Manna (Issue 62: Miracles of Jesus)

8/6/2019 Manna (Issue 62: Miracles of Jesus)

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MANNAISSUE 62| JulySeptember 2010 | The Miracles o Jesus

Unworthy of Gods Grace From Seeing to BelievingImportant Steps in Building My Marriage


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TESTIMONY

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MANNAJuly - September 2010ISSUE 62 Vol 34 No. 3

The Miracles o Jesus

EDITOR IN CHIEFSan-pao Li

MANAGING EDITOREsther Yang

ASSOCIATE EDITORSHain-Lee Hsueh (US)Lois Kuo (US)Shuhong Lin (US)Joanne Lee (Canada)

Vincent Yeung (UK)

GRAPHIC DESIGNERLisa Leong

REVIEW BOARDMichael Chan (UK)Fritz Chen (Canada)G.H. Chen (US)Joseph Chen (US)James Chiang (Taiwan)Chung Ling Chin (Singapore)Simon Chin (Singapore)

Thien-Kiew Chin (UK)Fook-Fah Chong (UK)Shawn Chou (US)Simon Hsu (UK)Steve Hwang (US)

Thomas Kam (Malaysia)HH Ko (Germany)Stephen Ku (US)John Lin (US)Daniel Pang (US)

Tse-Loong Shee (Singapore)Eng Guan Tay (Singapore)KC Tsai (Canada)James Wu (US)

Yuh-Ming Yang (France)Jonah Yapp (Malaysia)W.C. Yeh (US)

Manna (ISSN1528-8617) is published quarterly by the True Jesus Church, IA Department of LiteraryMinistry, 21217 Bloom eld Avenue, Lakewood, CA 90715 USA.Copyright 2010 True Jesus Church. All rights reserved.

U.S. Postmaster: send change-of-address forms to 21217 Bloom eld Avenue, Lakewood, CA 90715 USA.

For your FREE SUBSCRIPTION, contact Manna at the address above or subscribe online athttp://www.tjc.org.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the New King James Version.Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

The goal of Manna is to inspirebelievers to live an active faith throughmutual encouragement and the study of biblical truths.Dear Reader,

Growth is an essential part o li e. Livingthings mature and grow, rom seeds to fow-ers, rom eggs to butterfies, rom in ants toadults. These physical trans ormations areeasily noticed. Spiritual growth, however, isnot as easily seen or measured.

There are milestone moments in our spiritualli e, such as the day we receive the Holy Spir-it. Our personal cultivation habits eed andstrengthen our spirit. Yet what o ten pushesus through to new levels o maturity are thetrials and di culties that we encounter.

The daily issues that we ace can be the cata-lyst or spiritual growth as well as unexpectedemergencies or experiences. The testimoniesand column articles show us examples o members who have emerged victorious romtheir trials to gain a new appreciation orGods love and power and a new understand-ing o their aith.

May the articles in this issue encourage us tostrengthen our aith so that we can continueto grow in spirit and overcome tribulationthrough Gods mercy.

THE EDITOR


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TABLE OFCONTENTS

God Revealed His Churchto MeA brothers journey to believingin the true church.by Lawrence Chin

Unworthy of Gods GraceA preacher recounts his illnessand recovery.by HH Ko

TESTIMONY

From Seeing to BelievingLearning fron the sign Jesus didbefore Thomas.by Stephen Ku

Praying for HealingHow can such prayers be heard?by Vincent Yeung

Cleansing the Ten LepersHow this miracle teaches usabout thankfulness.by Jason Hsu

Becoming Ones Own Boss: AChristians JourneyThis path comes with both chal-

lenges and blessings.by Shawn Chou

Putting God First in CollegeHow God guided a sisters rstyear.by Judith Yu

How to Maintain YouthFellowships Q & A Facts, Stats, and Syntax

DEPARTMENTS

Call for Articles

TJC Information

2 6 8

19 23 27

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Great Is Gods FaithfulnessOvercoming trials, tribulation,and heart surgery.by Daniel Chu

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COLUMNS

THEME SECTION

4130Love & Marriage Workforce On Campus Family Focus

Important Steps in BuildingMy MarriageUnderstanding the commitment,

roles, and work involved in aGod-centered marriage.by Patricia Chen

Homeland BoundRedirect-ing Lifes Path Post Middle-Age

An empty nest should not resultin an empty life.by Sarah Lin

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Great Is Gods Faith ulnessDaniel ChuPacifca, Cali ornia, USA

I thank God that I can share His greatmercy and blessings. Life is sometimesdif cult, and we may face dire situations.But Gods word tells us that Hes alwaysby our side, helping us walk this path.

In mid 2007, when I was living in Taipei,I had a chest exam to inspect some u-like symptoms I had been experiencing.During the exam the doctor asked me,Hasnt anyone told you that you have acongenital heart defect? I was surprised

because I had never been told that I hada heart problem. I had only recently feltsome discomfort in my chest.

After several tests, the doctorscon rmed that I had a condition calledpartial anomalous pulmonary venousreturn. Normally, the pulmonary veinbrings oxygen-rich blood from the lungsto the heart, and this blood vessel isconnected to the left side of the heart.However, in my case, the pulmonary vein

was connected to the right side of myheart.

So for forty years, my heart had beenrelying only on the right side to pumpblood. The doctor was very surprised thatI had lived so long with this condition.Congenital pulmonary venous defectsare usually detected and treated duringinfancy.

I was basically functioning with half ofa heart, and, as a result, my blood oxygen

level was quite low. The doctor told methat people with such low levels of oxygenare typically unable to walk or sing andsuffer from frequent fainting. But I hadnever experienced any of these problems.

The doctor was amazed and said thatit was a miracle that I had lived so longwithout suffering any of these symptoms.However, now that my condition hadbeen discovered, it was necessary to havesurgery to connect the pulmonary vein tothe left side of my heart.

FACING DOUBTSGods Compassions Do Not FailAfter ying to San Francisco for further exams and follow-up, my wife and Idecided to have the open heart surgery atthe University of California, San Francisco.My surgery was scheduled for March 3,2008, a Monday. The operation wouldinvolve cutting my heart in half so that mypulmonary vein could be rerouted fromthe right side to the left. The shortest

distance was through the middle, whichwas also the fastest and safest method.

As with other open heart surgeries, theoperation would involve stopping theblood ow to the heart and lungs andsending it through a heart-lung machine,as well as stopping my heart from beating.The surgeon told me that my surgerycarried a much higher risk than other heart surgeries and that it was possible Iwould not survive the operation.


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I took time off from work after thesurgery was scheduled, and I started to

wonder why I even needed to go throughsurgery. God had protected me for fortyyears alreadywhy wouldnt He continueto protect me?

Everyone, Christian or not, wants toreceive healing and recover from illness.We want peace and a trouble-free life,but dif culties are part of life. I had a lotof questions and doubts as the day ofsurgery approached.

On Saturday, March 1, I saw the sermontitle Great Is Your Faithfulness when Istepped into the chapel. God moved meto understand that this was the answer toall my questions. During the sermon, thespeaker cited Lamentations 3:22:

Through the LORDs mercies we are not consumed,Because His compassions fail not.They are new every morning;Great is Your faithfulness.The LORD is my portion, says my soul,Therefore I hope in Him!

When I read this verse, I felt peace inmy heart. And my prayer that Sabbathmorning was very strong and full ofpower. My worries disappeared as I was

lled with the Holy Spirit.My heart was still satis ed and joyful

when I got home after Sabbath service.However, as I was showering thatevening, I suddenly felt a strong coldwind blowing. My body was covered ingoose bumps. It was strange because thebathroom didnt have windows and the

door was closed. When this wind blewupon me, my mindset changed.

This thought entered my mind:Why dont you give up? This God isnot worthy of your belief. You keep Hiscommandments and worship Him in Hischurch, but He still hasnt protected you.Just give up.

As I heard these words, I started tothink, Yes, this is true. Im quite pitiful.At this moment, another voice told me,God is faithful. His compassion will not

leave us. We must hold tightly onto Godand He will never fail us. Then I thought,

Yes, this is correct.Within three seconds, I had heardthree voices: The rst told me to give upon God, the second told me that God isfaithful and that I should trust in Him,and the third was my own voice. So Idecided to trust in God, and the cold winddisappeared.

The next afternoon at four oclock,I felt moved by the Holy Spirit to kneeldown and pray. This wasnt a time thatI normally prayed, but I knelt down andprayed because of this compulsion. I was

lled with the Holy Spirit. I later found outthat there was a group of brothers andsisters in Vancouver who were praying for me at the same time.

Although we didnt know it at thetime, the Holy Spirit compelled us to prayto prepare for the forthcoming spiritualbattle.

Entrusting My Life to GodThat evening, around seven, I gatheredmy family to pray for strength before myoperation early the next morning.

During that prayer, I again felt a coldwind surround me. As it swirled aroundme, I heard the thought, This God is notworthy of your belief. You should just giveup. How did you get to this point? Its adif cult and pitiful path. Just give up.

I wanted to live, to receive healing andbe healthy. I knew that God wanted meto give my burdens to Him. Yet, I hadsuch a hard time letting go because I hadso many thoughts of What if? And God

and Satan both knew I needed more faith.I was still worried about the risks of the

surgery and how my situation was even

TESTIMONY

more complicated than typical open heartsurgery. But because of my experience the

previous evening, I knew that I needed toentrust my life to God when I started todoubt again. I prayed loudly to God withthe help of the Holy Spirit.

I told God, I entrust my life to You.No matter what I will face, I know thatwhat You do is right. The moment Itruly entrusted my life to God was when Ilearned the hardest lesson of my life.

When I faced a life-and-death situationand handed my life to God, He sentangels to comfort me. During the prayer,I saw hundreds of angels surround me,and I knew that God was pleased with myprayer. These angels protected me fromthe cold windit was still there, but I wasshielded from it by the angels that werearound me.

I realized afterward that Satan wantedme to feel doubt and fear. I believe thatwhen we concentrate on our dif cultiesand allow them to take over our thoughts,we lose sight of what we should befocusing onentrusting our problems toGod. To be victorious, we must remember Gods faithfulness and banish fear anddoubt by relying on Him.

PEACE AMIDST DANGEROn March 3, I was wheeled into theoperating room at 6:00 am. By the timeI was aware of my surroundings, it was2:30 am on March 5.

When I woke up, my rst thought was,Where did all the people go? I didntknow the day or time and was not awarethat I had just woken up from a very vivid

dream.While I was unconscious, I saw a

beautiful green pasture, where thousands

I believe that when we concentrate on our di fculties and allow them to tover our thoughts, we lose sight o what we should be ocusing onentruour problems to God. To be victorious, we must remember Gods aith ulnesbanish ear and doubt by relying on Him.


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of brothers and sisters were praying. Therewere so many of them it was impossible

to count. It was a beautiful scene.I moved close to one member andasked what they were praying for. Hetold me, We are praying because we areabout to ght a spiritual battle. We arewaiting for Gods time. I asked, May I

join this prayer?I found a space to kneel down and

pray with them. When I started praying, Irealized that they were all praying for me.I had no concept of time while I was inthis dream, but it took place while I wasunconscious for almost two days.

While I was enjoying my time prayingwith other brothers and sisters and being

lled by the Holy Spirit, I was unaware ofthe two critical moments I had enduredphysically.

Gods Mercy During surgery, everything had goneaccording to plan. After completing thererouting of my pulmonary vein, I wastaken off of the heart-lung machine andmy heart started beating again.

However, my heart was not beatingregularly. The top half and bottom half ofmy heart were beating at different rates.Because the left side of my heart had beeninactive for forty years, it was very smalland weak. And because the blood vesselson the right side had been working extrahard for forty years, they were enlargedand pumping too much blood. So myheart was not able to beat correctly.

The surgeons backup plan, in case theplanned surgery did not work, was to

put a device in my heart to regulate theheartbeat, but I would have to rely onthe device and medications for the rest ofmy life. At that moment, when he had todecide what to do, he had an inspiration.

They stopped the blood ow, putme back on the heart-lung machine,and stopped my heart again so thatthe surgeon could correct the irregular heartbeat. Instead of putting in a device,he enlarged the left side of my heart andmade the blood vessels on the right side

smaller. Then, they started the bloodowing again, and my heart started

beating regularly.The surgery lasted twice as long as

expected because of this complication,but it was a success. The surgeon told melater that he didnt know how he came upwith the idea to enlarge the left side of myheart and narrow the blood vessels on theright side. It was a spur-of-the-momentdecision.

Everything truly is in Gods hands.During a critical moment, while I wasunconscious, without prayers for thisspeci c situation or my familys awareness,He inspired the surgeon according to His

will.The surgery was completed at 1:30pm, and I was sent to the intensive careunit (ICU) to recover. At 5:00 pm, mywife was about to leave the ICU and takeher dinner break when several doctorssuddenly ran to my bed. She heard theheart monitor beeping and was told thatmy blood pressure had suddenly droppedvery low, which was of grave concernafter heart surgery.

While they worked to stabilize me,my wife sent out a prayer request tothe church because the doctors saidmy situation was dangerous. They didnot know why my blood pressure haddropped and could only monitor me andwait for me to recover.

Thank God, after one hour everythingwas back to normal and I was ne.

Peace from GodTwo days later, when I became conscious,I realized how God gives us peace when

I God opens our eyes, we wouldsee that He is always there fght-ing or us in spirit. We may besu ering physically, but God isleading us through battle in theinvisible spiritual realm.

we are completely helpless and unaware.While I was unconscious, unable to think

or feel, I was going through a dangeroustime physically. Yet spiritually, Godallowed me to enjoy prayer together with others. It transcends what we canunderstand.

God gives us strength even whenwe have no understanding, feeling,or memory. The people around us areawarethey see that the situation isdangerous and they worry and are afraid.But for me, the one who was goingthrough these critical moments, I wasactually unaware. I was going througha battle of life and death, but God gaveme peace in spirit. This is a very importantunderstanding of faith.

The evening of March 5, the rst nightI was conscious after the surgery, I feltthat I was unable to go on. Despite thepainkillers, I still felt a lot of pain fromthe incisions each time I took a breath. Iknew that I was breathing, but I felt noair coming in. It felt like I was suffocating.

At that time, Lamentations 3:22 and thehymn Great Is Thy Faithfulness cameinto my mind. Immediately, I felt muchcalmer, even though I still had troublebreathing. I remembered the lyrics ofthe hymn and how they described Godsfaithfulness. When I heard the melodyand recalled Gods mercy and love, I feltgreat peace.

After this, I started to recover quickly.On March 7, the doctor removed thechest tubes, which had been placed toremove excess blood after the surgery,and I went home the next day.

FAITH AND TRUST IN GODWhen I got home, I realized that normalactivities were quite dif cult. Simplethings such as smiling, turning on the tap,drinking water, and talking on the phonewere all so hard to do. I experienced howan illness can make us appreciate howgreat a blessing it is for us to be able toperform everyday activities.


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That rst night back at home, I wasreclining on the couch because I was still

too weak to lie down on a bed. Suddenly,I saw three dark gures appear beforeme. In the past when I heard testimoniesabout members seeing evil spirits, I alwaysthought that trying to scare people thisway was a very old-fashioned tactic.

When I saw the spirits, I understoodwhat they were. Miraculously, I was notafraid at all.

The three gures gave me the samemessage that I had heard before thesurgery: Just give up. Whats the pointof struggling? Dont you see how dif cultit is for you? If you give up, we will takeyou away. Youll be happy, okay?

At this point, I was so weak from thechest pain that I couldnt speak. So Ithought in my heart, Dont touch me,I have God. Although I hadnt spokenout loud, they understood my thoughtand told me, Then cry out loud. But youcant even speak and youre calling out toyour God?

As they said this, one grabbed my neck,one pushed my back, and the other pulledmy legs. They said, Lets go. Just giveup. I summoned all my strength left andsaid, God, please save me. The threespirits disappeared.

After this appearance they never bothered me again. Their messagewas clear: They wanted me to give up.Whether through a thought, fear duringprayer, or by appearing before my eyes,their message was for me to give up.

When we go through dif cult times,we sometimes do just want to give up.

But God wants us to trust in Him withall our heart and soul. Hard times are aprocess, not the conclusion. We will passthrough and overcome.

It is dif cult to battle constantly beforewe reach the end. But we must show Godhow much faith and trust we have in Him.He has already determined the result,when He will be with us forever. What Hewants is for us to prove our faith duringthese dif culties.

I experienced God very deeplythroughout this period, but, even more,

I understood that I had to share withbrothers and sisters that God is real. TheHoly Spirit is always strengthening us,especially in matters of life or death, andit happens not only when we pray byourselves but also through the intercessionof others.

Most of us probably dont spendmuch time interceding unless we knowthe person very well. But even briefintercessions are very effective. When Isaw the vision of thousands of memberspraying for me, I believe that it was arepresentation of all the people who hadinterceded for me.

Every prayer, no matter how short,truly comes before God. If God opensour eyes, we would see that He is alwaysthere ghting for us in spirit. We may besuffering physically, but God is leadingus through battle in the invisible spiritualrealm.

I hope that, when we share Godsbeautiful blessings, we all remember whatGod wants us to learn in our faith. Godtruly strengthens us step by step. We maynot see Him with our eyes, but He testsour faith by what we can see and feel.

God is faithful. Through trials andtribulations, God always wants us to learnand to be rooted more deeply in faith. Becourageous and trust in Him, for He isalways with us.


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had to pray to Jesus and tell Him that Ibelieved in Him and ask for Him to forgivemy sins. Saying these words meant thatI had accepted Christ and the Holy Spiritwould then dwell in me.

However, after receiving baptism,I didnt feel the presence of the HolySpirit within me. I didnt speak in other tongues as the early believers did whenthey received the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4).The churches I worshipped in also did notexperience many signs and miracles, asthe early church had (Acts 5:12, 16).

But since I accepted Christ in the BaptistChurch, I did not think to look for adifferent church that prayed in tonguesand performed signs and miracles. After completing my studies and returning toMalaysia in 1982, I continued to worshipin the Baptist Church.

RESISTING MY WIFES CHURCHIn 1986, I married a member of the TrueJesus Church, and she tried to bring me to

ACCEPTING CHRISTIANITY I grew up in a household with parents whobelieved in traditional ancestor worship,although they did not impose thesebeliefs on me. They sent me to Christianmissionary schools as a child, and it wasthrough this channel that I was exposedto Christian doctrines from a young age.

In high school, I even chose Bible studyas my religious study subject. WhenI attended college, I joined Christianyouth mission activities and acceptedChristianity.

I went on to pursue higher educationin England, and it was there that I wasbaptized into the Baptist Church in 1980.I was quite active in youth fellowships andchurch activities.

I believed in the Lords salvation for mankind as it was spelled out in the Bible;however, at times I still doubted my ownsalvation. Before I received baptism, I wastaught that, to accept Christ, I simply

her church. However, I tried to convinceher that my church doctrines were inaccordance with the teachings of theBible and that her church was wrong.

My wife prayed and tried very hardto share the gospel with me, but I wasadamant in my resistance. I had beentaught at my church to believe thatthe True Jesus Church doctrine was adeviation from the truth. I did not wantto give in to my wife because I felt that Iwas correct.

However, because the nearest TrueJesus Church congregation was two hoursaway, I usually drove my wife to churchand attended service with her despitemy reservations about the doctrinesand beliefs. Over time, I observedmany positive qualities of the church. Inoticed that the believers were ferventin their prayers, many signs and miraclesoccurred, and the church grew in size.

God Revealed His Church to MeLawrence ChinSabah, Malaysia


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Yet these observations were not enoughto change my view. I still insisted that my

church was the right one and that the TrueJesus Church was wrong. I continued toworship at the Baptist Church whenever Ihad the opportunity.

THE TRUE CHURCH OF GODIn August 1992, I had a very bad boutof the u. I was concerned that I mightpass this on to my wife and our youngdaughter so I decided to sleep in another bedroom. That night, I had a vivid dream.

In the dream, I saw two churches.On the left side, I saw my church andrecognized many church members whowere standing in front of the entrance.On the right side, I saw a chapel withthe name True Jesus Church on it anda large group of its members standing infront of it. I didnt recognize anyone there.

The two churches were separated by aroad. It looked straight and extended allthe way back until it disappeared into thehorizon. Above the churches, the sky wasbright and a cloudless blue.

The members of both churches wereengaged in a debate over which churchwas the true church. They were shoutingacross the road to emphasize their points.This went on for quite some time andseemed very real to me.

All of a sudden, a loud voice fromabove said, The True Jesus Church is thetrue church of God. At that moment,I realized that I had been wrong in myopinions and judgments on which churchwas the true church. Even though I wasstill asleep, I had a strong compulsion to

submit to God, ask for forgiveness, andworship Him.

When I opened my eyes, I saw brightrays of light shining on me from one

corner of the ceiling before they quicklydisappeared.

CONFIRMED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT I was wide awake. I felt compelled to kneeldown and pray, so I did. To my surprise, Iwas praying in tongues. After the prayer, Inoticed the time was 1:34 am.

Even though I initially believed thatthe voice I heard was God, I started tohave doubts. Over the next few months,I frequently pondered what the dreammeant and why I had it. I wasnt sure thatthe dream was from God and wonderedwhy He would reveal things to me in thisway.

I continued to pray and attendedservice a few times at True Jesus Church,but there was no progress in overcomingmy doubts or in speaking in tongues.Therefore, I kept the dream to myself anddidnt tell my wife about it.

In December 1992, I brought my familyto Australia for a holiday. On the lastleg of our trip we stayed with my wifesrelatives, who were members of the TrueJesus Church. We went to church withthem on the Sabbath, and I decided thatI would ask God to reveal to me whether the dream was really from Him.

During the rst prayer session, I askedGod to give me the Holy Spirit to provethat the revelation I received was true. Tomy surprise, I was able to pray in tonguesagain. I felt a warm stream owing frommy shoulder to my legs and there wasinexpressible joy inside me.

My heart was overwhelmed with joyand gratitude to our Lord Jesus that He

would reveal Himself to me in such ameaningful way. I had received the HolySpirit and believed with my whole heart

that the True Jesus Church was indeedGods true church.

Receiving the Holy Spirit ascon rmation of my dream dispelled allof my lingering doubts and allowed meto fully believe in the doctrines of thechurch. I was baptized three months later.

I am very grateful to the Lord for speaking to me and bringing me to Hisfold in such a wonderful way. He knewmy hard and stubborn nature and helpedme come to my senses and realize whichchurch was His. Otherwise, I would still bea lost sheep wondering in the wilderness,unable to recognize the voice of the goodshepherd, our Lord Jesus.

May all glory be given unto our LordGod almighty, Jesus Christ.

All o a sudden, a loud voice rom above said, The True Jesus Church is thetrue church o God. At that moment, I realized that I had been wrong in myopinions and judgments on which church was the true church.


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Unworthy o Gods GraceHH KoHeidelburg, Germany

ILLNESS AND TRIALSI attended the 2009 World DelegateConference (WDC) in Malaysia. I wasscheduled to be there for ten days,from March 24 to April 2, taking part inmeetings and the conference, but I dontrecall anything that happened duringthat time. Afterward, people told me thatmy behavior during the conference wasstrange: I had trouble walking, spent a lotof time resting, and did not greet others.

I woke up on April 1 in the hospital,with two holes drilled in my head. Thatswhen I realized that I had been operatedon. I didnt recall giving authorizationfor surgery, but the members who hadrushed me to the hospital told me that Ihad signed all the paperwork.

They told me that they had taken meto the hospital for a full examinationbecause of my odd behavior. When thehospital took a brain scan, they realizedthat one- fth of my skull had lled withblood, displacing my brain so that it was

pushed over to one side. This hospital wasnot equipped for brain surgery, so theyhad to send me to Malacca Hospital anhour away.

My situation was critical and it waspossible that I would pass away en routeto Malacca Hospital. Church membersnoti ed my siblings in Taiwan of mycondition, and they rushed to Malaysiathat day. My sister told me that they hadbeen prepared to take my body home.

Im very thankful for all the brothersand sisters who prayed for me during thistime, especially the WDC attendees whostayed up late to pray for me. The twoholes in my skull were drilled so that theblood in my brain could be drained. I hadto stay in the hospital until I recoveredfrom the surgery, but I didnt know thefull extent of my condition because thedoctor was too busy to talk to me.

On the fourth night of myhospitalization, I started to re ect on myillness. Pastors often encourage us to

re ect on anything that may have causeddif culties and problems in our life, andwe were taught in theological school tobe careful of greed, pride, and lust. So Ithought about whether or not I had donesomething wrong.

But after examining and re ecting, Istill could not gure out a reason for myillness, so I just accepted the fact that I gotsick. All of a sudden I heard loud noisesthat seemed to be coming from the nextroom.

Normally, I am not that disturbed byloud sounds. For example, if someonenear me snores very loudly, I just tryto breathe along with him instead ofbecoming angry, and Im soon asleep. ButI wanted to nd out where the sound wascoming from because the noise made menauseous.

From my reaction to the noise, I knewthat it was a spiritual disturbance, possiblyfrom Satan. I had witnessed the work ofSatan and cast him out before, but I had


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never personally experienced disturbanceby him.

I wanted to go look around and seeif there was anything causing the noise,in case it was mice or something else. Ineeded to make sure that it was the workof Satan.

It was around 8 pm, and I had anintravenous (IV) line and a urine bag, so Ihad to bring them all with me as I walkedslowly to the next room. It took me thirtyminutes to get there, and, when I openedthe door, I saw that it was an emptyshower room. I didnt know what was inthat room because I hadnt been allowedout of bed after the operation.

I turned each tap closed, very tightly,even though none of them wereleaking. After I got back to my room, Icould still hear loud noises and still feltnauseous. I knew that it was a demonthat was disturbing me. I decided that itwasnt worthy to be cast out by Jesusname because His name is precious andshouldnt be carelessly used. So I said,Cowardly demon, Im ignoring you.And the noise went away.

The next day, at around 8 pm, I felta presence, a power in the room, butI wasnt afraid. I said, What do youwant? And I felt it run quickly to my feet.

Suddenly this demon was tugging onmy blankets, trying to pull them off ofme. I held onto the blankets tightly sothat they wouldnt get pulled away. Iwasnt about to let this demon take awaythe four blankets that I had especiallyrequested from the nurses, so I cast himout in the name of Jesus. And he left.

After this second visit from the demon,I knew that it was my turn to go throughtrials and personally experience the workof Satan, but I wasnt afraid.

GODS GRACE AND PROTECTIONI was discharged from the hospital onFriday, April 10, nine days after mysurgery. The next day was Sabbath,and the local church asked me to give asermon. I went up to the pulpit and toldeveryone not to worry about me while I

testi ed about my experiences over thepast few days.

My head was still wrapped in bandageswhen I went up to speak because thetwo holes drilled in my head had notyet completely healed. The deacon whoinvited me to speak was afraid that Iwould faint, so he sat in the rst pew incase anything happened.

A brother who had ear surgery a year earlier was worried for me when I went upto speak and started to get a headache.He later testi ed that he saw a visionwhile I spoke. He saw ve angels, as tall asthe chapel, surrounding the pulpit whereI was standing. Two angels stood in thefront of the pulpit, one on each side, eachholding a large book. Two angels stood inthe back, one on each side, each holdinga staff. And one angel stood behind me,in the middle, holding a sword.

After he saw this vision, his headachedisappeared and he wasnt worriedanymore because the angels werewatching after me. Nothing happenedto me that day or the next day when Ispoke during a special seminar. I believed,as everyone else did, that I was ne andthere would be no more problems.

The two weeks I spent in Malaysiaafter my operation were truly because ofGods grace. I could not y back home toGermany after I was discharged becausethe left hemisphere of my brain neededtime to recover its normal shape. Theblood that had built up in that part ofmy brain had pushed my brain out ofplace, and I was left with an empty spacewhere the blood had been. There would

be pressure problems if I went on a planewith a partially empty skull.

My wife came to take care of me,and we stayed at the unoccupied houseof a church sister after I was dischargedfrom the hospital. Thank God, my wifeand I were able to experience a secondhoneymoon while I recovered.

We rarely had time for longconversations, but for two weeks wehad a lot of time to talk, and we talkedabout everythingabout our youth, the

present, even our future and how to takecare of our affairs once we passed away.

We would sit and talk for many hours ata time, and I still think about this timefondly.

After two weeks, the doctors allowedme to y home. I left Malaysia believingthat my illness was behind me and that Ihad made a full recovery.

UNEXPECTED RECURRENCE ANDDOWNTURNI went for a checkup at HeidelbergUniversity Hospital on May 15, onemonth after I returned to Germany. After a computed tomography (CT) scan, thedoctor told me that I couldnt go homebecause my brain was again lled withblood and they had to operate that day.

Two more holes were drilled in myhead to drain the blood. Unlike my rsthospitalization, I remembered everythingclearly: I dressed myself before goingin for surgery, I shook hands with theanesthesiologist and the surgeon, and Iwas able to remember everything after Iwoke up.

The surgery went well, and my recoverywent smoothly as well. On May 18, thethird day after surgery, the doctor told methat I would be discharged the next day.That night, around 8 pm, I was gettingready to sleep when I suddenly felt a forcebehind me.

This was the third time I felt thispresence, but it didnt say or do anythingother than watch me. I felt it staring atmy back. I ignored it, but it wouldntleave, and the feeling of being watched

for a long time started to annoy me. I gotangry and cast it out in the name of Jesus.

I was lying down in bed and saw itrun away through the corner. It was the

rst time I had seen a demon, but I canstill picture it very clearly. It had a smallpointed head and a tail like a broom, andI was surprised at the color because itwasnt dark like its usually depicted, butmore of an olive green color.


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TESTIMONY

Manna 10

After it left, I slept very well that night.When I woke up the next morning, I

thought that everything was well and thatI would be going home that day.The doctor came in at 11 am to remove

the drainage tubes in my head. The doctor told me to prepare for pain, and I steadiedmyself for pain of a level of ten, but it wasat a level of eight. He nished removingthe tubes at 11:30 am and left.

After the doctor left the room, Isuddenly felt great pain in my head. Itwas many times more painful than thelevel of ten that I had prepared for earlier.It felt like someone was squeezing mybrain in his hand. I had never felt pain ofthis scale.

I turned in bed to try to get rid ofthe pain, and then I felt my brain beingsqueezed two more times. Then I lostconsciousness.

When the nurse brought my lunchat noon she found me lying in bedunresponsive. They took another CT scanof my brain and found that there was amixture of brain matter, blood, and other brain uid in my skull, which the doctor later described to me as a blood cake. Iwas taken in for surgery.

The doctors were unable to gureout what had happened because I wascleared for discharge that day, but thenI suddenly lost consciousness and had ablood cake in my brain. The surgeonhad to cut part of my scalp and lift it offlike a ap, then cut through my skull andtake off part of the skull to look at mybrain.

When I woke up after this operation, I

had some dif culty moving the right sideof my body and could not speak clearly.Even though I went through physicaltherapy over the next couple of days,my condition didnt improve and actuallydeteriorated until I was completelyparalyzed on my right side and unable tospeak intelligibly.

The doctors decided to operate on meone more time to see if they could ndout what was wrong.

UNABLE TO SPEAKBefore my second major brain surgery, the

doctor told me that, if I was lucky, I wouldbe able to speak my native languageafter the operation. He explained thatthe mother tongue is deeply ingrainedin the brain, and subsequent languagesare copied into the brain. The languageslearned later would be lost, but I wouldstill be able to speak my mother tongueafter surgery if I was lucky.

My second surgery took place on May22. When I woke up afterward I wascompletely paralyzed on my right side.

My wife, eldest son, and daughter cameto see me in the intensive care unit (ICU)after the surgery. I decided to see if I waslucky, like the doctor said, and I tried tospeak.

My mother tongue is Taiwanese, andonly my wife and eldest son understoodit. But when I spoke to them, theycouldnt understand me. I wasnt lucky. Iwas like most people, unable to speak anylanguage.

I remembered at that momentthat a church member once said thatdetermination is very important after a stroke or brain injury. So I was verydetermined to speak and kept trying,but no one could understand. So mywife suggested that I try to write what Iwanted to say since I was trying so hardto speak. She gave me a piece of paper and a pen, and I told myself that this wasthe time to rely on my determination.

I tried very hard to write, using my lefthand since my right hand was paralyzed.When I looked at my wife after I nishedwriting, I saw that there were tears in her eyes. I knew that something was wrong.Yet my wife told me, You wrote verywell.

The part of my brain that controlledspeech and language was damaged, so Icouldnt speak or write, and my right sidewas completely paralyzed. But I could stillunderstand what people said to me.

I was very happy despite not beingable to speak or move the right side of

my body. I was happy because I wouldntbe able to carry out my responsibilities as

a preacher anymore, and, therefore, thechance that I would lose my salvation wasgreatly diminished.

Dont get me wrong; I have alwayswanted to be a preachereven as earlyas junior high. And receiving the HolySpirit at that young age strengthened myhope of serving God in this capacity.

After I became a preacher, however,I started to worry that I would not beable to complete my work as a preacher.I heard stories of elders and preachersencountering many trials and temptations,and I learned that some were not able tocontinue being ministers. I worried that Iwould lose my salvation in the course ofmy work as a preacher because of trials or temptations.

Even so, I enjoyed being a preacher and thanked God for allowing my life togo so smoothly. But now, I believed thatI had completed the work that had beenentrusted to me as a preacher, and I felt agreat freedom in this.

The masterpiece I produced a ter the May22 surgery.


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TESTIMONY

Manna 11

During my familys visit, I continued topray in the spirit, which concerned the

nurse. My wife reassured her that I was just praying.Since I was in the ICU, my family

couldnt stay long. My wife later told methat when they prayed with me beforethey left, I was able to say hallelujah,but, no matter how much they tried toteach me and help me, I could not properlysay amen. After thirty minutes, theywent home.

TALKING TO THE HEAVENLY FATHERAfter my family left at 6 pm, I prayedin tongues and spoke to my heavenlyFather in the spirit. Even though I couldntspeak, I could still say hallelujah and mytongue was unchanged when I prayed inthe spirit.

I had never been so happy before in mylifeI felt free, like I had been released,and also because I could now pray andspeak to the heavenly Father.

I talked to the heavenly Father from 6pm to 9 pm. I didnt see God or hear anactual voice, but I experienced everythingin the spirit. I spoke to Him in tongues,and it felt like He was right next to me. Iwas so happy that I shed many tears whileI was praying.

As I continued to pray and speak toGod, I suddenly felt very small, like I hadbecome a child. I said, Abba, Father, canI sing a song for you? He said, Yes.I told Him, Abba, I cant speak, but Ican say hallelujah, so I will sing hymnnumber 3 [Hallelujah, Praise the True

God]. I cant say the other words, but atleast I can say hallelujah.

So I sang this hymn to God and spoketo Him at the same time. I sang and shedtears because I was so moved by theexperience, it was so beautiful. I did notask God to heal me because I forgot atthe time that I was partially paralyzed andcould not speak. Furthermore, I felt thatI was actually doing pretty well and washappy that I had completed my duty as apreacher.

I continued to pray and sing from 9pm to 12 am. Then I told God, Abba,

I keep singing the same hymn, one thatI learned as a child. Do you feel bored?And He said, Well, why dont you singanother one, then? I thought of all thesongs that I could remember learning inchurch and started singing all of them,whether in Mandarin, Taiwanese, English,or German. I sang until 3 am.

At 3 am the nurse came into my roomagain, and since I needed to ask her for something, I thought, Ive been singingfor a long time, maybe I can speak now.So I tried to talk to her. She was shocked.I could tell from her expression that shewas more surprised than I was that I couldspeak.

The nurse had been in and out of myroom the entire night, during which I hadbeen praying in tongues, singing, andcrying. She knew that I had been unableto speak for several days already. Andthen suddenly, I was able to speak to her and she could understand me.

From that moment on, I was completelyhealed and was back to my normal self,

just as I am now. When I realized that Ihad recovered, I was mischievous andsaid, Abba, can I really speak now?How about I try memorizing Revelation1:1? I taught Greek at the theologicalseminary in Taiwan, so I tried reciting theverse in Greek. I could do it. And then Itried memorizing Genesis 1:1 in Hebrew,and I was able to do it as well. Then, I fellasleep.

BACK AT HOMEI stayed in the hospital for over a weekafter the surgery. During this time, I didnot undergo any type of therapy becauseI was completely healedI could walk,talk, and write. Due to an infection Iacquired at the hospital, I was isolated inmy own room and all visitors had to wear gowns, masks, and gloves. My wife andI got to spend a lot of time together andexperience another honeymoon becauseof this.

My wi e and I in the hospital a ter I was healed.


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On Friday, May 29, a week after mylast surgery, I had another CT scan on my

brain. I was discharged two days later, onSunday, May 31. Strangely, the doctor didnt come by to see me or speak to me.He had taken a lot of time to explain mycondition after my initial surgery on May15. However, on Sunday the nurse justtold me that I could go home, so I left.

The rst thing I did at home was to callmy family in Taiwan and let them knowthat I was back home and completelyhealed. When I spoke to my mother andmy brother, I could tell that somethingwas wrong. They told me that my father had gone missing.

I prayed for my father and felt a lot ofpain because he had been in good healthand we didnt know what happened tohim. Three days later, they found myfather; he had been called back to theLord. He was eighty years old. ThankGod, my mother received a lot of comfortduring this time through miracles andGods guidance.

My fathers memorial service wasscheduled to be held two weeks later. Itold my wife that we had to take time offand go back to Taiwan. My wife didntoppose me and just said, Yes, we shouldall go back. But why dont we ask thedoctor rst?

When the doctor spoke to us on thephone, he was quite stern. He said, Iunderstand how you feel. My father alsopassed away recently. But dont forget, ifyou get on the plane, you wont be ableto get off. You may not be afraid to die,

but dont affect the other passengers. Ifyou die during the ight, it causes trouble

because the plane will have to make anemergency landing or y for several hourswith a dead body. No one will be able tosave you on the plane.

After hearing this, I came to a realizationand decided not to go. I sent my wife andmy oldest son to attend the memorialservice in Taiwan and represent me andmy children.

COMPLETELY HEALEDOn July 6, a few days after my wife andson returned from Taiwan, I went for my

rst checkup after my discharge fromthe hospital. They took a CT scan of mybrain, and it showed no abnormalities or damage. The doctor told me that I wascompletely healed.

He gave me copies of all of the scanstaken during my hospitalization, and,after seeing them, I understood whyhe hadnt come to see me when I wasdischarged on May 31. The scans takenon May 29 showed that my brain was stilldamaged, that the blood cake was stillthere. Yet, I appeared to be completelyhealedI could talk, and my right sidewas no longer paralyzed. I was dischargedfrom the hospital without a visit from thedoctor because he wasnt able to explainwhat happened.

My wife had collected and organizeda list of questions to ask the doctor atthis checkup. There were three major categories of questions: 1) How did thisillness occur? 2) How did you treat theillness? 3) How can we prevent this from

happening again? There were many other questions under each category.

As we went through the list ofquestions, the doctor didnt really listen.Afterward, he told us three things:

1. Accept the illness as a fact. I toldhim that I enjoyed my illness because itgave me the opportunity to be close tomy wife and my Creator. On earth, thereis nothing better than this, so I was verythankful that I became ill.

2. We dont know the cause of your illness. The doctor told me that he saw

many patients every year with similar casesof brain hemorrhage, typically caused bytraumatic head injuries in car crashes.When he saw me initially in May, he hadassumed that I had also sustained suchan injury. However, I had recovered andwas cleared to go home on May 19 when25% of my brain was suddenly damaged,so it wasnt possible that I had sustained atraumatic head injury. The doctors did notknow what had happened.

3. We didnt do anything to cureyou. He said, Your head gave us manyheadaches. Within seven days you hadthree operations. We removed part ofyour skull and looked at the brain inthe last two operations. This was a lastresort because there was nothing wecould do. Your brain was still damagedwhen you were discharged, so we didnothing to cure you. From April to May,your condition deteriorated, but it wassuddenly and mysteriously cured. Wedidnt do anything.

The doctor hadnt addressed our questions about prevention, and my wifewas unwilling to leave without getting hisadvice. So she asked him what we shoulddo to prevent this from happening again.

He became angry, stood up behind hisdesk, and said, Mrs. Ko, I already toldyou. We admit that we dont know howthe illness came about. Furthermore, weadmit that we didnt do anything to healyour husband. How would I know whatyou should do to prevent it?

I whispered to my wife, Lets go

home, hes angry now, we dont needto ask him anymore. I thought thatif I were the doctor, I would have said,You should get plenty of rest and drinkplenty of water. Dont lift anything heavybut take some walks. Eat nutritious food,nothing salty or oily. But the doctor wasvery frank in his response.

The doctor asked if I needed to takemedical leave, so my wife asked when Icould start working again. He said I could

Ever since 3 am on May 23,2009, a ter I prayed and sanghymns all night to the heavenly Fa-ther, I have been completely cured.When I was sick, I thought that Ihad completed my responsibilities,but a ter I was healed I restartedmy work.

TESTIMONY


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go back to work in four weeks, on August9. My wife was surprised that it was so

soon, thinking that I would need to takesix months to recover. The doctor said,Hes only ying to Taiwan, thats noproblem; he could even y to the Northor South Pole.

August 9 was the rst day of the newsemester of the theological school inTaiwan. My wife and brother didnt thinkI was ready to go back to work, but, sincethe doctor said I was ne, I went back toTaiwan in August. I resumed my full-timeduties, and Ive been working ever since.

I really thank God for all that hashappened. But now I need the intercessionof brothers and sisters even more. Why?Because the rough period has passed. Inless developed areas, Satan will use lesssophisticated methods to disturb andtempt people, such as demon possession.

In the western world, Satan works on usfrom the inside, not the outside. He uses

civilized methods and illnesses to controlour thoughts and actions. Therefore, weneed to pray even more and be watchful.The rough period has passed, but therewill be more trials to come.

Ever since 3 am on May 23, 2009, after I prayed and sang hymns all night to theheavenly Father, I have been completelycured. When I was sick, I thought that Ihad completed my responsibilities, but,after I was healed, I restarted my work.I thank God for His grace, but I needcontinual prayer in my life of worship andservice to God.

I thank God, and I thank all of you for your intercession and concern.

CT scan taken May 19. The blood cake is visible on the right. CT scan taken July 6. No damage.

TESTIMONY


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How to Maintain Youth Fellowships

Fellowship is an important element of ones spiritual growthand maturity. Just as the newly baptized members in Actsoften gathered to study the word of the Lord, pray in the Spirit,and bear witness to the love of Jesus Christ, a youth fellowshipprovides opportunities for members to gather in His nameand mutually edify and encourage one another in faith,strengthening each other in the Spirit and the Word.

For as we have many members in one body, but all the

members do not have the same function, so we, being many,are one body in Christ, and individually members of oneanother. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them. (Rom 12:4-6)

The youth play a critical role in the holy work of the church.Along with fostering spiritual growth, a youth fellowshiphelps to retain the youth membership and encouragesparticipation in serving the local church.

The youth fellowships foundation is the power of the HolySpirit and of Gods word, so its members should be rooted ina life of prayer and Bible study. In this way, a youth fellowshipcan edify and nurture its members as they strive toward

completing a successful journey of faith.

OBJECTIVES OF A YOUTH FELLOWSHIP1. Provide spiritual edi cation for youth fellowship members.2. Foster spiritual growth.3. Testify to the love and joy found in Jesus Christ.

To help ful ll these objectives, it is important for youthfellowships to implement events and programs in differentareas. Below is an outline of the different areas a fellowshipshould cover, as well as suggested events.

BIBLE STUDYBible study is the most effective way to understand theScriptures because group study and discussion can bringmutual understandingmembers of the fellowship canencourage one another and equip one another to serve the Lord.

In determining the Bible study curriculum for the fellowship,the main considerations are the fellowships objectives.

For example:If a youth fellowship seeks to improve its evangelicaloutreach, it can study the Acts of the Apostles.

If a given fellowship has a small percentage participatingin holy work, topics about serving the Lord may be useful inencouraging more participation.

If there are members undergoing trials, character studiesmay encourage all the members of the fellowship.

In addition to Bible study, special topics or workshops mayprovide youth fellowship members with other perspectives onhow the word can be applied to ones life. Ministers, churchcouncil members, or other experienced church members canshare their insights on speci c issues that youth fellowshipmembers face in their spiritual, family, work, or school life.

Possible special topics:spiritual issues: developing a steadfast faith, overcomingtrials and tribulations, nding ones calling

school/career issues: choosing a major, graduate school, or job

church issues: balancing service to God with school/career/family responsibilities, outreach to visitors and inactivemembers

family issues: dealing with non-believing parents, quarrellingparents, dif cult siblings, baptized parents who do not cometo church

life issues: dealing with serious i llness, interpersonalrelationships, dating/marriage, stress and time management

Periodic workshop sessions equip the members with the tools,skills, and direction to participate in serving the Lord. Possibleworkshop sessions include personal evangelism, survey of localchurch ministries, and holy work training.

FELLOWSHIPIn addition to Bible study, fellowship meetings provide a goodavenue for spiritual cultivation. Examples of these meetings areas follows:

Hymnal/Praise SessionsHymn singing is a time to meditate upon Gods love, grace,and mercy through hymns or praise songs. Fellowship leaderscan choose hymns focusing on a particular theme or topic andshare their re ections between hymns. Asking other members


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time/location (or, if more convenient, at their own respectivelocations).

Prayer requests provide a focus for a prayer session. Suchsharing further promotes mutual caring between thefellowship members.

EVANGELISMThe youth fellowship group should emphasize evangelicaloutreach as one of its primary objectives and work with thechurch to carry out this precious and important task. Jesusentrusted all believers with the task to preach the gospel to theend of the earth, and this commission should be reinforced inthe fellowship.

Here are some methods of evangelism to consider:

Personal evangelism. The most effective form of evangelismis for members to share their faith directly with people theyencounter.

Flyer distribution. Flyers can be distributed in residentialor public areas, such as shopping centers and publictransportation areas.

Community service/outreach. Community service is a uniqueopportunity for fellowship members to work as a team and,at the same time, introduce the church to the people theymeet. Some examples include participating in communityclean-ups, soup kitchens, homeless ministry, and nursinghome visits.

Evangelical service. Members can invite friends to attendan informal or formal evangelical service organized by thefellowship. Regardless of format, its focus should be onbiblical truth and life application.

ADMINISTRATIONThroughout the book of Acts, it is evident that the apostlesconstantly met to pray, sing hymns, and encourage oneanother. It is integral for a youth fellowship to meet regularly.The coordinators of the fellowship and the church council canwork together to establish a consistent time and frequency for youth fellowship meetings. The locale of the fellowship can vary.

Determine which locale is more conducive to carrying out thegoals and objectives of the fellowship.

It is also important to maintain open lines of communicationwith the church council. In doing so, the council can support thefellowship members, who are usually between ages 18 to 40, aswell as provide additional direction or insight. Continue to workwith the church council to train members to serve the Lord.

A website or blog can be created to provide the most up-to-dateinformation such as the fellowship schedule; member contactinformation; edifying testimonies, sharing, or devotionals;fellowship photographs; and links to the local church website.

Manna 15

How to Maintain Youth Fellowships

of the fellowship to share their favorite hymns or praise songs isalso an effective way to foster spiritual growth in the group.

Personal SharingTime should be set aside during each fellowship meeting togive members the opportunity to share recent events in theirlives and to make prayer requests. Personal sharing may alsoinclude testimonies of grace or blessings received from God.

DiscussionDiscussion provides an excellent opportunity for fellowshipmembers to share their views and experiences on a particulartopic so that they will apply these concepts to their own lives.

An effective method for holding these sessions is to have thefacilitator prepare questions beforehand and initiate discussionby sharing devotionals, personal testimonies, or re ections.

Mutual CaringAs the members of the fellowship are one body in Christ, it iscritical that members continually care for one anothers needs.An individual members problem is also the problem of thefellowship.

Spiritual accountability allows each member in the fellowshipto feel the love that compels them to care for and pray for eachother. The following are some ways to demonstrate mutualcaring:

Forming care groups in which two to three active membersfocus their care on particular lost sheep or friends.

Visiting all members. Visitation does not need to be limitedto inactive members or friends; coordinators can arrange forlocal ministers and church council members to visit all youthfellowship members.

Having meals with members.

Plan functions that help strengthen the bonds amongmembers. Some activities that promote teamwork, friendship,and Christian bonding are camping, team sports, cooking, andgames.

A youth fellowship should bear in mind that the activities andfunctions in which it participates should glorify the name of God and promote the development of a bond in Christ.

PRAYERPrayer is crucial to the spiritual growth of the fellowship andeach member. Just like the apostles, members of the fellowshipmust also rely on the Holy Spirit for guidance and power. TheHoly Spirit can unify the fellowship so that all members willwork together in one Spirit and one mind to edify one another,spread the gospel, and serve the Lord.

For the sake of personal spiritual growth, each member shouldpray on a daily basis. Fellowship members should pray togetherin the Spirit at every opportunity and should establish a prayer


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TESTIMONY

Manna 16

TESTIMONYTESTIMONY

Questions and Answers

Why does our church only allow members to partici-pate in the Holy Communion?

In the Old Testament, Gentiles were forbidden to eat thePassover lamb (Ex 12:43). The Passover feast pre guresthe New Testament Holy Communion (1 Cor 5:7, 8). Simi-

larly, those who do not participate in the salvation of theLord may not partake of the Holy Communion since theyare foreigners to the kingdom of God.

The Lords body and blood are holy and pure; thosewhose sins have not been cleansed through baptism arenot worthy to partake of the Holy Communion (see 1 Cor11:27-29). And only those who have received the correctbaptism for the remission of sins may partake of theHoly Communion.

The Holy Communion is a fellowship (Koinnia) amongthe believers within the church. Unbelievers or thosewho do not share the same faith with us are not part of the communion in the true church. So they should notpartake of the Holy Communion.

Other churches believe that the bread and wine theyuse in Holy Communion are physically trans ormedinto the physical fesh and blood o Jesus. How do weexplain our view o the trans ormation o the breadand grape juice?

The bread and grape juice are the body and blood of the Lord after giving thanks. By eating and drinkingthe communion, we may receive the spiritual effectspromised by Gods word. But the bread and juice havenot changed materially.

The manna that the Israelites ate in the wildernesspre gures the true bread from heaventhe esh of the Lord Jesus (Jn 6:31-33, 49-51). According to Paul, theIsraelites ate spiritual food and drank spiritual drink(1 Cor 10:3, 4). The pre guration is applied in spiritualterms. Therefore during Holy Communion, we partake of the spiritual body and spiritual blood of the Lord.

The Lord Jesus said, The Spirit gives life, esh counts fornothing (Jn 6:63). Here He elaborated on the previouspassage (Jn 6:32-57), which His followers found dif cultto accept (Jn 6:60). In other words, the esh and bloodJesus was referring to was esh and blood in the spiri-tual sense, rather than the material sense.


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TESTIMONY

Manna 17

Facts, Stats and Syntax

Did You Know?The Day of Pentecost was also known as the Feastof Weeks, First Fruits of the Wheat Harvest, (Ex23:16, 34:22), and the Day of the First Fruits (Num28:26). It takes place fty days after the Passover. Itis a celebration in which the Israelites offer the rstfruits of their harvest to God as a thanksgiving andexpect Him to bless the rest of the harvest period (Lev23:15-19; Num 28:26-29). The Holy Spirit was pouredout upon the believers for the rst time on the Day of Pentecost, as recorded in Acts chapter 2.

Polls and StatisticsAccording to a survey asking respondents, Is religion animportant part of your daily life?

Top 11 Most Religious Countries

Country % YesEgypt 100Bangladesh 99Sri Lanka 99

Indonesia 98Congo (Kinshasa) 98Sierra Leone 98Malawi 98Senegal 98Djibouti 98Morocco 98United Arab Emirates 98

Top 11 Least Religious Countries

Country %YesEstonia 14

Sweden 17Denmark 18Norway 20Czech Republic 21Azerbaijan 21Hong Kong 22Japan 25France 25Mongolia 27Belarus 27

From: http://www.gallup.com/poll/114211/Alabamians-Iranians-Com-mon.aspx

Word StudyChrist, translated from the Greek word Christos, which isMessiah in Hebrew, means the Anointed One. Jesus, thelong-expected King of the Jews, was sometimes calledChrist or the Christ, which was a title, a recognition that Hewas the Savior.


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The Gospels contain many accounts o Jesusper orming miracles. Whether healing the sick,casting out demons, or eeding ve thousand withtwo sh and ve loaves, Jesus helped others byde ying the laws o nature. Yet there is more to themiracles than the divine power o Jesus.

The ollowers o Jesus who experienced miraclesbelieved in Him, and they were blessed toreceive His grace. Faith and belie are essential

or us today, yet are not su cient. Experiencing Jesus work in our li e solidi es our aith andstrengthens its oundationa terward, we have abetter understanding o our heavenly Father andourselves. And this understanding li ts us to newlevels o spiritual maturity.

The theme articles study some o Jesus miraclesand explore the relationship between miracles,

aith, and growth. As we read them we can refecton our own experiences with Jesus and how wehave grown. While we continue to re ne our lives,let us always remember the extraordinary grace wehave received and strengthen our aith.

The Miracles o Jesus


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And after eight days His disciples wereagain inside, and Thomas with them. Jesuscame, the doors being shut, and stood inthe midst, and said, Peace to you! ThenHe said to Thomas, Reach your nger here,and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not beunbelieving, but believing. And Thomasanswered and said to Him, My Lord and

my God! Jesus said to him, Thomas,because you have seen Me, you havebelieved. Blessed are those who have not

seen and yet have believed. (Jn 20:26-29)

Unless I see in His hands the print ofthe nails, and put my nger into the printof the nails, I will not believe (Jn 20:25).

Thomas was certainly not afraid tospeak his mind, even when he was thelone minority.

The other ten disciples had just seentheir teacher and risen Lord, who haddied a gruesome death and came intotheir midst through closed doors. Heshowed them His pierced hands and sideand breathed on them, giving them thepromise of the Holy Spirit (Jn 20:19-23).

The greatest miracle had happenedbefore their eyes, turning their fear to joy.And seeing their resurrected Lord revivedtheir lost hope in Him.

Thomas had missed this historicmoment. They told him in excitement,We have seen the Lord! But theunanimous witness of his peers did notpersuade him one bit. In his heart, Jesuswas dead. As far as he was concerned, allthat he had once hoped for in Jesus wasnow over. Nothing could arouse his faithanymore.

From Seeing to BelievingLearning rom the Sign Jesus Did Be oreThomasStephen KuPacifca, Cali ornia, USA

THEME


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Whether we are able to believe and trust in our Lord matters a great deal

Him. How many times has God gone out o His way to seek us when we wlost? Even when we have given up on Him, He never gives up on us.

Manna 21

He is the bread of life from heaven. Byhealing the man blind from birth, Jesus

showed that He is the light of the world.By raising Lazarus from the dead, Jesusdemonstrated that He is the resurrectionand the life.

Therefore, miraculous signs play anecessary part in the proclamation of thegospel. Even today, God continues tobear witness to us with signs, wonders,and miracles (Heb 2:4). Through theseacts of God, we may come to have savingfaith in the Lord Jesus.

MY LORD AND MY GODWhen we experience a miracle, especiallywhen God does it for us personally, we

nd ourselves in the presence of thealmighty yet loving God. We stand inawe, humbled and moved, at a loss for words.

This was what happened to Thomas.No more verbose claims. Only a cry offaith: My Lord and my God!

Jesus knew what Thomas needed, andso He acted to meet that need. In fact, Healso has a lesson to teach us, the readers.He could have waited until all eleven ofthe disciples were together, but He choseto appear to them when Thomas wasabsent.

He heard Thomas words to the other disciples. Eight days later, while Thomaswas with the rest, Jesus appeared again,especially for him. What Jesus askedThomas to do was exactly according tothe impossible terms Thomas had laiddownto put his nger into His handsand to put his hand into His side.

Thomas did not even have to touchJesus hands and side before He professedHis faith in the risen Christ. Jesus hadshown him beyond a doubt that He wasalive. Even more importantly, Jesus caredenough to manifest Himself again solelyfor him.

Jesus never performed a sign just tosatisfy an unbelievers demand (Mt 12:38,39; Jn 2:18-22), and He was in no wayobligated to convince Thomas of His

resurrection. But Jesus did not give upon Thomas. He was aware of Thomascharacterthat he would not buy intoanything easily, especially something ofsuch magnitude.

He also knows about the Thomas withineach of us. The Thomas who had once

left everything to follow the Lord and hadnow forsaken his faith. Jesus, out of Hislove for Thomas, made a point to restorehis lost faith.

Whether we are able to believe andtrust in our Lord matters a great deal toHim. How many times has God gone outof His way to seek us when we were lost?Even when we have given up on Him, Henever gives up on us. In some miraculousway, He touches our lives and shows usthat He still cares. At that moment, weare caught in wonder and a sense ofworthlessness.

All we can say in our stupor is MyLord and my God! God is no longer theGod of other Christians or of our familymembers. He becomes our very own. Thispersonal encounter with the Lord is whatis most precious about miracles. It is notthe vision, the healing, or the deliverancefrom danger. But it is coming face to facewith our Lord and our God through thepower and kindness He has shown us.

Such personal encounters with Godtend to stay with us for the rest of our lives. Even in moments of doubt, we canrecall them and renew our faith again.

SEEING AND BELIEVINGSeeing is believing, as the saying goes.This world has taught us to only believesomething when we have proof in our hands. Who would put money downfor a house without any signed legaldocuments? Which top university would

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grant you admissions simply because youclaim to qualify?

We have all learned to be skeptical untilwe see proof. After all, how can we knowwhat is true or false without some clear evidence?

God knows that in a world of mistrust,

we are no longer able to believe in thetruth without any convincing proof(Jn 4:48). For this reason, Jesus notonly taught the people the truth aboutGod and His salvation, He also workedmiracles, wonders, and signs among thepeople (Acts 2:22).

In doing so, He manifested His glory,demonstrating that the Father was atwork in Him and that He was indeedone with the Father (Jn 2:11, 10:37, 38).Thus, Jesus signs were an integral part ofHis ministry.

If signs were so important, was it wrongfor Thomas to ask for a sign to show thatJesus had indeed resurrected? And for that matter, is it really wrong for us to askto see before we believe?

Jesus said to Thomas, Thomas,because you have seen Me, you havebelieved. Blessed are those who have notseen and yet have believed (Jn 20:29).It appears as if Jesus expects us to believein Him without any visible proof. It alsoseems that Jesus was dismissing theimportance of signs and miracles. But thisis not so.

Bear in mind that Jesus had alreadyappeared to the other ten disciples. Heshowed them His hands and His side.Even when Jesus appeared especiallyto Thomas eight days later, the other disciples were also present to witness thissign. Thomas was not the only disciplewho believed only upon seeing. So theproblem does not lie in seeing miracles.


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His side, I will not believe. He was notseeking a sign as much as to assert hisstaunch unbelief.

Using the strongest form of negation, 1

Thomas insisted that He would notbelieve except under the conditions heset forth. Elsewhere in the NKJV, thedouble negative is usually translatedas by no means or never. In other words, Thomas was saying, Unless Ican authenticate things my way, I willnever believe! Perhaps the expressiondoubting Thomas is not nearly asaccurate as unbelieving Thomas.

Jesus nal command to Thomaswas this: Do not be unbelieving, butbelieving (Jn 20:29). Jesus was not onlyinstructing him to believe for the momentthat Jesus was indeed alive. Thomas hadfallen into a state of unbelief, and he

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In fact, the Bible tells us that after Jesushad risen from the dead, He presented

Himself alive to the apostles by manyinfallible proofs, being seen by themduring forty days and speaking of thethings pertaining to the kingdom of God(Acts 1:2, 3). If the Lord expects faithwithout any proof or sight, He wouldnot have performed so many signs andproduced all the infallible proofs beforeHis disciples.

What, then, was wrong with Thomasattitude? Let us think about his ultimatumagain: Unless I see in His hands the printof the nails, and put my nger into theprint of the nails, and put my hand into

chose to remain so unless he was provenwrong.

The adjective unbelieving is alsotranslated as faithless (cf. Mt 17:17).Elsewhere in the Bible, this word appliesonly to unbelievers. This was thecondition Thomas had put himself inhehad become an unbeliever. Jesus, out ofHis compassion, lifted Thomas out of hisunbelief.

By placing terms and conditions onfaith, Thomas had placed a limit on God.He would only believe that Jesus hadresurrected if those terms and conditionswere met. This was an indication of hisstate of unbelief.

FAITH BEYOND SEEINGAccording to the Lord Jesus, blessed arethose who have not seen and yet havebelieved. These are people who trust inthe Lord without placing any conditionson God. That includes us, the readers, whoput our faith in the risen Christ withouthaving seen Him with our eyes. As Jesusdisciples, we should no longer resort tothe mentality of seeing is believing.

While Jesus has allowed us to seeHis glory through signs, miracles, andwonders, He does not want us to makethem a condition for faith. Seeing maylead to faith, but faith should not dependon seeing.

Our Lord wants us to go on fromseeing to believingto continue believingeven in the absence of miracles. Can youpicture a relationship in which one hasto keep producing proofs to earn theothers trust? This is surely not the kind

of relationship we want to have with our Lord.

God may do wonders in our lives andbefore our eyes, but only according toHis sovereign will and according to Histimetable, not ours. Unlike scienti cexperiments, miracles are not for us touse at our disposal to verify Gods words.Instead, they are out of Gods mercytoward us, and we are humbled at thesight of Gods glory.

Paul teaches in 2 Corinthians 5:7,For we walk by faith, not by sight.

Our journey to our eternal home doesnot depend on sight. Signs and miracleswould bene t us only if we come to Christas a result and believe in Him as our Lordand our God. Once we have establishedthis personal and trusting relationshipwith God, it is faith that will take us tothe end.

Through His miraculous appearance,Jesus became to Thomas his Lord and hisGod. Thomas had now grown beyondsight and was no longer dependent onsight. We likewise have claimed Jesusas my Lord and my God. Let us notbecome hardened in our hearts but walkdaily by faith until the day we see Himas He is.

While Jesus has allowed us to seeHis glory through signs, miracles,and wonders, He does not wantus to make them a condition or

aith. Seeing may lead to aith,but aith should not depend onseeing.

1. Te double negative is the most decisive way of negating something in the future.


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Cleansing the Ten Lepers Jason HsuBaldwin Park, Cali ornia, USAThe Lords grace and compassion is clearlyevident in His healing ministry. Amongthe many miracles Jesus performed, Hishealings of lepers depict some of themost memorable highlights of His earthlyministry (Lk 5:12-14, 17:11-19).

In Jesus healing of the ten lepers, themain lesson is thankfulness, or the lackthereof. Thankfulness, one of the mostbeautiful of human expressions whenit comes from deep within the heart,is a gift given to us by God. We shouldnot live our lives without cultivating our thankfulness.

Through study of this event, we canmeditate on how Gods grace in our lifeshould instill us with a thankful heart.

THE CURSE OF LEPROSY Many things in life can make a personunattractive. An offensive personality can

make even the most physically beautifulperson ugly (Mt 23:27).

We may be scarred or maimed throughmisfortune or accident, but we often hideeven deeper wounds within.

In Jesus day, lepers had a visible skincondition that made them unsightly. Butthe inner wounds in icted by the diseasewere perhaps the most dif cult to endure.Leprosy was feared as a punishment fromGod (Num 12:10; 2 Kgs 5:27). It humbledeven kings and generals throughouthistory (2 Chr 26:19, 20; 2 Kgs 5:1).

In ancient Israel, a lepers life wasmarked by segregation and ceremonialuncleanness. Generally isolated fromothers, the leper was put outside thecamp:

He shall be unclean. All the days he has[leprosy] he shall be unclean. He is unclean,


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As Christians, we understand that all human needs can fnd ulfllment in

God, but we o ten ail to acknowledge that truth practically. Precious ew the time to remember Gods abundant grace and thank Him or it. I we not realize Gods grace, we will not see its ulfllment in our lives.

and he shall dwell alone; his dwelling shallbe outside the camp. (Lev 13:46)

The lepers that Jesus met would likelyhave suffered daily from humiliation,despair, and loneliness. After a long timeliving on the fringe of society, it would benatural for lepers to question the value oftheir existence.

In addition to being a sign ofuncleanness (Lev 13:45), the Bible speaksof the leper as one dead, whose eshis half consumed when he comes out ofhis mothers womb! (Num 12:12; cf.Job 18:13). Leprosy, then, is a picture ofhuman tragedy and af iction. Without acure, lepers became social outcasts andthe living dead.

THE SUFFICIENCY OF GODSGRACETragedy and GraceIn life, we are beset with things beyondour control. Human life often becomeshuman tragedy. Jobs story illustrates howtragic events can come upon us suddenlyand without apparent reason (Job 1:12-2:10).

Imagine the tragedy in our life if wewere suddenly af icted with an incurabledisease. How would we live out our days?With joy? Thankfulness? Bitterness?Anger?

Jesus healing ministry, however, has animportant message: no matter how tragicour day-to-day life may appear, Godsgrace is suf cient for those who put their trust in Him.

In the story of Elijah and the widow

from Zarephath, a widow and her sonwere about to eat their last meal and die.In this sad picture of human life, Godslove and grace appeared. The widowsbin of our and jar of oil lasted until theLord sent rain upon the earth (1 Kgs 17:8-16). From this simple story we gather an important truth: Gods grace oftenabounds where human tragedy exists.

God never miscalculates. He knowswhere our life begins and ends. He

revealed to the apostle Paul, My graceis suf cient for you (2 Cor 12:9), and soit is for us.

Luke 17:11-19 illustrates Gods graceto those in dire need of it. Ten lepersadistilled picture of the tragedy that sooften besets human lifewere in greatneed of a savior. Are we any different?When we realize how great our need trulyis, we all cry for a savior.

A Position of Great Need

[A]s [Jesus] entered a certain village, theremet Him ten men who were lepers, who

stood afar off. (Lk 17:12)

The ten lepers stood afar off. This isa position of great need. And this is where

so many of us nd ourselves in relation toGod: But now in Christ Jesus you whoonce were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ (Eph 2:13).

Like the ten lepers, we are in need ofgrace, and yet it seems far off from us.We may become so alienated from our heavenly Father that we lose our way, and,as if wasting our life in a far country, westand a great way off from God (Lk 15:13,20). Or, perhaps, like the tax collector inJesus parable, we are fully aware of our

sinful condition and therefore plead for His mercy from a distance (Lk 18:13).Although the weight of sin brings

great need and human life is beset withhardship, toil, and suffering, we mustacknowledge that our lives are oftendeeply touched by grace and compassion,through the love of God. Through grace,we nd healing and suf ciency to help usovercome our most dif cult times.

A leper once came to Jesus to ask for healing. The leper said, Lord, if You are

willing, You can make me clean. Jesusstretched out His hand, touched the leper,and said, I am willing, be cleansed (Lk5:12, 13). This outstretched arm, thisgentle hand, that lifts a person out of thedarkness and into the light, characterizesthe grace of God in our darkest times ofneed.

The Grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ

And they lifted up their voices and said,Jesus, Master, have mercy on us! So whenHe saw them, He said to them, Go, showyourselves to the priests. And so it wasthat as they went, they were cleansed. (Lk 17:13, 14)

We all have many needs. For most of

us, basic needs such as food, shelter, andclothing can always be met. Yet, there aremany needs,such as air, water, sunshine,and light that are ful lled and often takenfor granted.

Additionally, we may have unmetneeds that we are not even consciouslyaware of. How many people need Godbut are unaware of their need? The needfor love, companionship, or mercy maybe unful lled in our lives, but we maynot even be aware we are missing these

things.So many needs go unmet, and so manythings in life are denied us. How we faceour needs, how we handle our unful lledneeds, and how we view the needs thathave been met have a dramatic impact onwhether we live a thankful or unthankfullife.

When we consider all that we havereceived from God, His grace in our livesis beyond comprehension. As Christians,we understand that all human needs can


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nd ful llment in God, but we often failto acknowledge that truth practically.

Precious few take the time to remember Gods abundant grace and thank Him for it. If we do not realize Gods grace, we willnot see its ful llment in our lives.

And one of them, when he saw that he washealed, returned (Lk 17:15)

If our eyes have been enlightened tothe depth of Gods grace in our lives,we will be thankful. The bitternessof our sacri ces and the tribulationsweve endured are then put into proper perspective.

What weve given to God in terms of our time, resources, and heart will no longer become unreciprocated favors; rather,they will be insigni cant contributionsthat can never repay the debt of love weowe. The tribulations weve endured willbe less about Gods injustice and moreabout His good plan for us.

We will realize that what we thoughtshould be maybe was not meant to be,and what should not have been wasinstead what should be (cf. Gen 50:19,20). And we will be thankful for all wehave received.

Sometimes, our eyes are opened to thetruth of life only through great tribulation.Job realized this after his own trials. As helearned to trust God, even in his desperatecircumstances, he saw that Gods gracewas suf cient for him. In the end, Jobcame to peace with all he had undergone.He said:

You asked, Who is this who hides counselwithout knowledge?Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,Things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.Listen, please, and let me speak;You said, I will question you, and you shallanswer Me.I have heard of You by the hearing of theear,But now my eye sees You.

Therefore I abhor myself,And repent in dust and ashes. (Job 42:3-6)

FORGETTING THE GRACE OF GODTen lepers had a great need, and tenlepers received grace to meet that need.But only one out of the ten came back togive thanks:

And one of them, when he saw that he washealed, returned, and with a loud voice

glori ed God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a

Samaritan. (Lk 17:15, 16)

Jesus was disappointed to the pointthat He seemed shocked. Only one cameback?

So Jesus answered and said, Were therenot ten cleansed? But where are the nine?Were there not any found who returned to

give glory to God except this foreigner? (Lk 17:17, 18)

Jesus reaction teaches us that Godwants those who receive His grace to

know how to give thanks. Its easy toforget the grace we have received. Itseasy to explain away all that we havereceived in life as how it should be or amatter of coincidence.

Throughout the history of Gods peoplewe discover that they repeatedly forgotwhat God had done for them, and theyforgot to have a thankful heart for thegrace they had received.

During the time of the judges, Godspeople forgot that He had delivered themfrom slavery in Egypt with a mighty handand an outstretched arm and broughtthem into a land owing with milk andhoney (Deut 4:34, 11:2, 3, 26:8, 9). After Joshuas generation passed away, anentire generation arose that did not knowthe Lord or the work He had done for Hispeople (Judg 2:10, 12).

Gods people forgot His grace, andHis hand became heavy upon them;


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generation after generation, Gods peopleencountered cycle after cycle of af iction

(Judg 2:15).The farther we drift away from a heartof thanksgiving, the less of Gods gracewe experience and see. We may suddenlyrealize one day how far away our life hasdrifted from His grace. If, by the grace ofGod, we come to our senses that day, wemust return to Him.

We often look every place but withinto nd out what is wrong with the world.Yet, because we fail to see ourselvesclearly, we cannot understand what istruly lacking.

If we wonder why we cannotperceive Gods grace in our lives whilesimultaneously failing to possess athankful heart within ourselves, were likebroken vessels that cannot perceive whythey are never lled. If we want to be

lled, we must re ect on and remember Gods grace with thanksgiving.

LEARNING FROM A THANKFULHEART Human weakness is to forget and takefor granted what we have received fromothers. Human weakness is to look atwhat we are missing rather than what wehave received.

A person who does not have a thankfulheart will not know how to truly worshipthe Lord, because a thankful heart is atthe center of worship. We see this fromthe one leper who returned and fell facedown at the Lords feet.

Having a thankful heart not only affectshow we give thanks for what we have

already received, but also how we give

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Let us learn rom Jesus cleans-ing o the ten lepers, to possess athank ul heartone that knowshow to ully receive the grace o God, so that it can o er rom itsdepths to others and to God.

of ourselves for the sake of others. TheLord Jesus gave much during His ministry

on earth. In the end, He gave everythingthat He hadHis life and His allfor us,without price. This is a life full of grace.

But how much have we given? If weare honest with ourselves, we would haveto admit that our love toward both Godand man has failed in one way or another,to a greater or lesser extent.

Human love has limitations. We canonly do as much as we know, with asmuch power as we have, with as muchgrace as we have received.

How deeply have we received the graceof God in our lives? On the surface, Godsgrace was the same for all ten lepers, for all ten were healed. On a deeper level, theone Samaritan leper who came back andglori ed God received so much more.

What was the difference? A thankfulheart. With a thankful heart, the graceof God is so much sweeter, and weexperience it much more deeply.

Therefore, let us learn from Jesuscleansing of the ten lepers, to possess athankful heartone that knows how tofully receive the grace of God, so that itcan offer from its depths to others andto God. This is the

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Manna (Issue 62: Miracles of Jesus)