Bishan church

I believe in God, not Luck.

Chinese New Year like many Chinese things is full of symbols of luck, prosperity, abundance and success. We have the symbol of fish which is a homonym of abundance. The number eight sounds like luck. Number four should be avoided because it rings the death knell. Strangely, Luck and Misfortune understand Cantonese (I’m glad I am a Hainanese!)

Fate (ming yun) is part of Chinese belief. The fatalistic Chinese hope in superstitions to shield them from bad luck. Fate is the unknown power which controls your destiny that cannot be changed. Usually the word “fated” is associated with misfortune. Your destiny according to the Chinese is written in the time of birth( the hour, the day, the year ), space (fengshui), your name and the number of strokes in the chinese characters and the mystical Iching etc. When a Chinese says, “Aiyah! You are so lucky to have a well behaved son” or ” It is fated that I get this job”, she may be resigned to her lot in life which she believes is beyond control and redemption.

I do not believe in luck. I avoid using the word luck as far as I can. It is a pagan word which I discourage usage and refuse to be associated with. I believe in statistical chance of random occurence but “all things will work out well for those you love the Lord”. The vicissitudes of life are part and parcel of a sinful world but our Lord Jesus has overcome. I believe in Jehovah Jireh. Anything that is bad from pagan’s point of view, will be made good because I have the assurance of spiritual blessings , a conviction of eternal things not seen. Only the hopeless hangs on to the goddess Lady Luck.

In the 24Feb 1996 Saturday newspaper issue of Life!, there was an article on raw fish. Yusheng i.e. raw fish, and the practice of lohei is an invention of 4 Singaporean chefs in 1963. In a short period of time, this dish has become a superstition among businessmen. I will not be surprise if some foolish Christians are drawn into this pagan practice. These Christians may hide their belief by saying ” I eat only for fun “. One way of knowing whether you are truthful is to avoid lohei altogether. If you squirm with discomfort, ask yourself why? Is it because you are afraid your luck will run dry this new year? You may deceive me but be honest with yourself. Lohei means tossing luck. Any Christian who wishes to dabble with pagan practice deceitfully, beware! It is no joke and no small matter. By your inclination, you are unwittingly saying that the Lord is unable to provide. Your providence comes from another powerful Force. It is then impossible for you to please God. (Heb 11:6.) You have lost connection with the Head (Col. 2:19)

As a mad man who casteth firebrands,arrows and death, so is the man who deceiveth his neighbour and saith, “Am not I in sport?” (NIV -I was only joking) Prov.26:18-19 KJV

Foolish thinking(folly) which undermines your faith in God is a sin (Read Mark7:18-23 esp. v22). It is a sin because your mind has highly exalted a thinking, a reasoning, an argument, an imagination or a pretension against the knowledge of God. You have not tamed your thoughts instead are enslaved by a pagan stronghold. Read 2Cor.10:5. Be warned!

By James HF Lim

Add comment February 1st, 2005

A Lasting Investment

If you were to put your life savings in an investment, which would you be most suspicious?

Option 1. An investment which regardless of your losses would return your money to start over and over again.

Option 2. An investment which causes you to lose everything including your memory.

Option 3. An investment which you may either gain or lose a lot, but not both.

The first kind of investment is really nice to have but if it turns out false, we will lose everything. The second kind is very strange. Regardless of whether you made a profit or loss, you have no memory. The third kind is normal, just like the stock market. You may make or lose more than your principal sum.

What if you are investing your life? We have only one life. DEATH is a certainty. Which investment would you choose? Whatever belief we have about life after death affects the way we invest our souls.

The first kind of investment is called Reincarnation that allows recycling our souls. If we did something wrong in a previous life, we would still have another chance. Whether it is for better or worse, we would still have our lives (our initial investment) back. What happen if this is false? There is no second chance. This kind of investment is extremely risky because it will be hell. Believing in a second chance after death is like jumping off a plane, thinking that there is an opportunity to secure a parachute. Dangerous assumption.

Atheists believe that when they die, they become nothing. This is Option 2 investment. Nothingness has no memory. No memory has no pain or sorrow. This kind of investment is very risky. If it is false, it also will be hell. Hell is when you remember everything and realize there is no way out.

The third option of life after death is that you will have either eternal life in heaven or eternal misery in hell. If this is false, reincarnation would be a pleasant surprise. Reincarnation gives you a second chance. If it turns out to be Option 2 (Nothingness), you lose nothing! Nothingness has no memory, no sorrow, and no pain!

A belief in God and the existence of heaven and hell is Option 3. It is a worthwhile consideration for a lasting investment of our souls. What have you to lose? Most people plan for eternity with secondhand beliefs. They depend on their parents, teachers, religious leaders, pastors, priests, the Pope, good intensions and pride too. Such an approach is very risky. We are talking about your soul not someone else’s. When the time comes, YOU not someone else, have to go through your death. Death is very personal.

The above thoughts are not sufficient for some to believe in Jesus. We hope it gives you an urgency to seriously start your search for God before it is too late.

Jesus says, “I am the Way, the Truth, the Life. No one comes to the Father but by me”

John 14:6.” I am the Resurrection and the Life, he who believes in me though he dies yet shall he lives” John 11:25.

For free bible correspondence course or any queries, please write to us at sengkangchurch@yahoo.com.

By James HF Lim

Add comment February 1st, 2005