All Publications by Under The Fig Tree

Do you know just how precious it is to speak in tongues when you pray?

The incidents of receiving the Holy Spirit are clearly recorded in the Bible. When a person receives the Holy Spirit, he/she will speak in tongues. During the apostolic times, it was something they could see and hear. It isn’t based on human feelings, but rather there’s a clear sign the Spirit of God is in a person. It is also the only criteria the apostles used to determine whether a person had received the Holy Spirit. The Bible tells us the words of God are true. From a few thousands years ago to now, the spirit of God has led this work. The Bible also mentions about the Spirit of truth, which tells us that both the truth and Holy Spirit cannot be separated. Therefore the truth we understand about the Holy Spirit today cannot and should not change. I was not a Christian in the past. But when I came to the True Jesus Church, I saw the abidance of the Holy Spirit in church. I observed that when a person received the Holy Spirit, he would speak in tongues. During the time I was seeking the truth, I experienced the moving of the Holy Spirit and later on received the Holy Spirit displayed by the speaking of tongues. I had a lot of doubts at that time. I asked a friend who was also a Christian, “What is the Holy Spirit?” My friend replied, “It’s recorded in the Bible but I’m not sure.” After coming to the True Jesus Church and studying the Bible there, I understood that what I experienced was experienced before by Christians 2000 years ago. They had received the promised Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues. Today, in the Christian world, we see that everyone has their own perspective about the evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit. Since we all believe Jesus Christ is our Saviour, we should believe the only truth given by our Lord. Therefore, we will study from the Bible. In the midst of so many different ideas and perspectives of what the evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit is, what does the Bible say? We will consider 5 propositions of what has been said to be evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit: Acts 19:2 - When Paul came to Ephesus, he met a few disciples and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you first believed?” Their reply to him was, “We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.” Here clearly tells us when one believes in Christ, it doesn’t mean he has received the Holy Spirit. From the many different perspectives, we need to see which is from the Bible. If it is the case that a person receives the Holy Spirit when believing in Christ, why did the disciples reply Paul that they had not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit? This is puzzling. Furthermore, if a person receives the Holy Spirit after believing, Paul wouldn’t have needed to even ask this question either. How was Paul able to determine whether they had received the Holy Spirit? Let’s not talk about Paul, even the disciples themselves did not know if they had received the Holy Spirit. Some people may say that these disciples had only received the baptism of John and not of Jesus. Hence, their understanding of the faith was not complete, and they would therefore not have received the Holy Spirit. But is that true? Acts 8:1-4 - The church in Jerusalem was undergoing persecution. The apostles hence dispersed. v5 says Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them. Note that the gospel here was about Christ. v6 “And the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.” In Acts 8:9-13, a man named Simon who practised sorcery believed as well after seeing this. Philip preached the gospel of Christ (Acts 8:6), and the people in Samaria (Acts 8:12) and Simon the sorcerer believed (Acts 8:13). But they did not receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:14-17 in the Bible records the Holy Spirit had yet to come down on them. Therefore, we can conclude these people, despite having believed in Christ, had yet to receive the Holy Spirit. If we were to go back to Acts 19 and say the reason the disciples didn’t receive the Holy Spirit was because they believed in John and not Jesus Christ, consider how the people in Samaria had believed in Christ but still did not receive the Holy Spirit. Whether it was believing in John or Jesus Christ, the people had yet to receive the Holy Spirit, nor was there the evidence of having received the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:7 - Philip was able to perform signs, wonders and miracles, and also preached Christ. The people in Samaria believed in the gospel of Christ, and were healed. But we have to realise there were two different phenomenons here. Simon the sorcerer astonished the people in Samaira for a long time (v9). But the people of Samaria were more than astonished when they witnessed what Philip had done. One thing we can draw out from this is that one may perform miracles, but the power may not come from God. Even Simon the sorcerer was able to astonish men. But the power of God subdued the power of the evil one. However, we have yet to see the Holy Spirit descending on them. Therefore we can draw a conclusion that there may be signs, wonders and miracles, but that doesn’t imply the presence of the Holy Spirit. The presence of God through miracles, signs and wonders is to help people understand the truth; to help people believe; to guide people to understand the Holy Spirit. Although Philip had preached the truth and performed signs, wonders and miracles, and the people in Samaria had believed as well, the Bible clearly records that the Holy Spirit had not descended upon them. Therefore we can see that although signs, wonders and miracles followed during the apostolic times, the downpouring of the Holy Spirit is according to God’s time. We hence have to understand we have to look at the teachings of the Bible, otherwise we will assume signs, wonders and miracles means having the Holy Spirit. Not every miracle witness comes from God. Sometimes it could be the case like Simon who was able to perform miracles and people assume it’s from God. We hence cannot determine a person has received the Holy Spirit based on miracles, signs and wonders. Acts 8:12-13 - People in Samaria who believed in Christ were baptised as well. But the Holy Spirit had yet to descend on them. Acts 8:14-15 tell us that at that time, when the apostles who were in Jerusalem heard how the people in Samaria had received the word of God, Peter and John were sent to them for the purpose of praying for them to receive the Holy Spirit. It is hence clear that a person who receives baptism does not automatically receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 19:5 - We return to the disciples at Ephesus. After Paul had baptised them, he still had to lay hands on them because the Holy Spirit had yet to descend upon them (Acts 19:5-6). What are the signs of receiving the Holy Spirit? The sign was speaking in tongues (Acts 19:6). Therefore, the Bible clearly points out: Whether it was the believers in Samaria, or the believers in Ephesus; although they had believed in Jesus Christ and had been baptised in the name of Jesus; although there was the accompaniment of signs, wonders and miracles; they still had yet to receive the Holy Spirit. “After believing in Christ, I feel great joy. That means I have received the Holy Spirit. After believing in Jesus, I no longer have depression. This must be the evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit, otherwise why am I so happy?” Acts 8:7-8 - The sick were healed, demons were cast out. There was great joy in the city! According to the sequence of events in this chapter, the people had not received the Holy Spirit at this point in time yet. Why then were they so joyful? Because those who were sick and demon possessed were healed! The words of the Lord are powerful and give hope. Of course having received the gospel of truth causes joy. But this isn’t evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit. Acts 10:2 - A gentile by the name of Cornelius was a devout man who loved God and men. According to the Bible, he feared God, gave alms generously to the people and prayed to God always. But when we read on in the chapter, we realise he had yet to receive the Holy Spirit. Actually, people who don’t believe in Jesus Christ also have great love for others. But we would not draw the conclusion that they have received the Holy Spirit. Of course we hope they will receive the Holy Spirit, but the Bible clearly tells us the evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues. The Bible is very clear about this. We hence cannot use the benchmark of a person having love to determine if he/she has received the Holy Spirit. What is the evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit then? How then do we know what is the evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit? We see that those who believed in Christ didn’t receive the Holy Spirit immediately. Acts 8:17-19 - The believers received the Holy Spirit after the apostles laid hand upon them. The people in Samaria and Ephesus were the same. There was a common phenomenon for both of them: receiving the Holy Spirit is something that can be observed. What can be observed? In Acts 19:6, the disciples could be heard to have spoken with tongues. And in Acts 8, Simon the sorcerer SAW this phenomenon as well and offered money to buy this power from the apostles. Simon clearly heard and saw what happened, this was why he was willing to offer money to buy this power. But he had the wrong concept. We have discussed different propositions of evidence of having received the Holy Spirit: Acts 2:38-39 - Peter told the Jews who were keeping the Passover to repent and be baptised, and they shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Before this we can see the disciples gathered together to pray, and the Holy Spirit descended (Acts 2:1-4). The Bible describes that there was a loud roaring from heaven. They began to speak in a language they didn’t understand. This is the first phenomenon of the disciples receiving the Holy Spirit. It was something people were able to SEE. What’s more important is that this teaching doesn’t come from Peter, but from the commandment of Jesus Christ. After the resurrection of Jesus, before He ascended to heaven, He told the disciples not to leave Jerusalem but to wait for the promised Holy Spirit from the Father (Acts 2:4-8). Peter followed through these commandments of Jesus and stayed there to pray. The Holy Spirit descended on the disciples and during that time, many people SAW this phenomenon. Their understanding/faith was hence based on the teachings and commandments of Jesus. Mark 16:15-17 - Before Jesus ascended to heaven He told the disciples those who repent and believe will be saved. Signs, wonders and miracles would follow. They would have the power to cast demons out in the name of the Lord, and they would speak in tongues as well. Receiving the Holy Spirit is hence a miracle and also a SIGN. When one receives the Holy Spirit, he/she should know. We hence see that John tells us in 1 John 3:24 that “he who keeps His commandments abides in Him, and He in him”. We know He abides in us because He has given us the Holy Spirit. There were people during the time of the Pentecost who didn’t believe but still saw this sign; this proves Jesus kept His promise. What’s important is that one has to ASK for the Holy Spirit. The disciples heeded the command of Jesus and didn’t leave Jerusalem but gathered there and prayed. Acts 1:5 shows that this command was given by Jesus before He ascended to heaven. Actually even before the Lord Jesus was nailed on the cross, He already told this to the disciples in Luke 11:11-13. Jesus used the human relationship between a son and father to display the need to ask for the Holy Spirit. In John 4, the Lord Jesus was talking to a Samaritan woman and discussed living water which actually referred to the Holy Spirit (John 4:10). This is evidenced by how Jesus mentions about living water when He spoke concerning the Holy Spirit in John 7:37-39. John 7:37-39 - The Holy Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified. Before the Lord Jesus was nailed on the cross, He had already told the disciples. In the phenomenon during the Pentecost, the disciples began to speak in tongues. Therefore, the ONLY evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues, and one can SEE and HEAR it. It’s not a feeling. It’s not other reasons either. Believing, being baptised, having joy, having love, signs, miracles and wonder are all not evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit. Speaking in tongues as the only evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit is important because without this evidence, Rom 8:9 tells us that one does not have the spirit of Christ. The consequence of that is not being His. “Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” During the apostolic times, people saw the apostles praying and assumed they were drunk (Acts 2:5-13). But Peter stood up and explained to them this was the gift of receiving the Holy Spirit and the evidence was speaking in tongues. Some people misunderstand the Bible, for example, when quoting 1 Cor 12 and 1 Cor 14: The gift of the Holy Spirit Peter said the people would receive in Acts 2:38 is singular; in Greek it is ‘dorea’. When Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman in John 4:10 about the gift of God, it was singular as well - ‘dorea’. But the word used to describe the gifts in 1 Cor 12 and 1 Cor 14 is different from the word gift in Acts 2:38 and John 4:10. The word gifts in 1 Cor 12 and 1 Cor 14 is plural and in Greek it is ‘charismata’. Firstly, the Holy Spirit Himself is a gift (dorea). Secondly, there are many different gifts (charismata) of the Holy Spirit, where the Holy Spirit is the giver. We have to be very clear when studying 1 Cor 12 and 1 Cor 14 that the gifts mentioned is charismata, which is different from the gift (dorea) mentioned in Acts 2:38 that is promised by the Lord Jesus. We have to be very clear that the Holy Spirit is the gift (dorea) in Acts 2:38, but the Holy Spirit is the giver of spiritual gifts (charismata) in 1 Cor 12 and 1 Cor 14. Let us examine the difference: In 1 Cor 12:10, gifts (charismata) of different kinds of tongues from the Holy Spirit are only given to a FEW people. But the gift (dorea) of the Holy Spirit evidenced by speaking in tongues is given to EVERYONE. The church of Corinth had the gift of speaking sermons in tongues. Only a FEW had this gift. God would also give another person the gift of interpreting tongues (1 Cor 12:10). Speaking a sermon in tongues and praying in tongues are different. The former is OCCASIONAL, while the latter ALWAYS occurs. To prophesy in tongues is to edify the church, but speaking in tongues is to edify oneself. Speaking a sermon in tongues in church must be interpreted so people can understand the message (1 Cor 14:27). But the promised Holy Spirit that enables us to speak in tongues is given to us so we can pray to God. The leaders in the church in Corinth highly esteemed the speaking of sermons in tongues so it became chaotic. Paul exhorted those who received the gift from the Holy Spirit to prophesy in tongues should do so in an orderly manner; it shouldn’t be chaotic. We have to understand Paul isn’t saying these gifts are not important. Neither is he saying some of these gifts are more superior/inferior. Rather, Paul wanted to address the issue of disorderliness. This means: If you speak a sermon in tongues but no one translates it, people would not understand what you’re trying to say and you would not be able to edify others. Wouldn’t it be better to speak a sermon in plain words where people can understand and be edified? (1 Cor 14:1-5) It’s never the instance Paul says these gifts are not important. He doesn’t despise them. But if there was no one to interpret the prophecy by tongues, then they didn’t have to speak the prophecy/revelations by God in tongues. Instead, they should just pray in tongues to God (1 Cor 14:2). Paul doesn’t say to restrict that. Because of 1 Cor 12 and 1 Cor 14, some deduce that from henceforth we don’t need to speak in tongues. However, we referred to verses in the Bible just now and understood the only evidence of receiving the Holy Spirit is speaking in tongues. May God open our hearts that we may be able to understand it.

When we truly love someone, we seek to understand their heart, empathise with them, and feel what they feel.  We who love God are called to know His heart. God’s heart is for humanity, having so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son to save them (John 3:16). But even more so, God’s heart is for His beloved people, the holy ones whom He has chosen and redeemed (Colossians 3:12).  One of the things that constitutes loving our Lord is loving His people, and ensuring they do not stumble. This is one of the key ideas of Romans 14. The chapter encourages us not to judge or look down on our brethren who are weak in faith. In its context, “weak in faith” refers to a person whose conscience would rebuke them if they didn’t abide by certain rules and thought they weren’t making God happy (see 1 Corinthians 8:9-12).  During the time that Paul wrote this, there were believers who abstained from certain foods or observed certain days, thinking that doing so would please God (Romans 14:6). By extension, their consciences were pricked when they did not abide by these standards, as we see from the word “unclean” in this verse: “I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean.” (Romans 14:14) In our society today, this could be believers abstaining from eating meat, choosing not to watch movies to keep themselves sanctified from worldly influences, or even determining to fast on certain days. Some may also believe that they should only consider a future spouse recommended to them by the church’s Marriage Facilitators.  Our instinctive reactions to someone who holds different standards from us may be that of shock or judgment.  “Huh? You mean you make yourself do that?”  While such a response may be natural, Romans 14:1 reminds us to do what is counterintuitive and welcome the weak. This means not to despise this individual (Romans 14:3), and not to cause him or her to stumble over these matters (Romans 14:13).   In fact, from 1 Corinthians 8, we can see that welcoming someone who is weak includes being sensitive to his conscience. For instance, if we are around believers who do not eat meat, we should be considerate, not compelling them to eat meat or make condescending remarks about their beliefs.  God does not wish for us to despise or judge our brethren because it divides the body of Christ. And so, Romans 14:1 teaches us to stay away from quarrelling over opinions. It’s important to note that these are not rules strictly etched in the Bible, unlike the Ten Commandments or the teachings of salvation. Instead, these are people’s individual standards of practicing their faiths. In our opinionated society, it may be challenging to for us to meekly accept the perspectives of another. For some of us, it’s even a default practice to stand up for our opinions and immediately “correct” someone we think is wrong.  However, these believers who may not practise their faith in the same exact manner like ours answer to God, not you and me.  “Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand.” (Romans 14:4)  If we make our brethren grieved by what we eat, we are no longer walking in love (Romans 14:15). And God has called us to love both God and our neighbor too (Mark 12:29-31).  At the end of the day, “the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” (Romans 14:17) There are things that have little relevance to our relationship with God, such as our dietary choices, and then there are spiritual qualities that God delights in—what truly matters. 

At the point that he wrote Romans 10, Paul likely had a lot of people on his mind.  Some studies estimate that Paul was on his third missionary journey when he wrote Romans, addressing Christians who lived in Rome, where he hoped to visit eventually.  Being on one’s third missionary journey naturally means having gone for a first and second. Indeed, he had.  Unlike some of our church’s missionary journeys today that are limited to one country, Paul’s journeys were peppered across the region of Asia Minor. There were hence many different cities he visited, hundreds or possibly even thousands of believers whom he edified. Not only was Paul’s heart sincere towards these Christians whom he met, Paul also took significant actions for them.  Paul wrote of how he affectionately longed for the members in Philippi (Philippians 1:8-9). To the church in Thessalonica he wrote, “So, affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our own lives . For you remember, brethren, our labor and toil…” (1 Thessalonians 2:8-9). Additionally, he explicitly shared that he prays for the churches in Corinth, Philippi, Colossae, Thessalonica (2 Corinthians 13:7; Philippians 1:9; Colossians 1:9; 2 Thessalonians 1:11).  Paul knew that God had called him to be “an apostle to the Gentiles” (Romans 11:13), and he set an exemplary example for us of how to be a good shepherd for Christ.  But this was not all. Still, his heart’s desire was for even more people to know our God. In Romans 10:1, Paul writes: “Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved.” This is fascinating, especially since Paul had tried to preach the gospel to the Jews previously but was redirected to the Gentiles by God’s hand.  He had done above and beyond what many of us may not even consider attempting with regards to preaching the gospel. And yet zeal to see the Jews saved still compelled him.  This makes me think about our congregation’s heart for evangelism. How often do we channel God’s love for humanity into the action of sharing His word? How much do we burn with desire to see souls saved? Or do we feel languid about our own salvation in the first place? For those of us who yearn to preach but feel helpless that others don’t respond well, we can have our faith renewed with Paul’s perspective. He saw the might and personal efforts of the Lord. ‘But Isaiah is very bold and says: But to Israel he says: Whether to Jew or Gentile, God makes Himself known to them. (See also Romans 1:20; Acts 17:26-27).   In God’s salvation plan, He wants to save all mankind (John 3:16).  Paul saw this unity regardless of race and ethnicity that comes through belief in the one true God, Jesus Christ. Moreover, he saw and was motivated by the blessings that would come to one who followed Christ and submitted to the righteousness of God (Romans 10:3). Do our cultural prejudices seep into our evangelical work, such that we only share the gospel with people of certain races, ethnic groups, tribal identities, or nationalities?  Have we forgotten the goodness of God, the hope of His calling, the power of God to salvation in His gospel?   In Christ, there is no distinction between the Chinese, Singaporean, Indian, Burmese, Iraqi, Austrian, Finnish, the Algonquin people, the Māori, Ghanaian… This year, where will your work of evangelism begin?

Our chapter today clarifies a key misconception in the Christian world: how we ought to look at the law. Some Christians go to the extent of describing the law as something Christians ought to avoid, justifying this with what Romans 6:14 instructs: “you are not under law but under grace”.  Given this current outcome of being “under grace”, some even think that God made a mistake instituting His law in the Old Testament in the first place. This misconception is particularly driven by the common phrase “law vs grace”, which pits them against each other.  When we take a closer look at Romans 7, we will see this is not to be so. Knowing that he was writing “to those who knew the law” (Romans 7:1), Paul set out to correct misconceptions about the law. What did Paul write about the law? How should we understand what the law is? 1. The law is not sin. “What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not!” (Romans 7:7a) The law does not fall short of God’s glory (Romans 3:23). It is not something God wishes to distance Himself away from.  2. The law sets the righteous standards of God, so that through it we understand what sin is, and by contrast, what God’s holiness is. ‘ I would not have known sin except through the law . For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, “You shall not covet.”’ (Romans 7:7b) Elsewhere, the Bible states, “ the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.” (Galatians 3:24) The law helps us—and the Jews—to know Jesus Christ and His holiness, that we can believe in Him and follow Him. 3. The law is not evil, wicked, or sinful. In fact, it is holy and good. “Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good.” (Romans 7:12) The law is “what is good” (Romans 7:13). And again, “the law is spiritual” (Romans 7:14). Seeing how many times Paul reiterated this fact, it’s clear that he strongly believed in this. 4. God intended the law to bring life, but our sinful nature causes us to die instead.  “Did that which is good [the law], then, bring death to me? By no means! It was sin, producing death in me through what is good , in order that sin might be shown to be sin, and through the commandment might become sinful beyond measure.” (Romans 7:13 ESV) “For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death.” (Romans 7:5) The problem is sin.  5. Without the law, sin cannot exist. “ For apart from the law sin was dead .” (Romans 7:8b) Without the law, sin cannot exist, because there are no righteous standards for one to fall short of. Yet we cannot destroy the law just because we want to get rid of sin (Matthew 5:17-18). Without absolute standards of righteousness instituted by God, how then will we know if Christ is good, or if someone is evil?  All this might make us feel drab and hopeless, especially if we’re currently fighting against sin that we are struggling to overcome in our lives. But Paul speaks to our struggle, especially through the narrative frame his chapter takes.  The chapter begins with the analogy of marriage. Through her husband’s death, a woman is free from the law of her husband. Likewise, through the death of Jesus Christ, we are free from the law, yet still called to be righteous, for we must “bear fruit to God” (Romans 7:4), At the chapter’s end, Paul personalizes that analogy into his own statement of faith, where he sees his victory over sin: “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:24-25) Truly, our God has a marvelous plan beyond our imagination.  He prepared the law to teach us God’s holiness and lead us to Jesus while executing just judgment on the wicked (1 Timothy 1:9). At the same time, knowing our weaknesses, He sent His own Son, Jesus Christ, to save us from a sinful nature we cannot flee on our own, so that we can still be saved (John 3:16). What can we do next? If you have not done so, repent and have your sins forgiven by (Acts 2:38).  Allow Jesus to work in your heart and circumcise it. This journey of victory over sin is a lifelong one where we keep God’s commandments, love Him with all our hearts and souls, and walk by the power of His grace (Romans 7:6; Romans 2:25-29; Deuteronomy 30:6).

Have you felt ever that you’ve sinned too much for God to love you?  Perhaps your heart feels insecure and ashamed. I’m a Christian, I serve God in church, but why am I still falling to temptation like this? Or perhaps you don’t get what it means, really means, to have a close-knit, loving relationship with a father or a friend. What does it mean that God is my heavenly Father if my earthly father is so harsh and distant? No matter where we’re at, we can cling to God’s love through meditating on God’s actions for us. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom 5:8) God loved you so much that gave His only begotten Son to die for you (John 3:16). He loved you not after you had impressed Him with glowing obedience, but while you were still weak, a powerless sinner falling to the same darkness again. Jesus washed your feet too. He was willing to touch and clean even the dirtiest part of you. Because you’re baptised into His blood, today when you repent, He cleanses even the filthiest sins you cringe to think about (1 John 1:9). Hanging on the cross, He already knew the ways you’d fall. He loved you at your worst. Knowing how you cannot save yourself, He offers you the gift of righteousness (Rom 5:17). Knowing how easily you return to sin, the Holy Spirit makes His home in you, strengthening you in the fight against your sinful nature. Every day, God is on your side.  Knowing how your heart can lie to you, the Holy Spirit pours God’s love right into your heart (Rom 5:5). Not trickles, not drips. Pours .  Our God is rich in mercy. He knows you want to cling to His love. You can pray:  Lord, I want to experience Your love. Lord, I want to know You. Lord, pour out Your love into my heart. Keep me close to You. God loved you then. Today, He loves you still.  Gather with your family or church brethren in Jesus’ name. Together, read John 13, the Bible’s recording of Jesus washing His disciples feet. Pay special attention to John 13:1’s mention of Jesus’ deep love: the context of His actions. Prepare basins of water, towels, and chairs. Take turns to wash each others’ feet, where one person remains seated on the chair. You may wish to play some hymns in the background. Afterwards, reflect on the following questions: For a deeper analysis of this chapter, read our Bible study guide ( and ).

Do not abuse God’s grace: Turn back to God and revive your faith.

The Lord is your witness.