Latest News

Co-workers in God’s Service

In today’s passage, the faith community in Corinthians seems to have more than a single issue, just like every church does. They had divisions, conflicts, debates, and quarrels that threatened the community. Since Paul wrote his letter to the people in Corinthians, maybe divisions and quarrels have continued issues.

July 7, 2024

Like today’s passage, our problem may be that we have been seeking wisdom from the wrong sources—just like they said, “I belong to this person or that person.” So, Paul keeps reminding factional followers that “we are one, have a common purpose, and should be united in Christ by the Holy Spirit.” For many of you here, you have been here a pretty long time—seeing a Pastor’s comings and goings. Some pastors may claim, “I am called to be the planter.” The other claim, “I am called to be the waterer.” But we know, and you know for sure, God only makes us grow. When we think of “growing,” we often use the word “growing” with only “getting old or older,” which often connotes “not being able to do the things we used to do, being less capable, etc.” Think of a tree and their way of getting older is by getting new roots, new branches, new leaves, new blossoms and new fruits every year. Their getting older is about adding something “new.” Today’s passage tells us that we should grow “new,” and we should grow “deeper, wider, and higher,’ just like a tree. And my invitation to pause, look back, and examine ourselves as a church is this: How about our aging process? How can we grow “old” so far? We all know that today does not seem to be the best season for doing and being a church together. We all wish we could find the perfect church. But we always forget it is impossible because of us—a church is made of imperfect humans like you and me. We all know that every church has its own issues, conflicts, problems, or challenges. Yes, it sounds like a church. However, like Paul, in today’s passage, I am convinced that God continues to make us grow—growing “new,” growing deeper, wider, and higher each and every day. So, as God’s tree-house, this place can be a life-giving place where everyone can be welcomed, loved, nested, and cared for, no matter who and what. And this place can be more fertile where God’s people are pregnant with God’s dream and vision, God’s hope, God’s peace, and God’s joy. Keep growing new, not just getting older, Keep growing deeper, wider, and higher. And keep standing here as a beloved and faithful community as we all strive to find answers to what it means to be a church as a life-giving and fertile place. May we remember we all are called to be co-workers in building the kingdom of God on Earth, here in Stephenville, Texas, and over there, in Nashville, TN. Thanks be to God.

God, Are We There Yet?

In today’s passage, the parable of the Ten Maidens speaks a profound word to each one of us; it is a fresh reminder of the need to prepare for the delay by living in the present moment faithfully, courageously, and hopefully. The only difference between wise and foolish maidens in the passage is this: the wise virgins prepared for the wait and, therefore, brought extra oil, while the foolish virgins failed to stock lamp oil.

June 30, 2024

What does it mean to be prepared for the wait? The passage asks us to prepare to wait and to avoid assuming that we have enough oil in our lamps right now. “Keep awake—preparing for the delay; keep awake and know how much oil you have—don’t assume, don’t stay at the comfort feeling.” Sometimes, the present moment and time may be too slippery for most of us to hang on to. No matter how much we try, humans often get caught up in what happened yesterday or what we have to do tomorrow. While we may obsess with the past, we often sit in a pit with regrets for things that we didn’t do. How about the future? Who knows and controls the future and tomorrow? When we may obsess with that uncertainty, we often wrestle with fear and fear of the unknown and uncertainty. While we are obsessed with regrets or fear, we are easily blind to the present moment and time right now, just like my kiddos often neglect and overlook a beautiful sight while they keep asking this question, “Dad, are we there yet?” For this season of transition, the search process, we may often ask this question to the Search committee member and God—“Hey, are we there yet? Or God, are we there yet?” Today’s passage tells us—“It is time to wake up.” “It is time to stop living in the past or worrying about the tomorrow.” “It is time to start living today—the present time—right now by living in hope for what has been promised and what will be but is not yet.” Living in hope does not mean being immune to today's harsh realities. By contrast, it means living faithfully and courageously, trusting that the God of yesterday, of today, and of tomorrow continues to come into our lives with compassion, peace, and hope. Perhaps, we too often waste our time--questioning God about God’s timing, “God, are we there yet?” Let’s keep refusing to live yesterday over and over again. Let’s keep resisting the temptation to save our best self for tomorrow. Let’s keep living the Good life no matter how much time is left. Amen.

True Joy Is Not Optional

In today’s passage, Paul’s plea for rejoicing, saying in verse 4, “Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say, Rejoice,” challenges each one of us about “how.” We may think of joy as a private sense or feeling in response to happy circumstances. For Paul, joy is shared, not individual; a byproduct, not an end in itself; a discipline of Gospel living, not a feel-good factor; thus, joy is a command, not an option, not depending on our circumstances. How can we be joyful, no matter what our circumstances are?

June 23, 2024

Look at Paul, today’s passage author, where he was when he wrote this letter to the faith community at Philippi. Paul was in the prison cell. But Paul rejoiced in there, but his joy was incomplete unless it was shared with his beloved friends in Philippi. And the circumstances at Philippi they faced were not joyful either—facing opposition, disagreement, and struggle that threatened the unity of the faith community at Philippi. So, Paul urged his friends and us to seek joy and peace in the midst of opposition and disagreement, which is an outcome and a sign of the presence of Christ. In reality, the world might still give us a sweet illusion of money that makes everything possible. But we know this—“Although we can buy a house, we cannot buy a sweet home; Although we can buy a clock, we cannot buy any time; Although we can buy the food and tickets for someone to accompany us for one day, we cannot buy a friend; We can buy a romance novel, we cannot buy love; We can buy a nice leather Bible; we cannot buy true joy and peace.” Words for “joy” and “rejoicing” appear more than a dozen times in the book of Philippians, which is the letter from Paul’s prison cell. While Paul was in prison, he chose life and looked beyond the surface of his circumstances. So, Paul’s prison was no longer the place of lost hope and death. Rather, Paul’s prison was the place of meeting God and the of God’s mission as he perceived and rejoiced in living there. Paul’s message may still challenge us because, depending on our circumstances, our joy may become too optional and emotional. As we start the process of transition, I’d like to invite us to keep doing ordinary things and acts to be and do a church together. I pray that we all can hear and live out Paul’s words, especially for this time—“Rejoice in the Lord always.” So, this season of transition can be the season of meeting God and listening to God’s voice more often rather than being overwhelmed or frustrated. Joy is not optional or an emotional feeling. Joy is the practice of believers and the fuel that makes us one community. Joy is one of the best ways to represent God’s grace and blessings. Thanks be to God.

Impossibility, Possibility, and Responsibility

In today’s passage, Paul argued a Christ-centered life as a new way of life, having a renewed identity not by law, tradition, or ethnicity, but by Christ. For our faith journey, what we are reminded of from today’s passage and Paul’s theology of Christ-centered is our faith journey moves through impossibility, possibility, and responsibility.

June 16, 2024

Throughout Paul’s letters, we may get a glimpse of how difficult it is to be one church by embracing one another, including a different language, traditions, and food, which sometimes kept provoking critical conflicts, tensions, or divisions between the Jews and the Gentiles. So, Paul reminded the Jews and the Gentiles of being baptized in Christ as the only way to have a radical change in identity, which opened up a new possibility for having a new identity and responsibility for being one church. Being one church sounds so great, but we know how hard it is in reality. We often hear, “I don’t go to church anymore; I could not take any more of the hypocrisy, fundraising, boring hymnal, too cliché-type-of-sermon, and fill in-the-blank. Or “I don’t go to church because of this person or that person or because of this pastor or that pastor.” There is no perfect church any more than there is a perfect God. Finding a perfect church seems impossible, but it might be possible through and by those who still strive to grow into Christ-like, who still dream of God’s new possibility, and who still take the responsibility to follow Christ’s steps even though they have to have a radical change. Doing and being a church together does not guarantee an easygoing or more comprehensive race. On the contrary, we are called to take one step in front of the other on the way to the Cross. Perhaps we don’t fully understand how radical Paul’s message was in his context—walking in the newness of life--there is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for we are all one in Christ Jesus. Maybe, this message seems impossible even today. However, it might be possible if we can recenter ourselves back to God-centeredness, dying our ego, conviction, or view with the Christ, challenging our values, rearranging priorities, and re-orienting our purposes. For this seemingly impossible mission, we need each other to keep us in shape for God and for God’s people. Thanks be to God.

The Life-Giving Power to Be Still

In today’s passage from the book of Matthew, we see the disciples on the boat fighting a strong headwind. What is worse, the boat is being battered by the waves and is already far from land. Yes, it seems the disciples have had a chaotic night in the middle of the stormy Sea of Galilee.

June 9, 2024

Like doubting Thomas, Peter seems doubtful about the stranger guy who walks on the lake and comes toward the boat. So, Peter tests the risen Christ—“Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Peter seems to be bragging or boasting about who he is, just as Peter has already shown many times in the gospel stories, especially at the last supper, “If everyone else stumbles because of you, I will never stumble; Even if I must die alongside you, I won’t deny you.” Honestly, I am not sure that I could totally be free from blaming him because I often act like Peter. Is there anyone among us who has never tested God—"O God, if you are who you are, show me, prove it to me, work it for me.” Leave me no room to doubt who you are, then, I will believe. Isn’t it true that we all have got a little bit of the devil in us, asking Jesus to prove himself by doing something spectacular for us and by giving us an exemption from carrying our own cross? Jesus might have said to Peter, “I am headed straight for you; I already told you who I am; if you had kept your seat for one more minute, I would have been sitting right next to you.” Have you ever wondered what other disciples do in this narrative? Where are they in the midst of stormy weather? Perhaps they may haul on the oars together and keep going forward. Perhaps they may remain sitting in their position until the Lord comes to them. Perhaps they may have faith enough to stay in the boat. Perhaps the real hero of today’s passage is not Peter, who left the board in order to become an extraordinary disciple. Instead, the hero is the rest of the disciples—who never think of themselves as heroes, who never dream of putting Jesus to the test, and who are willing to row against the wind until Jesus gets into the boat with them. We often ask God for exemption from stormy life. Yes, it may happen. However, more often, we are reminded of the gospel truth that we should seek God’s presence within our stormy situations and hard times. Then, the stormy wind may become calm and peaceful—the moment the miracle happens. God is near and still coming, not to exempt us from the storm but to be with us in the harsh realities of our lives—making us take another step in front of the other. Thanks be to God.

The Spirit Offers Us an Alternative Way

Paul, in today’s other passage from the book of Romans, can speak of “our suffering,” the suffering of the people of Jesus. What Paul means by “our suffering” is the cost that comes with discipleship, that we notice the neighbor and invest in the well-being of the neighborhood. So, Paul reminds us of such obedient suffering, which is the cost of discipleship as we live out the gospel truth.

June 2, 2024

What I’d like to invite us to pay attention to today’s lesson is about the fruit of suffering and the problem—"look, the passage: troubles produce endurance; endurance produces character; and character produces hope.” The start is a trouble or problem, but the end is hope. Does it make sense in reality? Isn’t it true that we too often may act out today’s passage like this as we may paraphrase those lines—“Trouble produces anger and frustration, not endurance; anger and frustration produce division and violence, not character; and division and violence produce hopelessness and cynicism.” What we are reminded here is that trouble and suffering can only become hope with and by the Spirit of God. Actually, Jesus acted out and lived out what it means through his life and ministry—sufferings and problems can be hope—that the cross is the peak moment as Jesus resurrected from his death—"death also can be hope, which is resurrection.” For our season of transition, I invite us to process and digest today’s passage as a reminder and invitation that offers us an alternative way. We are those who can see a problem, trouble, or even suffering as a sign of hope in God and the help of the Spirit. The future belongs to those who embrace the sequence of problem, endurance, character, and hope with God and by the power of the Spirit. We are disciples who have witnessed in the lift of Jesus, who still brings hope to the circumstances, no matter what. And hope should be our main character and true identity as followers of Christ. Thanks be to God.

Love Wins All

Today’s passage, the letter of 1 John is addressed to the little congregation in the Roman Empire, reminding and affirming to them its identity as Easter believers and its way of life with a special purpose in the world. And we, as a church, continue to visit and read this ancient letter to the church because it is as relevant and contemporary for us today.

May 12, 2024

The letter says, “We are born of God,” that we are people who belong to a different family, a different identity, and a different loyalty. This belief and faith do not guarantee any safety and well-being in the empire on earth. Rather, this faith holds us awake from the empire knowing that God is still working and doing something that often goes beyond our own rational understanding behind the scenes. This peculiar and precious identity is followed in the letter by a demanding mission. God is still recruiting and calling for people who can be agents to reveal what an alternative world may look like. And Jesus shows and exemplifies what that means—carrying and sacrificing himself on the cross. How about other Jesus’s teachings? If people slap you on your right cheek, you must turn the left cheek to them as well, follow me; When they wish to haul you to court and take your shirt, let them have your coat too, follow me; when they force you to go one mile, go with them two, follow me; Love your enemies and pray for those who harass you, follow me. Yes, these teachings sound romantic and surreal and fictional, but these are our calling, reminding us that we have another way of life to live in the world. Why do we need to be part of this demanding mission? What’s the reward and the promise? The writer uses the word “defeat” three times. Those born of God defeat the world. This is the victory that defeats the world. Jesus is the one who defeats the world. This little letter from John is a love letter, an invitation, and a reminder of our true identity, demanding task, and the promise. We are all children of God—Born of God. This is our true identity. With this identity, God demands us to live out God’s commandment—"We shall love the Lord our God with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind. And We shall love our neighbor as ourselves.” How? We keep God’s commandment by following Jesus Christ—by carrying our own cross, by turning the other cheek, by loving our enemies, and praying for those who harass us, by giving things to the poor. All sounds foolish that we often don’t make any sense at all. But this is the truth because the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. This is the way how Jesus defeated the power of the Roman Empire, even through his death. This is the way we, as those who are born of God, are called to follow him in order to defeat and conquer the world. Thanks be to God.

Expanding the Ends of Our World

In today’s passage, imagine the Ethiopian eunuch--—He is a eunuch, an outsider, a Jew from Ethiopia. He is the official in charge of the queen’s treasure. He is reading the scroll (book of Isaiah) with searching and seeking hope because his life is tough enough, and hunger for a better life.

May 5, 2024

Phillip hears the eunuch reading Isaiah aloud, so asks him—“Hey there, do you understand what you are reading?” that is the central question. The eunuch responds the way many honest readers of Isaiah 53 have answered—“Well, are you kidding? Explain it to me.” Then, Philip tells him about the good news--about the release and liberation, healing love released into the world through this single agent, Jesus Christ. Philip tells the eunuch about God who so loves the world. The eunuch well receives Philip’s evangelism and says, “Look water, what would keep me from being baptized?” Yes, the eunuch immerses himself in the good news of Jesus Christ. Today’s story shows another step forward for the early church—meeting their own end of the world, but stretching and expanding their own end of the world in order to proclaim God’s unconditional love for everyone. Philip could have easily said, “There’s no room in my church for someone like you.” Consider us in our world today seemingly like a world of fear. —leading us to hide and hunker down and shrink as much as needed—into rejection, division, and discrimination, saying today’s eunuch or those who look or think or believe differently—“Hey there. There’s no room for you here for someone like you.” Today’s story is not just about the eunuch in ancient times. Rather, this story is about the good news—a transformation story from the world of fear to the world of love. Whom do we see today’s eunuch for us? Where and what is our end of the world? I believe each of us has our own ends of our own world—saying, “This is absolutely not negotiable; if so, my world falls apart.” In today’s passage, what Philip knows, what the eunuch learned and experienced is that Christ’s love casts out fear; Christ’s love expands and stretches our own ends of the world. We are Easter people who have power—stretching and expanding and shaking our own ends of the world; going beyond the way of the world, recognizing and welcoming, and caring for today’s eunuch with the power given by the Holy Spirit. We are a church, who are called to reveal what the alternative world may look like. We love others because God first loves others. We welcome and care for others because God first welcomes and cares for others… Thanks be to God.

How Do We Live Out the Easter Song

In today’s passage, we are again reminded of what happened to the early disciples. Saul, who also is called and known as Paul, is still chasing after them to catch and detain them. With the high priest’s permission, Saul runs after the early believers—whether men or women, old or young—to take them as prisoners.

April 28, 2024

But then, in a flash, Saul’s life was interrupted by the sudden appearance of Christ, who came to him and said, “Why are you harassing me?” Then, Saul asked, “Who are you?” The voice responded, “I am Jesus, whom you are harassing.” “I will give you guidance to another way of life.” And we come to this story over and over again because we trust that he has been turned and transformed by the power of Jesus Christ. It is no wonder that we can imagine that Paul, his friends, and followers of Christ like to sing Psalm 30, which is today’s other passage. And I believe this song applies not only to special disciples, like Paul, in the early church, but also to quite ordinary people and disciples like you and me. Look at the world--Isn’t it true the world seems to remain the same as it has been since Christ was resurrected? Isn’t is true we live in a world full of suffering, persecution, violence, war, and death? So, what is our deep conviction in the midst of all trouble, problems, and challenges? How and where do we find hope? That is why I invite us to sing Psalm 30 today, which seems like one of the best Easter songs. We sing all the time. We sing at the wedding. We sing at the funeral. We sing at every Sunday Service. We sing whenever two or three gather in the name of Christ. What we know and remember as today’s church is—how we live out the Easter songs every day—whether our singing evokes our life in gratitude; whether our singing evokes courage that invites us to act differently, even in times of trouble; whether our singing evokes energy that let us live in joy and generosity as those who believe and trust the Easter messages—"Christ is risen; he is risen indeed.” May we remember—that the style of music—either singing a traditional hymn with one instrument or singing contemporary songs with a full band—is not the essential issue. The most important issue for us is whether we live out those songs in our lives, even in times of trouble; because our singing may transform our times of trouble into times of refreshing. We sing here not because we want to get a sense of feeling good and cool. We sing because we trust our singing can transform our sadness and trouble into dancing and jumping for the glory of God. Joy comes in the morning, so we sing praise all night long. Thanks be to God.

A Verification of Out Easter Faith

A Verification of Our Easter Faith

April 21, 2024

Behold the man who used to sit and ask for money at the gate of the temple; all the people were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. Behold the man—who left everyone astonished. Behold the man—who is in perfect health in the presence of all of the people in public. Behold the man—who has been cured. Behold the man—who proclaims the Easter faith. Unlike all the people who were amazed, the Roman authorities were much annoyed. While the Roman people scheme for “how” and “what,” Peter, in today’s passage in verse 19, reminds the people who were amazed by the man—“Repent, therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped.” What I’d like to focus on is what a sin really means in Peter’s context—within the context of the Roman empire. The crowd of people did not know that such life--conforming to the Roman power arrangement and seeking Roman affirmation--toward the Roman empire was a sin. It just seemed to them like the norm. However, the danger of such normality within the Roman empire only became evident to them when they saw the Easter guy dancing and leaping and praising God. That man seems like nobody and a beggar on the street; however, he is the one who not only shakes, challenges, and interrupts the power and order of the empire but also cracks and brings a new world and new times of refreshing. In the passage, Peter reminds us that we are witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus. The work of witnesses is not just talking about the idea of resurrection. Rather it is about the walk, the dance, and the leap, and the jump for newness given by the Spirit. So, to become witnesses of the Easter faith is practice. It is engagement with the world that the world may be free and whole. Becoming a witness is an act of refusal, and stop running for the rat race in the real world and probe possibilities beyond what the world says is possible and permissible—going beyond and above what the world says. “It is what it is; this is the way things are.” We are called to become a notable sign—the sign of Easter power, the sign of a new reality, the sign of a new transformation—that cannot be missed, cannot be disregarded, but make the people astonished and amazed. Yes, a new world and a new time of refreshing is already with us and among us. Thanks be to God.

The Great Sense of Solidarity

In today’s passage, the believers of Easter messages gather in one place as they are one in heart and mind. In spite of their fear or anxiety of being captured by the Roman Empire, the community of Easter believers have a great sense of solidarity, which we need the most today—the sense of solidarity—making people stay one in heart and mind.

April 7, 2024

From the Book of Acts, we can see a glimpse of how the believers’ lives should look: They are new leaders, doing signs and wonders, having glad and generous hearts, giving their lives over to God in joy and gladness, breaking bread together and eating together, and having an Easter festival every day. And finally, they had to think about money and make a budget for their community. We are told that they solved the money issue promptly because they had glad and generous hearts. Barnabas gives his wealth over to the common good, and we are told in verse 43, “There was not a needy person among them,” because all shared with all. Then, there is a counter-narrative in the book of Acts, chapter 5, the very next paragraph after today’s passage; this story concerns two church members—Sapphira and her husband, Ananias. I do believe the author of today’s passage has an intention of making the two stories--that are designed to be quite parallel. Both had property. Both sold property. Both gave to the church. However, only Barnabas was honest and forthcoming, while Ananias and Sapphira were depicted as cheaters and died. The two stories from today’s passage in the Book of Acts and the play can be a nice and big wake-up call, especially for this season of Easter. Look at the world. We are often tempted to join and run the rat race; we often imagine scarcity, leading us to hunger for more and more for ourselves. But I believe Barnabas could only sell his possessions for a community because he truly believed in Easter and lived out the resurrection life. Barnabas wanted to exemplify and build a community where there would be none in need, and there would be great Easter joy. This is the gospel alternative. And this story is about dwelling in solidarity as Easter believers. In today’s world, solidarity seems impossible. Maybe, like a doubting Thomas, we might doubt and seek evidence—what is good for solidarity. Or, like the couple Ananias and Sapphira, we might refuse solidarity—not to fully give or surrender ourselves to God, but to only partially give or surrender ourselves to God. Barnabas, in today’s passage, still invites us to become true Easter believers, those who become one in heart and mind, sharing all we have and choosing solidarity—a new life for all—for all God’s people and community. Thanks be to God.

Unless I See…I Will Not Believe

Look at what happens and how the disciples handle the Easter message on the very first Easter evening. Although we probably do a good job shouting, singing, and crying out the Easter messages on Easter morning, I wonder how we live out those messages in the real world we live in every day.

March 31, 2024

The disciples gathered together; they were behind closed doors. The disciples seem like they are suffering from PTSD, as they witnessed the crucifixion—3 days ago. They were behind the door. They were afraid, so the doors were shut for safety, shut in fear, shut in order to hide. Today’s passage is not about closed doors. Jesus came and disrupted their safe hiding and said, “Peace be with you.” Yes, Jesus came, stood, and said. I don’t know about you, but the response from the doubting Thomas seems natural and reasonable to me. What he said was, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands; unless I will put my finger the wounds left by the nails; unless I will put my hand into his side…I will not believe it.” Show me the scars. What Jesus represented and showed to the disciples to prove his resurrection was the scars on his hands and feet and all over his body, the scars and wounds he carried on—not a miracle nor a transfiguration. Yes, Jesus came in the midst of troubles and problems and stood and said, “Peace be with you.” Here we are on Easter morning in the year of 2024. What is happening in today’s world, which seems divided and fragmented and filled with lots of scars? What is happening between Ukraine and Russia?; at the Gaza area between Palestine and Israelites? What is happening on the Southern border? And how do we digest unspeakable violence in a public area? The good news for all of us—the Easter message of “Christ is risen, and he is risen indeed”—does not tell us about something that happened once upon a time. We gather here this morning not to listen to a fairy tale but to listen to the living word of God, speaking over Thomas’s shoulder to the rest of us, saying, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet have come to believe.” I do believe that Christ still comes and stands and says in the midst of all the messy and hard circumstances, “Hey, God’s beloved, Peace be with you.” I do believe the world still needs God’s people who can be peacemakers and who can practice God’s forgiveness and reconciliation in the name of the risen Christ. I do believe the world still needs God’s people who can be hope-spreaders and brave enough to make the door of heart open big and wide in order to welcome and love others and our neighbors, no matter what and no matter who, in the name of the risen Christ. Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Alleluia. Thanks be to God.

Let the Same Mind Be in You

On Palm Sunday, Jesus, with his little company, rides a little donkey entering the city of Jerusalem. Jesus’s arrival in the city of Jerusalem caused upset, as Jesus challenged head-to-head with the settled power, as Jesus brought the good news to the city that concerns the left behind.

March 24, 2024

Everything Jesus did and said contradicted the values and expectations of state power and synagogue tradition. Jesus obeyed only God, who led him to a new kind of foolishness, a new kind of vulnerability, and a new kind of world. Of course, the authorities could not tolerate such a radical and subversive person who contradicted their truth. And so, they executed him as an enemy of the state. Jesus is not crucified because of some theological concept. Jesus is crucified because the Roman empire cannot tolerate such a transformative force set loose in the old world. That brings us to Jesus’s triumphal entry on Sunday, his last supper on Thursday, and his death on Friday, all because of his uncompromising obedience to God’s way in the world. This story, a seemingly strange and challenging story; however, we are called to journey—all the way in obedience to death, then a long desperate pause, and then exalted in honor—from Palm Sunday through Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and to Easter Sunday. It is the story of our faith journey and the task of this holy week. That is the reason Paul wrote today’s passage to the specific congregation in the Greek city of Philippi, the congregation that Paul loved best of all the churches that he had planted. It is because Paul is not concerned about the Easter mystery but concerned about the reality of the church. Paul says to the church, be like Jesus, think like Jesus, have a mind like Jesus, have a sense of self in the world like the way Jesus has shown to us by emptying himself, even the death on the cross. We are reminded once again in this Lenten season not to be so mindless. Do not be like sheep that imitate the old world. Do not act like fearful citizens of the Roman empire. Instead, be like Jesus, think like Jesus, have a mind like Jesus, and have a sense of self in the world, like the way Jesus emptied himself on the cross. That is why we, as the church, keep practicing the Lenten journey, which is a calling for us to be deeply and intentionally different. This is a long week in our faith. This journey is a calling for the church to be like Jesus, think like Jesus and have a mind like Jesus—proclaiming the truth that the church should be an exhibit to the world how our common life can be ordered differently—all of that requires a different mind of obedience. Thanks be to God.

We Are Not Blind, Are We?

What do we learn from the story of anointing the young boy as the King of Israel? Do not be impressed by appearance? Do not assume that talent or merit or power or pedigree counts for much? Do not think that real significance flows from top to bottom, from the greatest to the smallest? All throughout the holy stories in the Scripture, we are reminded God works beyond our understanding and reason—works through the nobodies, the poor, the uncredentialed, and those without pedigree or leverage.

March 10, 2024

God more often works in a bottom-up way—when we are weak; God is strong; The one who is greatest among you will be your servant; all who lift themselves up will be brought low. But, all who make themselves low will be lifted up.” Perhaps, we have become accustomed to refuse to see and notice, being unable to see and notice, or being nurtured not to see and notice God’s ways. That is why we come to today’s gospel reading—the story of the blind man. The confrontation between the authorities and the man who can now see tells us about a contrast between the old established world and the new inexplicable-possible world given by Jesus Christ and eventually by his people. Although the authorities try to keep everything in place that has all the answers, that keeps everything under their control, a holy intervention happens that sometimes cannot explain nor manage that is beyond our reasonable understanding and beyond our recognition. In this story, Jesus has not spoken for 29 verses since Jesus put mud on the man’s eyes. Then Jesus reminds the authorities of what it really means to see. In verse 40, they begin to doubt themselves and their old certitudes, “Surely we are not blind, are we?” So, Jesus ends the story by saying, “If you were blind, you wouldn’t have any sin, but now that you say, “we see,” your sin remains.” The question I invite everyone to carry and meditate on for this week is, “What does it mean to see? Surely, we are not blind, are we?” Perhaps, like Samuel, we are more often concerned about outward appearance while God looks at our hearts and minds. Perhaps, like the Pharisees, we tend to be under the illusion that we are never blind and that we can clearly see. For this lent, It is all about seeing or not seeing, or refusing to see, or being unable to see, or being nurtured not to see. We are the ones who believe and trust that God still works beyond our recognition and understanding in an unexpected way. We are the ones who wait for God’s holy intervention. We are the ones who stand before Jesus to say, “We were blind, but now we see.” So, we are the ones who see more clearly, and love more dearly the one who gives us new sight, and follow more nearly, giving sight to others. Thanks be to God.

When We Forget Who We Are

In today’s passage, the prophet Isaiah calls the people of God back to their true identity with a different purpose in the world. Often, we have been persuaded that our goal is to succeed in the rat race of the empire. However, God has other plans in mind.

March 3, 2024

Maybe our thought is to be safer, to make ourselves safer by more money by a larger 401K account, more success, more security, higher degrees and positions, and so on. More focus on us and our well-being. However, God’s thought is otherwise. God thought to create a special community of covenantal believers who could dream, plant, and build the new world within the old world of empire. We all wish there is no gap between our thoughts and God’s thoughts; however, it often becomes a conflict. Yes, be aware of the deep contradiction between my thought and God’s thought, and my way and God’s way is just the beginning of work for this Lent. Thus, it is an ongoing and daily process and task to rethink that contradiction, to clarify identity, to return to our true selves, and away from the illusion—that the empire of money and power might make us feel safer or happier. In today’s passage, our thoughts might be crushed by Isaiah’s prophecy, which comes from God’s thought—the new world where wine, milk, and bread are freely given without shame and guilt. Isaiah tells us that there was enough bread and meat and water all given freely, all without cost, all inexplicable, all because of the generosity of God. So, the questions arise as we meditate on today’s passage, especially verse 2, “Why” “Why do we spend our money for that which is not bread, and our labor for that which does not satisfy?” We all know it is not a healthy life—to join the rat race of the empire. We probably keep doing it because we have forgotten our purpose and our identity and our vocation—we are God’s people, we are Easter people, not the citizens of the empire. The world, maybe within the old world of empire, we are taught and even encouraged to pursue that “big is better, faster is better, more is better; doing two things at once is better.” That is why we come to today’s gospel lesson, just like the same message we read last Sunday—“change our heart, change our loyalties, change our membership and citizenship.” Lent is a time we recognize that contradiction in which we are very often caught and struggled. Lent is a time we decide to come back to our true identity, our purpose, and our vocation. Lent is a time to sort things out. In this sense, Lent is a gift and another chance for us to live gospel lives by putting down our thoughts and ways but seeking, embracing, and following God’s thoughts and ways. Thanks be to God.

The Possible New World

In today’s passage, God makes a huge promise and announces a new world. God makes a covenant with all living creatures that never again will there be such destruction. And then, God shows the rainbows as a symbol and a reminder of the covenant. Yes, God replaced an old world with a new world.

February 25, 2024

We might imagine the new world would come and be by some dramatic spectacle of science-fiction variety, a super-dramatic miracle, just like a raging flood all over the world. That, however, is not what we have in the story of Jesus, which is today’s other passage. In the gospel, Jesus’s ministry and announcement of “the kingdom of God” are at hand, about to appear among us. The surprise announcement of Jesus at the beginning of Mark is that it is in Jesus that the new world is displacing the old world of threat. The promise to Noah is being acted out in the life and ministry of Jesus. When we read and study the life of Jesus, we learn that the new world does not come in a dramatic moment of magic. It comes in the slow, daily process of Jesus’s ministry. Jesus makes contact with the blind, lame, and deaf, those who are always neglected and discriminated within the community. But Jesus restores them. The new world comes in, reaching out to those who are often neglected and discriminated. Jesus comes to a hungry crowd and feeds them. The world comes with adequate food provisions for those without enough resources. Jesus meets and deals with messed-up people who have made bad choices. Jesus forgives them with unconditional and unending love. That is how Jesus brought a new world. That is why Jesus was executed by the Roman Empire because the Roman Empire—the old world—was an empire of greed, scarcity, fear, and violence that would not tolerate the possible new world of generosity, forgiveness, and healing. We have begun Lent once again for this year. Lent is an invitation to situate ourselves in the great drama of Jesus and his ministry. That drama is the story of a new world arrangement displacing the old world arrangement. That act of displacement cannot be big or dramatic, but it should be a slow and daily process. My invitation for all of us in the Lenten season is for the process of realizing the old world of greed, scarcity, fear, and violence and seeking and dreaming of the new world of generosity, forgiveness, reconciliation, and neighborliness. Jesus recruits new members for the new world. Jesus is still looking for a few good women and men, a few good boys and girls, the old and young, to join the enterprise—replacing the old world with the new world among us and within us. Let us keep dreaming of a new world where the rejected are accepted, a new world where the hungry and the poor are fed and welcomed, and their stories are valued, seen, and heard, a new world where the weak and the sick are fully healed, and a new world where new beginnings and new possibilities are welcomed. Thanks be to God.

God’s Glory Reflected In Us

In the passage, Moses saw God’s back. When he came down the mountain, the skin of his face was shining, and people were afraid of him. Whenever Moses went back to speaking with God
and came back to tell the people what God had said, Moses removed the veil so everyone could see his shining face. People might not be able to see God directly, but they could see God’s glory reflected in Moses. God had given them someone they could look at and listen to, someone who walked around in his own personal spotlight.

February 11, 2024

The same thing happened to Jesus a thousand years later, the episode that we can read it in the book of Mark, chapter 9. Jesus’s mountain was in Israel, not Egypt, but it was clearly the same glory that enveloped him. I often wonder if things might have gone better for Jesus if his glory had lasted longer, as Moses did. Jesus never had to wear a veil. We assume that by the time Jesus came down from the mountain, his face was not shining as Moses did but was back to normal. No one was particularly afraid of him, at least not in the right way. They were afraid of him in the wrong way—afraid enough to kill him. The disciples wanted to capture the moment with memorials on the mountain, but Jesus’s focus continued to be on their commitment to following him through the forthcoming journey to the cross. Believe it or not, Jesus’s appearance on the mountain should be equally the same as the empty tomb on the first Easter morning, which seems very low-key for most of us. Throughout our faith journey, we might have the mountain-top experiences of the transfiguration with God and listen to God’s voice—the moments and times and seasons we wish we could grasp, sustain, and live within forever, just like Peter asked Jesus, “O Lord, it is so good we are here on this mountain-tip. Let us make a beautiful shrine to celebrate this moment.” However, we may more often experience standing inside an empty tomb--seeking God’s presence so hard, sacrificing, and struggling. Perhaps we never see God’s back in the same way Moses saw it, and perhaps we never have a holy encounter like the three disciples had on the mountaintop. We are called to live in a world where God’s glory is still possible, where light may break through at any moment. We believe in what we can see, but we are called to believe in more than that, including what we cannot see. We are believers who know and believe that the world is made out of light, that God’s glory is pulsing just beneath the surface of things, with the power to transfigure the darkest of our days and the dark side of ourselves. We never know when our faces may begin to shine or when our neighbor's face may begin to shine. By the power of our belief, we choose what kind of world we continue to live in—a world where glory is possible and God’s light may break through any moment and anywhere. Thanks be to God.

Prayer is Beyond Our Words and Expressions

The good news we are reminded of from Paul’s letter is that we have not one but two intercessors for our faith journey—the Holy Spirit, who teaches us how to pray, and Christ, who sits on the right hand of God. Paul says that most of us do not take full advantage of them. It is because we do not know how to pray, Paul tells us. We often do not know how, or what, or why, and consequently, we are likely to avoid prayer altogether because we would rather not pray at all than do it wrong.

February 4, 2024

Isn’t it true that our prayer often tends to be one-way talking to God—“O God, I want you to do this and that, I wish this and that, I am sorry I did this and that.” Then, when all of our words run out, we open our eyes again, going back to reality. I wonder if we may give permission to ourselves with longings and hunger beyond our words and expressions—that is what the Holy Spirit really gets to work, bringing comfort and peace, which is the sense of God’s presence beyond our words and expressions. I knew more about this when I was at Brite than I do now. I prayed and asked God to reveal God’s purpose for me, to point me in the right direction and to give me a sign. Those prayers were not pretty or formal. It often cried out and shouted out and even complained about—it was simple, messy, and desperate. I tried and tried again, prayed and prayed again, but I did not hear or feel any answers. I talked and talked at God until the words ran out, and then to my great surprise, I heard myself begin to sing—“It is well.” It is a frightening world out there, and we have to face the complexity every day. Maybe, we want more certainty and a more specific answer for us. We want the definitive word, more than just “it is well.” What does that mean for us, day to day, “It is well?” Perhaps, the problem, challenge, or difficulty we may face does not disappear, no matter how often we sing the hymn—“It is well.” Perhaps, “it is well,” and its phrase sometimes sounds like just a cliché. Perhaps “it is well” does not bring any sense of comfort or peace to us. However, “it is well” can be fuel for us to live out our own stories, helping us keep seeking God’s will and plan for us and keep searching for God’s guidance about how and what and why to pray as we dwell in our own relationship with God through the Holy Spirit. We will probably never stop asking God to give us certainties, but certainties do not have much to do with freedom or love or prayer, especially prayer. My challenge and invitation for all of us as we begin this week is to spend time not only talking to God but listening to God, and listening sometimes to what only sounds like silence, the sound so thin and so quiet, believing that we always have two advocates—the Holy Spirit who still works beyond our limitation--time, reason, or resources, and the Christ who makes our prayers acceptable to God. Thanks be to God.

Whatever Blindness We May Have

In today’s passage, Bartimaeus shouts, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” How in the world does that blind beggar recognize what no one else can see, that the man on the road in front of him is indeed the Messiah? Although the crowd tried to make the blind man silent, he cried out again more loudly, “Have mercy on me.”

January 28, 2024

Jesus hears him this time and stops, asks the blind beggar, “What do you want me to do for you?” Oh, come on, Jesus. What the question is—what do I want? What does Jesus think he wants, a pair of sunglasses or a strong blind cane? Jesus wants to hear Bartimaeus say it, say exactly what he wants, exactly how much he believes Jesus can do. The blind man expresses his desire in six words—“My teacher, let me see again.” Then, Jesus replies, “Go, your faith has made you well.” “Go,” Jesus tells him, but the blind man does not go anywhere. But he decides to follow Jesus’s way, the way the blind beggar chooses the road to Jerusalem in the company of Jesus, even though he seems not to understand the way where it will lead, which is the cross. Like the blind man, we still want to make this story our own—to encounter Jesus, to be called to him by name, to find the words to tell him what we want, and to be healed, fixed, and made whole. However, the world seems too much for us—too much to see, to do, and to be. So, I wonder we often close our eyes not to see and not to face reality by shutting our eyes and remaining at the place where we are, seeking smaller, more private, and safer. Maybe what we need the most is—crying out, springing up, and asking for our heart’s desire. And God still calls us to become a disciple and a messenger who can reach out and speak to others, “Take heart, get up, and God is calling you.” As a believer, being able to see does not always mean that it is a beautiful thing. Rather, we often face and see reality—good along with awful and messy; the lovely along with ugly and broken—in ourselves, in everyone we meet, in the community, and in the world. So, the question we have to wrestle with is, “Are we really willing to see or not?” Are we ready to bruise our hearts when we are able to see? Do we have enough people who still point their fingers in the right direction and deliver the message, “Take heart, get up, and God is calling you.” Thanks be to God.

Speak, O Lord, For Your Servent Is Listening

In today’s passage, someone called Samuel in the middle of the night, not once but three times. Three times, Samuel answered, “Here I am,” and “I am coming,” running to see the priest, Eli. It was not Eli who called him, however, by the time Samuel awakened him for the third time, Eli had a hunch who it might be. So, the priest Eli told Samuel what to say the next time when he heard the voice, saying, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”

January 14, 2024

At that moment, as Samuel listened to the Lord, he was no longer a child, a temple lackey, but became a young man, a servant of God who was ready to hear what the Lord had to say to him. The message Samuel heard was not the good news—condemning Eli’s house forever—the only family Samuel had ever known condemning old blind Eli’s rude sons had gotten into the bad habit of stealing the best cuts of sacrifice from the temple. Who wants to share this message with whom? The next morning, Eli called and ordered Samuel to tell him what he had heard and learned from the voice—"What was it the voice told you?” Eli surely knew better about the voice where it came from. While Samuel looked hesitant, Eli made it clear that he, like Samuel, last night, was ready to hear the message, so Samuel told him everything—the message of righteousness and judgment—in verse 18, “So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. ‘He is the Lord,’ Eli said, ‘He will do as he pleases.’” Does anyone really want to hear the voice of the living God? I wonder. I really wonder. I do not know about you, but to be honest, I am probably not ready to hear the voice of the living God. Perhaps, we are often afraid that we will hear something, or we will not hear something. But all the evidence—big and small, our faith and hope through the Bible and God’s people—leads us that God has been faithfully speaking to us and is still speaking to us. Dear Church. As we begin this new year, what dreams do we dream? What dreams do we have for ourselves personally and for the ministry of the FCC? Isn’t it true that we are believers who trust and have faith in the living God, who has been speaking to us and is still speaking to us? In today’s passage, we are reminded of whether we may be open to listening to the wisdom of a fellow pilgrim, the old and blind priest Eli, whether we may belong to a community that helps us to make sense of what is happening to us or in the world, whether we may be able to discern whose voices and which voices we should hear, and we are ready to listen to God’s voices. I wonder, if God’s voice awakens us in the middle of tonight, what does God try, want, and long to say to us? What we need the most is to have sensitivity, to take courage, to be ready to listen, and to respond to God’s voices—“Speak, Lord, O God, for your servants are listening.” Thanks be to God.