KP#4 Law of Seasons - Growth & Timing

This Law of Seasons is about God providing the growth and setting the timings. Man just need to follow of the laws of nature, the seasons & timings, established by God, to achieve success. The reference is from Mark 4:26-29 and supported by Ecc 3:1-8.

It teaches me about how to be agile - being ready and to act immediately anytime and all the time, without needing to worry. It is God who will give the growth (when we do the right things at the right time) and it is He who set the timings.

Being Agile needs the following 5 steps:

1. Watch the Season - Trends
2. Initiate Action - Plant the Seed
   - Don't wait & analyze forever
   - Success comes from doing
3. Wait - Be Patient
   - Trust God & Give Time for Growth
   - Worry Not
4. Monitor the Stages of Growth
   - Identify the Stages
   - Do the Right Things according the the stages
5. Act when Ripe - Delay Not

The meditations from the verses can be seen in the mind-map below:

More details on Kingdom Principles Discussion 07 Law of Seasons .
Index is on Kingdom Laws & Principles

KP#3 Law of Harvest or Sowing & Reaping

This is also known as Law of Proportional Returns: "the more you give the more you get"

1. You get a multiplied return
2. You get the same type of what you sow
3. It begins with a seed. Must sow the seed.
4. Sow willingly and cheerfully.... exercise of faith
   
5. You sow from what you have, not what you don't have
6. You sow the seed according to your need.
7. To whom do you sow?

• as the Lord directed
• tithes & offering to the Lord
• people in needs
  
• the business that produce the profits like the farmer keeping the seeds for next harvest. Don't eat your seeds,
  

See the mind-map for details.

See also Wisdom of Proverbs - Cause and Effect

KP#2 The Golden Law for Success

We discussed this rule before in BJ#1 The Golden Rule for Business Success . It is the foundation and applicable to life in general. All other laws and principles stand on this. God must come 1st in our life. We must obey His commands. We are created by God to work as He created us for. Here are some additional thoughts:

 

See also: 

Bible and Chinese Classics 9 on Money & Righteousness 

Kingdom Principles Discussion 03 The Golden Rule for Business Success

(Updated 3 April 2012)

In a message given by Andy Stanley, "A Chinese social scientist who studied the west (Europe & America) to find out what caused it’s success and pre-eminence in the world said they thought it was because of better weapons, or better government, or better economics, but over the 20 years they researched it they discovered the heart of that culture was Christianity. Christian subcultures in China are far better off (morally & economically) than the rest of China." (From http://nickblevins.com/blog/2011/04/27/orange-conference-session-1-andy-stanley-orange11/)

KP#0 Kingdom Laws & Principles

This is a table of content of God's Kingdom Laws and Principles.

For a quick summary, please read 10 Kingdom Principles for Business Success.

When there is a clear cause and effect relationship, I call it the a law. e.g. Law of Sowing and Reaping - you reap at a multiples of what you sold. When the effect is general, I called it a principle. e.g. Principle of Accountability - we must be accountable for the work we do to God who will be our judge.

Jesus' Parables reveal much about the working of the Kingdom of God and will be the main basis for the discovery of the Kingdom's Laws and Principles. The details are:

Working of the Kingdom Principles

For a discussion on this topic, see Kingdom Principles Discussion 01.

We are encouraged to understand the above laws and principles to put them to work. Please read KP#1 Kingdom Principles - Work Them.

Laws & Principles

1. Universal Laws
1. The Golden Rule for Business Mat 6:33
2. Law of Parallel Universes
3. Law of Execution - Walk the Talk
4. Law of Harvests- Sowing and Reaping
5. Law of Seasons - Growth & Timing
6. Law of Reciprocation
7. Law of Greatness -Servant Leadership
8. Law of Perseverance
9. Law of Amplification
10. Law of Humility
2. Attitudes & Mindset
   
3. Realities of Life
   
1. Good and Bad co-exist
2. Fit
   
3. Same Input but Different Outcomes
4. Purpose of Significance
1. Singleness of Purpose - Mission
2. Significance-Giving to Life & Harmony
5. Customers
1. Golden Rule for Service
2. Platinum Rule of Service
3. Go for Non-Consumers
6. Planning & Strategies
1. Plan to Succeed
2. Focus & Priority
3. Watch and Ride the Trend
4. Seize the Opportunity
5. Create the Trend
   
6. Going Back is a Good Option
   
7. Resources
1. Principle of Potential & The Power of Kingdom Influence
2. Principle of Stewardship - Optimization of One's Gifts & Resources
3. Less is More
4. Recycle - No waste - Lean Methodology
8. Leadership & Management
1. Principle of Accountability
2. Principle of Excellence - Zero Defect
3. Principle of HR Development
4. Principle of Continuity
5. Principle of Unity and Harmony
9. Learning from Others: 
1. Entrepreneur Leadership - Kingdom Principles in Business

From Old Testament:

1. Performance Management According to the Ten Commandments
2. Principles & Insights from the Ten Commandments

True Love For Successful Marriage

What is true love?  Love is (1)the other, (2) proactively, (3) unconditionally,
(4) at your inconvenience and (5) all the time.

A couple who invited me to solemnize for their marriage asked me to preach on 1 John 4:9-20 on their wedding day. It is quite different from the standard Eph 5 passage about husband and wife that we usually hear at weddings or from 1 Cor 13 on the meaning of love.

On meditating on the verses, using different versions, I have the following to share about True Love. The New Living Translation uses the term "Real Love". If you are short on time, then read 1 John 4:9-13.

True Love

True Love is benefiting others unconditionally at one own expense all the time.

1. True Love takes the initiative … love 1^st … do 1^st… apologize 1^st…
2. Unconditionally. It enables Covenantal Relationship – 100% relationship vs 50%-50%, not you do your part than I do my part.
3. At our expense, sacrifice, NOT at our convenience. Going out of the way to do something nice for the other. Love will inconvenience you. Love costs you but the love is more valuable than the costs.
4. In Action not in Speech alone. … God sent His Son, to take away….
5. True Love comes from God.

How to have True Love

1. Know that you have God's love in you. v13 God has given us His Spirit & v8 God is love.
2. Know and Taste the Love of God 1^st so that we can love others.
   v10a "since" God loved us that much so we ought to love each other
3. We love each other because He loved us first. 1Jn 4:19

Love increases with Loving

v12 If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and His love is perfected in us. Other versions use make complete, becomes complete, find full expression... His love in us is fulfilled only when we love others - extending God's love to others. In another sense, as we love, we experience the effect of God's love and gain better understanding and passion of His love.

Perfect love cast out fear v18

The greatest stress for many people is Fear - Fear of loss of love, health, wealth, friendship, and worth.
The only way to cast out such fear is the unconditional and therefore unchanging True Love. You're loved not because of your performance but because of the Love of your Lover for you. In contrast, the world only knows conditional love - the Counterfeit Love.

Counterfeit Love
It is love with Conditions – I love you because … you are pretty, rich, nice to me, capable, make others admire me etc. This love is self-centered and not other-centered. If it is conditional, then it is temporary. When you are not what I love you for; when you fail to live to my standards (which is changing with time), I don’t love you anymore!

Conclusions
Have True-Love from spending time with God.

 Love (1)the other,
         (2) proactively,
         (3) unconditionally,
         (4) at your inconvenience and
         (5) all the time. 

Practice it. Be the Right One for the other (this is not an option but a command).

When one of you asked the other 5 years from now, “Do you love me as much as at our wedding ?”, the answer should be - "No! ..... But much more." True Love increases with Time through loving…. May both of you truly love one another with the True-Love of God and build up an increasing loving and binding relationship with each other.

See also The 5C's of Marriage

Preparing for Christ 2nd Coming

In my post onThe Meaning & Power of Holy Communion we cover 4 points about Holy Communion - 1 Unity in Christ, 2 Healing, 3 New Covenant Life and 4 Getting Ready to Receive Christ.

I want to cover a few points on getting ready. My daughter recommends a very good speaker to me. He is Don Carson. Please follow the link to Don Carson's messages for more of his good exposition on the Bible, Revelations, and other topics. He provided a balanced and yet very in depth view of things. Here are 4 main points of the preparation that I learned. This explained how we can be occupied till He comes.

1. Expect Jesus to come back anytime and be ready, all the time, to receive him. Mat 24:43 & 1 Th 5:2 He comes like a thief in the night and Luk 12:40 when we think not!
   
• I am not talking about confessing sins all the time. Our sins, past, present and future are forgiven by Christ's death on the cross 2K years ago. I am talking about maintaining an intimate and dynamic relationship with Jesus all the time. Know His thought, His feeling and His will for us. Enjoy conversation with Him. Get comfort, assurance, and strength from Him. If he so tells us certain wrongs and bad habits that we need to correct, then face the reality; acknowledge them; ask for grace and wisdom to overcome them.
  
2. Prepare for a Long Haul as if His return would be delayed.
   
• There is not a contradiction with point one - expecting His sudden return. If we are faithful, we go about our work diligently whether our bosses or Master watch us or not. We make plans and behave he would not come immediately. Mat 25:13 no one know the day or the hour of His 2nd coming.
  
• The moral of the 10 virgin parable is about getting ready if the Groom delays His arrival. It is not the parable to support Partial Rapture Theory or other interesting but distorted interpretations. It is just simply we must be prepared for the long-haul and not just think short-term.
  
3. Be Accountable
• The parable of the Talents, immediately after the Virgins parable, are about preparation for His coming ( the long time in coming). When He comes, we have to give accounts. There is the bema seat of Judgement for rewards. 2Co 5:10, 1 Co 3:12
  
4. Increase the Assets of the Master.
• The objective that of our life on earth, as His purchased slave/friend is to optimize and increase His asset base. We are to apply the talents given to us and to return more to Him. But be not worry, it is Him who give us the ability to do the things He has called us to do. We just need to be connected to Him and follow Him.
  
• Col 2:10 we are complete in Him.
  
• 2 Ti 1:12 for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day.
  
• Php 2:12-13 12 ...work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
  13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
  

See also

1. Preparing for Christ 2nd Coming - Part 2  
2. Bible Study 2 Peter 3 Living in End-Times

Spiritual Truths and the Elephant

If we believe that the universe is created by God and the creation is reflective of the nature of God, then we can say the natural world is filled with spiritual truths. Some famous preacher used stronger words that the nature is impregnated with Spiritual Truths.

• Heb 11:3 and Rom 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made

It is therefore not at all surprising that all religions and philosophies of the world, including Science, could have some spiritual truths in them. The only error, howbeit a very major one, is that each religion or philosophy think that its discovered truth is the ONLY Truth and nothing but THE Truth.

This is like the blind men trying to paint the elephant each coming to his own conclusion of 'truth' wall(body), spear(tusk), tree(leg), snake(tail), fan(ear).

What has that got to do with us Christian ?

Firstly, we see that there are nuggets of truth in all religions and philosophies. We cannot just condemn them as wrong. We need to connect the discovered truth and lead them forward to discover the ultimate truth - Jesus Christ.

Seemingly conflicts can only be resolved at the higher level of truth. We can understand this better with the famous illustrations of the Flatland. The conflicts that Flatland people see are easily resolved by us in the Spaceland world.

Appreciate and discover the truth of other religions and philosophies and bring them to the higher truth of Jesus Christ. Spend time on the connection first. Confusianism teach people how to live the good life based on love and moderation. Jesus Christ gives us the new life to live as we should. Lao Tze, Tao De Jing, discovered the Way of the universe. Jesus Christ tells us that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life. The universe is not passive but active with love of God. Buddhism understand the danger of evil desires. Jesus Christ nailed the evil desires unto the cross and gives us the right desires. There are tremendous similarities in the teachings about living a right kind of lives on earth. Let all of us be empowered by Christ( in You) to lead this good life on earth.