The lecture theater was quiet as people left as soon as the evening class was over. I stayed behind to arrange my notes. A few minutes later, a well-built man in blue overalls came into the room. He nodded his head in my direction, and then walked off into the corner of the lecture room. He went from corner to corner, nook to nook. Sometimes he would squat down and examine the corners. At times he used a thin metal stick to dig into the nook.

After a while, I asked him what he was doing. He replied that he was the pest control man and was doing his rounds to see if there are pests around. We got talking about bugs, flies, and mosquitoes. He said that the best way to keep these pests away was to cut off their breeding places and food supply.
We talked about dengue fever. He shook his head and repeated his view that we should work on removing the breeding sites. Yet whenever there is a complaint about presence of mosquitoes or if there is an outbreak of dengue, his bosses will always tell him to fog the area.

“Fogging is loud. Makes a lot of noise and smoke. The boss sees it and the people see it – so they think I am doing my work. When I go about to check for breeding, no one’s sees and no one knows. When I am fogging, I look busy. The boss likes that.”

Ancient Greek philosopher Socrates said, “Beware the barrenness of a busy life.” The conversation with Mr Fogger reminded me that Socrates’s warning is still true today – for me and for my church – for we fall into the trap of doing noisy things that attract attention. I like my music pretty loud for it helps me to focus. Loud music in churches does not disturb me but basing our hope on the spectacular distracts us from worshipping in Spirit and in truth (Jn 4: 23).

Worldliness creeps into the Church when we fail to direct people into the closet of prayers, into corners where we encounter the fear and love God, into nooks where we can share our lives openly and lovingly. Worldliness creeps into the Church when we allow “noise and smoke” to take precedence over the contemplation of living before the Holy God.

Collateral Damage
The sun was setting and it was cool enough for me to cycle home. I said goodbye to my new found friend and walked to the car park. It was a rather big car park and it looked bigger now that most people have left the campus.

I recall a conversation with a friend who comes early and would park at the lot farthest away. He said that the lots nearest should be left for those who come late for they need it most. Well, that does not always happen in my church (which is a lovely and caring community) and I think it does not happen in most of the churches on a Sunday morning too.

In some cities that I visited in China, neighbors sometimes complain against house churches that their bicycles block the way. These neighbors may phone the local police who then have to come and inform the house church that they are not allowed to hold religious services in the residential apartment. Often the house church leaders know how to respond rightly but once in a while, a more zealous leader will say that this is persecution.

The way we park our cars or bicycles reflect a bit of what we think going to church is about. The neighbors see only the crowded lanes and streets on a Sunday. Some would religiously put dustbins out on Sundays so as to prevent inconsiderate parking. We have to bring the love of our church community into the world and our parking habits is a great place to start. Remember: those who need Christ most should be given the chance to be the nearest to Him. We Christians must be ready to walk the extra mile in order to make this happen; extending grace into the world.

In that short conversation, I also learnt that fogging chase away and kill off the “good insects” too. “Soon we’ll have gardens with no butterflies, flowers with no bees. Pretty birds will not come for there are no insects to eat. You‘d be left with ravens and mynahs.”

We have critters among us in the congregation and bugs in our beloved denominations – for we are but sinners saved by grace. If we do things only for the noise and the attraction it brings, our churches will lose touch with God’s grace. The parking lots may be full but our hearts could be empty – that is a dreadful form of worldliness that strikes at our churches.

Jesus said, “My food…is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work” (Jn 4:34). We are rescued from the world and in turn will be empowered to be salt and light in the world when we share this food of Jesus. Doing God’s will must characterize the life of the Church. We note that this verse in the Gospel of John is sandwiched by Jesus speaking with the Samaritan woman (Jn 4:1-26) and Jesus telling the disciples that the harvest is ripe and eternal life beckons (Jn 4:35-38). That’s our food and anything else allows worldliness to creep into our lives. Writer Jaroslav Pelikan gives us a good reminder about church life: “Tradition is the living faith of the dead. Traditionalism is the dead faith of the living.”

Sorry – No Fogging in My Home
The next day my classes were in the afternoon so I sat at home the whole morning. Lo and behold, some workers were fogging downstairs. The noise and the smell permeated my apartment. I wanted to know if I have my facts correct and so I Googled “fogging” and found this in the Straits Times archives:
“The NEA constantly advises homeowners and pest control companies not to over-fog outdoors. Since 2005, the NEA has brought down outdoor fogging by 50 per cent, it says. But what does not help, said Mr Ng Say Kiat, director of the SPMA’s Institutional Agencies Group, is nervous clients demanding fogging. ‘They want to see smoke and hear noise so they feel that something is being done about dengue.’

Ironically, the one time fogging needs to be done is when the NEA faces the most resistance – indoor fogging in areas when there are known dengue clusters. Close to 60 per cent of homeowners say no to it…”*

Well, that’s an interesting addition to my wee knowledge about fogging. It is not so useful in many situations and in those instances that it should be used, people do not want it. We fog when there is no need and we refuse to fog when there is a need. Such an irony indeed.

I guess the same may apply to churches that we are reluctant or slow to change when there is a need to. To keep our churches from being worldly, we must let the Holy Scriptures and the Holy Spirit infuse us thoroughly. Mr Fogger also said just as I was walking out of the lecture room, “whatever we do, there will always be bugs, rodents, and flies in our world.”

We cannot legislate that our people in our churches be meek or be poor in spirit. That will be like asking patients to be well before they go to a hospital. We could make a room bug free if we use heavy duty insecticides and apply all sorts of powerful killing methods. But then humans may not live healthily in that room either. If a church chooses to be highly authoritative or manipulative in attempts to make herself less worldly and more spiritual, the very method of doing so may be worldly.

Foggy Discipleships
Having worked with the very poor and down trodden for the past 15 years, there are times when I wanted to tell Singaporean Christians that we are spending too much on our cars and too much grooming ourselves. I could not explain to a beleaguered widow, who does not have enough food for her malnourished kids that in my country, Christians spend a quarter million dollars to buy a car that could cruise at 100 kilometers an hour when the longest highway in Singapore is about 45 kilometers.

And it was not easy to think about the fact that whatever our denominational persuasion – fundamental or charismatic or whatever – a visitor could not tell the difference if we look at the cars that the church members drive. Perhaps we in churches have also bought in quite deep into the Singapore dream. After all, if I visited an Amish church in Ohio, I would immediately see that theirs is a doctrine of simplicity. They do not drive cars nor do they use machines that spew out chemicals to kill bugs.
But churches are neither about cars nor bugs. Churches are about having the truth and love of the Triune God flowing in and through the people. We should not allow bugs or cars, pest busters or car ownership get in the way. Let’s be ready to be active disciples with and without them. Irritations when there are bugs and discomforts when we do not have our cars should not sway us from joyful discipleship.

Perhaps we should then look deep into our hearts and hear again the words of Jesus: “Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water’” (Jn 7:38) (ESV). We are not called to be pest control agents in our churches to keep a lookout for sin and trespasses. We are called to believe in Christ, to experience God’s truth in the Bible and be channels of blessings. That will put Jesus Christ as head of the Church and allow His love to move into every nook and corner, every tribe and nation. While it may be a movement with the noise of a fogging machine or a silent work of a dedicated man looking at nooks and corners, let’s put Christ first and keep worldliness at bay.

I will like to end off with 1 Samuel 16:7: “But the Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.’”

*Arti Mulchand. “NEA says halting Aedes breeding the way to go.” The Straits Times. Jun 14, 2007. http://www.wildsingapore.com/news/20070506/070614-3.htm

Dr Tan Lai Yong is a medical doctor who left Singapore with his wife from 1996-2010 to serve in Yunnan, China, as a community development aid worker, carrying out rural healthcare projects. He also lectured at Kunming Medical College, training farmers to be doctors. In 2005, he received the Singapore MILK Fund Award for Outstanding Youth and Children’s Worker presented by President Nathan and the “Good Citizen” of Kunming Award from the Yunnan Provincial TV Station in 2007. His work has been featured on Channel News Asia’s “Asian of the Year” series. Dr Tan can be contacted at tanlylc@pacific.net.sg.

The New International Version Bible has been referenced.

James attends church, and is a business man.
He has amassed sizeable wealth through his investments, and is a millionaire. He owns two Mercedes and a BMW. He lives a luxurious life of traveling and entertainment, and is always on the lookout for better investments. He loves to work out in the gym to build up a muscular physique, and recently went through liposuction as part of building his “image.”

Jeremy attends church, and is a business man.
He has amassed sizable wealth through his investments. He owns a BMW and lives in a nice house. He opens his house for hospitality to various fellowship group. He also mentors a group of businessmen in growing their business. Jeremy gives generously and regularly to charities and ministries. He makes trips to various parts of the world to observe projects that he may consider being involved in, both financially as well as in service. He especially has a heart for orphanages in third-world countries. Jeremy also works out regularly in a gym to stay trim and fit for his travels.

What are similar elements in the two stories above?
Besides church, my observations are: wealth, investments, BMW, traveling, and gym-membership.

When we think of worldliness in church, several possible categories of thought are: we may think that all material things are bad, or some material things are bad and some are acceptable. What perspectives does the Bible hold on this?

The Bible tells us in Apostle John’s writings: “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 Jn 2:15). However, the same writer also tells us: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (Jn 3:16).

The “world” in both verses is the same word in Greek, cosmos, referring to systems and objects that may be hostile to the values of God. Yet, in the light of these two verses above, it seems that rather than reject it totally, God intends to transform and change the world to be aligned to His values and His purposes. John also writes that God sent Christ to speak His word to the world, to give life to it and ultimately to save it.

Wealth, investments, BMW, traveling, gym membership…the Bible makes fleeting references to such similar elements in the lives of godly men:
• Abraham had much wealth, silver and gold, and enough employees under him to content with armies of kings of certain territories (Gen 14:14-16).
• Jacob had at his disposal a large number of livestock and cattle to select a gift for his brother (Gen 32:13-16).
• Joseph marshaled the finances and levies of the food stock of the region (Gen 41:56-57).
• Peter had at least two fishing boats with partners in probably a fishing business (Lk 5:3-7).
• Paul references physical fitness as valuable and uses that as a metaphor for training in things pertaining to God’s purposes (1 Tim 4:8, 1 Cor 9:24-27).

Make no mistake; the Bible’s references to such things are fleeting. The person above either gave up these things, used it to bless others or marshaled it in expediting what they felt was God’s calling in their lives.

This leads me to the next question: What is the difference in the characters of the two stories at the beginning of the article? My answer is: Their values, direction, and goals. Another way to put it: they have different compasses.

The trappings of wealth, investments, BMWs, and gym memberships may be similar, but the needles of their heart-compass point in almost opposite directions.

If we have a compass of God’s calling in our hearts, these external trappings become avenues and platforms for fulfilling God’s call. If we lack a compass in our hearts, these things overwhelm us and become goals we blindly pursue. At that point, worldliness would have crept into our lives.

In olden days, the ships that sailed often had two compasses, one in the bridge under the helmsman and one on the mast. When storms occurred and lightning was present, the compass in the iron boat would become unreliable. Often in the midst of the storm, a sailor was sent up to the mast to check the reading of the higher compass. The compass of our hearts is essential to guiding us to God’s calling. With the pressure and temptations from relationships and work, it is possible our thoughts and feelings in hearing God’s leading become unreliable. It is during moments when we encounter God, in times of rest and prayer, that our compass is reoriented to reflect God’s calling and direction for us.

How can we develop a compass of God’s call in the midst of the marketplace and life stresses? I would like to share three things we can do:

1. Decide early: who has your heart?
Above all, guard your heart, for out of it flows the issues of life (Prov 4:23). The phrase “above all” tells us this is the top-most priority in having a compass of calling. We must make a decision early in our career that God is our “boss,” our “pay-master” above our organization and supervisor. No matter how salaries, bonuses, and increments come, we look to God as the One who provides for us. As we seek God’s purposes first, He will provide for our needs (Mt 6:33).

2. Sustain the “wrapping” of excellence around the kernel of your heart.
If our work-life can be seen to have a “wrapping around a kernel,” the wrapping would be our responsibilities and competencies, while the kernel would be our heart to serve God.
The Bible calls us to do our work well with a clear compass of doing God’s will:
“Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free” (Eph 6:7-8).

We should excel and grow in what we do in the marketplace, as a calling unto the Lord. This combination creates a testimony of salt and light where God has placed us.

3. Guard the doors of our hearts
1 John 2:16 describes certain things that can affect the accuracy of our spiritual compass: lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. These things often begin as seemingly legitimate needs and thoughts but may be doors by which worldliness enters our lives.

Our concern with survival and well being is a legitimate need, but when such tendencies become a craving driven by our selfish nature, it may become a “lust of the flesh.” Our desire for more good things is a legitimate desire to earn and to enjoy one’s keep. However, it may cross the line when there is comparison, envy, and jealousy, thereby becoming a “lust of the eyes.” Our estimation of our self should be a sense of healthy esteem. However, an overestimation of ourselves not based on a realistic evaluation may become the “pride of life.”

If we wish to keep our heart-compass sharp, we should regularly reflect on whether what began as legitimate needs in our lives have indeed evolved to become worldliness that has entered our lives. This is often difficult to benchmark by indicators. For example, a BMW versus three Rolls Royces and a gym membership versus three club memberships. Such indicators fail to take into account personal background, culture, and landscape which may differ from person to person.
Ultimately, I believe it is an issue of the heart. The more effective check on worldliness is in taking an honest look at our attitudes to material possessions and to allow a trusted friend, mentor or pastor to hold us accountable:
Am I upgrading everything I have simply because I can?
Do I compare myself with the status and prestige of others?
Am I unwilling to give something up if God asks me to?

That last question is especially telling for it exposes the underlying motivation of our lives. The Bible advises us on this: “The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever” (1 Jn 2:17).

All the great men of God –Abraham, Jacob, Joseph – saw their great wealth, power, and, resources as a means to an end. They all lived by a common motivation: “…they admitted that they were aliens and strangers on earth. People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. Instead, they were longing for a better country – a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them” (Heb 11:13-16).

I submit to you that having a clear compass of God’s calling in one’s life defines “heavenly-ness” vis-a-vis “worldliness” – indeed, one degree of deviation makes a difference.

Is there a clear heart-compass in the people of our churches? In the midst of wealth, health, and resources, do we live for a heavenly city? Or, has worldliness crept into the Church? You have to decide and do something about it…

Rev Dr Philip Huan speaks, preaches, teaches and consults with churches through his personal ministry“ChurchLife! (www.churchlife-resources.org). Philip has guided and coached Pastors, Church Boards and Managers, and has also lectured adjunct on Leadership & Management in Singapore Bible College. He holds a Bachelor of Science (NUS), Masters of Divinity (Trinity Theological College) and a Doctorate of Ministry (Asbury Theological Seminary). He has authored a book titled “Enduring Church Growth—Issues on Discipleship, Leadership & Followership” (Armour Publishing). Together with his wife Jenni, they have 2 children, Abigayle and Keith.

[Analytical Lexicon, Bibloi, Silver Mountain Bible Software
Leon, Morris. New International Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Eerdman’s Publishing, p.126-7.
This illustration was first shared to me by Ps. Edmund Chan of Covenant Evangelical Free Church.
The Silver Mountain Analytical Lexicon and Louw Nider Lexicon of Semantic Domains (26.7) describe “lust of the flesh” the longings, tendency and impulses of human nature. Human desires pushed to an extreme would be such a description.
The Silver Mountain Analytical Lexicon describes “lust of the eyes” with ideas of envy, jealousy and greed.
A pride with no basis (Louw Nider Lexicon of Semantic Domains 88:219)]

The New International Version of the Bible has been referenced.

Missionaries could actually be worldlier than businessmen. A church leader could run his ministry in a worldly manner but camouflage it with Holy Spirit-inspired ambition. A pastor too, could be susceptible to the worldly yardsticks of record-breaking attendances, ego-boosting affirmations, being amongst the who’s who or receiving invitations to speak at nationwide conferences.

Charles Spurgeon was right when he said, “One reason why the Church of God at this present moment has so little influence over the world is because the world has so much influence over the Church.”

Worldliness is an inescapable battle and indomitable struggle. I’m honest enough to admit how potentially worldly I can be. I regularly repent from how I inadvertently inject traces of worldliness into my youth ministry. If I’m not careful, worldliness could derail me from obeying what God has laid upon my heart to do.

Time and again in my ministry journey, the Lord has reminded me to look to Him for affirmation and recognition because it is so easy and convenient to find gratification in the applause of men or in celebrating my own accomplishments. It is especially tempting to turn my eyes away from Jesus when matters aren’t going the way I had envisioned it to be.

Regardless of age or station of life, everyone is confronted by the unholy trinity of the devil, our flesh, and the world. The prince of the air lurks at our moments of weakness. We wage war regularly with the darkness in our hearts. And we stand against the ever increasing influence exerted by world, mostly through the media and music we expose ourselves to.

Our degree of worldliness could well be magnified in the things that we purchase, to the clothes that we wear, down to the language we speak, just to name a few. Our media intake has a direct influence on our worldliness quotient. It’s not far-fetched to assert that our exposure to and retention of worldliness determines our approach to godliness.

Worldliness is not just about your possessions

Some youths in my church link worldliness with what and how much people have. To them, worldliness is:
“Putting the material things of the world in high priority.” – Joni Sng, 17
“Getting too involved in worldly things that cause us to neglect God.” – Athena Liang, 18
“[Chasing] materialistic items, fame or titles that are not eternal, and therefore it can only satisfy temporarily; people would want something better once that wears off, so it never ends, just like chasing after the wind.” – Daltone Tan, 20
“The opposite of godliness; where one finds his or her identity in the things of the world and rejects what God can offer.” – Tiffany Tay, 21

Like them, I think that associating worldliness with the number of possessions we have is a lazy and inadequate way of measuring how worldly we are. C J Mahaney provides the all-inclusive definition of worldliness, “Worldliness is to gratify and exalt oneself to the exclusion of God.”

However, I believe that the antidote to possession-hoarding is to see what we have with an open palm. We must not be a greedy grabber but a thankful receiver who’s always ready to give away what the Lord has graciously put in our hands. My buddy who works in a multi-national corporation earns a decent income, but has given so much away to global missions over the last few years that it’d be enough to purchase a car.

We must remember that what God gives to us is meant to be stewarded, not owned. Once you think you own it, you can no longer steward it. Biblical stewardship is the way out of an obsession with material possessions. It’s not how much we have but what we do with what we have.

Worldliness is not just about your pursuits

Other youths in my church identify worldliness with what people strive for. To them, worldliness is about:
“Pursuing earthly possessions that do not bring glory to God and may lead to devastation.” – Chia Yu Zhe, 15
“The wrong form of pursuits often masked as un-deadly and harmless, which escalates to greater problems and also grieves God’s heart.” – Melody Khoo, 18
“Pursuing tangible and material satisfaction and gratification.” – Caleb Kay, 23
“The importance that an individual places on the temporary things of this earth, which becomes a liability when it becomes so important that it hinders our emphasis on God or eternity.” – Cornelius Ong, 24

A person who’s doing well in his career isn’t always more worldly than a person who isn’t. Why can’t a senior pastor be worldlier than a managing director? Folks who are satisfied with owning a small apartment aren’t necessarily less worldly than those who dream of owning landed property. David Powlison sums this up excellently, “The evil in our desires often lies not in what we want but in the fact that we want it too much.”

It is meaningless to compare these subjective and personal aspirations. It wouldn’t make us any different from the religious Pharisees that Jesus often rebuked. My mentor, Ronald Yow, once said in a sermon that, “It’s easy to take yourself out of the world but it is difficult to take the world out of you.”

Is this a better way of measuring worldliness? Perhaps not; we would be shallow to measure worldliness through the area of pursuits.

But worldliness is all about your perspectives

A few more youths in my church connect worldliness with what happens on the inside. To them, worldliness is:
“Conforming to society’s standards as opposed to God’s standards.” – Darren Tan, 17
“Loving everything else other than God.” – Crystal Goh, 17
“More of an attitude than an action, and something not beneficial or constructive in the long run.” – Evangeline Tan, 18
“A mindset that makes your unique traits seem dull and worthless, and forces you to succumb to what the world perceives as best and popular.” – Joshua Ng, 19
“Forgetting that this world is not our home, and living without an eternal perspective.” – Nicole Chee, 19

There’s nothing wrong if someone gives you a million dollars, a three-storey bungalow or a continental car – don’t lay blame on the cash, house or vehicle. No, the problem lies with us; our inner being is more hazardous than our outer blessings.

In the movie “Captain America: The First Avenger,” the brawny protagonist Steve Rogers was first introduced as a scrawny lad before the scientist Abraham Erskine injected “Super Soldier” serum and “Vita-rays” to miraculously transform him into a muscular man. Erskine chose the fragile but brave Rogers over the obvious choice Hodge, who’s physically impeccable but a bully at heart, because “the serum amplifies everything that is inside. So, good becomes great. Bad becomes worse.”

The idea of the trait-perpetuating serum is similar to what Jesus taught in Matthew 6:19-24. The way we see things directly impacts the way things see us through life. Worldliness isn’t just living on the outside – be it outside biblical standards or focusing on what’s on the outside. The remedy to worldliness is to sort out our insides – the attitudes of our hearts and the perspectives in our heads.

How to deal with worldliness

Take time to reflect
In order to detoxify the worldly clutter from our lives, we must first realize how much we have accumulated. Reflection through journaling has been effective for me in allowing the Holy Spirit to speak and convict.

Could it be the TV programs you watch, the websites you visit, the books you read or the friends you hang out with? Increasingly, an overdose of and over-reliance on social media has contributed to the collection of noise in our lives.

In preparing for a 12-hour prayer event that took place in my ministry recently, I challenged my youths to embark on a social media detox. I am confident that this purging activity was effective in allowing us to hear from God with more clarity before and during the event.

Reflection allows us to realign what’s really important in our lives and what we could do to emerge from a state of disarray.

Find an accountability partner
Accountability ensures that there’s at least a person keeping watch over our souls. Once we can overcome the tough task of finding someone to be accountable to, we will discover that there is healing in confession. Our journey becomes lighter with Christian counsel alongside us.

In my youth ministry, I’ve discovered that those who grow best are those who are an active part of a community of believers. It makes a difference when there’s someone cheering you on and checking up on you. If you’re serious about sorting out the worldliness you’ve discovered, do yourself a favor and find someone to chat with and confess to.

Is there someone in your cell group or ministry team you can share with? For the youths in my ministry who are severely disconnected from people, I’ll either match them up with a trusted and mature ministry leader to journey with them or get personally involved.

The bottom-line is: there is always someone in church who can be available for you. Don’t be afraid to approach your pastor for help.

Don’t forget to respond
The missing element in accountability is responsibility. It will be futile if we account to and receive instruction from a friend when we don’t intend to be responsible to sort out the errors he or she points out in our lives. Who are we trying to kid?

I’ve discovered that youths especially have become experts at accountability. If they want to do something explicitly forbidden (like dating a non-believer or picking up a vice), they would masterfully account to their leaders about it because they know it’s the right thing to do. Usually, they would receive correction and counsel, but what’s unusual is that they don’t do anything about it!

That’s one of the most challenging elements of working with youths – they hear, but don’t listen. But I wouldn’t be surprised if adults do the same thing for I fall prey to this as well. James 1:21-24 sums it up perfectly. We’re only fooling ourselves if we know what is right, yet refuse to do what is right. Perhaps our response towards rebuke could be a reflection of our attitude towards God’s Word.

Arrest or address – you choose
In conclusion, I’d like to leave you with the wisdom of John Piper, “We will never be useful to the world if we are being deeply shaped by the world. And we will be shaped by the world without intentional efforts not to be.”

Worldliness will arrest you if you don’t address it. And how you address it will determine the way it affects you. Don’t underestimate the lures of the world – many mighty men and women have fallen prey. You may not completely abolish it from your life but being acutely aware of it could make all the difference to the way you approach worldliness.

Joey Asher Tan is a Youth Minister with Grace Assembly of God Church, Singapore. He answered God’s call by heading into full time ministry in October 2009 and pastors 120 young people in the Grace Assembly of God (Bukit Batok) youth community.

The New Living Translation Bible has been referenced.

Evangelism is a struggle for most of us. We believe it is important and we know people need the Gospel. However, we often find Nike’s motto, “Just do it” easier said than done. And often, we feel guilty about not doing it. To complicate the problem, we have insufficient knowledge as to how we can evangelize. If you feel this way, I urge you to read on as I share my dad’s coming to faith story. It was truly a story of grace with numerous lessons learnt through this experience.

The first thing I learnt is that evangelistic opportunities are abundant. The problem, as Jesus has rightly surmised, is that our eyes are often shut and we cannot see these opportunities. Jesus said, “Open your eyes and see for the field is already white for harvest.” There are many needs and opened doors, but we don’t jump at the chances. More often than not, we do not have the time. Time is perhaps the biggest hindrance to evangelism today.

After my mom died, my dad’s mental condition deteriorated. He had always depended on her for emotional and social support and her death simply crushed him. A usually clear-minded and outspoken person, he became depressed. Finally, he succumbed to dementia. He could neither remember names nor places. He even had delusions of grandeur. It subsequently dawned on me that this was a perfect opportunity for me to reach out to him! But I was busy and fearful too. He needed special home care but nobody wanted him. After much family wrangling, my eldest sister-in-law reluctantly took him in. For her, it was a tremendous sacrifice and an intense involvement of care giving. She tried hard but eventually gave up when it became too much for her. For me, I was happily pursuing my own ministry and family then. I rarely visited my dad and I was too preoccupied to see his needs.

Dad’s depressive and demented condition exacerbated and he became demanding, verbally abusive and aggressive to my sister-in-law and her children. The last straw came when my dad accused her of adultery, which, of course, was untrue. One night, I was summoned to her home. She begged me to take my dad.

Once again, I was reluctant, citing my own busy ministry schedule and family commitments as legitimate excuses. “It’s too much of a hassle. Anyway I have my older siblings who should bear the responsibility first,” I reasoned to myself.

Finally, my third brother, Richard, agreed to take dad into his home. Initially, it went very well. Both my brother and his wife were happy. My wife, Alison, my kids, and I visited him regularly. During that time, I asked my dad if he would allow me to pray for him but he declined. His refusal was understandable. As a staunch Taoist and chief medium in our neighborhood temple, he had organized all kinds of Chinese religious festivities for the community. Praying to a foreign god for help was out of the question.

After eight months with my brother, my dad became incontinent. My sister-in-law was at her wit’s end. To worsen the situation, he refused to eat her home cooked food for a week, which she interpreted as his rejection of her kindness. They could tolerate him no longer.

One Sunday morning, Richard convened a meeting. He told us of dad’s unreasonable and uncontrollable behavior. He insisted that I should house my dad because it was beyond his capability to do it anymore. He was insistent. I was adamant. We argued and shouted. Finally, I told my brother, “Look I am busy now. I am late for church already. I’ll talk with you later.” I slammed the door and left in a huff.

On our way to church, Alison was very troubled. She felt that what transpired was not right and began to wonder about our Christian witness in that situation: “Too busy for dad and my brother because we were going to church?” That started us thinking.

During the day, two stories haunted me.

The first was a scene from Les Miserables, the musical. In there was a line from a song that spun in my mind: To love somebody is to see the face of God. Honestly, I couldn’t see God’s face in my dad. I only saw a disdainful and troublesome old man. I was shocked by my own perception.

The second was a story related by Richard Wumbrand, a Romanian pastor who had been tortured for his faith during the former communist-regime. In his book, Tortured for Christ, he recounted the experience of two Chinese prisoners in China. One was a Christian and the other a pre-Christian. Both were in the same cell, shivering in the cold of a wintry night. The Christian had one tiny blanket. The fellow prisoner had none and was sick and coughing incessantly. The thought came to the Christian’s mind, “If he were Christ, would I give him my blanket?” Reluctantly, he did. That story struck a responsive chord in my heart. I was convicted. “If my dad were Christ, would I take him home?”

I finally understood the words of Jesus in Matthew 25:35-36: “…for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.”

That same night, I took dad home. It was the beginning of another conversion experience for me. Just like Peter in the book of Acts, the conversion of Cornelius was as much his own conversion. His reluctance to witness to a Gentile was jolted. Before God could use him, Peter himself had to be converted first. I believe that was also what happened to me. I had to realign my perspective of God before I could evangelize my dad. Hence, for us to be effective in evangelism, there must first be a conversion of our hearts about God and people.

There is no short cut in evangelism. It is hard work. It involves caring for people in practical ways. That was perhaps the most difficult lesson for me. I have preached about evangelism but seldom practiced it.

My dad lived with me for about a year and a half. It was tough. His dementia had made him unduly demanding. That really tested our patience and love. Fortunately, we got help from the geriatric unit at a local hospital. The doctor and nurses taught us how to relate to my dad. We needed to accept his perspective as his reality and not force upon him what was right even when he was wrong.

As we cared for him, I noticed a spiritual openness in his heart. After about three months, when I offered to pray with him, he agreed readily. It was a breakthrough! But the spiritual transformation was not only affecting him – Alison and I were also transformed. During these months of caring for my dad, we felt the deep presence of God. In loving dad, we truly saw the face of God in him.

Another lesson I learnt is the power of prayer. One night, my dad had fallen from his bed. Fortunately, he survived but had suffered a stroke. His left side became immobilized and he could neither swallow nor speak. We were devastated.

Many friends and colleagues began to pray for him and a miracle happened. Just after two weeks, my dad recovered! He could once again move his left side, eat, and walk normally, which surprised the doctor. The Lord had been merciful.

Even more remarkable was his spiritual candor. Not only did he allow me to pray for him, he was reciting the sinner’s prayer after me!

Never underestimate the power of prayer was the precious lesson. Prayer can move God’s heart. As one definition of evangelism has it, “Our role in evangelism is to faithfully live out our faith and share Him relevantly and leave the results to God.” How true!

Another thing to note is that, when we share our faith with pre-Christians, we need to share in a language relevant and understandable to them. Jargon like salvation, redemption, renewal, and eschatology make no sense to pre-Christians.

For myself, I had to relearn my Hokkien dialect to share Christ with my dad. I spoke and prayed with him in the dialect, using words that were pertinent. To reinforce the message, I invited Reverend Oh Beng Kee to share the Gospel. Rev Oh is a good friend and one of the most effective dialect-speaking evangelists to the elderly. He spoke sensitively, non-offensively, and was most lucid and relevant. Each time, my dad would nod in agreement.

Eventually, I felt the Lord prompting me to ask my dad if he wanted to be baptized. To the elderly, baptism is the renunciation of their traditional beliefs to truly embrace Christianity. I asked him, “Do you want to be baptized?” To my surprise, he nodded his head. I could not believe my eyes. I thought he misunderstood my question. I rephrased it and asked him a couple more times and he nodded again. It was too good to be true! At that moment, tears began to stream down my cheeks. My dad had accepted Christ! Hallelujah! It had been a long thirty year wait.

I shared my dad’s salvation with my siblings and they did not believe until they heard him pray and asked if he really wanted to be baptized on different occasions. My sister was so amazed that she exclaimed, “Dad is a Christian!”

After two years of living with stroke after stroke, my dad’s physical condition worsened. This time, there was no miraculous transformation. His earlier recovery had a purpose. I was convinced that his present deterioration and subsequent death had a purpose too. It was time for dad to go home, to a place where there would be no more tears or pain.

During my dad’s last days in the hospital, I prayed that God would take him as painlessly as possible. I also shared this with the Eagles’ staff and they prayed along too. At the end, God answered our prayers and took my dad home peacefully that same week.

Deciding the religious nature of the funeral service for my dad was the next challenge. Although my older siblings knew about his conversion, they were reluctant and uncomfortable having a Christian funeral service. They wanted to pay their last respect to our dad in their Chinese way, which meant a Buddhist funeral.

They consulted with me and urged that I respected their wishes. I decided to let them have their way because as far as I was concerned, my dad was a believer and the rituals meant nothing to me. Furthermore, during this time of grief, I wanted to preserve family peace and harmony.

My siblings were very appreciative of my understanding. Out of their respect for dad’s conversion and my Christian faith, they did their part and toned down the Chinese religious rituals. They also supported me when I requested our dad to be prayed for in the Christian way. To top it all, they even participated respectfully in our Christian rituals!

What was most encouraging was the fact that this mutual respect had made my siblings more receptive to the Christian faith. I praise God for giving me the wisdom to be sensitive to cultural and religious differences. Right now, my prayer is that all my siblings will come to Christ one day!

Recounting my dad’s faith journey has taught me many precious lessons. The most powerful lesson is the faithfulness, grace, and goodness of God. It was God who changed my heart and gave me strength and love to care for my dad. It was God who helped me sow and water the Gospel seed and finally reap the harvest. It was God who converted my dad’s steep religious beliefs and antagonism of Christianity to the acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. It was God who gave me the wisdom and sensitivity to deal with a potentially difficult funeral situation and continued to touch the hearts of my pre-Christian siblings. Truly, I can testify that our God is a God of grace and faithfulness.

Finally, I affirmed what Ravi Zacharias has said that sharing Christ is not about making bad people good or even making good people better. It is in the truest sense making dead people come alive! In Christ, I know that I will see dad again!

Dr John Ng is the Chair of Eagles Communications’ Board of Governance and directs the programs of Eagles Leadership Institute. He is also the President of Meta, providing consultation services to top international corporations and the Honorary Chair of EMCC (Eagles Mediation and Counselling Centre) Board of Governance. Well versed in the art of motivation and management, he is a well sought after speaker. John has a PhD in Interpersonal Communication from Northwestern University, USA.

His latest book, Smiling Tiger, Hidden Dragon is out now. To purchase, please contact Jenny at jenny@eagles.org.sg or call +65 4019 5014.

The book of Job is a discourse on the suffering of the innocent. I opine that this book should be read as such from three main points of view. Firstly, the insider perspective: the innocent’s view on their suffering. Secondly, the outsider perspective: the debates on why God permits suffering. Thirdly, the transcendent perspective: how God’s justice may be defended in the light of human suffering, in particular, the suffering of the innocent.

My purpose is simply to reflect on Job through the lenses of a young adult living in the twenty-first century. The suffering of the innocent is an age-old debate that prompts us to inquire into the transcendent perspective. As Gutierrez writes, “Not to do make the effort is to risk succumbing to impotent resignation, a religion of calculated self interest, a cynical outlook that forgets the suffering of others, and even despair.”1

The insider perspective – the innocent’s view on their suffering

No pain shouts louder than present pain; and certainly, one’s present pain shouts the loudest. Job’s discourse on his own suffering is marked by six main themes, each of which would sound very familiar to our present day ears.

I want to die.

In his pain, Job wished he was never born (Job 3:11, 10:18). But since he was born, he wished he could be dead (Job 3:21). He lamented that the dead are better off than him for at least, they are at ease (Job 3:17-18).

However, since he could not die, Job tried to sleep away his pain. We too seek solace in sleep when our hearts are filled with grief and our bodies marked with pain. We may find comfort when we fall asleep but sometimes, even sleep eludes us, which was what Job experienced. In his despair, Job felt that he was as good as dead. In fact, he would rather be dead (Job 7:15).

Nobody understands.

Job’s friends wrongly accused him of wickedness. They argued that God was just. Since Job was suffering, he must have sinned. They failed to recognize the cosmic struggle between God and satan and the suffering of the innocent could be seen in that light. Instead, their false accusations weighed on his soul. He had hoped for comfort in his friends but they were “sorry comforters.” They did not understand his plight and they offered no godly wisdom.

Elihu succinctly summed up the folly of Job’s friends: “And his (Elihu’s) anger burned against his (Job’s) three friends because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job” (Job 32:3).

I do not deserve this. I did not do any wrong.

Job contended that he did not deserve his suffering, for he did no wrong. He longed to argue his case before God. He asked God for two things: firstly, that God would remove His hand from him; and secondly that God would make known to him his rebellion and sin.

Still, God did not answer and Job grew increasingly bitter and angry. Gutiérrez described Job as a rebellious but upright man who nevertheless proved to have a “disinterested faith,” i.e., believing in God without looking for rewards or fearing punishment. In a culmination of his discourse, Job asserted his integrity in seven areas:
(i) He walked after no falsehood.
(ii) He kept away from lust.
(iii) He did not despise his slaves.
(iv) He helped the poor, widow, and the orphan.
(v) He did not trust in his wealth.
(vi) He did not take vengeance into his hands.
(vii) He did not take advantage of others.

I have become a byword.

“It is too much! Everyone is against me,” Job seemed to cry out. Everyone looked at him differently and stayed away from him. He had become a byword of the people, “…one at whom men spit” (Job 17:6).

Even his wife found his breath offensive, and young children, who show no favoritism but innocently accept everyone, despised him. In despair, Job cried that even the hand of God was against him.

God, where are you? God, won’t you answer me?

“Yes, I acknowledge that God is all-powerful. In fact, God is so big and mighty that He does not see me nor hear me. God is blind to my case. Though I may be innocent, why would He care? He is all-powerful anyway. I cannot believe that He would listen to my voice.” Throughout his discourse, these were what Job appeared to say repeatedly.

Yet to his credit, Job did not fail to acknowledge God’s power, magnificence, and glory. But his pain was so overwhelming that his own righteousness began to grow in his eyes and he grew indignant against God.

Elihu then wisely cautioned Job: “But you (Job) were full of judgement on the wicked…Beware that wrath does not entice you to scoffing…Be careful, do not turn to evil, for you have preferred this to affliction” (Job 36:17-21).

It didn’t use to be this way.

In his grief, Job began to reminisce his past (Job 29:2). Job thought about how close he used to feel to God, how it was when his children were still around, how he was prosperous, how he was respected by the young and old, how the poor looked to him for help, and how he defended the cause of the helpless.

A caution about half-truths

Most of us can identify with some of these six themes of the insider perspective. They each contain an element of truth and therein lies their danger. Half truths are deceptive because unless we have searched the Scriptures and inquired into the transcendent perspective for ourselves, we will speak “words without knowledge” as Job did (Job 38:2).

It is true that Job was upright, his past was glorious, and that his friends misunderstood and falsely accused him. It is also true that Job was in great anguish; but Job multiplied words without knowledge and spoke foolishly when he justified himself before God (Job 34:35-37, 38:2). This is a danger of half-truths.

The outsider perspective – why does suffering occur?

Job’s sorry comforters had one overarching argument that went along these lines: “God is just. He punishes the wicked. Since you are suffering, it must be punishment for your sin. Search yourself to see what wickedness you or your sons have done. Then, humble yourself, repent, and God will restore you.”

Again, this is a half-truth, as Asaph in Psalm 73:4, 12b said, “For there are no pains in their (the wicked) death, and their body is fat…and always at ease, they have increased in wealth.”

Similarly, Job contended that the wicked do not always appear to receive their punishment but “spend their days in prosperity” (Job 21:13).

Perhaps the most fatal flaw of the insider and outsider perspective lies in the fact that they are anthropocentric – man remains in the center of the discourse. The insider perspective says: because I am innocent, I should not suffer; and the outsider perspective says: you suffer because you have sinned. Both perspectives center on what right man has done and miss the grace of God. They fail to recognize that man’s righteous deeds are like filthy rags before the throne of God.

How then, may God’s justice be defended in the light of human suffering, in particular, that of the innocent?

The transcendent perspective – defending God’s justice in the light of the suffering of the innocent

There are two signposts that point us to this third perspective. Firstly, there is framework of the story. Secondly, there is what God says about Himself in Job 38 – 41.

The framework of the story.

The suffering of Job began with a wager between God and satan. In the first wager, satan was allowed to touch all that Job had – his possessions. In the second wager, satan was allowed to touch Job’s health – his body. God affirmed that Job was blameless, upright, God-fearing, and unmoved by evil (Job 1:8, 2:3). What a testimony!

God even acknowledged that Job suffered innocently, when he said to satan, “…you incited Me against him to ruin him without cause” (Job 2:3). In the end, God won the wager. For all his suffering, Job neither sinned nor blamed God (Job 1:22, 2:10).

Despite his disinterested faith, Job was still guilty of rebellion and speaking “words without knowledge” (Job 38:2). After Elihu vindicated God’s justice, God “answered Job out of the whirlwind” (Job 38:1). In the end, God had the last say and Job repented. Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar were also rebuked by God for speaking foolishly. Job prayed for his three friends and the Lord restored all that he had twofold. At the end, Job was even more glorious than in the beginning.

The framework of the story shows us that there is a cosmic battle between God and satan and the sufferings of the innocent are part of this unseen warfare.

What God says about Himself

The second signpost lies in how God Himself defends His own justice.

Firstly, God questioned Job and rebuked his foolishness. Then, He spoke of His power over Nature. Finally, God told of His power reflected in Creation God did not need to affirm Job’s righteousness; neither did He come to explain to Job why he was suffering. Instead, God came out of the storm to magnify Himself and declare His glory. Instead of being vindicated for his suffering, Job was humbled and reminded of all that he could not control or understand. How could Job presume to understand or control the Creator?

Thus, while the first signpost points us towards the unseen battle between God and satan, the second signpost points us to God’s attributes reflected in Creation such that we are really without excuse.

A measured word

Having said all that, I am conscious that the world is replete with evils that appear senseless. While we must be careful not to be callous about such innocent suffering, I must confess that there are things too deep for me, which I do not know. While on this side of heaven, we must learn to be content with walking in the dark and trusting in the Lord.

Therefore, in our own suffering as innocents, let us remember firstly, that we may be as Job was, righteous. Not all suffering is punishment for sin. Secondly, the Lord is full of compassion and merciful towards us. Thirdly, let us endure, for the end will be for the better. Fourthly, let us remember that the Lord is all powerful and in complete control over all suffering.

The New American Standard Bible has been referenced.

1. Gutiérrez, Gustavo. On Job: God-Talk And The Suffering Of The Innocent.New York: Orbis Books, 1987 P. 93

Miriam Ee is happily married to Alvin Foo and holds a Master of Development Studies. Bliss to her would be being on a mission trip, reading, writing, and playing the guitar. Research is her hobby and she is currently very intrigued by the Biblical idea of Jubilee and the fall of Babylon.

In fact, in a much earlier book entitled, Creed or Chaos? by Dorothy Sayers, she commented that most people outside the Church had a tendency to list important Christian virtues as “respectability; childishness; mental timidity; dullness; sentimentality; censoriousness; and depression of the spirits.” In other words, many thought that Christians were dull, judgmental, and lacking passion. Christians care more about not rocking the boat and being safe than anything else! Of course Sayers maintains that this perspective is wrong. But the fault lies with Christians, not with the world, as she writes, “Somehow or other, and with the best intentions, we have shown the world the typical Christian in the likeness of a crashing and rather ill-natured bore – and this in the Name of One who assuredly never bored a soul in those 33 years during which He passed through this world like a flame.”

Some years ago, I was trying to answer a list of objections to Christianity that a 19-year-old was leveling against Christianity. He had many intellectual and philosophical objections and I offered as best as I could equally solid and poignant rebuttals. At the end of the one hour conversation, I asked if he would follow Christ if all his objections were answered satisfactorily. He then revealed the real objection he had which was, “I don’t think so. I still want to have fun!” Someone or some church must have given him the impression that if one becomes a Christian, one is not going to have a blast, have fun, go to parties, eat, drink, and be merry! Are Christians really boring, humorless, and puritanical? Is the Church such a dead serious place? Is Christianity such a strict, legalistic, woeful religion? Or is it just a mistaken perception we have presented to the world in our effort to remain untainted by sinful pleasures and reckless living?

A couple of years ago, I was at Old Trafford watching the derby match between Manchester United and Manchester City. The iconic stadium was filled to capacity and the crowd was boisterous, excited, and thoroughly alive. They needed no prompting to sing their team’s anthem, wave their hands in the air as one, shout their heads off when a goal was scored, or jeer the other team’s players when a foul was committed. For millions of fans, football is indeed a religion. And that afternoon, I witnessed the vibrant worship and adoration of its adherents!

Sadly when compared to the typical Sunday service, the sermons are even more potent than sleeping pills and the worship seems so tried and tired. Indeed, why should anyone want to come to something that bores them? And we wonder why people aren’t flocking to churches? We wonder why people do not jump up and down when we invite them to church?

It is most likely that people who think Christianity is boring are people who have had some previous brush or contact with Christians and churches. When I became a follower of Christ in the 1960s, I was taught by many Christian leaders that going to the movies, listening to rock music, and drinking beer was considered worldly, carnal, unspiritual, and therefore totally taboo. My world of sterile and safe spirituality was shattered when the age of TV arrived. So what was wrong with going to the movies when we could be watching them on the tube? In our unreasonable and often uncalled for abstinence of so called pleasurable activities deemed unfit for the heavenly minded, we became of no earthly use as far as our mislabeled “pagan” friends were concerned.

A rabbi once said that when we arrive in heaven, God is not going to ask if we have done all the spiritual stuff. The question the Creator God will be asking is, “Did you have a good time?” Indeed, all of His creation is for our enjoyment and “fun.” So if we are not having a good time on earth, we are merely insulting the Creator.

Unfortunately one’s perception is one’s reality. So people have been inoculated against the real Christian message by being exposed to a dull, dusty, and dead version. But the real Christian message is anything but dull, dusty, and dead. Christians are to live a holy life; not a boring, legalistic, joyless one.

However, it is certainly not our job to counter attack those who stereotype us as boring and to trot out lists of immoral bad behavior (albeit fun, exciting, and thrilling) found among those who do not follow Jesus. So what can be done to dispel the misconception that Christians are boring and churches are uptight places to be in and therefore Christianity is dull, irrelevant, and not cool?

Firstly, go for authenticity not awesomeness. As one character in a cartoon strip said, “Today, I have removed the halo. It is no longer strangling me!” Be real not just super spiritual. We may be trying too hard to be good according to our own standards. No wonder Christianity is seen as having too many rules and regulations. Our “Thou Shalt Not’s” outweigh the “Thou Shalt’s.” It would not have been so bad if we had enjoyed ourselves more, laughed louder, put on those dancing shoes, banged our heads at a rock concert, watched the latest action flicks, or shopped till we dropped. And if you will notice, Jesus never said no to a party!

Secondly, go for reality not escapism. Much of today’s definition of boring is the missing out of adventure, excitement, pleasure, indulgence, and decadence. Bored to death conveys such a scary message that we seek thrills and spills to escape the routines of responsibilities and the humdrum of mediocre existence. Well, life with Jesus is not escapism. Life with Jesus is going to work, taking care of the family, washing the car, buying grocery. When we are in touch with reality, we will never be boring.

Thirdly, go for curious not cautious. There is a big wide world out there to be discovered. The late John Stott once said that Christians are living in a ghetto, sheltered, and out of touch with reality. We want to be immune to a messy and tragic world out there. Our mission is to so embody the qualities of a transformed life that we will face our doubts honestly and confront injustice and tragedy practically. Then we will be like the early disciples who were known as “those who have turned the world upside down” and there is nothing boring about that!

Some humans are quite boring. Many are just bored. But Jesus was neither for He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life!” Albert Einstein once said, “I am a Jew, but I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene…Jesus is too colossal for the pen of phrasemongers, however artful. No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word. No myth is filled with such life…other heroes of his type lack the authentic vitality of Jesus.” Authentic followers of this Jesus can never be boring or bored.

Michael Tan is the Executive Vice-President of Eagles Communications. He likes to preach, write, play the guitar, and manage his staff!