No Surprise!

Act 3:17-26 

17 “Now, fellow Israelites, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. 18 But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Messiah would suffer.19 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, 20 and that he may send the Messiah, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus. 21 Heaven must receive him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets. 22 For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. 23 Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from their people.’ 24 “Indeed, beginning with Samuel, all the prophets who have spoken have foretold these days. 25 And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’ 26 When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”

Call in Sick

She called in sick because she wanted to have a “Surprise Celebration” for her husband’s birthday.

Perhaps, she was also sick of going to work and thought that lying to her boss that she is sick just to have a surprise celebration would heal her sickness.

“Let’s surprise your father on his birthday, okay?” she told her older son.

The older son told his younger brother, “We will celebrate Dad’s birthday and it will be a secret okay?”

The younger brother run to his sister and told her, “We will celebrate Dad’s birthday and it will be a secret, okay?”

Everyone has been informed about the secret of surprise birthday celebration.

The husband came home from work and was greeted, “Happy Birthday!”

The wife who planned everything asked her husband< “Are you surprised?”

Earlier, he heard his children whispering but he lied saying, “Yes, I am very surprised!”

The surprised celebration was planned as secret but it was not secret or even a surprise. That surprise celebration made the celebrant lied so as not to dishearten his wife and kids.

Lying has become the major behavioural motif or theme of the surprise celebration. That surprise birthday celebration made the wife lied to her boss, made the husband lied to his family, the children have defined secret as revealing something to others.

Everyone did the wrong thing just to have fun of the coveted surprise birthday celebration.

Many Christians are unaware that little lying they have done would eventually grow bigger. Lying and having fun about surprises and secrets are now relatively acceptable behavioural problem that silently growing its roots in this present generation of Christianity.

There is a grand celebration that God has prepared but He did not plan to surprise us. The details of that grand celebration remained inconceivable to our limited human mind. God did not plan that grand celebration as a secret but encourages believer to proclaim it. The Lord has His timetable for it but the schedule of that celebration remains a secret.

  1. Timetable

17 “Now, fellow Israelites, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. 18 But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Messiah would suffer.19 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, 20 and that he may send the Messiah, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus. 21 Heaven must receive him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets. 

At the conclusion of Peter’s evangelistic message in relation to the miraculous healing of the crippled man, he invited his listeners to repent and turn to God. The result of repentance is to turn to God which means “to be obedient to His commands.”

God does not need to rush things because has His timetable of the return of Christ. After everything is restored that is God’s schedule for the grand celebration. God has made it known that Christ second advent is imminent but He made it a secret.

As we wait for the judgment day, Christ teaches that we are to earn our treasures in heaven. Do not be caught surprised about how much treasure you will have in heaven. Make every given opportunity to do good things and be counted for our heavenly treasures. Expect that God will surely reward every good thing that you have done.

Immigration Visa

An immigrant asked his friend, “How’s the immigration application of your sister?”

“Well, I hope they will come sooner,” was the response.

“That’s great and that they will know how tough life here is,” was a quick response.

Some people back in the home country think that dollars can be easily earned abroad. Not a few think that it also takes much effort to live a descent life abroad.

Many people are also ignoring and not wanting to know what awaits them in eternity. While some reject the idea of heaven and hell, others just don’t care what’s beyond death.

God wants everyone to be saved and sent His Son to die here on earth so that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life. In 1 Timothy 2:3-6 it says…This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all people. 

One can know that he is saved by having the knowledge of the truth. The Lord Jesus is the truth and whatever He says is the truth. The words of Christ are not suggestions or alternatives on how to live a Christian life. His words are the prescription of the doctor to the dying sick person. Christ is “the Doctor” to people who are spiritually sick –even us, Christians.

The Bible did not hide that reality but Christ Himself declared it very clearly. In Mark 2:17 the Lord Jesus declared… 17On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

Moses and the Old Testament prophets have been preaching about Christ in their times.

  1. Notification

22 For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. 23 Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from their people.’ 24 “Indeed, beginning with Samuel, all the prophets who have spoken have foretold these days. 25 And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’ 26 When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.”

An idea intended to make believers off-guard was conceived that if Christ is the only means to salvation, then those people who died before the coming of Christ have a big problem. Another question is, “How about those people who have not heard the gospel?”

Those questions came from the mind of human with limited understanding of the unlimited mind of God. God did not overlook anyone but has given an opportunity to be saved.

Moses, Samuel and all the prophets have spoken about God’s offer of salvation. According to historians, Moses initiated the official recording of God’s activity among men. Before Moses, it was by words of mouth transmitted from generation to generation that people have learned about God.

The way the people learned about God in the Old Testament or even people before the printing of the scripture, the way they learned about God was very unique as compared to how we learn about God in our generation. Likewise, the means God revealed Himself to the uncivilized group of people or those no-read-no-write group of people in the jungles are also unique specifically for them.

No one has the right to accuse God of unfairness because although not familiar to us, He has various means to inform people, not just the reading or writing of scripture that we know. Why then, do we need to go to the mission field if God can easily tell people about Him? Why do we need to share the gospel if God Himself has unique ways of informing others?

Even if God has His unique ways of informing people about His offer of salvation, He wants believers to be involved in mission as avenues to earn treasures in heaven. God would set in the hearts of those whom He called for missions to go and share the gospel to those whom God has prepared to hear the gospel.

American Indian

A movie portrayed an American Indian was converted to Christianity. He was enlisted and served as a guide to a group of patrol soldiers. At one instance, he mumbled how a Bible believing soldier handle the God’s word. He asked the leader of the patrol soldier, “How can you Christian have guts to kill?”

Many people claim to be Christians but do not live according to the biblical teachings. Do you think that a person is saved if he is doing unchristian things like killing or lying?

In Christian life, we also grow from being an infant believer to become a mature believer. As each person experiences childhood and adulthood, a believer grow from a baby Christian to become a mature disciple

In the previous era, there’s a saying that goes, “Men don’t cry!” And young boys would try not to cry when they are hurt because they don’t want to be called sissy, girly or otherwise but men. But it is easy to identify which one is a young boy or a matured man.

Similarly, in Christianity one will experience how to be a baby Christian before becoming mature Christian disciple. Which is why, when a Christian is acting like a non-believer, perhaps he or she is Christian who is still in considered a baby Christian.

One of the most problematic churches in the first century was the church in Corinth. Paul wrote in the 1 Corinthians 3:1…1 Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. This passage helps us understand that Christians have different level of maturity.

The person who neglects reading his Bible is like a baby who does not drink his milk. When babies or infants are hungry they keep on crying for milk. Does it mean that when a Christian does not read his Bible, he is not spiritually hungry?

The person who is saved is spiritually alive and needs spiritual milk, the Scripture.

Salvation that God offers us has been scheduled and given enough notification.

As we keep waiting for the timetable of God about Christ’s coming again, let not stop doing what is good and keep earning our treasures in heaven.

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