The Gospel of John is a book I especially love. This book depicts that the Lord Jesus is God. From it, we can see God’s personal love and gentleness. You should admire the Lord’s conversations with different individuals recorded in John. The Lord is ready to meet with you and to live in a world of two with you every day. His personal encounter with us is different from a job interview. When you attend an interview, you might feel nervous. However, you will not feel nervous when you are with the Lord. It is so good to be with the Infinite Beloved!
I mentioned earlier: “A bruised reed he will not break.” This reminds me of a quote from a famous physicist, Pascal. He said man is “a thinking reed.” I do not feel we are just a thinking reed. We as humans are really wonderful! Our spirits are too precious. However, each one of us has been wounded, whether physically, emotionally, or spiritually. The Lord said a bruised reed he would not break, and a faintly burning wick he would not quench. I believe seniors, especially those seniors with illness, will receive well this Bible verse and treasure it. We really need the Lord Himself.
Let us see from John chapter 4. The Samaritan woman came out to draw water at a certain time of day when people did not normally do. She probably didn’t want people to see her. She would never have thought that Someone had been there waiting for her. The Lord purposely passed through that area to gain her. Being wearied, He sat beside the well. The eternal God, the infinite One, was so gentle and humble. The Jews had no dealings with Samaritans, but the Lord initiated the conversation by saying, “Give me a drink.” Nevertheless, it was He who gave her the living water so that she would never thirst again. Indeed, the Lord gave Himself to her. In order to give her the living water, the Lord had to go through death! The rock must be struck in order for the water to gush out.
Chapter 5 talks about the man who had been sick for thirty eight years. You can see in the Gospel of John how the faintly burning wicks and the bruised reeds got restored in the hands of the Lord one after another. How touching it is!
John 5:5 reads, “One man was there who had been an invalid for thirty-eight years.” Even if we were sick for one year, or just a few months, it’s already quite tough. But thirty-eight years! Some of you are not even thirty eight years old yet.
Let’s continue to verses 6 to 9. “When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had already been there a long time” For many years, no one helped him. He lost his hope again and again, and became desperate.
“…He said to him, ‘Do you want to be healed?’ The sick man answered him, ‘Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, and while I am going another steps down before me.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Get up, take up your bed, and walk.’ And at once the man was healed, and he took up his bed and walked.”
Brothers and sisters, no matter how many years your hearts have been sick, or how many years you have lived in sins, maybe more than thirty eight years, or even eighty eight years, the Lord asks, “Do you want to be healed?” You can retrace the day when you believed in the Lord. On that day, Abba, the Lord, and the Holy Spirit embraced you, lived in you, and changed you. This continues to affect our lives and eternity! After thirty eight years, this man finally met the Lord!
There are more touching stories. Chapter 8 mentions a woman who was caught in adultery. How shameful she must have felt when she was displayed in front of everyone! The crowd wanted to stone her to death! The Lord said, “Whoever was without sin, let them be the first to cast a stone at her.” Those who wanted to stone her went away one by one. But it was so precious that the Lord did not go away. And her life was changed!
Chapter 9 talks about a man who was born blind, but the “light” he saw on that day was far more than what many Pharisees had seen. The Pharisees had read so many of the scriptures, but their eyes were not open. They were the “real blind men”.
Chapters 11 and 12 mention the small family of Martha, Mary, and Lazarus. My guess is that they might be orphans because the Bible has no mention of their parents. However, they were all treasured by the Lord. I’ve only shared a part of it. You can look into other gospel books, such as the sinful woman in Luke chapter 7 and the Lord’s encounter with the disciples who were fishermen. They were considered people with little or no education.
The disciples remind me that this movement is very precious! I came from a small family. My mother brought my sister and me to Hong Kong. We were like refugees and once lived in the resettlement area. However, the Lord has chosen and commissioned me to influence the world, till today and until His will is accomplished. This movement started in Tsang Tai Uk Village in Hong Kong. Among so many places in Hong Kong, no one would imagine this movement would start there. The first group of brothers and sisters who believed in the Lord worked in a fish market. They were young people in the village. There were also children in Lam Tin. At that time, our meeting place was a wooden shack. Those children came from relatively poor families. They were very free to go around and their families didn’t care much. Later, we went to Tai Wo Hau. People there were also very poor. They lived in a resettlement area where they did not have their own bathroom and needed to use public toilets which were very dirty and stinky.
“A bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench.” We are so little, yet He uses us. Hong Kong used to be just a fishing port, but He used over a century to prepare Hong Kong for His will!