3:16

A just-for-fun matter turned out fruitful when I came across some meaningful and significant verses.
[All verses below are in the New International Version (NIV)]


The Old Testament has one or two encouraging verses, but seems to possess more negativity.

"Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honor."

~Proverbs 3:16
Referring to wisdom. It's simple: Have wisdom; and long life, riches and honor are yours.

"Then those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name."

~Malachi 3:16
This is comforting. If we fear the LORD, we have hope because we will be remembered.

"To the woman he said,
"I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing;
with pain you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you.""

~Genesis 3:16
This marks the beginning of the history of the pains every woman would have to suffer in childbearing.

"He has broken my teeth with gravel;
he has trampled me in the dust."

~Lamentations 3:16
Man, that has got to hurt.

"And I saw something else under the sun:
In the place of judgment-wickedness was there,
in the place of justice-wickedness was there."

~Ecclesiastes 3:16
Although the circumstance here is bad, it sounds familiar, doesn't it.

"Or why was I not hidden in the ground like a stillborn child,
like an infant who never saw the light of day?"

~Job 3:16
Okay, that's enough. Let's move on to the New Testament.

"As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him."

~Matthew 3:16
I believe this passage is pretty well known. Jesus; God's glorious son.

"John answered them all, "I baptize you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire."

~Luke 3:16
John, whom people suspected to be the Messiah, corrected them by prophesying about Jesus' unique and authoritative baptism.

"By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus' name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see."

~Acts 3:16
Peter addressing the crowd after they witnessed his healing of the once lame beggar. Good to note that it wasn't by Peter's power, but merely faith in Jesus' name that the beggar was healed, completely.

"Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?"

~1 Corinthians 3:16
Paul writing to the Corinthians, but his above question definitely applies to us too. We, not the physical building of the church we go to, are the temple and the church; the Holy Spirit resides in us.

"But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away."

~2 Corinthians 3:16
The veil of stubbornness and hardheartedness which prevents comprehension of God's word, that is. Turning to the Lord is all that is required for understanding. You should read the whole context to get a better picture of this.

"Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God."

~Colossians 3:16
For the word to dwell in you richly, you've got to read it often. Then fully use them in teaching, singing and even praising God with a grateful heart.

"Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great:
He appeared in a body,
was vindicated by the Spirit,
was seen by angels,
was preached among the nations,
was believed on in the world,
was taken up in glory."

~1 Timothy 3:16
Mystery of godliness. That itself is a mystery to me. But the verse was indeed speaking of the story of Jesus.

"All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,"

~2 Timothy 3:16
That is why the authority of the Bible is unquestionable, and why we should always go back to the scriptures in every part of learning and growing spiritually.

"For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice."

~James 3:16
Indeed. Moral of the story: Get rid of all envy and selfish ambition in you.

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers."

~1 John 3:16
The message is clear enough. Sacrifice.

"So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth."

~Revelation 3:16
It's either you're passionate(like burning hot, on fire) for Christ, or NOT(stonecold). No in between's, please.


And before you leave this page, here are some blessings for you:

"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,"

~Ephesians 3:16

"Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you."

~2 Thessalonians 3:16





Not forgetting our Christian faith in a nutshell,

"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."

~John 3:16

Kingdom come

"I can't believe you dedicated the review to an entire post!" -A paraphrasel of a friend of mine. I was indeed entertained. =D Since the previous post was such a letdown, this post would be something worth reading.

The Kingdom of God. Sometimes rendered the Kingdom of Heaven. What is a kingdom? A rule or realm; dominion of a king. So the Kingdom of God means the rule and realm of God in the heavenlies. Essentially, the Kingdom of God somewhat equals heaven, more or less.

We do hear about the Kingdom of God time and time again. But, is hearing about it good enough? A lot of people say they would like to enter and inherit the Kingdom. Why?

"For your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom. You rule generation after generation."

~Psalm 145:13a

Indeed it's because that's where we want to be after we die. In His presence, forever, in eternal bliss. Plus, there is an added bonus here on earth when we seek his Kingdom, for the famous verse in Matthew 6:33 states, "...and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern."

The 'what' and 'why' of the Kingdom of God is pretty much known to the majority of Christians. The question is, how do we enter or/and inherit it?!

Resist the desires of your natural, human, sinful nature.
Originally this was third in order but I decided to move it up to first because it's one of the most difficult, yet necessary things we have to do. It's telling you to go against your natural instincts. It requires you to exercise and exert immense will power to overcome the natural desires and temptations you have. Yet it's a prerequisite to ensure a place in the Kingdom of God.
Now, we're all familiar with the fruit of the Spirit mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23. But what about the verses right before verse 22?

"When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, your lives will produce these evil results: sexual immorality, impure thoughts, eagerness for lustful pleasure, idolatry, participation in demonic activities, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, divisions, the feeling that everyone is wrong except those in your own little group, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other kinds of sin. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God."

~Galatians 5:19-21

I would like to place emphasis on the last sentence. It means that when your life has even one of the many results listed above, you will not inherit the Kingdom of God. So don't get involved with any one of them.


Realize you need God.
The early portion of Matthew chapter 5 records Jesus teaching his disciples the beatitudes. And in verse 3 he says, "God blesses those who realize their need for him(Greek the poor in spirit), for the Kingdom of Heaven is given to them." Coming to the realization of needing God may be easy and obvious to some, but not so for others. Not much room for self-sufficiency here.

Live a life that pleases God i.e. directed by the Holy Spirit.
Romans 14:17 tells us, "For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." Being a peacemaker, following the rules, promoting justice and being happy are what pleases God, according to this verse.

Don't get rich. Don't be greedy either.
"What?! I can't be rich? Do you know what you're saying?" Yes, I am well aware of my words. And I'm serious, contrary to my characteristically playful self, about this. Here's why:

"It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!"

~Luke 18:25

Guess who said it? You got it, it's Jesus again. Now that statement is one worth quoting. Let's analyse this statement. You don't need me to tell you or show you pictures of camels to know what is their size. Bigger than us human beings, that's for sure. And an eye of a needle; unless you've not seen that little hole at the top of a needle before, you should know how small that is. So tell me, is it even possible for a camel to go through the eye of a needle? It is impossible. Yet Jesus said it's even harder for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God in comparison to that. So how should I put this? It is doubly impossible for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God. If I had a superlative for the word impossible I would use that word. What about greed?

"You can be sure that no immoral, impure, or greedy person will inherit the Kingdom of Christ and of God. For a greedy person is really an idolater who worships the things of this world."

~Ephesians 5:5

I can't put this any clearer than how this verse has already put it. And it also reaffirms what is written in Galatians 5:19 about immorality and impurity. This itself is significant because it shows that the Bible is consistent throughout.

Well, quite a lot have been said already. I would like to remind you guys that all these are merely my interpretations and logic, so they're not absolute and may be subject to inaccuracy. But I have tried my best to stick to the scriptures, and I hope all of you have benefited from this. =)

Review

If you're wondering what took me so long; it was the CNY break! I deserve a break too right? I mean, that's an absolutely reasonable reason. No, I'm sure it's not because I got lazy and had no mood to blog. That just can't be the real reason.

Anyways, here's some feedback that you guys who've viewed my blog have in common:

1. Certain parts of the background(template) is too bright to be able to read the words.
Well, I agree with you all about this. But it takes a lot of trouble to find another template and reconfiguring the whole HTML of the current blog. My suggestion is that you just scroll down to the darker places where you can read them. Or, if even that is such a hassle, highlight the words that can't be seen. You should be able to see them now.

2. Too many words!
I understand your predicament, if this is one anyway. And I understand that you actually read a blog, and can't hear me speaking. But I guess blogging as if I'm speaking to you face to face is my preference. Writing for an article is not really my thing. Maybe I need to get Josh to better myself in that area. =) So all that is required of you is to imagine that I'm actually speaking to you, that you are in fact hearing audible sounds of me talking to you, with complete intonation and diction, even while you're reading my respective posts. Once you're able to do that, you wouldn't think there are too many words; you might even doubt if they're enough! Imagination stimulates those dusty old brains, so start doing that.

The rest are compliments, which I accept gratefully, along with your critiques, which are perhaps more constructive and useful. By all means continue offering feedback and comments; they are very much appreciated.

Too late

There are just countless ways that we as humans can physically or mentally injure another person. Consciously or unconsciously we hurt each other. It's true as well as inevitable. Yet a lot of people have come to realize it's the strike to the mind and one's self-respect that do much more damage than physical ones.

'Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me.' To put it simply, if that was a true or false statement, it would be a downright false one. No matter how mentally strong we may be, we're still vulnerable and susceptible to mere utterances by fellow human beings.

And the worst part is, words cannot be taken back. Absolutely not. Irreversible. So once you've spoken rash words, even if you didn't mean them, they have reached the other person; the damage has been done. Okay, standing from a point where we want to fix the situation. Plan A: Stop the words from entering the other person's ears. Let's see. Covering the person's ears? If you wanted to do so, that would be a voluntary action. Let's take the fastest possible range of movement of a human being. Your reflex(an involuntary form of action), takes an approximate 0.18 seconds to be executed; bear in mind that your reflex would allow only movement of your hands a distance of a few centimeters. In one second, you'd be able to take three large steps at most. On the other hand, the speed of sound is 343 meters per second. I guess your words might have reached the ears of the person you were talking to before you got a chance to even blink.

Plan A is a failure. Let's move on to plan B: Erase the memory of the person who heard the words. Why, that's foolproof! Imagine, with him not remembering what you said, why would he find any fault in you? We can delete a song, a file, a whole document from our computer but unfortunately the same cannot be said of the human brain. We are incapable of erasing our memories at will, let alone selectively doing so to others. The human memory is so complicated that the exact localization of memory areas is a fact hitherto unknown; even scientists can't pinpoint and tell us precisely where memories are located in the brain, although many physiologists agree that they are located at the cerebrum(the large area of the brain covering the surface of the cortex). Still, that is very general. Though we may complain of not being able to remember facts and dates in history, yet we're able to remember what people say to us for life, that depending on the significance of both the person who was speaking to us and the words spoken. And somehow negative comments and criticism have a way of sticking to our memory better than a piece of paper sticking to another by super glue or two plungers pressed against each other or two supermagnets placed together with their opposite poles facing each other. Even more so when the harsh and cruel words spoken are by people close to us.

Therefore we can safely render the effort of erasing one's memory utterly futile. In that case, what is left for us to do? Well, they say 'time heals all wounds', and to a certain extent all of us can identify with that. But of course, the compunction in ourselves, the guilty ones, remains. While we wait for time to do its thing, in the meantime, we can say to the offended party 'sorry'. Alas, that's the only thing we can do; do we have any other options?

Speed

What comes to mind when you see or hear the word 'speed'? Usain Bolt? Michael Schumacher(he's still driving, so he's not outdated)? Ever since our childhood days, we have been introduced to the concept of speed. "Really?" You ask. The story of the race between the rabbit and the tortoise. I don't have to tell you the story. The answer is yes, we were exposed to the concept of speed. And from the story came the saying, 'slow and steady wins the race'. "Really?" Well that's a pretty valid question to ask now. Really? We win the race slowly? And does that only apply in races? Is being slow applicable to life itself?

As technology progressed, so has speed. We had bicycles; now we have cars and airplanes. We had snail mail; now we have e-mail. We had internet dial-up; now we have streamyx. It is natural that as we human beings learn and grow, we invent and innovate for our own comfort and convenience. Yet all actions have consequences. Just as deforestation, supposedly to allow more space for beautiful buildings and cosy homes, have caused global warming and flash floods, so has technology deteriorated the average person's capacity to endure and wait. People just can't WAIT. If otherwise, why do you think people accelerate the moment they see a traffic light turn yellow? I'm pretty sure that in driving school, I learnt that we should slow down and stop when we see a yellow light. Not obeying the traffic light means you will be rewarded with a 10 point demerit. In the case of you still being on probation while committing such a traffic offense, your license would be suspended. So, have people become more brave, daring to disobey the rules? Or become less intelligent, not understanding simple English(or Malay for that matter)? Surely there is a reason that people are willing to risk suspending their license, heavy fines, dignity and even dear lives. And no, people have not become more brave or more dumb. They have become more impatient. You can see for yourself that impatience has such power over people that people no longer consider all the implications mentioned above. Another example would be instant noodles. Yes. A few minutes and you can start eating, without any work or preparation needed. And even during those 3 minutes, people find it hard to wait. So, faster is surely better in this age, right?

We also learn a certain formula in physics. Impulse equals force multiplied by time. Applying simple mathematics, you would find that force equals to impulse divided by time. Assuming both impulse and force are kept constant. There you go; time becomes the biggest factor, being able to determine outcomes. And I guess the logic behind how time manipulates force goes without saying, since all of you are bright people. In cases like these, we instead would desire to lengthen the time, so as to reduce the force exerted. That's what crumple zones in vehicles are for, because really, a few seconds can mean life or death. So here, we want time to be slow. Back to the last question in the previous paragraph. What's your answer?

Enough of human analysis, logic, comprehension and sense.

"My dear brothers and sisters, be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry."

~James 1:19

Fast versus Slow. Fast 1, Slow 2. Slow wins.

Wordplay

Below are a list of pairing of particular words:

1. Giant dwarf
2. Stinking perfume
3. Secret publicity
   
4. Inexorable humanitarian
5. Virgin mother
6. Affluent beggar
7. Smooth wrinkles
8. Dry mud
9. Unrestrained prisoner
10. Hyperactive sluggard

You should have grasped the significance of the above words by now. Now, take a few seconds and come up with just one more pair of words that would be suitable to be inserted into the list above.

And your few seconds is up! Thought of it? No? Come on, you don't have to go squeezing the juice out of your brain to get just one more pair. You could have easily thought of stupid/ugly/lazy/dishonest/dumb Weldon.

(There you go laughing, or at least giggling to yourself. Don't lie, I know you are.)

P.S. Looks familiar to you, huh Windjammer? =)

Statement of opinion

The biggest joke I've ever heard in my life. Concerning the recent movie Legion (2010), that is. The movie started off by flashing Psalm 34:11, "Come, my children, and listen to me, and I will teach you to fear the Lord."

Obviously, whoever who's the director, never did finish reading the bible. Particularly, he did not come across these two verses; if he did, well, I can safely conclude of him being plain dense:

"And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love. Death can't, and life can't. The angels can't, and the demons can't. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can't keep God's love away. Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord."

~Romans 8:38-39

It is infinitely possible for me to further share my opinions on this movie, yet this is all that is necessary.