SONGS FOR PRAYER

reading for: Tuesday Night, 24 JANUARY

Matthew 5:1-12

Being in Christ Jesus means living the way that Jesus taught us to live

• READ

  The passage for today is a highly popular passage where many of us are familiar with. We have heard many sermons and teachings on this passage. We have printed this passage on our cups and bookmarks. This popularity is not a bad thing, but may we never think we are so familiar with this passage that it has nothing new to say to us. The passage that I am referring to is the sermon of the mount and more specifically for today, the beginning of the sermon of the mount.

  Matthew 5:1–12 (ESV)

  1 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. 8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

  Jesus seeing the crowds went up on the mountain sat down and began to teach his disciples. Matthew 5 to 7 records this teaching in great detail but for today let us focus on Matthew 5:1-12.

  Verse 3 to 11 has a very similar pattern. For example, verse 3 goes this way, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus is telling us what kind of a person that we must be in him, for it is this kind of person that will receive his blessings.

  Jesus exhorts us to be poor in spirit, to mourn, to be meek and to be people who hunger and thirst for righteousness. He continues by exhorting us to be merciful, pure in heart, peace makers and to be persecuted for righteousness sake. This is how Jesus lived and taught his disciples how to live. This is how his followers should look like.

  Living the way of Jesus will enable us to receive blessings from God. Those who live this way will possess the kingdom of heaven, shall be comforted and inherit the earth. They will be satisfied, will receive mercy, see God and be called sons of God.

• REFLECT

  Living the way that Jesus lived and taught is tough. It is not easy to be poor in spirit nor be people who mourn. To be meek is not a walk in the park. Focusing on any one attribute is tough enough, doing all at the same time is exponentially more difficult. Living this way is impossible by our own strength, but only possible because we are in Christ Jesus and empowered by the Spirit.

  Perhaps you have been discouraged by trying to live this way by your own strength and failing. Perhaps you have been disillusioned by trying to force yourself to be meek or a peacemaker and then you get angry and proud. Let us repent before God for our trying in our own strength and ask him for strength to help us to live the way that he wants to live.

  Reflect on what is one thing that the Lord is leading us to practice so that we can live in the way that he has called us to live. Take it to the Lord and ask him for strength and empowerment.

reading for: Wednesday Night, 25 JANUARY

Micah 6:1-8

Being in Christ means doing justice, loving kindness and walking humbly with God

• READ

Micah 6:1-8 starts with “Hear what the Lord says:”. This is very difficult for us as the task of putting ourselves in a space to hear what the Lord says takes effort. Let us now look at what the Lord is saying through Micah the prophet.

Micah 6:1–8 (ESV)

1 Hear what the Lord says: Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear your voice. 2 Hear, you mountains, the indictment of the Lord, and you enduring foundations of the earth, for the Lord has an indictment against his people, and he will contend with Israel. 3 “O my people, what have I done to you? How have I wearied you? Answer me! 4 For I brought you up from the land of Egypt and redeemed you from the house of slavery, and I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam. 5 O my people, remember what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him, and what happened from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.” 6 “With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? 7 Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

The Lord calls on his people to plead their case before the mountains and let the hills hear their voices. Because the Lord is not going to be silent, and the mountains and hills are going to hear the indictment against his people.

The Lord recounts how he has been faithful to his people. The Lord was the one who brought them out from Egypt, redeemed them from slavery, sent before them Moses, Aaron and Miriam. He is the one that caused them to know the righteous acts of God by protecting them from their enemies. He wants his people to remember his faithfulness. The people are reminded that the Lord told them that beyond the offerings that they offer, they are to do justice, love kindness and to walk humbly with God.

• REFLECT

  We are people who have been saved and redeemed from darkness by the light who is Christ. Jesus Christ showed us mercy and grace when we did not deserve mercy and grace. What the ancient people of God received as blessings from God, we have received and more. Praise and thank God for the blessings that he has given to us.

  What does the Lord require of us?

  The Lord requires us to do justice, love kindness and walk humbly before God. We are to do this because he has shown us grace and mercy and we are in Christ.

  What is one way that you can do justice, love kindness and walk humbly with God this Chinese New Year season? Pray and ask God to help us to walk in the ways of Jesus and the Spirit.

reading for: Thursday Night, 26 JANUARY

1 Corinthians 1:18-31

Being in Christ Jesus

• READ

  The church of Corinth was a church full of many issues and challenges and later in this letter, Paul wrote to address some of the issues that they faced or that they brought to him. At the start of the letter, Paul begins to address the issue of division as one of the church chief problems.

  1 Corinthians 1:10–13 (ESV)

  10 I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment. 11 For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there is quarreling among you, my brothers. 12 What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” 13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?

  Paul described how the church of Corinth was divided and quarrelled among them, with some following different leaders of the faith and some following other leaders of the faith. Paul rebukes them and exhorts them to be united in their following of Christ.

  1 Corinthians 1:18–25 (ESV)

  18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” 20 Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. 22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

  Paul then continues to speak of Jesus Christ and more specifically on the cross. He teaches the church that the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing but for those who are being saved, it is the power of God. What Paul is saying here is that to the wisdom of the world the cross is foolishness. Yet for God, the cross is the wisest message that can ever be. 

  1 Corinthians 1:30–31 (ESV)

  30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

  It is because of the work of the cross which is done by the work of God choosing what is foolish according to the ways of the world, that the Corinthians are now in Christ Jesus. Christ Jesus is their wisdom from God, righteousness, sanctification and redemption. In short, Christ Jesus is and should be their all.

• REFLECT

  Is the message of the cross foolishness or wise to you? Do we even hear the gospel of Jesus Christ regularly? Are we immersed in the word of God which speaks about Jesus Christ?

  Let us commit to regularly hear the gospel of Jesus and be immersed in the word of God. Pray for guidance from the Holy Sprit to help us to receive the wisdom of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

reading for: Friday Night, 27 JANUARY

PSALM 15

Being in Christ means walking blamelessly and doing what is right

• READ

  Psalm 15 (ESV)

  1 O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill? 2 He who walks blamelessly and does what is right and speaks truth in his heart; 3 who does not slander with his tongue and does no evil to his neighbor, nor takes up a reproach against his friend; 4 in whose eyes a vile person is despised, but who honors those who fear the LORD; who swears to his own hurt and does not change; 5 who does not put out his money at interest and does not take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be moved.

  Psalm 15 is a psalm of David in which he approaches and prays to the Lord. The psalm starts with two questions. “O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill?” This shows the posture of David because he wants to be the kind of person that will dwell in the presence of God. He knows what he must do and will proceed to lay out what a person that dwells in the presence of God looks like but we must not forget that David desired to be that kind of person. This was not a legalistic rule book for him, but he did this because he wanted to be in the presence of God.

  David declares that the person who dwells in the presence of God is the person who walks blamelessly and does what is right. It is the person who does not slander with his tongue and does not evil to his neighbour. This person is one who does not take up a reproach against his friend, despises the vile person and honours those who fears the Lord. Finally, this is a person who does not put out his money at interest and does not take a bribe against the innocent. This kind of person will be sure footed and will not be moved. David was this kind of person, and he wants his readers to be like him.

• REFLECT

  David starts this psalm with questions of who shall dwell in the presence of the Lord. This shows David’s longing for the presence of God. David was prepared to do what it takes to be in the presence of God.

  Let us reflect on whether we have such a longing and desire to be in the presence of God. What will we give up to be in the presence of God? Would we seek to follow Jesus just so that we can be in his presence?