Teacher Devotions: Li Ying Mark 13 v 9

Mark 13:9 “You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them.”

We really lead a comfortable Christianity over here in the West. We complain about school textbooks, cold sanctuaries, and long sermons. We come and go to church as we please, and we pick and choose what we want to believe in and where we want to go. Everything is handed to us on a plate. No wonder then that the rest of the world calls our faith “Canteen Christianity.” We just stand in line at worship and wholly expect to be fed and nourished, with either a lifestyle latte or sweet dessert of a sermon to finish things off.

Meanwhile people like Li Ying, a pastor’s daughter from China, have been languishing in prison since April 2001. Her crime? Writing and distributing a monthly church newsletter. She has six more years of hard labor to complete, before her unjust sentence from the monstrous Chinese Communist regime is over. Talk about a real Christian! We really have no idea what Christianity is all about.

Instead of ourselves, let’s pray for Li Ying. Compared to what she is going through right now, we’re living like royalty.

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, forgive us for being whiners and complainers instead of winners and champions for our faith. We remember Li Ying this day and ask that You protect throughout her time of unjust imprisonment. We pray that You will sustain her spirit and her family. We ask that she will remain faithful to You despite her sufferings and that when she is finally released, she may be welcomed and embraced by Your Church in China and throughout the world. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

If you would like to read more information on Li Ying and other Christian prisoners in China, please visit this link online: Li Ying

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Teacher Devotions: Room for Hypocrites

Psalm 26:4 I do not sit with deceitful men, nor do I consort with hypocrites;

Over the years, I’ve heard some people say, “I don’t go to church. It’s full of hypocrites.” My usual answer to that is: “Don’t worry. There’s always room for one more.”

There’s also no such thing as a perfect church on Earth because congregations are made up of imperfect people. We go to church because we know that. We seek the Perfect One in our lives. We know that only Christ is sinless and unhypocritical. We understand that we fail each day to live up to the demands our faith. We don’t go to church because we are spiritually holy; we go to church because we find the Holy Spirit there.

I’m amazed sometimes at people who publicly talk about God in their lives, but who never seem to get around to going to church on Sunday. I don’t get it, nor do I understand it. If God is so important to them, then why isn’t church on their timetable? Do they honestly believe that church is an option to their faith?

If they take time to read their Bibles, they would discover that church-going and being a Christian go hand in hand. From the earliest times of our faith, Christians would gather together on the first day of the week (Sunday) to worship, sing hymns, hear the Gospel, and share communion. They did it in defiance of the authorities, and in the knowledge that they could be arrested, persecuted, and even executed for such a simple gathering of faithful people. In the 17^th century, the Scottish Covenanters experienced the same thing, and in today’s China, Sunday Church groups meet together knowing that the police could break up their services at any time.

The church is full of hypocrites, but at least it’s full of people who prioritize their collective worship of God, especially on a Sunday morning. As for those other hypocrites who always talk about God but never get around to actually worshiping Christ on Sundays, we’ll leave the door open. After all, there’s room at worship for them, too.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, each week on the Sabbath Day, You were to be found in a local synagogue. Even though You are the closest being to God, You never treated worship lightly. Even Your first followers, who began worshiping on Sundays to recognize Your Resurrection, never stopped going to church, even though they were hunted down and persecuted, tortured and executed for defying the authorities. Help us hypocrites to find room at church on Sunday mornings. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.