Failures. God loves.

John 13:37 - 38
Peter asked, "Lord, why can't I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you." Then Jesus answered, "Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!"

Peter made a promise he couldn't keep. There was no doubting his love & devotion towards his master - he was sincere, but weak. And we are all no strangers to Peter's story here, aren't we? We, too, have made promises to God & have failed miserably at keeping them. In fact, I could make a list here & I'm certain that you could identify with at least 2 of them.

Maybe it was at youth camp, or at your church's watchnight service, where you made a decision to finish reading the bible next year; or did you make a determination to give 15 minutes of your day for quiet time / devotion, reading at least 1 chapter a day & to pray? We were sincere & truly desired to live our lives pleasing to Him, but then life happened & those promises were either forgotten or given up on. Sincere, but weak...

I want us to be reminded that in spite of our failures & weaknesses, Jesus still loves us.


1. He reminds us -
You'll be bumped out if you've made a powerful declaration of love only to be declared that you'll fail, just like what transpired between Peter & Jesus. But I want you to put yourselves in Jesus' shoes (or rather, as my youth member correctly points out, sandals). He was going to the cross, with the knowledge that one of his disciples will betray Him, another one will deny Him 3 times, & only one will be present as Jesus hangs upon the cross. It must have hurt like hell.

Yet in that moment, Jesus still cared for Peter. Basically He says this: "Peter, I know you're sincere. But let me tell you beforehand - you'll fail. It's alright. When the rooster crows, know that I am reminding you that you have failed & need to repent & turn back to Me." The gospel of Luke recorded Jesus saying more:

Luke 22:32
"But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”

You can probably think of an example in your workplace, or maybe in church. Somebody always fails to do as he / she says, or keeps repeating the same mistake over & over again. Are you gonna trust that person again? Will you even bother saying anything at all? In spite of Peter's failures & in spite of Jesus' pain, He still entrusted Peter with great things.

2. He doesn't withold His blessings from us -
John 14 picks up right after Jesus predicts Peter's denial. Check it out:

John 14:1 - 3
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am."

There are so many beautiful things about this scripture. He comforts Peter & the disciples. He urges them not to rely on their own strength, but upon Himself. He promises them a place in the Father's house. In the Last Supper itself, we can find many valid reasons for Jesus to just forget about Peter & all the disciples. Yet He still loves them. He loved them till the very end (John 13:1).

Many says that John's gospel can be split into 2 halves, with the 2nd half beginning from John 13. That view makes sense to me, as John 13 begins with a declaration of Jesus' love towards His disciples - & that truth was beautifully expressed by the beach where Peter's restoration took place (chapter 21). Peter was fishing, something that Jesus called him OUT OF. So, basically, he had backslide. Yet Jesus was there, reaching out with hands of forgiveness - forgiveness that would empower Peter to later do great things.


I suppose what I'm trying to say is that we will constantly fail in our attempts to do what God desires of us. Even if we manage, it's hardly ever 100%. Besides, everything good that we do, is because of God's grace, God's empowerment, God's guidance, God's provision anyways. Bottom line - it's not about us. It's not about us getting things right - it's about a journey of knowing a God who loves us unfailingly & unceasingly.

Our failures / sins should not be reason for us to fall into guilt & condemnation. Rather, our failures should serve as reminders of how much He loves us. Draw near to Him.


He loves us, oh how He loves us...

Reflecting on John 10

I did not expect preaching on this chapter could be so important for my soul. I took 2 youth services to complete John chapter 10, & on both those Saturday nights, I found myself crying myself to sleep as I reflect upon the words of Jesus. It was as if I was part of the audience, as if I was preaching to myself - only that the words sunk in hours after the service.

On a personal level, 2 things really got hold of me. Firstly, is how much Jesus values my life. In verse 3 & 4, Jesus said that He, the Good Shepherd, calls us by name & goes before us. Verse 29 & 30 paints a picture of us as a gift so precious that both The Father & The Son are united towards the efforts of ensuring that this gift is never snatched out of their hands. These verses tell me that my life, my very existence is extremely precious to Him; that we are not random accidents or the result of the Big Bang, but clearly created, chosen & called unto His purposes.

Secondly, are the many provisions He has given unto us. Verse 17 & 18 basically tells us that Jesus had the right, the authority, & the freedom to whatever He wanted to do - yet being in perfect oneness with the Father, He chose to die for our salvation & freedom. He wanted us to enjoy the abundant life so badly, that He willingly laid down His own. And through the perfect sacrifice by the perfect One, we receive our son ship, & all good things as our inheritance. He empowers us with all these things, because He wants us to unleash the potential He has placed in us - & thus fulfilling the purposes He has set for our lives.

Having these truths, how can we not view our lives differently? Trials, difficulties, circumstances of past & present - in all of it, He's there. No wonder Paul could boldly write Romans 8: 30 - 39.

³⁰ Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

³¹ What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³² He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? ³³ Who shall bring a charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. ³⁴ Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ³⁶ As it is written:


“ For Your sake we are killed all day long;
We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.”

³⁷ Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, ³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Power Of The Spoken Word

Growing up in church & having my parents as pastors of the church, I did not realise the impact of the words delivered from the pulpit can have upon the spiritual well being of the church & its members. My parents were diligent in preparing their sermons, but I never understood what the fuss was about. I could preach too. I've been preaching & teaching since I was 15 years old (1o years!! Already?). I understood how we must communicate effectively & make sure it's not boring, so that the audience doesn't waste their time listening to you. I tried to be as diligent as my parents - do more research, meditate, be way more humourous, & make sure the people under my care learnt something that day.

My little collection of books... (most are from my dad)

Nowadays I still preach, & all these virtues have stuck. But ever since my father's sabbathical and subsequent resignation, I began to understand the measure of urgency that comes with being a preacher. For me it's like this - You don't know how white, white is, until you see how black, black can be. & that's all I'll say for now, lest I offend the little people. But suffice to say, I now know how good my parents actually were, & how much more I need to up my game.

Since last year, I began to teach from the book of John. Why the Gospel of John? Well, for one, I like it that I can create jokes from it. Another big reason is that my dad has this HUGE commentary of the Gospel of John. But most of all, it's the red letters - the spoken words of Jesus Himself. On a personally level, I discovered so much about this faith that I possess. & I believe my youth members are more mature in the faith as a result.

With that said, I will be posting my sermons on this blog of mine, in hope that as I share my findings, people will find out about this awesome person we know as Jesus. & I invite you all to be part of this amazing journey of discover Him.