To Be or Not To Be
BMCC Sunday Sermon · 3 May 2026 · Speaker: Jason Ho
That Sunday, some BMCC members were in Taipei, attending the anniversary celebration of Tongkwang Church (同光教會), our sister LGBTQ-affirming congregation in Taipei; the speaker himself, Jason Ho, had already been away from Hong Kong for three years, now living in England — his sermon was pre-recorded and played across the sea to the BMCC congregation.
But he did not open with “what a pity we cannot be together.” Instead he chose a sharper question: “Are you here? Is the Lord here?” Borrowing Hamlet’s “To be or not to be,” he titled the entire sermon “To Be or Not To Be.”
Jason grew up in a single-parent home. His father was a seafarer who returned home only once or twice a year; it was not until he was seventeen that Jason was finally able to build a real relationship with his returning father. He worked as a translator, later taught English, became a BMCC missionary (傳道), and left Hong Kong three years ago. These experiences of scattering, absence, and reunion form the undertone of his sermon.
He pointed out that the most fundamental question of the Christian faith is not “what have you got right to believe,” but “are you here?” Does the church truly live inside your world, your life, your present moment? This is a faith about presence.
He took Abraham and Sarah’s departure from Ur as an example, pointing out that they wrestled between two ways of life: a life of possession, and a life on the road. “The wilderness” became the central image of the sermon — in the wilderness there is nothing, only God. Only when we release what we have been clutching from our past can God become our only Head. And “being on the road” is the normal state of the faith life, not the exception.
Citing a Cantonese paraphrase of John chapter 14 — “You know him (the Holy Spirit) and you walk with him; he will be in you, and I will be in you” — he drew out the dual commandment of loving God and loving neighbour as the actual mechanism by which “the Lord is present.” Where the body is matters; but where the heart is matters even more.
He also offered a pointed critique of contemporary life: “Today there are too many things that make us not-here. Even while we are alive, we are not here.” Four people at one table, each staring at their own phone; phones, emails, the flood of messages — they keep us alive but not present, brushing past those beside us, brushing past the Lord too.
To return to the present, he suggested several ancient practices: reading scripture together, silent contemplative meditation, listening to hymns, listening to the sounds of nature, contemplating life and death. He also redefined “service” — those who open the door to welcome people, those who tidy and clean, those who look after the washrooms, those who know how to listen — all of these are service, with no distinction of greater or lesser, noble or humble.
“Though I am not in Hong Kong right now, I hope to see you all in Hong Kong again.” Jason said at the end of the recording.
And that is precisely what his whole sermon wanted to leave with us — we are scattered across many places, but as long as our hearts are present in this moment, God is in our midst.
Blessed Ministry Community Church is a home that welcomes everyone — whether you are in Hong Kong, Taiwan, England, or in the wilderness of your own heart. If you are walking your own road, you are welcome to come and join us on Sunday (online or in person). As long as you are here, this is home.
