Malachi 3.16-18
WHILE IN VIETNAM OUR COMBAT BASE WAS BLASTED BY A SEVERE TYPHOON. IT LASTED THREE DAYS. AT THE PEAK OF ITS FURY I HEARD A SCRAPING, CRUNCHING SOUND OUTSIDE THE CHAPEL WHERE I WAS HIDING FROM THE STORM. I LOOKED OUT THE WINDOW AND SAW THE LARGE MOTOR POOL TENT BEING BLOWN ACROSS THE STREET AND ON TO THE FLIGHT LINE WHERE IT CRASHED INTO SEVERAL HELICOPTERS.
I WAS AWESTRUCK BY THE POWER OF THE WIND. I WAS NOT, HOWEVER, SCARED. I WAS IN A LARGE, CONCRETE BUILDING. IT WAS PROBABLY THE MOST SUBSTANTIAL STRUCTURE ON THE BASE. INSIDE IT I HARDLY NOTICED THE WIND.
IN MATTHEW 7 JESUS SPEAKS OF A HOUSE BUILT ON THE ROCK AND A HOUSE BUILT ON THE SAND. ONE STANDS AND THE OTHER FALLS. THE ILL WINDS OF THIS WORLD ASSAULT US EVERY DAY. THEY SCREAM THAT IT IS FUTILE TO SERVE GOD. LISTEN TO THE COMPLAINT IN MALACHI 3.15. (READ). NOW, JESUS SAYS THOSE WHO STAND ARE THOSE WHO “HEAR THESE WORDS OF MINE AND PUT THEM INTO PRACTICE.” THE PRACTIONERS ARE LIKE MY CHAPEL; STRONG, STURDY, ABLE TO HANDLE ANY ILL WIND.
WE REGULARLY HEAR THE WORDS OF JESUS. THAT’S NOT THE PROBLEM. BECOMING CONSISTENT PRACTIONERS OF JESUS’ WORD, THAT’S WHERE WE STRUGGLE. HOW DO WE CONSISTENTLY PUT THEM INTO PRACTICE SO THAT OBEDIENCE BECOMES SECOND NATURE?
IT’S LIKE DRIVING A CAR. I REMEMBER MY SIXTEENTH YEAR. WHEN I FIRST LEARNED TO DRIVE IT TOOK A LOT OF CONCENTRATION AND EFFORT TO KEEP THE CAR IN THE LANE. MY EYES WERE FOCUSED A SHORT DISTANCE IN FRONT OF THE CAR. AFTER THIRTY YEARS OF DRIVING, THE BASICS ARE INSTINCTIVE. I NOW LOOK WELL DOWN THE ROAD ANTICIPATING WHAT’S COMING.
TOO OFTEN OUR LIVES OUR LIKE A SIXTEEN YEAR OLD DRIVER, WE HAVEN’T PRACTICED GODLY LIVING ENOUGH TO MAKE IT INSTINCTIVE. WE ARE FOCUSED ON GETTING THROUGH THE NEXT DAY. INSIGHT AS TO GOD’S LONG TERM PLANS FOR OUR LIVES IS IMPOSSIBLE.
WHAT DO WE NEED TO BECOME PROFICIENT PRACTIONERS OF GODLY LIVING? WHAT MUST WE BUILD INTO OUR LIVES TO BECOME THAT STURDY, CONCRETE STRUCTURE ANCHORED TO THE ROCK? MALACHI 3.16-18 GIVES US THE ANSWERS.
WE MUST BUILD INTO OUR LIVES: (1) VITAL RELATIONSHIPS. (2) VIBRANT HISTORIES. (3) VISUALIZED CONSEQUENCES.
- VITAL RELATIONSHIPS. “THEN THOSE WHO FEARED THE LORD TALKED WITH EACH OTHER, AND THE LORD LISTENED AND HEARD.”
HOW DO WE MAINTAIN A LIVELY FAITH IN SUCH A VAST SEA OF CYNICISM? HOW DO WE REMAIN FAITHFUL WHEN EVERYONE ELSE SEEMS TO BE WALKING AWAY FROM GOD? COUNTLESS FORCES ARE ARRAYED AGAINST US. THEIR SOLE GOAL IS TO TEAR DOWN OUR FAITH. CHRISTIANS ARE REGULARLY DEFEATED BECAUSE WE GO INTO THE BATTLE ALONE. I’VE BEEN IN THE INFANTRY. IN COMBAT THE LAST THING I WANT TO BE IS ALONE. HOW MUCH BETTER TO HAVE BUDDIES ON MY RIGHT AND LEFT? HOW MUCH WISER TO BE PART OF A TEAM OF SOLDIERS?
THE PROBLEM IS WE ARE NOT OPEN WITH OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS ABOUT THE BATTLES WE FIGHT. THEY CAN’T SUPPORT US BECAUSE WE DON’T LET THEM IN ON OUR STRUGGLES.
OUR NEED IS A SAFE ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH TO LEARN HOW TO SHARE OUR LIVES, TO BUILD THE TEAMS THROUGH WHICH WE CAN WIN THE BATTLES. IN MALACHI THOSE WHO FEARED THE LORD UNDERSTOOD THEY WOULD NOT MAKE IT ALONE. THEY TALKED TO EACH OTHER.
WHO COMPRISES YOUR SUPPORT GROUP? DO YOU HAVE ANY ACCOUNTABILITY PARTNERS? ARE THEIR BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN CHRIST YOU KNOW YOU COULD CALL AT TWO O’CLOCK IN THE MORNING WITH ANY NEED AND THEY WOULD GIVE YOU WHATEVER THEY HAD?
MY WIFE, CAROL, TELLS THE STORY OF CLIMBING WITH HER FAMILY TO THE TOP OF SUNSET CRATER NEAR FLAGSTAFF, ARIZONA WHEN SHE WAS A CHILD. ONCE THEY REACHED THE RIM OF THE CRATER, A FIERCE WIND CAME UP. IT WAS SO STRONG THAT IT THREATENED TO BLOW THEM OFF THE MOUNTAIN. THE ONLY WAY THEY WERE ABLE TO STAND AGAINST THE WIND WAS TO LINK ARMS AND HOLD ON TO EACH OTHER.. IN SMALL GROUPS OF CHRISTIANS WE CAN LINK ARMS AND UPHOLD EACH OTHER. THEN THE WINDS OF THIS WORLD CANNOT BLOW US AWAY.
NOTICE THE LORD’S INVOLVEMENT WITH THEM. “HE LISTENED AND HEARD THEM”. THE HOLY SPIRIT WAS AN ACTIVE PARTICIPANT IN THOSE CONVERSATIONS. WHEN THEY OPENED THEMSELVES TO EACH OTHER THEY OPENED THEMSELVES TO GOD. THESE BELIEVERS PRAYED TOGETHER. THEY UNLEASHED GOD’S POWER INTO THEIR LIVES. MATTHEW 18.19,20: I TELL YOU THAT IF TWO OF YOU ON EARTH AGREE ABOUT ANYTHING YOU ASK FOR, IT WILL BE DONE FOR YOU BY MY FATHER IN HEAVEN. FOR WHERE TWO OR THREE COME TOGETHER IN MY NAME, THERE I AM WITH THEM.”
WHAT DIFFERENCE WOULD IT MAKE IN YOUR LIFE IF YOU HAD A BAND OF BROTHERS OR SISTERS WHO ACCEPTED YOU, AFFIRMED YOU, HELD YOU ACCOUNTABLE AND PRAYED WITH YOU? ECCLESIASTES 4.9-12 REMINDS US: “TWO ARE BETTER THAN ONE, BECAUSE THEY HAVE A GOOD RETURN FOR THEIR WORK: IF ONE FALLS DOWN, HIS FRIEND CAN HELP HIM UP. BUT PITY THE MAN WHO FALLS AND HAS NO ONE TO HELP HIM UP! ALSO, IF TWO LIE DOWN TOGETHER, THEY WILL KEEP WARM. BUT HOW CAN ONE KEEP WARM ALONE? THOUGH ONE MAY BE OVERPOWERED, TWO CAN DEFEND THEMSELVES. A CORD OF THREE STRANDS IS NOT QUICKLY BROKEN”
THOSE WHO FEARED THE LORD MAINTAINED THEIR FAITH IN AMID CONSTANT STORMS OF ADVERSITY AND CYNICISM; THEY TALKED TO EACH OTHER AND TO THE LORD WHO LISTENED AND HEARD. WE OPEN OURSELVES TO GOD BY SHARING OUR LIVES WITH EACH OTHER. IT’S HOW WE WIN THE BATTLES.
- VIBRANT HISTORIES: “A SCROLL OF REMEMBRANCE WAS WRITTEN IN HIS PRESENCE CONCERNING THOSE WHO FEARED THE LORD AND HONORED HIS NAME.”
MOST OF MALACHI’S CONTEMPORARIES LOST WHAT FAITH THEY HAD. WHEN LIFE BECAME TOUGH, TOUGHER THAN THEY ANTICIPATED, THEIR TRUST IN GOD EVAPORATED.
WHO DO YOU TURN TO IN A CRISIS? WHO DO YOU BELIEVE WILL BE THERE FOR YOU NO MATTER WHAT? MOST LIKELY, IT WILL BE SOMEONE YOU KNOW CARES ABOUT YOU, SOMEONE COMMITTED TO YOU, SOMEONE WHO PROVED THEIR RELIABILITY OVER MANY YEARS. AN OLD TRUSTED FRIEND.
THESE JEWS WEREN’T SURE GOD CARED. THEY DOUBTED HIS COMMITMENT TO THEM. THEY DID NOT VIEW HIM AS AN OLD TRUSTED FRIEND. THEY WEREN’T SURE ABOUT GOD, BECAUSE THEIR EXPERIENCE WITH HIM WAS LIMITED; LIMITED TO THEIR OWN BRIEF EXPERIENCE. THEY SAW GOD ACT IN THEIR BEHALF FAR TOO INFREQUENTLY SO THEY DID NOT VIEW HIM AS AN OLD, TRUSTED FRIEND. THEY NEEDED THE BIG PICTURE, THE LONG VIEW.
THOSE WHO FEARED THE LORD UNDERSTOOD THIS. THOSE WHO WANTED TO REMAIN FAITHFUL APPRECIATED THIS. ON THIS SCROLL OF REMEMBRANCE THEY WROTE DOWN THE HISTORY OF GOD’S WORK AMONG THEM. THEY DID NOT WANT TO FORGET WHAT GOD DID IN THEIR GENERATION. I BELIEVE THAT SCROLL OF REMEMBRANCE IS OUR OLD TESTAMENT BOOKS OF EZRA/NEHEMIAH.
EZRA/NEHEMIAH NOT ONLY TELLS THE STORY OF THE BUILDING OF A WALL AND THE REVIVAL OF THE PEOPLE, IT ALSO LISTS BY FAMILY NAME THE FAITHFUL JEWS GOD USED. THEY RECORDED THE NAMES OF REAL PEOPLE WHO EXPERIENCED THE MIGHTY ACTS OF GOD. THEY WROTE IT ALL DOWN SO NO ONE WOULD FORGET THE MIGHTY WORK GOD DID.
GODLY PEOPLE ALWAYS RECORD GOD’S MIGHTY ACTS. EVERY TIME GOD MET ABRAHAM, HE BUILT AN ALTAR. IN JOSHUA 4, WHEN THE NATION CROSSED THE FLOODED JORDAN ON DRY GROUND, GOD TOLD THEM TO TAKE TWELVE STONES FROM THE RIVER BED AND ERECT A STONE MONUMENT NEXT TO THE RIVER.
THE TEXT EXPLAINS:”IN THE FUTURE WHEN YOUR DESCENDANTS ASK THEIR FATHERS ‘WHAT DO THESE STONES MEAN?’ TELL THEM, ‘ISRAEL CROSSED THE JORDAN ON DRY GROUND. FOR THE LORD YOU GOD DRIED UP THE JORDAN BEFORE YOU UNTIL YOU HAD CROSSED OVER. THE LORD YOUR GOD DID TO THE JORDAN JUST WHAT HE HAD DONE TO THE RED SEA. HE DID THIS SO THAT ALL THE PEOPLES OF THE EARTH MIGHT KNOW THAT THE HAND OF THE LORD IS POWERFUL AND SO THAT YOU MIGHT ALWAYS FEAR THE LORD YOUR GOD.”
WHEN GOD ACTS, HIS PEOPLE AREN’T TO FORGET!
MALACHI, EZRA, NEHEMIAH AND THE REST OF THE FAITHFUL DETERMINED TO PRESERVE THE RECORD OF GOD’S FAITHFULNESS TO THEM. AND SO ANOTHER VIBRANT CHAPTER IN GOD’S HISTORY BOOK WAS WRITTEN.
TODAY WE NEED TO TELL AND REPEAT GOD’S STORIES. WHEN GOD DOES SOMETHING SPECIAL IN OUR LIVES WE NEED TO SHARE IT WITH THE CHURCH. SUCH MUTUAL ENCOURAGEMENT IS POWERFUL AND HELPS BUILD OUR FAITH.
AT A CHURCH DINNER WEDNESDAY NIGHT I SHARED A MOMENT WITH A CLOSE FRIEND. REX IS A TRUE BROTHER AND ACCOUNTABILITY PARTNER. THIS PAST YEAR REX HAS ANSWERED GOD’S CALL AND IS GOING TO PRINCETON SEMINARY THIS FALL. THEY HAD TO SELL THEIR HOUSE HERE. THEY WILL CLOSE ON JUNE 30 AND MOVE OUT. NOW THEY NEEDED A PLACE TO STAY UNTIL SEPTEMBER. ANOTHER COUPLE IN THE CHURCH WERE PRAYING ABOUT TAKING A TRIP BACK TO IDAHO WHERE THEY MET. BILL’S BOSS CALLED HIM IN AND OFFERED HIM A TWO MONTH, ALL EXPENSES PAID WORK ASSIGNMENT IN IDAHO FOR BILL AND HIS FAMILY! REX WILL HOUSE SIT FOR THOSE TWO MONTHS! ISN’T JESUS GOOD. IT BLESSED ME TO HEAR REX’S STORY. IT STRENGHTENED MY FAITH.
MORE THAN THAT WE NEED TO BECOME VERY, VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE HISTORY OF GOD’S MIGHTY ACTS THROUGH ALL TIME. THIS IS THE REALLY BIG PICTURE. THIS MEANS WE NEED TO REGULARLY STUDY AND KNOW OUR BIBLES. THERE ISA INCREDIBLE POWER WHEN A BIBLE STORY BECOMES OUR STORY.
WHEN I WENT TO MY FIRST INTERIM, I QUICKLY DISCERNED THAT THIS CONGREGATION NEEDED ENERGIZED. I PRAYED THAT GOD WOULD ENERGIZE US. GIVEN THE NEEDS OF THAT CHURCH, I DECIDED TO PREACH THROUGH THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH. WHAT GOD DID IN REBUILDING JERUSALEM AND REVIVING HIS PEOPLE HELD MANY PROFITABLE LESSONS FOR US.
THREE MONTHS INTO THAT PASTORATE ONE OF MY ENGINEER/ELDERS DISCOVERED THAT ONE OF THE LAMINATED ARCHES THAT HELD UP THE SANCTUARY HAD MOVED. INVESTIGATION REVEALED THAT ALL SIX LARGE ARCHES HAD ROTTED ON THE BOTTOM. THE REPAIRS WERE ONE AND A HALF TIMES THE ANNUAL BUDGET. WE WERE IN A REAL CRISIS. THE CONGREGATION THAT GATHERED THAT FOLLOWING SUNDAY WAS SHOCKED AND ANXIOUS.
THAT MORNING OUR STUDY OF NEHEMIAH TOOK US INTO THE EIGHTH CHAPTER. IN CHAPTER EIGHT EZRA AND NEHEMIAH GATHER ALL THE PEOPLE IN THE WATERGATE SQUARE FOR SEVEN DAYS OF BIBLE READING. THIS IS IMMEDIATELY AFTER THEY HAD COMPLETED THE WALL. NEHEMIAH’S INTENT IS CLEAR. HE WANTS THE PEOPLE TO REMEMBER THAT THEIR SECURITY IS NOT IN THE WALLS THEY BUILT BUT IN HEARING THEIR FATHER’S VOICE.
THAT MORNING IN 1992 WE HEARD OUR FATHER’S VOICE. THE DIVINE CONJUNCTION OF THAT PASSAGE AND OUR CRISIS WAS OUR FATHER TELLING US THAT EVERYTHING WAS UNDER CONTROL. GOD WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF THIS PROBLEM AND EVERYTHING WOULD BE OKAY.
ENERGIZED THE PEOPLE WENT TO WORK WITH ENTHUSIASM. THE NEEDED FUNDS WERE RAISED IN SIX WEEKS. CONTRACTS WERE SIGNED ON SCHEDULE AND ON DECEMBER 20 THAT YEAR WE MOVED BACK INTO A BEAUTIFULLY RESTORED AND REMODELED SANCTUARY.
THE SUNDAY WE REDEDICATED THAT SANCTUARY A BRONZE PLAQUE WAS HUNG IN THE NARTHEX TO MEMORIALIZE A MIGHTY WORK OF GOD. IT WAS OUR SCROLL OF REMEMBRANCE. THERE IS DIVINE POWER WHEN A BIBLE STORY BECOMES YOUR STORY, WHEN YOU SEE GOD ACT IN YOUR LIVES AS HE DID IN BIBLE TIMES. WE NEED A VIBRANT HISTORY OF GOD’S WORK IN OUR CHURCH. IT MAKES HIM AN OLD, TRUSTED FRIEND; EVEN IF YOU HAVE JUST MET HIM.
III. VISUALIZED CONSEQUENCES. 3.17-4.3
MY FRIENDS, WE SWIM IN A VAST SEA OF CYNICISM. MOST PEOPLE, EVEN MANY IN THE CHURCH, ECHO THE OPINION OF 3.14,15. (READ) THEY SEE NO VISIBLE CONSEQUENCES IN SERVING OR NOT SERVING GOD. THEIR ASSESSMENT IS THAT THE WICKED PROSPER AND TOO OFTEN THE RIGHTEOUS SUFFER.
THOSE WHO FEAR THE LORD AND HONOR HIS NAME CAN VISUALIZE THE CONSEQUENCES OF UNGODLY AND GODLY LIVING. THEY VERY CLEARLY SEE THE GAINS AND LOSSES. THEY KNOW THE TRUTHS OF 3.17-4.3 (READ). IT IS THE DIFFERENCE OF POSSESSING TREASURE OR BEING A TREASURED POSSESSION. THE CONTEXT OF CHAPTER THREE IS MONEY. THE ISSUES ARE WEALTH AND SUCCESS. THE CYNICAL THOUGHT THEY TRIED GOD’S WAY AND GOD FAILED. LIFE WAS STILL HARD AND THEY QUICKLY BECAME ANGRY AT GOD AND WALKED AWAY.
THIS IS THE PERSPECTIVE OF POSSESSING TREASURE. THEY SEE NO PROFIT IN GODLY LIVING. EVEN GOD’S PEOPLE CAN GET TRIPPED UP HERE. THE PSALMIST, IN PSALM 73, STRUGGLES WITH THIS. “BUT AS FOR ME, MY FEET ALMOST SLIPPED; I NEARLY LOST MY FOOTHOLD. FOR I ENVIED THE ARROGANT WHEN I SAW THE PROSPERITY OF THE WICKED….SURELY IN VAIN I HAVE KEPT MY HEART PURE; IN VAIN HAVE I WASHED MY HANDS IN INNOCENCE. ALL DAY LONG I HAVE BEEN PLAGUED; I HAVE BEEN PUNISHED EVERY MORNING.” THERE SEEM TO BE NO NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES FOR REJECTING GOD.
THOSE WHO FEAR THE LORD, WHO HONOR HIS NAME, VISUALIZE VERY DIFFERENT CONSEQUENCES. THEY SEE THROUGH THE VANITY OF RICHES. THEY KNOW JUDGEMENT IS COMING. THOUGHT THE CONSEQUENCES CANNOT BE SEEN NOW, ONE DAY THEY WILL BE PAINFULLY APPARENT. THE A DISTINCTION BETWEEN THE RIGHTEOUS AND THE WICKED WILL BE SEEN.
THEY APPRECIATE THE VALUE OF BEING A TREASURED POSSESSION OF OUR HEAVENLY FATHER. IT’S GOD SAYING SATAN, “HAVE YOU CONSIDERED MY SERVANT, JOB, THERE IS NO ONE ON EARTH LIKE HIM; HE IS BLAMELESS AND UPRIGHT, A MAN WHO FEARS GOD AND SHUNS EVIL.” IT’S THE FATHER AFFIRMING HIS SON AT JESUS’ BAPTISM, “YOU ARE MY SON WHOM I LOVE, WITH YOU I AM WELL PLEASED.”
WHAT MAKES A TREASURE VALUABLE, BEAUTIFUL? THE RAW ORE HAS BEEN REFINED IN FIRE. 1 PETER 1.6.7: “IN THIS YOU GREATLY REJOICE, THOUGH NOW FOR A LITTLE WHILE YOU MAY HAVE HAD TO SUFFER GRIEF IN ALL KINDS OF TRIALS. THESE HAVE COME SO THAT YOUR FAITH — OF GREATER WORTH THAN GOLD. WHICH PERISHES EVEN THOUGH REFINED BY FIRE — MAY BE PROVED GENUINE AND MAY RESULT IN PRAISE, GLORY AND HONOR WHEN JESUS CHRIST IS REVEALED.” AT TIMES GOD REFINES HIS TREASURED POSSESSIONS IN THE FIRE OF ADVERSITY. THE GODLY KNOW THIS AND VALUE BEING REFINED. THEY WANT TO BE A TREASURE THAT REFLECTS THE GLORY OF GOD.
A WEALTHY CHINESE WOMAN VISITED A SILVER REFINERY ONE DAY. SHE WAS FASCINATED WITH PROCESS OF REFINING A HOT VAT OF LIQUID SILVER. SHE WATCHED THE WORKMAN TENDING THE VAT. CURIOUS, SHE ASKED HIM SEVERAL QUESTIONS. HE COMPLETELY IGNORED HER. HE NEVER TOOK HIS EYES OFF THE SILVER SURFACE OF THE VAT. SHE WAS TAKEN BACK BY HIS SEEMINGLY RUDE BEHAVIOR. FINALLY HE TURNED OFF THE HEAT AND CAME OVER TO HER. HE APOLOGIZED FOR IGNORING HER QUESTIONS. HE SAID, “FORGIVE ME, MADAM. THE HEATING OF THE SILVER WAS AT THE CRITICAL STAGE IN THE PURIFYING PROCESS. I WAS NOT BEING RUDE TO YOU. I JUST COULD NOT TAKE MY EYES OFF OF THE SILVER. YOU SEE, I KEEP TURNING THE HEAT UP ON IT UNTIL I CAN SEE MY FACE REFLECTED IN THE SURFACE OF THE SILVER. WHEN I SEE MYSELF, THEN I KNOW THE SILVER IS PERFECTLY PURIFIED. AT THAT MOMENT I TURN OFF THE HEAT.”
THIS WOMAN SHARED THIS STORY TO MAKE THE POINT THAT JESUS DOES EXACTLY THE SAME WITH US. HIS HIGHEST AIM IS TO PURIFY US. AND LIKE THE WORKMAN, SOMETIMES HE KEEPS TURNING THE HEAT UP ON US. WITHOUT HEAT WE WILL NEVER BECOME PURE. AND LIKE THE WORKMAN HE WILL KEEP THE HEAT ON, UNTIL HE SEES HIS DIVINE FACE REFECTED IN THE MOLTEN SILVER OF OUR LIVES.
WE MAY NOT LIKE ADVERSITY, AND WHEN WE ARE EXPERIENCING DISTRESS AND PAIN, JESUS IS PAINED AS WELL. BUT HE WILL USE ADVERSITY TO REFINE US AND MAKE HIS LIKE HIM. IN THIS WE ARE ONLY ECHOING HIS OWN EXPERIENCE. HEBREWS 4: 8, 9 TELLS US: “ALTHOUGH HE WAS A SON, HE LEARNED OBEDIENCE FROM WHAT HE SUFFERED AND, ONCE BEING MADE PERFECT, HE BECAME THE SOURCE OF ETERNAL SALVATION FOR ALL WHO OBEY HIM.” LET ME TELL HOW THESE VERSES BECAME TRUE IN THE LIFE OF THIS CHINESE WOMAN.
THE AUTHOR OF THAT STORY IS CHRISTIANA TSAI. CHRISTIANA WAS THE SEVENTH DAUGHTER OF THE GOVERNOR OF A CHINESE PROVINCE UNDER THE MANCHU DYNASTY. SHE WAS RAISED IN FABULOUS WEALTH AND LUXURY. SHE BECAME A CHRISTIAN AND THE FIRST WOMAN IN CHINA TO COMPLETE HIGH SCHOOL. SHE HAD AN EXTENSIVE MINISTRY OF EVANGELISM AND MINISTRY THROUGHOUT CHINA FOR TWENTY-FIVE YEARS. IN 1921 SHE TRIUMPHANTLY TOURED THE UNITED STATES. SHE ADDRESSED THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH. SHE MET WITH PRESIDENT WARREN HARDING.
THROUGH THIS TIME HER FAMILY LOST THEIR WEALTH. NO MATTER. CHRISTIANA FOUND THE GREATER WEALTH OF SERVING JESUS. AT THE AGE OF FORTY SHE CONTRACTED MULTIPLE FORMS OF MALARIA. NOT ABLE TO HANDLE BRIGHT LIGHT, SHE WAS CONFINED TO A DARK ROOM ON A BED OF CONSTANT WEAKNESS AND EVER-PRESENT PAIN. SHE BURST INTO TEARS WHEN THE DOCTOR TOLD HER SHE MIGHT BE CONFINED TO THAT BED FOR THREE WEEKS. CHRISTIANA WAS A BED AND DARK ROOM FOR THE NEXT FIFTY YEARS!
AS FAR AS POSSESSING TREASURE, SHE LOST IT ALL. BUT SHE SAW HERSELF AS A TREASURED POSSESSION. SHE CONTINUED TO MINISTER FROM THAT BED AS GOD BROUGHT PEOPLE TO HER. THIRTEEN YEARS LATER, IN 1949 SHE AND HER BEST FRIEND AND MENTOR, MARY LEAMAN, CAME TO THE UNITED STATES, TO PARADISE, PA NEAR LANCASTER PA. FOR THE REMAINING THIRTY-FIVE YEARS OF HER LIFE SHE WITNESSED TO AND MINISTERED TO AN AVERAGE OF FORTY-THREE PEOPLE A DAY! GOD SENT THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE TO THIS QUEEN OF THE DARK CHAMBER. NO ONE LEFT HER ROOM THE SAME. IN THIS DIMINUTIVE CHINESE WOMAN THEY SAW THE REFLECTED BEAUTY OF JESUS. THOUSANDS CAME TO FAITH IN CHRIST. CHRISTANA TSAI KNEW THE JOY OF BEING THE TREASURED POSSESSION OF A LOVING HEAVENLY FATHER. SHE DIED IN THE EARLY 1980S. SHE NOW DANCES WITH UNDIMINISHED VIGOR IN THE BRIGHT FIELDS OF HEAVEN.
SHE HEARD FROM THE LIPS OF HER OWN LORD, “CHRISTIANA, YOU ARE MINE, MY TREASURED POSSESSION. YOU, WHO REVERE MY NAME, ON YOU THE SUN OF RIGHTEOUSNESS HAS RISEN WITH HEALING IN HIS WINGS.”
THE GALE WINDS OF CYNICISM BLOW HARD AGAINST US. WILL WE STAND OR WILL WE FALL? BUILD INTO YOUR LIVES: VITAL RELATIONSHIPS, VIBRANT HISTORIES AND VISUALIZED CONSEQUENCES. WHEN THE MOMENTS OF DECISION COME, WHEN THE QUESTION IS WILL WE CONTINUE TO SERVE GOD; THE CHOICE WILL BE CLEAR, THE COURAGE WILL BE PRESENT, THE VICTORY WILL BE OURS, AND THE GLORY GOD’S.
Copyright 1995 G. Brenton Mock