or understand it. May you open each of our eyes today to the wonders of your work and may we be able to glorify your name day after day. We are blessed beyond our capabilities to understand but may we be able to understand even a fraction more of it every day.

Amen

[mackjao]

LOL these are just too much for me to handle

[mackjao]

When we see this love at work through the heart of Hosea we may wonder if God is really like that. But everything in the Word and in experience shows us that He is. He will give man the trees of the forest and the iron in the ground. Then He will give to man the brains to make an axe from the iron to cut down a tree and fashion it into a cross. He will give man the ability to make a hammer and nails, and when man has the cross and the hammer and the nails, the Lord will allow man to take hold of Him and bring Him to that cross, and in so doing will take the sins of man upon Himself and make it possible for those who have despised and rejected Him to come unto Him and know the joy of sins removed and forgiven, to know the assurance of pardon and eternal life, and to enter in the prospect of the hope of glory with Him forever. This is even our God, and there is none like unto Him.

Donald Grey Barnhouse (via rarehunter)

[mackjao]

Our job is to love people. When it hurts. When it’s awkward. When it’s uncool and embarrassing. Our job is to stand together, to carry the burdens of one another and to meet each other in our questions.

Jamie Tworkowksi (via thelovejournals)

[mackjao]

I am struck by how sharing our weakness and difficulties is more nourishing to others than sharing our qualities and successes.

Jean Vanier (via thelovejournals)

[mackjao]

Jesus said “Come, you who are weary.” It’s those words that speak to me, and I can’t help but wonder how often we tell others that. How often do we take the time to look at those around us and invite them to rest? We are so quick to judge or speak our minds, yet, it’s the invitation that many long to receive but that few actually get. Maybe today, right here and right now, we become the ones who tell the world where they can get true rest, maybe we can spread the invitation that was once given to us? Come, all those who are weary. Come and know the fullness of God.

T.B. LaBerge // Go Now (via tblaberge)

[mackjao]

It was obedience to the Father that saved this world, and love was shown by being obedient even unto death. Christ, in the moment of his death, showed the world what the true cost of our hate and selfishness was. It was the life of love, it was Jesus, the pure and true Adam, the one in whom our hope resides. The burdens and curses of this world, the heartache and pain of sin and death, they will be erased because of the actions of Jesus. Our pain is great now, and we may wonder and question why, but one thing is for sure. The cross shows us that we are not alone in our sufferings, Jesus took the duty of being the guide in our grief. He is present in the storms of life, showing us his scars and the abundance of love and understanding. We may mourn in this moment but Christ took the cup of suffering so that we may all drink deeply from the well of grace. We have a God who loves us in this moment, who rejoices when we rejoice and who suffers when we suffer. That is the beauty of grace, that we sinners, condemned to die without the love of God, have been saved and made new. We are not alone, we are not doomed, and we are now freed to be in the fullness of God, forevermore.

T.B. LaBerge // Go Now (via tblaberge)

[mackjao]

Fear drives most of our lives; it disguises itself in our anger, pride, and selfishness. Learn to see where your fear manifests itself, then have the courage to lay it down and choose love.

T.B. LaBerge // Go Now (via tblaberge)

[mackjao]

You are defined by The One who loves you. Your value and worth are measured by the boundless delight He takes in you. His desire for you can be measured in the blood of His Son, which was shed for one simple purpose, to remove everything in between you and Him. To unite you forever. You are deeply, sweetly, tenderly loved by God. You are His adopted child. You are the jewel in His crown. That’s who you are.

Glen Fitzjerrell ( @unkaglen )

[mackjao]

I Am So So Sorry

I am so so sorry that the name that I carry is the same great name that they have used to force you, control you, and take away the culture that God gave to you in the first place. I am so so sorry, because that is not loving; in fact it is wicked and worthy to be judged. In fact, as a believer in Jesus, I give you permission to judge us. Judge us with our very own scriptures; for if that does not open our eyes, then I am not sure if we ourselves really understand what living in His reality means. It makes me ponder too what kind of kingdom we live for. I am so so sorry that instead of showing you what God has done for us, we decided that it ought to be a requirement first that you repent; and the only way to “help you repent” is to make sure you know that you have done something wrong. We have shoved “repentance” down your throat because we think it’s up to us to deliver this so-called good news. Repent? It makes me laugh some of the time. It seems that we are the ones who’ve forgotten our place of humility.

I am so so sorry that our churches are so filled with all this stuff that we think will “woo” you. Yet, all you really want is for us to be real with you, so you could be real with us. I agree..Why does it always seem like the minute anyone new walks into a church, the “hey, there’s a new person here” lights go off on every single person. I know that there are people who genuinely care for you, but why then does our church culture convey to you that we just want to use whatever method we can invent to get you to stay. Stay and stay saved. Stay and stay saved. Stay = be faithful and serve. Stay saved = know that you are saved. Sometimes it feels like we ourselves have missed the plot. I think even you know…you know the plot is Jesus. The plot is not “anti__”, or “anti_____”, or “____hater”. Why do we bless God with the same mouth that is cursing man? That should not be. I am so so sorry that we twist the word of God, in order to get our way. I dare you to test that spirit and test the genuineness of that kind of faith. If we claim that God is our judge and that He will send us through the fire of refinement, then I’m sure a little criticism from you wouldn’t hurt our pride too much. There’s no need for us to get so defensive and it would be an honor to be like a lamb to the slaughter, enduring, and silent, perfectly justified through the measure of His eyes. I think we’re all afraid to give up control. I am so so sorry that we have failed by giving you the gospel without entering your context. I myself am not persuaded that is the good news we’ve experienced. I am sorry that fear has choked us up. May love overwhelm us instead.

I wish there was something I could say or do to refresh your eyes and see Jesus as he really is, but to refresh your eyes is something that only Jesus himself can really do. A call to faith does not always have to be a one time “sha-bam.” Why can’t someone become open to Jesus for the very first time, coming from of place of hostility and hate for such a long time? To me, that deserves just  as much celebration and praise. 

[mackjao]

I wish you would stop apologizing for having a heart that feels everything so deeply. It’s a gift, wear it proudly.

(via kushandwizdom)

[mackjao]

Happiness is Less

I don’t think you will find a single person who does not want to be happy. Happiness is such an enjoyable thing that exists; it is no wonder this world pursues whatever it may be that arouses or produces happiness in life.

In reality, aren’t most of us chasing happiness? It requires and demands that you must follow it and pursue it, in order to have it. But don’t we all see that after a while you find that happiness is something that depends on you getting it for yourself? As long as there is something better, someone better, some place better, we will once be dissatisfied and unhappy again. Don’t we all tell ourselves that, sometimes unconsciously?

“If I can just get/be/have/see ____ I’ll be happy!”

With these things said, I am not denying happiness is as a good thing. I truly wish I could be happy all the time but I am only saying that when I really take a look at people who live their life to pursue happiness, I only see more and more desperate, dissatisfied, and hungry people. Why is it that the good things we chase after only make us want it more, yet it is never satisfying?

I am not convinced that happiness is the answer.

I so often wonder if happiness is really worth pursuing my whole life. 

There are many beautiful, wonderful, and good things I want for my life. Yet, unless I can surrender them to God, they are merely good in my own eyes because they make me happy..

Sometimes when I ask God to help me see what is true, these words come to my heart:  “Even if you got what would make you happy, it would still be less than what I created you for.”

[mackjao]

3/26/2017 - Bethel Chu in her mother's arms - Bethel, a name which means house of God (Gen. 28:19 NLT) I shared intimate & precious moments with Bethel during worship service today & also last Sunday in church by exercising self-control with the help of the Holy Spirit & revealing a part of my heart that is perhaps not seen as often as it maybe should be, but one (though prayer, wisdom, and discernment is always needed) that is just as needed & necessary: I let her small hand touch my hand as long as she so desired, let her small finger touch my fingers as long as she so desired, I let her enjoy me by letting her explore my hands & fingers with tactile sensation as long as she so desired. When I saw her face light up with such delight, I smiled right back at her so that she could see it, maybe even grinned with such a big smile that revealed the utter happiness, pleasure, joy, and delight that I felt so sincerely & genuinely from the very fibers of my being about her. 

There were also moments during service last week in which she, while sitting in the pews, was throwing her toys onto the floor not once but multiple times. Despite such, I chose to be loving, gentle, patient, and kind (1 Cor 13:4-13) in the way I treated & disciplined her gently but firmly, helping her to understand through show & tell that this kind of behavior should not be exhibited during worship service. Though it did take a couple tries, she eventually got the message & stopped doing so for the reminder of the worship service. By doing these things, I wanted her to know, to see, to rejoice, and to believe with all her heart, mind, soul, and spirit that despite her failures, flaws, bad behavior that she sometimes exhibits during the times she breaks the rules, and more, not only how much I cherish, love her, and am for her, but also how much her parents cherish, love her & are for her and most importantly of all, how much our good & wonderful God & Heavenly Father cherishes her, is for her, and loves her with a steadfast love/lovingkindness that is better than life (Ps 63:3 ESV/NASB). Though these acts may be seemingly small to most, I did such so that it would be an incredibly intentional & powerful form of Christian witness (God/His Word/the Gospel/His goodness/beauty is seen/heard/proclaimed/celebrated & much is made of the name of Christ) & discipleship onto her.

When I was doing these things onto Bethel, I was aware and also knew that her genuinely concerned & godly mother was watching me do this onto Bethel from afar. Even though she did not stop me as I did these things onto her daughter, I also intended this to be an incredibly intentional & powerful form of Christian witness & discipleship onto Julia as well. During lunch after worship service, I had a long conversation with Julia over the lunch table afterwards. Though it had been a long time since I had a conversation with her at length (for quite understandable reasons - she's married haha), I've always genuinely & sincerely appreciated the way God used her the last time we spoke at length many years ago during a beach trip a time after I had sharply rebuked her boyfriend (now husband) in righteous anger & with tears, after sensing that he would not listen were I to suggest such gently, for not speaking the truth in love to comfort & to encourage me that I had done the right thing, even if it meant running the risk of being alienated from the others (which did happen; oh well, no apologies & regrets) and that she had a godly degree of self-control when we last conversed at length, which meant I could trust her. As such, we talked about the joys & struggles of parenthood, the disapproval she faced from parents in regards to putting aside her career to be a full-time mother at home, the desperation & anxiety that she sometimes felt as a mother about Bethel, and the late hours of the night to which such feelings would keep her up & thinking hard. Though I do not have children of my own as a single man, I could sympathize & understand where she was coming from as these were similar sentiments that I felt & had when making disciples & working with both brothers & sisters outside official ACF meetings not merely confined to such times, but simply as the way that I always did life. I gently but firmly reminded and encouraged Julia, that she & her husband would reap at just the right time (Gal 6:9-10), that none of her & her husband's efforts were in vain (1 Cor 15:58), and that no matter how hard it may seem now, that there is great joy in raising children/that it is a great honor to be a mother (I have utmost respect for her) and to raise & train disciples full-time for the glory of God even if it meant facing disapproval from loved ones/others & that it would all be worth it in the end. I saw Julia's face lighten up considerably after I said those words to her and could tell that she was encouraged & much more relieved than when we first started talking, but in some ways, I didn't really anticipate what she would say next. She asked me directly point blank whether I had ever thought of having children & becoming a father one day. Though I was initially thrown off by her brave heart in asking me such a direct question, I saw her bravery & chose to honor that by answering her with raw honesty & sincerity: that though such a prospect did not occur to me until recently, I was slowly but surely warming up to the possibility of such, as the Lord wills. It was at that point that our conversation ended as she, along with her husband, had to go home to put Bethel to sleep for her afternoon nap & quite appropriately did it end then. In a lot of ways, this conversation is not the first time that such a topic has come up. Not once, not twice, but three times now has this topic come up. What I find so very interesting about all this is that other than from family (understandable), this topic has been brought up to me all three times by three different married sisters & fellow wives in the faith. 

The truth is, I've never really considered romantic relationships, marriage, and fatherhood as something to think more about in my earlier years because I've always been so busy learning so much about God/the Word/the Gospel (I'm only beginning to scratch the surface), learning how to organically disciple both brothers & sisters in every context & setting, learning how to see a brother/sister/man/woman/boy/girl through the Father's eyes, learning what biblical love really is & how to lead in biblical love/the Word/righteousness/selflessness/intimacy, learning how to cultivate spiritual spaces of love/vulnerability/honesty/confession/repentance so that we can all grow & mature in our faith/Christ/our relationship with God, learning how to wring out my life to make disciples for His glory & for the good of those around me, learning how to genuinely encourage/to come alongside the hearts & souls of my sisters not in the creepy hypersexualized way like that found in the culture around us (such utter madness/insanity, oh Lord have mercy), and more. Honestly, I get the same if not similar joy from making disciples of both brothers & sisters, which has been the primary reason why I haven't really considered all that much romantic relationships with the end goal of marriage in mind. However, the more I look around, the more I realize how much decay, sin, destruction, and death is in this broken world, the more aware I become of the many sisters who struggle mightily against comparison & perfection, and I wonder if there is indeed a need to reconsider and to have mercy, especially considering that I am indeed incredibly haunted by the words of Matt Chandler, who made a most profound but apt point indeed: the men who refuse to become husbands & fathers are indeed giving over family, church, city, community, nation, and life over to destruction. 

As this has been quite a recurring topic with me as of recent years, it's led me to more carefully consider the incredibly high standard that I've set, that's remained at that high level ever since the fall of 2012. A decent amount of it has come from the godly brother I've been discipled by, but much of it has also come as a result of meeting & befriending to an intimate degree the only sister (Sister #1) who God used single-handedly to utterly blow my mind out of the water in regards to what a godly woman looks like and the enormous blessing that she was & continues to be onto me & all that she meets even to this very day (even though she's married now, we still remain very good friends to this day). She's not only the kind of godly woman that I was thoroughly impressed by on every level (and thoroughly won over by) but the only kind of woman that I would ever consider pursuing in the hopes that it'd lead to something more & eventually result in marriage. That being said, I don't have any desire to lower that standard whatsoever that was set all those years ago, especially when considering how my friendship with that particular sister has made me a more godly man than I was before I met her, how her godliness inspired me to greater belief & faith in God (If this is what God can do in a sister's heart, He can do anything) and motivated me with her words & godly character like no other sister has to want to mature & grow in Christ & in my faith, and how indeed my heart is filled with utmost thankfulness, appreciation, and gratitude to God Almighty & for what He has done in her heart/soul/spirit/inner being whenever I think of her.

That being said, I conclude with my final words to Bethel Chu. Even though it will likely be many years before you will be able to understand any of what I am saying now, I am glad to have the opportunity now to address these words directly to you: Bethel, I have great faith, hope, and trust in our good God that you are indeed in good hands with very godly parents. Though there is no guarantee that any of the spiritual kindling they gather around your soul will indeed ignite, may you come to know & to believe in our God, our Lord Jesus, and the Gospel, that point in time which represents only the beginning of a wonderful journey indeed. Oh that you would come in the years to grow in ever-abounding & ever-deepening love, awe, wonder, praise, and worship of our God, the kind that bubbles & overflows from the very deepest caverns of who you are, to grow to have a deep knowledge of the Word, to grow to learn to trust in His precious promises no matter what, and to have those promises written ever so close on your heart. May you grow to have a big & tender heart (one filled with love, joy, kindness, compassion, goodness, gentleness, and the other fruits of the Spirit [Gal 5:22-23]), a deep mind, and a brilliant mind and become a godly woman who is passionate about what you want to be passionate about, who is not afraid to pursue her dreams even in the face of outside disapproval/judgment/sexism, and a woman who is not afraid to fail, own up, and to learn from her mistakes. May you grow to be the kind of godly woman who is so strong she can be gentle, so educated she can be humble, so fierce she can be compassionate, and so disciplined that she can be free. May you grow to be an incredibly godly woman who uses her words to encourage, cultivate, and to create spaces in which our God, His Word & Gospel, His faithfulness, His goodness, and His beauty are not only seen, but also heard, proclaimed, and celebrated unto undying end, whose speech/conduct/love/purity make immature boys & men around think twice before messing around with your heart/mind/soul/spirit and motivate them to grow/mature/rise to become more the godly men God created them to be. And finally, may you grow to be a godly woman who knows that she is fearfully & wonderfully made (Ps 139:14-15), who has an underlying strong & confident sense of how wonderfully loved, beloved, and inherently valuable she is before God as a daughter of the Most High (Ps 139:17-18), whose identity is not found in what others (esp. boys or men) think of her or from comparing herself to others or gossiping about others behind their backs or even putting on the false veneer that she can indeed be completely perfect in this life. No, but may you learn to rest in that precious identity as a daughter of the Most High, one that given to you by God Himself by grace & one that can never be taken away by anyone else, and may you above all, learn to forever rejoice in that.