It will be Chinese New Year (CNY) again in just a couple of days! This is a festival celebrated by more than a billion people all over the globe. The substantial population of Chinese in Malaysia makes this also one of the main celebrations for our nation every year. This upcoming lunar year being a Chinese Loong (known to English speakers as the ‘Chinese Dragon‘ but strictly speaking a different mythological creature from dragons) year makes it a particularly auspicious one for traditional Chinese.
While Christians do not believe in the Loong, the cultural aspects of the festival make it a time that’s also looked forward to by many Chinese Christians. And while there are many spiritual aspects that Christians are called to refrain from, the cultural elements and values of CNY have universal applicability. However, we know that all our blessings comes from our Heavenly Father.
As Christians, this is also an appropriate time to reflect on the goodness of God and Christ Jesus. This simple article will borrow some thematic elements from CNY as touchpoints but come from the lens of a Christian believer. As such, it will be primarily faith-based rather than a cultural-based one. It is also relevant to every Christ-centered believer regardless of ethnicity.
Blessings (from God)
Throughout the Chinese New Year period, many Chinese will be extending wishes of prosperity and good health unto families and friends. While this is not exact, encapsulated into this is the idea of passing on blessings to others. This is quite similar to the concept of shalom greetings.
As Christians, we are also called to pass on blessings to others. We can bless and love others because we were first loved and blessed by God (1 John 4:19). We also know that all good thing comes from the Father above and that He is always dependable and never changes (James 1:17). Furthermore, the good gifts from God go beyond prosperity. He has blessed us with every spiritual blessing.
Because the fruits of the Spirit are encompassing and holistic, they extend even to our souls and beyond us. These gifts are relational. Galatians 5:22-23 tells us that these fruits include love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, and self-control. To be blessed is to know that the self and those close by (family, friends, nation) live in God’s favor. It is to receive from God the provision and security that enables us to live fully and in anticipation of a bright future. It is to know that God is totally committed to the believer’s care.
First Remembrance/Reflection: This Chinese New Year, let’s look to God for His blessings, not just secure in our material well-being, but also in the growth of our relationship with Him and in our spirits so that we can be a blessing to our loved ones.
Family
Another central theme of the Chinese New Year is Family. This is traditionally a time when family members from far and wide, whether it be from a different state – or even a foreign country – gather together for a reunion. There is a spirit of unity. One of the good values brought to the forefront during this festival is filial piety.
The Bible has much to communicate about families. This includes very explicit instructions about honoring our fathers and mothers (you will find some of these verses in a previous article we published for another CNY). For Christians, our family relationship is multi-dimensional. We exist in a family, not just with our blood relatives, but also with God, and within the larger community of spiritual family under God.
We must maintain unity in our birth and spiritual families. Just recently, many churches united in prayer for the Body of Christ and the nation (we will be publishing a report on this year’s ecumenical prayer service soon). When God brought us into His family, He altered the paradigm of our lives. God has a family dynamic, both within the Trinity and with us as His adopted children. Our adoption by God underscores a new, familial relationship to God, freedom from the oppressive evil of the devil, and life of empowerment through God’s presence. It changes our role and relationship with God from outsider to child of God.
What does it mean to be born-again? Find a detailed discourse on this vital subject through our previous articles: Being Reborn and How it is Tied to the Kingdom of God, All Things Become New When You Are Born Again in Christ, The First Advent of Christ Jesus Reminds Us of God’s Covenantal Nature
Second Remembrance/Reflection: This Chinese New Year, let us remember we exist in a family relationship with God, Christ Jesus, and both our birth as well as spiritual families. Let us reflect on God’s Fatherly heart (illustrated through such parables as that of the Prodigal Son) and the immense privilege – as well as valuable roles – we possess in the context of this relationship.
Renewal
The start of a new year often connotes the renewal of things. This is no different for Chinese New Year. Family relationships and friendships are renewed, and the house goes through spring cleaning. On the night of the reunion dinner, everyone is dressed in new clothes. Good wishes are expressed to each other in the framework of a new life in a new year/environment.
The Christian life is nothing if not one of renewal. 2 Corinthians 5:17 expresses it beautifully:
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
What is this new creation? The Bible describes the born-again Christian as the new self that looks like the humanity that God has always intended (Ephesians 4:24). Here are some renewals that Christ has brought us: a new covenant to replace the one based on strict obedience to the law (Jeremiah 31:31-34), a new heart of flesh to replace the rock-hard one of rebellion (Ezekiel 36:26), new life to replace the one destined to end in death (Romans 6:4), and a new mind in alignment with God (Romans 12:2). One day God will renew all of creation and bring in a new heaven and earth, and our bodies will be revived to an incorruptible one that will live forever with God.
Third Remembrance/Reflection: Throughout the whole concept of renewal for the new year, we can see an analogy to the deeper one of new life in Christ. This Chinese New Year, let’s celebrate our renewed family relationship and friendship with Christ. Let’s rededicate ourselves to God, and let’s look forward to the Marriage of the Lamb at the end of time.
This article is written in conjunction with Chinese New Year but it’s meant to be relevant to the whole Body of Christ. Regardless of our ethnicity and whether we celebrate the Lunar Year, there are certain blessings God has given us out of His grace. Let us continue to remember what He has done for us, and the depth of that grace as well as His love for us.
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