SONGS FOR PRAYER

reading for: Tuesday Night, 8 AUGUST

Matthew 14:22-33

It is Not About What We Do in the Storms

• READ

  This week’s Gospel reading is a well-known and amazing one. It is an account where Jesus walks on water and also enables Peter to do so as well. Here’s a quick summary:

  Immediately following the feeding of the 5000, Jesus “made” the disciples get into the boat to cross the waters to the other side to minister to the people there (v22 c.f. Matt 14:34-36). He then subsequently dismissed the crowds by Himself before retreating up the mountain to pray. In Matthew’s Gospel, the mountain is significant as it is a place for encountering and hearing the proclamation of God’s righteousness and Kingdom (e.g. 5:1-7:29; 17:1-8). It is likely intentional of Matthew that in a Moses-like fashion, Jesus proved that He is both the leader of His disciples and the crowds and the intercessor to the divine. He climbs alone up the mountain to meet His Father in heaven in prayer.

  Meanwhile the disciples who are in their boat amid the waters were being beaten or literally tormented by the waves because the wind was against their boat. The situation is reminiscent of Jesus calming the sea in Matthew 8:23-27, except this time Jesus is not with them in the boat. And the disciples had been struggling to keep afloat for a while. The reading says it was only before dawn (somewhere between 3-6am) that Jesus comes to them walking upon the seas (v25). But the disciples did not recognize Him in the midst of the chaos. They had been without Jesus throughout the whole crisis likely exhausted from being up all night (keeping in mind they likely left some time before it was dark the previous day). In fact, and understandably so, they thought Jesus was a phantom and they were greatly frightened, literally crying out in fear (v26).

  Recognizing this, Jesus reveals his divinity by identifying Himself as “I AM”. Though the English translation says, “It is I” to make better English sense, the original Greek intentionally only says “ego eimi”: “I AM”. For Jewish audiences of the time, this reference has intentional divine overtones as Yahweh is the great “I AM”. When Moses asks God in the burning bush scene for His name, God says that His name is “I AM”. It is something that all Jewish know and quickly identify with exclusively to the God if Israel. (Exodus 3:14; Deuteronomy 32:39; Isaiah 41:4; 43:10-11) Effectively, Jesus premises His call to take courage and to not be afraid on the revelation that in Him, the God of Israel is with them! This sits very well together with one of Matthew’s main theological themes of ‘Emmanuel’, “God with us” (beginning in Matthew 1 and rounding out again in Matthew 28’s great commission mandate).

  Peter then tests Jesus saying, “Lord if it’s you, tell me to come to you on the water”. Some scholars have picked up that this exact phrase “if it’s you” in the original Greek is the exact same phrase used by Satan (Matt 4:3, 6), the high priest (Matt 26:63), and the mockers on the road (Matt 27:40) to put challenge on Jesus to do something to verify His identity. Unlike these other times however, Jesus grants Peter’s request but it should be of no surprise that things were not going to end well with him. Jesus tells him to come and Peter does, stepping out of the boat walking on the water towards Jesus. Soon after, though Peter began focusing on the wind and the waves and began to sink. He cries out to Jesus to save him. Jesus does of course and chides him for his doubt (but loving Peter as always seen in previous and subsequent occurrences of doubt).

  Jesus and Peter get into the boat and the wind immediately ceases and all of the disciples worshipped Him recognizing Him as God.

• REFLECT

This story has widely been used to encourage Christians to be bold and take steps of faith. Or to emphasize a certain model behaviour of faith and to simply preach the importance of keeping our eyes on Jesus. But there is more this than being a simple classic piece of moralism where most would likely end up feeling worse about themselves and walking away feeling more condemned and severely lacking. If it does not end up making people feel worse, it commonly results in too much focus on human effort and achievement. It sounds no different from the message of non-Christian motivational speakers that preach ‘thinking outside of the box’, ‘the early bird gets the worm’, ‘fortune favors the brave’, and etc. Either ways it falls short of the grace that constitutes the Good News we (who ourselves are also so hopelessly helpless) are called to proclaim.  

While many sermons and even the subtitle of the bible emphasize on the miracle of Jesus walking on water (and Peter for a little while), perhaps the greater miracle was that when all was said and done, the disciples realized that no one less than God’s own son was with them and that they arrived at a place where they could truly believe and worship Him for WHO He is.

Perhaps today’s reading holds a greater and deeper significance as an acted-out parable of and for the church. In fact, it is probable that the boat is a metaphorical symbol of the church in which the disciples are sent with Jesus (emphasis added) across the wind-tossed seas of an unbelieving world. And that is the true Good News we need to proclaim. Jesus remains with us. He remains with us and is the Lord of all creation as well. He remains with us as a leader who knows who we are inside out and still chooses to lead us the same. He remains with us as a high priest the knows and understands our struggles and sin. Whether or not Peter succeeded in imitating his Master’s feat on water neither adds or subtracts from the core revelation that whether we stay in the boat like the 11 other disciples or step out upon the water with Peter, Jesus remains with us. He’s with those of us who stay in the boat and will calm the winds and waves that threatens. He is with those who try to do some great slam-dunk move of God and fail, forgiving the failure and doubt over and over again, calming the storm that tempted Peter to do something miraculous or to test Jesus. Jesus’ character, power, and presence is the quintessential point of today’s telling, far from whether or not we are bold and courageous and impressive. To take the focus off Jesus so as to put it on our own moral pluck and courage totally misses the boat and leads ironically to the predicament that sunk Peter. Thankfully, even if you are in that camp, His unfailing love and grace is sure.

He urges us to turn to Him amid the turbulent waves of your life today. ‘Take courage! I AM. Don’t be afraid’. On Christ alone the solid rock will we stand. All other ground is sinking sand. May your life proclaim this truth and this very good news in your family, social circles, and work.

reading for: Wednesday Night, 9 AUGUST

Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28

When God’s Dream Becomes Your Nightmare

• READ

  The Immediate Context and Narrative

  “You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.” (Genesis 50:20).

  This verse summarizes the end of the fourteen-chapter long story narrative which would be centred on Joseph’s life. God had destined Joseph to preserve the many lives including that of Jacob’s line which would eventually form the nation of Israel. Through a dream, God shows Joseph the end of the story where all his brothers and even his parents would one day bow down to him (Gen 37:5-11). However, what happens next would be unto Joseph a living nightmare for many years to come till God’s plan and dream comes to pass.

  Today’s reading captures just the beginning of that nightmare. Born into a sinful and dysfunctional family of schemers, deceivers, and murderers with poor emotional regulation, Joseph was not liked by his own brothers out of jealously of Jacob’s favour over Joseph (see Gen 25-49 for fuller picture of Jacob and his family). What’s more, Joseph just had to share his dream with family which enraged them even further. That resentment never goes away and resulted in the scheming and attempted murder of their brother Joseph (v18-24). Eventually, through some dissuasion (v21-22) and some hopes of profiteering (v26) they sold of their own brother off as a slave into Egypt (v28).     

  Though God is not mentioned explicitly throughout this narrative and is seemingly silent, Joseph’s summary is Genesis 50:20 tells us that God was at work through it all and was behind Joseph’s rescue from death (v24 - the Hebrew word for ‘cistern’ or ‘pit’ is the same word that refers to the grave i.e. death). Metaphorically and literally, the author was likely intentional in showing (this early on in the story) the invisible hand of God that saved Joseph and by extension the eventual nation of Israel from death.    

  The Larger Context

  This Joseph saga makes up the tenth and last section of the entire Genesis narrative. Since the initial stories of creation, fall, flood, Babel, we have been following the early history of the patriarchs like pagan Abram who was called to become the Father of many people, the miracle child Isaac destined to be the chosen one, devious and scheming Jacob whom God will finally bless with the 12 sons who will become Israel. In the chapters just prior to this story, Rachel has died, the 12 sons have been identified, and the line of Esau has been outlined. And after all these is where the story of Joseph sits. Rather than a moralistic tale about family dysfunction, it is a historical explanation of how the family of Jacob in Canaan will become the national of Israel in Egypt. Here’s how God’s chosen people move from the Promised Land to the house of bondage AKA Egypt, which would in turn be followed by the Exodus and conquest of the Promise Land. So let us not get lost in the fascinating details of the interesting characters and tangled interactions, lest we miss the overarching message of God’s hidden actions to save His people and the world.

• REFLECT

  What kind of God gives us dreams and plunges us into suffering for it? Where is God in the midst of all the sin, brokenness, faulty systems of the world, injustice, and suffering we face. Why and how could God allow things to get so out of control for us? How could He let His people fall into bondage and slavery? How could He let His people pushed into godless and pagan arenas? How can He let His faithful servants get thrown into a prison and forgotten all the more when the person is innocent of the charges? Shouldn’t justice prevail for His people?

  Perhaps the ending of today’s reading is appropriate and real for many of us today as it is often how we are like in our journey of faith as sent ones (a lot of us like Joseph i.e. unknowingly/unwillingly sent)– beaten down with injustice, going through physical and psychological suffering, abandoned by those who should have loved us, uncertain of outcome of our lives, and still no light at the end of the tunnel. But yet there is a note of hope. It is not the end of the line for Joseph and if you are reading this, it is also not the end of the line for you. And that means God’s dream for you is still not dead. And perhaps today’s reading is an encouragement for you that since it’s God’s dream, He will see it through in your lives. And it is precisely a God who is big enough and mighty to save that can allow His precious ones to go through all that we do. We may never know why we are going through certain things in our lives but we can take heart in the character, person, power, and love of our Heavenly Father. And perhaps one day, we maybe graced to see how wonderfully and fearfully God saw us through all the valleys of our lives to bring about the blessing and saving of many lives.

  “Take heart for I have overcome the world.” – Jesus Christ (John 16:33)

  What are some of the challenges that you are going through this day? What kind of circumstances or arenas of life has the Lord placed you in or at? Seek Him and continue to know Him in the midst of whatever you may be going through or simply where He has placed you. Spend some time in prayer. Re-write down the His dreams that He has revealed to you. Simply spend time worshipping Him in spirit and in truth. I pray that as you continue to do these things that you will find much joy and that you will encounter intimately and truly come to know the One who calls you to trust in Him and yoke yourself to Him.   

reading for: Thursday Night, 10 AUGUST

Romans 10:5-15

Faithful Proclaimers

• READ

  Today’s reading can be summarized as Paul exhortation to Christians of his time on the importance of proclaiming of the Good News concerning the message of the faith we have received. Paul asserted in Romans 9 that salvation is a result of God gift of grace and mercy and not dependent on people’s desire or effort. However, we do have some responsibility given by God as sent ones (v15). Romans 10:5-15 predominantly speaks of the importance of human hearing of the Gospel through which the faithful reception of God’s grace comes. For how then can they believe if they have not heard (v14)? Hearing here speaks literally about audible listening. This perhaps sheds some insight into why Paul is personally so serious about preaching the Gospel to those he was called to. He insists in today’s passage that God uses such proclamation to produce faith. ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (v13)’. But calling out to the Lord for help here is not some magical incantation that produces a result. Rather it speaks of a call for help on the faith-full basis of who God is and what He has done to save us. People cannot call on someone that they know nothing about (v14) as much as a person in need of medical help can call for emergency services if he/she does not even know they exist or what they do.

• REFLECT

  How are we to be faithful proclaimers of the Good News in today’s world and context that we live in? Two Sundays ago, Pastor Tim Goh challenged us as disciples of Christ to have meaningful discourse about our faith in our everyday lives and context. What is the Good News that you came to believe in? And how has it grown and matured in your life since then? 2 Corinthians 3:2-3 paraphrased says that we ourselves are the letter of Good News written not on tablets of stone but in our hearts, known and read by everyone. Who have we been sent to? Where has God placed you in terms of country, community, church, work, friends, and family? Does the overflow of our hearts, words, and choices proclaim God’s Good News? If you find yourself misaligned or disconnected from Him, ask for His help today to be realigned to Him that out of our hearts would flow rivers of living waters for all those around us, especially those who still have not seen or heard a good message. We have all been given a royal mandate as children and co-heirs of our Father’s Heavenly Kingdom. Let us take seriously our responsibility as such.

reading for: FRIDAY Night, 11 AUGUST

Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22, 45b

The Posture of Worshipping Inside Out

• READ

  While today’s lectionary portion centers primarily on God’s work surrounding and in the life of Joseph for His wider purposes, I recommend reading Psalm 105 in its entirety if you can as it captures much of Israel’s history sparing none of the intense and gory details of God fierce covenantal love towards His people. Through the whole psalm we see a hands-on God, working hard within His Creation to keep His promise (v42) and bring His people into a land of blessing, that they may, in turn bless the nations around them (Gen 12:1-3). The entire Psalm speaks of His faithfulness towards His covenant with Abraham and His descendants and His wonderful and mighty acts. If you go further and read Psalm 106, we see in stark contrast, Israel’s forgetfulness, unfaithfulness and idolatrous response to God’s great love.

  Aligned with this week’s readings, the following pointers from the Psalm provide some instruction that we may remain faithful and keep His precepts and observe His laws (v45b):

  i)                 Praising, singing, glorifying, and proclaiming His Name and His works (v1-2, c.f. Romans 10:5-15).

  ii)               Seeking the Lord, rejoicing in Him, and looking to Him and His character for strength (v3-4, c.f. Matthew 14:22-33).

  iii)              Remembering and meditating on His wondrous works, miracles, and judgements even when God seems silent (v5-6, 16-22, c.f. God’s story in Joseph’s life).

• REFLECT

  As sent out ones, today’s highlighted portion of Psalm 105 exhorts us remember that God is at work, and ask we participate with Him in our lives, we need to keep Him at the forefront, through everything possible (faithful singing, proclamation, testifying, seeking, and mediation) that we might remain faithful and live in keeping with the Good News and Salvation we have received (v45). The Joseph narrative urges us to remember and proclaim our God’s faithfulness even when He seems silent and when His good plans and dreams seems unlikely.

  How is the Holy Spirit challenging you to grow and live in faithfulness today? Share this with your life group and continue to encourage and sharpen one another as we all continue in our journey of following Christ and serving His purposes in our generation.