TAKING IT FOR GRANTED

"I will be blessed because I belong to a Christian family and a Church, even though I am disobeying God. My family will be protected by God, even though I ignore Him, because we go to church. My sin is not harming my church." I am not sure if anyone would actually say such a thing, but I wonder if many people don't make that assumption.
Certainly when things go wrong, they are quick to say "Why is God doing this to us?" or "Why would God allow this to happen to me?"
There is a startling passage in Deuteronomy 29:19, where God through Moses, recognizes that some of "his people" will be tempted to think this way. After all, God had made a wonderful covenant with Israel. So of course, all Israel will be blessed, even those who ignore or disobey Him, right? That apparently is the thinking. This is how the NIV translates it.
When such a person hears the words of this oath and they invoke a blessing on themselves, thinking, “I will be safe, even though I persist in going my own way,” they will bring disaster on the watered land as well as the dry.

We should all pray for those family members or friends who may presently be counting on God's unlimited grace, expecting that He will wink at their sin. We should pray for parents who think that their sin will not in any way bring harm to their children. We should pray for those in our local church who may think that their sin will not bring harm to the church. We should examine ourselves.
We need to be careful when we interpret an OT verse and apply it to our present NT time of grace. Yet this verse should cause all of us to pause. Think about it.

FOUR LANGUAGES ONE FAMILY

We enjoyed a pizza tonight with a friend from Ho Chi Minh City who grew up here in Hanoi. She is working with the World Bank, so is here for a week. We always enjoy visiting with this Christian business woman who came to faith while doing a graduate degree in the US.
We talked about many things including language. Her English is very fluent and she told us that she has studied some Chinese as well. We then briefly discussed the changes in foreign language emphasis in Vietnam over the years. She told us how her Vietnamese family reflects these changes over the past 60 years.
Her grandparents speak French, for until 1954 when the French finally left the north, it was the foreign language of choice. Her uncle, older brother of her father, studied Chinese for in the late 50's and into the 60's, China was an ally. Her father studied in Russia and so is fluent in Russian. The USSR was a great ally of Vietnam back in the 70's and into the 80's.
However our friend is only 30 years old. Like most of those under age 35, English was the foreign language she studied. In recent years English has become a compulsory subject at least in the big cities. Private English language schools advertise widely, providing night and weekend classes. Some companies pay teachers to hold weekly classes on the job site, so that their employees can interact with overseas clients. Vietnamese recognize that fluency in English increases the chance of promotion and might even lead to a job with a foreign company or NGO.
You will still find those who study Russian or French (in fact I met a woman from France today who teaches at the University near us. But the era of Russian or French has passed here in SE Asia. I suspect that the study of Chinese will grow stronger in the days ahead.
Meanwhile we meet once a week with our 60 year old language tutor - whose major language of study was - you guessed it - Russian!

THE REAL THING

I've missed more days of blogging recently since we've had five guests from Edmonton, Canada. It has been my pleasure to act as there primary tour guide but it has involved a lot of time and energy.

During the week we visited the mausoleum (one of only three in the world) of Ho Chi Minh, plus the very simple houses he lived in, even as he ruled North Vietnam during his last 15 years of life. He is revered as the father of modern Vietnam; his photo is found in every government building and every school; busts and statues of Ho Chi Minh are prominent throughout the country, and to many he is still the people's very important relative: Uncle Ho. He died (1969) before the country was finally united (1975) under one national communist government. It was the culmination of what he longed for and worked toward for decades.
Long before Ho Chi Minh or Marx; long before the financial crisis that struck the West in 2008 and continues in many places, the Old Testament and New Testament were written with wonderful concern for the "common person" and the proper sharing of goods. In the Bible, God made very clear His concern that all people should be cared for; that those who are disadvantated should not be left to simply suffer.
I thought of this again as I read the Bible yesterday. I read words like the following:
"At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts. --- However there should be no poor among you, for in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless you ---. --- If there is a poor man among your brothers --- do not be hardhearted or tightfisted toward your brother. --- Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; --- Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land." Deuteronomy 15:1 - 11
Communism, Socialism, Capitalism - they all are weakened and fail for one primary reason: humans are sinful. Unless the heart is radically changed by Jesus Christ, dishonesty, greed, and corruption gnaw away at every form of government, in every country.
Come, Lord Jesus, Come!

WHY GOD CHOSE US

If we are truly faith followers of Jesus, then we understand we are born again, converted, saved, brought into the family of God by faith alone. It is because of God's grace shown to us through the death of Christ that we can believe and be saved. We cannot earn God's salvation; we cannot work our way into heaven; we receive God's mercy and forgiveness as a free gift. Ephesians 2:8, 9
Yet after we have been part of the family of God we can subconsciously forget. When we are see others whose words and actions seem in every way opposed to God, we are grateful that we are not like them. And to easily we can begin to think we are better than those people. We might even begin to think that God made a pretty good choice when He chose people like us. (Of course we think this in all humility.)
There was a danger that Israel might think this way. After all God was about to give them the Promised Land. He promised to drive out before them all of those evil nations who worshipped idols and opposed God by word and action. God must be pleased that there was one nation wise and good enough to worship the Living God. Since this was a danger for Israel, as it is for us, God had some pretty blunt words for them as He spoke through Moses. Notice the 3 fold repetition of one phrase, just in case God's people missed it the first time. These words are a good reminder for us that we were not chosen because of our superior righteousness.

⁴ After the LORD your God has driven them out before you, do not say to yourself, “The LORD has brought me here to take possession of this land because of my righteousness.” No, it is on account of the wickedness of these nations that the LORD is going to drive them out before you. ⁵ It is not because of your righteousness or your integrity that you are going in to take possession of their land; but on account of the wickedness of these nations, the LORD your God will drive them out before you, to accomplish what he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. ⁶Understand, then, that it is not because of your righteousness that the LORD your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked people. Deuteronomy 9:4 - 6

DIVINE HEART CRY

In Deuteronomy Moses recounts the past 40 years of Israel's history. He lists the 10 Commandments given on Sinai. He reports how Israel responded at that time to the presence of God with awe, reverence and a promise to obey. Then Moses writes:
The LORD heard you when you spoke to me, and the LORD said to me, “I have heard what this people said to you. Everything they said was good. Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always, so that it might go well with them and their children forever! (5:28, 29)

God saw and heard the sincerity of the people of Israel at that moment. They really do mean what they say and what they say is good. But sadly it will not always be this way. God knows the future as well as the past. He knows that they are very prone to wander away into disobedience and idolatry. You can almost feel God's sorrow. His words sound almost wistful, almost as if He is saying, "I wish I could count on their commitment and loyalty. I wish it were true."
I read these words and I think of the old hymn: "Prone to wander, Lord I feel it; prone to leave the God I love. Here's my heart, Oh take and seal it. Seal it for thy courts above." We all are too human and need God's grace and power to remain faithful and obedient. May He find lifelong loyalty in you and me.

INTERESTING, INTERNATIONAL SUNDAY

We had strong attendance at our 10:30 Sunday service yesterday (I'm guessing 150 - 175 people.) In the crowd were 12 people from Australia and New Zealand who were guests of Samaritans Purse. As I worshipped, led by our worship team, I couldn't help but delight once again in the international flavour. Our worship leader was from the Philippines, keyboard, drums and sound tech were from Nigeria, two guitar players from Korea and the third was from the US. Handling the powerpoint was a young man from India. Prayer was led by someone from the US; the offering lesson and prayer was led by a Malaysian. Then this Canadian preached! How great is that for an international mix!
I then enjoyed a lunch meeting and time of prayer with our church leadership team and a guest preacher from the US who had ministered at the main HIF congregation that morning.
In the afternoon Jan and I led a meeting for our Life Group leaders. Of the ten who attended, two were Malaysian, two from China, three from Singapore, one from Hong Kong and two from the US.
Following that meeting, Jan and I stopped at the apartment of new parents who had just returned from the hospital. The parents are Vietnamese and American, their newborn son is named Dennis Phuoc. It was a joy to have them show us pictures and then to pray with them for their little son.
This was the busiest day we have enjoyed in Vietnam. Most Sundays are not quite so interesting, but always we are grateful to be here.

INTERNATIONAL PEOPLE AND CHURCHES

Our daughter Jeannie taught at an International School in Milan, Italy. We were intrigued by her report that many of her colleagues would teach in one country for several years and then move to another country to teach. They were not temporarily out of their home country. In a sense they were nomads, internationals, or world citizens, enjoying and exploring life in various countries. For those rooted in their home country, it may be surprising to realize how large is this voluntary diaspora (or sometimes not so voluntary if their company insists they move).
I was reminded of this after lunch with a young friend yesterday. She is just finishing 3+1/2 years in Vietnam working in a US government posting. She will soon take up a new position in Central Asia which offers her a significant promotion but also a significant challenge: new country, new climate, new language, new culture. We know with her gifts and personality that she will do well, and that she will enjoy her new locale.
I mentioned that we might be able to give her a Christian contact name or two in her new city. But she had already done her homework and assured us that there is an international church there. This means that when she arrives in her new Central Asia country she will attend an English speaking church on her very first Sunday there.
Yes, it will be a brand new Christian fellowship, but it will be an instant, welcoming Christian fellowship in a city where she knows no one, a long way from home.There are huge adjustments required in a new country. The role played by an International Church can be huge for many people. I am grateful that we can be a part of such a faith community, providing a warm welcome and support for international people here in Hanoi.