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The Parable of the Rich Fool

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In the sermon, Pastor Tzeng introduced the scene in which Jesus gave this parable, in that a person with greed in his heart was attempting to get Jesus to help him. However, our faith shouldn’t be so shallow, as if faith is just trying to get things from God. This is conditional faith in which we only do good things to get good things. A deep faith is simply loving, trusting, and being with God in a relationship with Him through Jesus Christ.

However, the hubris of mankind is that we seek to desire control in our lives, particularly with this acquiring of money and things. Money and wealth end up being a gateway to storing up so much sin in our hearts and being controlled by that. We may try to sugarcoat our heart with faithful words saying we will give to God if we’re able to gain a huge wealth, but God sees the depths of our heart and we are too limited and weak to control our greed. That is why Jesus gave us the wisdom to pray for daily bread instead.

The truth is, our life can end at any moment, just like this rich fool. Therefore, we must not store up wrath and sin in our hearts, but rather store up fruits of love and treasures in heaven. Hell is a small place of pride where we lock ourselves in with the sin and wrath we stored in ourselves. Rather, if we open our hearts to Jesus, God pours down amazing blessing upon us that we store in our hearts and we can take to heaven.

When we have faith that Jesus Christ has given us eternal life, then we also can have the common sense wisdom to live for eternity.
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Gratia Holds Graceful Easter Retreat 

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Gratia held a graceful Easter retreat on April 16, 2022. During the Easter Retreat, Pastor Walker preached on John 20 over two Bible Studies. The first Bible study focused on Mary, John, and Peter’s witness of the empty tomb. The second Bible Study focused on the receiving of the Holy Spirit and doubting Thomas. Members were exhorted to go beyond the cross and live a life of resurrection.

After the Bible studies in the morning members hiked Mt Davidson where there is a big cross on top of the mountain and enjoyed the beautiful nature. Everyone received abundant grace through this time and wants to celebrate the risen Christ.

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Gratia Spring Retreat Concludes with Overflowing Grace 

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Gratia Church concluded spring retreat with overflowing grace from God. They gathered in the mountains of Yosemite and the theme of the retreat is “The Path of the Cross” studying through the recording of the path of the cross from John 18-19.

During breaking bread fellowship time, many of the newer Bible Study students testified to understanding the suffering of Jesus more deeply. Meal times were full of grace because retreat attendees had spent a long two days with one another and now know each other more deeply as a spiritual family and could share grace in fellowship together.

As retreat attendees parted ways, many spoke about wanting to gather again more frequently. Please pray for all retreat attendees take a leap of faith towards God’s glory and Kingdom through the grace of God given at this spring retreat.

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I Press On Toward the Goal

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In the sermon, Pastor Tzeng spoke about the pain of the Apostle, being in jail, and possibly facing death. Though he longs to be with our Father in heaven, he feels that there is ministry work left to be done. This is the pain that we may have felt last year in 2021, that we didn’t accomplish everything we should have. Yet, we see in the Apostle, that he forgets what is behind and goes powerfully ahead because God is the one who overturns everything.

The Apostle has a challenge mindset in him, which is the same challenge mindset that we need also. God is pushing this Kingdom forward here on earth and we should be a part of that. The grace of God is that He lifts us all up at once, changing things so that they are greater and faster this year than any year before.

The more mature in faith we get, we realize that we haven’t obtained all of this, but God has more in store for us. We should focus on the Word of God more. At the beginning of the year, we should focus on preparing our nets, waiting to catch many people that God has waiting for us. Let us prepare well to do Bible Studies and evangelize a lot of people.

With Paul’s challenge mindset, let us have an active faith to push on towards the goal of Jesus Christ and God’s Kingdom in 2022.
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David – What Is Our Goliath

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In the sermon, Pastor Tzeng spoke about the faith of David and asked the question, “What is our Goliath?” Goliath was a Philistine champion, over 9 feet tall, strong, with heavy armor, and representing the greatest of human strength. In our life, there are imposing things of the world we must overcome whether it be the obstacle of sin or even victory for God’s Kingdom. Goliaths speak to our fears and insecurities in the world. The Israelite army faced Goliath with fear, but David only had the holy fear of the Lord and faced Goliath with faith in God.

Like the rest of the world, Goliath puffs himself up with a fake form on the outside, but has nothing true and eternal on the inside. David has the form of a weak shepherd boy, but he has a big heart of love for God on the inside. What image do we have? Rather than the fake outside form of the world, we should go with the image of God. Saul wanted to fit David in his armor, but it didn’t fit him. Instead, David went with what God has given him – a staff and 5 smooth stones from the river.

Finally, very famously, David strikes Goliath on the forehead with a stone and defeats him. This is the method of faith. He doesn’t use the tools of the world, but went with what God gave him. The staff is the Word of God that God has given us. He’s also given us all the tools we need. We should find the 5 smooth stones around us that we can use to gain victory. God has already given us everything we need to defeat Goliath. The victory is with the Lord. God is the one who overturned the cross of Jesus into the resurrection.

May we walk with the glory of resurrection and victory that God has given us as well.

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God Looks At the Heart

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In the sermon, Pastor Tzeng told the historical story of King Saul and King David. Saul started off humbly, but his pride led to using humanistic thinking, rather than the power of God. He looked at the situation around him and tried to use his own power, rather than obeying God. This was true when he failed to wait for the prophet Samuel to give offering and was true again when kept what he considered “good” things of the wicked nation of the Amalekites. Anything with a humanistic start cannot give glory to God.

Through the prophet Samuel, we can learn that deep inside of Saul’s heart was rebellion, arrogance, and self-idolatry. He asserts the biblical truth that obedience is better than sacrifice. There are layers of depth in the heart and obedience is a deeper heart of love than is sacrifice. It’s not that sacrifice is bad, but sacrifice can easily turn superficial. Obedience is simpler, but relies on God and has humbleness. Obedience is a deeper heart of love than sacrifice is.

When choosing David, his own father Jesse overlooked him, but the Lord looks at the heart. Whatever our outward image may be, we can’t hide from God, He knows our hearts clearly. Is what I am doing have a pure motivation? Do I have a humanistic motivation, or is my motivation one of overflowing in God’s love. God doesn’t look at the outward appearance, because He can use even the one without a great outward appearance to do great work. Jesus himself was born in a manager and died on the cross, yet his heart of unconditional love shined through and he gained victory on the cross.

May we also gain victory with the power of God, knowing that God looks at the heart, so let us be a demonstration of the Spirit’s power.

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Christmas Retreat : The Birth of Jesus, Fellowship, Prayer

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On December 19, 2021, Gratia Church continued its Christmas Retreat and members and Bible Study students from all these regions are gathering in the mountains of Lake Tahoe to enjoy God’s Word, fellowship, and prayer together.  

Day 2 of this graceful retreat featured the opening services, Sunday service, and multiple Bible Studies.  The opening services was delivered by Pastor Nancy who spoke about spiritual blindness and the importance of opening our eyes and heart to Jesus Christ. 

Pastor Walker and Julia Tzeng did several Bible Studies on Matthew 1-3.  Pastor Walker’s message on Matthew 1 was also the Sunday service and focused on the birth of Jesus as the coming of infinite eternal God into our limited and finite world.  Jesus is Immanuel, God with us.  Pastor Julia message on Matthew 2 emphasized this fallen world in which Jesus came.  Whereas many want to just leave this fallen world, Jesus came to save this world with amazing love and grace.  

Following a full day of Bible Studies, the retreat featured fellowship games where the members to celebrate in laughter and joy.  Also, in between Bible Studies, were plenty of time to take walks, sit in fellowship, and have meals.  Through these times, members could speak deeply about faith and understand a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

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Gratia Family Celebrates Thanksgiving with Students

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On November 25, 2021, Gratia Church family celebrated Thanksgiving with Bible study students who were not able to go home for Thanksgiving. Moses and Levi both said it was their first ever Thanksgiving celebration, since they do not celebrate Thanksgiving in their home countries. Other members of Gratia celebrated Thanksgiving with their families. Gratia members are so thankful for God’s grace upon the church in this year.

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Thanksgiving Retreat Overflowing in Grace, Gratitude

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On November 20, 2021, Gratia held a Thanksgiving mini-retreat that was overflowing in grace and gratitude to God. The mini-retreat Bible Studies were led by Pastor Walker Tzeng who preached two messages on Joseph from Genesis 37-50. Through the stories of Joseph, Pastor Tzeng emphasized important aspects of faith such as purity, receiving the love of God, focusing on the Word, and receiving the dream of the Kingdom of God.

The mini-retreat also featured time of praise and prayer. Following the Bible Studies, students had breaking bread to reflect on the message.  Members testified overflowing grace of God through the Thanksgiving retreat.  After the retreat, some members had further fellowship by going to the San Francisco beach together.

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From the Cave of Adullam to the Kingdom

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In the sermon, Pastor Tzeng spoke about the people that joined David in the Cave of Adullam when he was at rock bottom in his life. They were the 400 who were distressed, in debt, and discontented ones. They were people who shared in his suffering and served together. It was a suffering that only the ones that were there could understand. Church is this kind of place – not a place of elite people gathering, but the suffering ones who serve together. From this Cave of Adullam, a genuine, true, authentic heart for God’s Kingdom came.

In suffering, there are two paths we can take. The path of Saul was to become inexplicably jealous over worldly things and have crazy irrational anxiety. This is what Satan causes us to do. The path of David was to live a life of reconciliation and redemption. David tried to reconciled with Saul despite Saul trying to kill him. David also lived a live redeeming the nation of Israel to the glory of God’s Kingdom. Jesus Christ also lived a life of reconciliation and redemption. Christianity teaches us that true suffering in Christ is what actually gives us stability in our hearts to move forward, away from the inexplicable anxiety of the world.

Finally, we also see some biblical parallelism in 2 Samuel 22:1-3, where David refers to the Lord as my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer. It was David’s time in the rock of the Cave of Adullam, where he truly met the Lord. While the Cave of Adullam could be viewed as the stronghold base where he started for the Kingdom, it was really the Lord who was the rock for the whole time. Truly, there is hidden beauty in the rock of the Cave of Adullam, because that is the place we can meet the Lord.

May we be the ones who suffer and serve together for God’s Kingdom and let the Lord be the rock that ultimately strengthens our lives.