I Love You With The Love Of The Lord

 

St Francis and the Leper, Riva Torto, Assisi,  

'I know that the Lord will maintain the cause of the afflicted and will execute justice for the needy.' Psalms 140:12 

In the heyday of mass evangelism in the 1960s and 1970s, there were many evangelistic 'crusades' with an overdrive of direct and confrontational delivery of the gospel message. Pleased with the results, Christians ignored other forms of witnessing such as social concerns and social actions. Christians began to put lifestyle witnessing and doing good works to the back burner. These were considered as less effective in securing God's redemption for unbelievers. 

Such thinking went against the grain of Christian witness and the teachings of Jesus. Jesus said that at the second coming there will be a separation of the sheep from the goats among Christ's followers. He said that the sheep will receive an inheritance in contrast to the goats. The sheep receive merit because they ministered in ways Jesus explained so dramatically:  

'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick in prison and go to visit you? The King will reply 'Truly I tell you, whatever you did for the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.' Matthew 25:38-40

Since its beginning, Christianity challenged its members to stand up for the rights of the poor and perform acts of charity. In Acts 6, seven deacons were appointed to look after widows and to see to the distribution of food.

An early church father, St John Chrysostom preached that in order to call oneself a Christian, one must be mindful of one’s neighbor, care for him and his needs. Chrysostom even expected the poor to share what little they had; much like the poor widow who gave her two mites: 

"You say that you are yourself too poor to help others. If that is what is worrying you, listen to me when I tell you that poverty is not a bar to almsgiving, for were you a thousand times poorer than you are you would still not be poorer than the woman who had only a handful of flour or that other who had only a couple of pennies. These, by giving all that they had to the poor, showed that great poverty is not incompatible with great generosity."

As the early Christians faced issues of poverty, so will Christians today. The poor may need a helping hand to get out of a fatalistic future. Mother Teresa said, “All my years of service to the poor have helped me to understand that they (the poor) are precisely the ones who better understand human dignity. If they have a problem, it is not lack of money, but the fact that their right to be treated humanly and with tenderness is not recognised." 

Christians are called upon to change the very structures that took advantage of the poor or kept them in poverty.  In Oct 1981, the Methodist Church in Singapore set up the Methodist Welfare Services. Today the MWS runs 4 nursing homes, 7 senior activity or elder care centres, 5 family services centres, 1 girls' residence and 1 student care centre. Its areas of impact include:

• Care of the chronically ill, frail and destitute
• Empowering of families in distress
• Engaging the socially isolated
• Rehabilitating at risk youth
• Advancing disadvantaged children  

We realise that Christ places a dignity on the downtrodden and the disenfranchised, those who are the least among us. Chrysostom encouraged Christians to live their faith by loving their neighbor, “If you have love, you will not notice the loss of your money, the labor of your body, the toil of your words, your trouble or your ministering, but you will bear everything courageously.”

The works of the various Christian charity organisations like the MWS are indeed truly commendable. Governments rely on private organisations to provide the service and funds for charitable works. Many governments provide tax deductions to encourage giving and also provide some support to these organisations. But sometimes, the support comes with a catch; there should not be a spiritual overtone to the charitable service. 

Over time, these restrictions unwittingly caused an insidious secularisation within these church based charitable organisations. Notably, organisations and staff misunderstand that there is an imposition against propagating the faith in executing the charitable service. Actually the advice is not against propagating religion but to be careful and sensitive about doing it. Kind service borne out of love for Christ and neighbours will cause others to inquire about the faith within us. Opportunities to share the gospel abound. This is unavoidable, work and witness cannot be separated.

Yet, unfortunately, work and witness start to drift apart. The very success of Christian charitable organisations blocks their ability to witness and share the gospel. This is indeed sad and gradually the love for work supplants the love for Christ in these services. We forget that our spiritual service emanates from the love of and for Christ. In the book of Revelations, the church at Ephesus exemplified this dichotomy,

'I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. Yet I hold this against you; You have forsaken the love you had at first.' Rev 2:2,4 

 

The church must avoid this pitfall. We must find a good balance between evangelism, witnessing and social concerns while staying sensitive to the multi-religious societies we live in. In every instance, we are called to love our neighbours not just with words but also with deeds, with acts of charity, kindness, social action and social justice. The love for one another and the love for neighbours distinguishes us as Christ's disciples and drives our Christian service. In turn our Christian service becomes our Christian witness.

 

There is a simple Christian tune, 'I Love You With The Love Of the Lord.' 

I love you with the love of the Lord

Yes I love you with the love of the Lord

I can see in you the glory of my King and

I love you with the love of the Lord

Lionel

Updated 1st Published 25 Apr 2021

Where There Is Injury, Let Me Sow Pardon

'The Lord bless you and keep you; 

the Lord make His face to shine on you 

and be gracious unto you

The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.' Numbers 6:24-26

Our Bible discussion group was sharing a chapter from Kent Nerburn’s book (Ref 1), “Make Me An Instrument Of Your Peace", when Low Li Eng commented that in asking to sow pardon where there is injury, St Francis was dealing not with the principle but with the pain.

Li Eng understood that healing starts by managing the pain not by settling on principles or fairness. This was brilliantly demonstrated by Nelson Mandela who on being the first black President of South Africa, established the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. 

South Africa was a brutally repressive state where a minority of four million whites ruled a majority population of over 20 million nonwhites in a segregationist, racist apartheid regime. There was widespread discrimination, racially motivated murders and beatings. It was unbearable. 

Soon it became clear that such a repressive  regime could not sustain itself. The white apartheid government had to turn over the country to the black majority. When that happened, many speculated that an unprecedented bloodbath of vengeance and retribution would ensue. Just elected president, Mandela was more than aware that his nation was a hotbed for revenge-seeking racism following the abandonment of apartheid. It was a earth-shaking challenge.

No bloodbath ensued when the power in South Africa was handed over from a white regime to the blacks of the country. Instead, South Africa managed a remarkable and relatively peaceful transition to democracy and majority rule. With Nobel Peace Prize winner Bishop Desmond Tutu, Nelson Mandela organised the Commission in 1995 to help South Africa work through the scars of an entire country and people. Its goal was to provide, on a national scale, an effective and productive way to allow blacks who had been mistreated or subjected to violence to seek justice without revenge. In an unprecedented gesture of national forgiveness, the Commission would also allow perpetrators of racially motivated crimes to seek amnesty from the government in return for testimony.

The commission was not vengeful or retaliatory. By giving those accused of racially motivated crimes opportunities to apply for amnesty, the South African government showed that being reasonable and forgiving to a degree could be beneficial. Revenge will simply perpetuate the hate and undermine any real chance for peace and advancement. 

Many who were maligned, offended or betrayed would ask for justice. After retribution, perhaps they could generously offer pardon. Instead St Francis knew that there is something even more painful than injustice and that injury needs healing. St Francis asked us to “sow pardon.” Kent Nerburn wrote, “Sowing does not imply that something is fully grown, only that the seeds of possibility have been planted.”

This act of sowing pardon was well illustrated in the movie 'Invictus' which was released in Dec 2009. (Click on the title to watch a trailer of the film.) Invictus is the amazing true story of how Nelson Mandela (played by Morgan Freeman) joined up with the captain of South Africa's rugby team, Francois Pienaar (Matt Damon) in an effort to use the game to unite their country. Mandela loved rugby but the South African rugby team, the Springboks, was one of the worst national teams. Because of apartheid many nations had boycotted playing with the Springboks, so the standard of rugby deteriorated. Furthermore, the nation's majority blacks favoured soccer, not rugby. The Springboks team was viewed contemptuously by the blacks as a remnant of the hated apartheid. Over fierce resistance, the rebuilding of the team with both blacks and whites players began, with a distinct eye toward the World Cup final. They won the finals that year and Mandela's mixed Springboks team came to terms with South Africa as a fully integrated state. There was healing.

Nelson Mandella was famous as a man who forgave the enemies who had jailed him. How far was forgiveness special to Mandela? Graca Machel wrote of Mandela, "He symbolises a much broader forgiveness and understanding and reaching out. If he had come out of prison and sent a different message, I can tell you this country could be in flames." There is another forgiving act that is even more astounding, the forgiveness of Jesus on the cross, "Father forgive them that for they do not know what they are doing" Luke 23:24.

South Africa pioneered an approach that exemplified the Christian invocation, 'Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sinned against us.' The Afrikaner Whites were to confess and the African Blacks to forgive. A simple equation Confession + Forgiveness = Reconciliation brought a peaceful transition of power.  

We continue to search for peace today. When we look at the protests and violence over racial injustice and the divide between left and right political views in many cities in the USA today, it seems almost impossible to achieve any kind of peaceful resolution. In fact some are even talking of a kind of civil war and the breaking up of the United States. They should know that peace is a byproduct of forgiveness. 

Christians are taught by Jesus to forgive. Peter asked Jesus "Lord how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me. Up to seven times?" Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times but seventy-seven times" Matthew 18:21-22. When we can learn to sow pardon, we will enjoy the Aaronic Blessing, 'The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.'

    

Lionel

Ref 1: Kent Nerburn, 'Make Me An Instrument Of Your Peace' HarperCollins, 1999

Updated 1st Published on 28 June 2020

More Like Christ

Basilica of St Francis, Assisi Italy

“We must keep our eyes on Jesus, who leads us and makes our faith complete. He endured the shame of being nailed to a cross….So keep your mind on Jesus, who put up with many insults from sinners. Then you won't get discouraged and give up.” Heb 

Who has lived a life like Christ?

In Sep 2007, Pat and I went to Assisi to retrace the footsteps of St Francis in the Umbrian and Tuscan countryside of Italy. I wanted to discover who this man was. What did he bring to the Christian faith? What was he trying to tell us? Was he a recluse? Was he a callow fellow who melodramatically stripped himself naked in the public square to repudiate his past rich and material life; returning to his father every possession to embrace poverty? Was he a lunatic who would speak to animals and birds? Was he an idealist who did not think a second thought when he kissed a leper and ministered to their colony? Was he a masochist who inflicted on his physical body, the very physical sufferings of Christ?

Contemplation

In visiting the places that venerated his memory and learning about his life, I discovered that St Francis was a Christian who took seriously, the commandment to become more like Christ. What was remarkable was that he physically and not just symbolically or spiritually lived out the life of Jesus as he understood from the Gospels. If Christ said he had no place to lay his feet or to place his head, St Francis did that. If Christ said to go two by two to witness without bringing anything other than the cloak on their backs, Francis complied to the letter. If Gospel described when going about witnessing to depend on the hospitality of others and go a-begging for food, Francis followed.

After visiting Carceri, a mountain top retreat that Francis frequented, I wrote, "Once in a while, there comes a man or woman whose life and witness came so close to mimicking the life of Jesus that they reflected God's image so as to inspire all of us". 

By his life, ministry, writing and witness, Francis was an example extraordinaire. Francis pointed many in his generation and for 8 more centuries afterwards, towards God. It is no wonder then, that the Basilica of St Francis and all Assisi celebrate the saint. In fact, the brochure claims that it is a spirit filled place. 

I do not feel that there is anything wrong to admire St Francis, as I do, so long as one understands his position as a reflection of the infinite beauty of our Lord Jesus. One of his biographers wrote, “Francis presented to the world a new fascinating way to live a Christian life. His greatest contribution was to demonstrate how to live the Beatitudes literally and by doing so helped solve the problems that plague his society. He did that by renouncing its affluence and privileges and taking on poverty chastity and complete obedience.”

To underscore this, a prayer he made kneeling at a crucifix towards the end stages of his life clarifies, “All highest, glorious God, cast your light into the darkness of my heart. Give me right faith, firm hope, perfect charity and profound humility, with wisdom and perception, O Lord, so that I may do what is truly your holy will. Amen”

One would have thought that such an example would be so hard to follow that few could give up all and join Francis in his calling to live both spiritually and physically the example of Jesus’ life on earth. Instead in just a few years, more than five thousand disciples chose to renounce their riches and to live like him, a life of poverty and service. By the time he died, Francis had already been venerated as a saint; his life has become a stirring example of True Christianity. 

Lionel

Updated 1st Published 8 Mar 2020

Being Poor

"Blessed are  you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God." Luke 6:20

The first of the eight beatitudes (blessings) declared by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount is the blessing to be poor. What's more Jesus stated that the poor will inherit the Kingdom of God, a Kingdom Jesus said was imminent when he began his earthly ministry in Galilee.

The poor inheriting heaven is a very radical idea. While Luke refers to material poverty, Matthew added a spiritual spin to this by stating 'poor in spirit'. The Bishop Solomon (Ref 1) interpreted this as a 'sense of spiritual bankruptcy and brokenness'. The poor in spirit are those who had come to the end of their ropes, causing them like the prodigal son to truly repent. This repentance becomes the gateway to the Kingdom of God, one of the first messages taught by Jesus, "The time has come, he said. The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!" Mark 1:15

There is a relentless drive in Singapore to get out of the poverty trap. At first glance it seems the right thing to do but who could have predicted that a self-absorbed materialistic world would appear in the 21st century? It seems that the chief preoccupation is the accumulation of wealth and not the eradication of poverty. It is said that Singaporeans value cash, cars, condominium, credit cards and country clubs more than anything else. This rat race can cause some to fall by the wayside. No one may be on hand to pick them up. Bishop Solomon cautioned, 'In their wealthy state, the rich may end up not not caring at all for God. The poor probably have a better chance of learning dependence on God. Their material poverty may make it easier for them to recognise their spiritual poverty too and turn to God for mercy and help'. 

Does anyone really care? There are two individuals in church history that embraced poverty as their way of life, caring for the poor and downtrodden. Both became saints, Saint Francis of Assisi and Saint Teresa of Calcutta. 

St Francis founded the Franciscan order and he was renowned for love of simplicity and practice of poverty. He was nicknamed Poverello. He was known for his fondness and love for the downtrodden, the poor and the lepers.

Mother Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charity, a order of nuns first started in 1950 in Calcutta and now has over 5000 nuns in more than 150 countries. They took vows of poverty and 'give whole-hearted service to the poorest of the poor'.

Both led inspiring lives and have influenced countless people. Consider the wisdom of their quotations:

Saint Francis:
'Lord make me an instrument of thy peace, where there is hatred let me sow love'.
'While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart'.
'Start by doing what is necessary; then what is possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible'.

Saint Teresa:
'It is not how much you do but how much love you put into what you do that counts'.
'Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love'.
'If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed just one'.

The lives of these two saints and their legacies indicate that the most long-lasting impact on people and on the world are not made by people of means and riches but often by those who are poor and saintly. 

Unfortunately very few of us bother. In one of his sermons, John Wesley lamented, "One great reason why the rich, in general, have so little sympathy for the poor, is, because they so seldom visit them. Many do not know because they do not care to know: they keep out of the way of knowing it". 

One Singaporean exception is my friend Dr Goh Wei Leong. Wei Leong was a prosperous general practitioner, who exchanged his Maserati for Charity when he founded HealthServe Singapore in 2006. HealthServe's mission is to serve disadvantaged migrant workers in Singapore through healthcare, counselling, casework and social assistance. There are many migrant workers in Singapore and Wei Leong started a charity clinic in a poor area in Singapore call Geylang at first seeing the patients himself and he enthused other Christians to assist in this work. HealthServe now have 4 clinics/offices in Singapore. In recognition of his ministry and service, Wei Leong received the Straits Time Singaporean of the Year Award in 2017.

My church, Charis Methodist Church started a migrant workers ministry in the Joo Chiat area under Gladys Han. We proceeded to minister to the homeless by offering them a room to sleep and facilities for laundry etc under Project Samaria.

We should not forsake the downtrodden and poor. Indeed Jesus said, "Blessed are the poor, the weak will become strong and the poor rich'. For such grace and blessing, let us 'Give Thanks with a Grateful Heart'

Lionel

Ref 1: Robert M Solomon, The Sermon of Jesus, Genesis Book, 2013

Updated 1st Published 16 Feb 2020