Life Blog

  My 10-year-old son doesn’t always answer right away when I ask him a question. Often, I have to repeat myself two or three times before he responds. One morning, though, his reaction caught me off guard. We were in the car on the way to school. It was Boy Scout day, so he wore the brown uniform shirt with its badges—the scout logo and the Philippine flag. Knowing how cold the air-conditioning can be in classrooms, I noticed he hadn’t brought his school jacket. So I asked, “Gab, are you wearing a sando?” (A sando is a sleeveless undershirt in Filipino.) In a soft voice, he muttered, “No, I don’t have it.” I didn’t quite catch his reply, so I asked again: “Are you wearing a sando?” This time he said, a bit louder, “I’m not wearing it.” I heard him, but I still couldn’t believe it, so I asked a third time, raising my voice: “You’re not wearing a sando?!” This time he shouted back: “I’m not wearing a sando!” To check for myself, I slipped my finger between the buttons of his shirt—an...

Very often we say this in church, God is in control. But what do we mean when we say God is in control? If God is in control, exactly what does He control? Does He control the weather? Does he control people? Does he control the Covid? Or did the Covid somehow get out of control? Some say the virus was created in the laboratory by this or that government because this or that government wants to dominate, to control and manipulate the world? But if say, America wanted to control the world, and they are a world superpower: superpower in economy, superpower in military; they dominate those aspects of modern society, and in that sense we can say that they control the world. So if they control the world, where is God in all of that? Is God orchestrating everything as human history unfolds? What about in our own personal lives, where is God in your life? Is God in control in your life? Did God control the things you did today? You probably did somet...

1Pe 1:2  Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied. Elect means chosen. Foreknowledge means advance information. Sanctification of the Spirit, obedience and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ are work elements that need to be done to people, or more specifically believers. God knows from the very beginning who these believers are, in whom the elements of sprinkling of the blood of Jesus, obedience, and sanctification of the Spirit are effectively accomplished. God is able to do this before the foundation of the world because of His foreknowledge.  It is important to remember that we are "chosen in Him," we are not chosen outside of, or apart from Christ. The believer is chosen by virtue of him having been found in Christ. He is not chosen according to any individual capacity, favor, or whatever inscrutable reas...

Life will have its issues and money is not the solution. Most of the time we think that if we only had the money then everything will be okay. But that is hardly the case. Trusting in money is like putting your hopes on weak foundation, it will cave in. Believing that your money will carry you through will just lead you to wrong priorities and can even lead to self destruction. Money is a utility we use and we have need of it. But life is not about getting all the money so you can live happily ever after. No, life is not at all like that. The fact is, money will NOT always be there. No matter how hard you wish for money to always be there, it will not always be there. That's why you cannot trust money. Even the banks run out of money. The ATM machines run out of money. Financial institutions can collapse! Don't count on your money. Don't lean on it. Some people have fallen into the deception that money is all they need and so they steal, they plunder, they rob,...

When I think of God I see a perfect being. When I think about what is perfect, I see God. God by definition is perfect. That's who he is. When I think of sin and the nature of it, I see imperfection. Sin can be great or small but the size doesn't really matter because that which is perfect cannot join together with the imperfect. That is why sin, by its very nature separates us from God. The perfect cannot take in any imperfection. The perfect will become imperfect the moment it receives imperfection even of the smallest degree possible. The blood of Christ is a covering for sin. The blood of Christ is perfect. He was without sin. So it's like all our imperfections are covered up by the perfect blood of Jesus Christ. That's how it works for a Christian. That's how we are able to come in union with the perfect God. That's also the reason why anyone who is without Christ cannot be with God.

As I drive through the streets of Doha, a curious detail keeps drawing my gaze: the kaleidoscope of car side mirrors—even for something so functional, each one looks different—some round, some square, some with tiny LED lights, others with that classic chrome finish. They’re all mirrors, yet each bears its own unique style. I can almost imagine not knowing anything about how cars are made and thinking… “Car evolution?” Could these variations have evolved themselves? It’s a silly—and amusing—thought. Of course, car manufacturers deliberately design these parts with purpose. Engineers and designers craft each mirror to suit a certain need or aesthetic. And then it hit me: our lives are much like those designs. Just as each mirror varies in design and purpose, God shapes us uniquely. No two paths—or people—are identical, and He doesn’t mass-produce faith or life. We are each intentionally designed. So, if you’ve ever felt like you don’t quite fit the mold, remember—you're not a manufa...

This is an extract from Ravi Zacharias' podcast "Ichabod, Where is the Glory? (part 2 of 4)" "The glory is departing because righteousness has not yet been internalized by you. "Righteousness became a set of laws and they measured themselves by a piece of paper. If they could check off a, b, c, d, and e externally, then they saw themselves righteous, they never wanted to look into their hearts if internally they were right before almighty God. Let me show you how this developed: "In the 3rd century, there was a plurality of questions being raised by people about what righteousness really was. And the Israelite sophisticated thinkers began to say, you know we've got all these laws but we don't understand them. So they began to develop a kind of a scholarship, or a hierarchy that would explain to the masses what righteousness really was. And the scholarship began to deal with laws and more laws and more laws, commentaries and commentaries and ...

First I found this Scripture: (1Pe 3:19) By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison; And then recently, just on the next chapter, I found this: (1Pe 4:6) For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit. Now notice the synonymous phrases, "preached unto the spirits in prison" and "the gospel preach also to them that are dead." Suddenly I'm thinking about Purgatory. : ) But seriously, I have reason to believe that even the realm of the dead is within reach of the gospel, and somebody is also preaching there. Let's read that again from verse 17: (1Pe 3:17) For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing. (1Pe 3:18) For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened b...

When sin entered into the world, the connection between God and man was broken. It snapped! Jesus came and blotted out sin and brought that connection back again. He did. When that connection is put in place, the result is worship. Worship is our connection with our God. The stronger we are connected with Him, the stronger our worship. It's a lovely story. : )

Always starting with the church motto: Love, Obey, Worship... Jesus Christ. The teaching on giving is a teaching on Love.  2Cor 9:7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.  A tithe actually means a tenth. But you see the New Testament is different from the Old Testament. It is no longer about strict adherence to rules. And in fact there is no ten percent rule in the Gospels nor in the Apostles letters. Obedience in the New Testament is not about following rules. Obedience in the New Testament means an obedient heart, a heart that follows after God's own heart, a heart that is surrendered to the will of God. You can give sparingly or you can give generously. He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows generously, will reap generously. For as long as you give, you will reap! So, are you now giving more because you want to reap more? Or are you giv...

Heb 10:1-10 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. (2) For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. (3) But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. (4) For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. (5) Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: (6) In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. (7) Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. (8) Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered b...

Man is confined in time, all we know is the present. We have a memory of the past and a hope for the future. God on the other hand is not. Even the future for Him is already history. He's seen it all happen. But with man, history unfolds before him one day at a time. Take this as an example, you were on your way home and you are thinking on what to prepare for dinner. You like veggies so you were thinking whether Talong or Okra. But God knew you actually bought Sitaw and had Adobong Sitaw for dinner. That is why with regard to God, He already know who are His and who are not. But with man, he has to make his choices everyday whether to follow God, that is to be spiritual, or to follow his own desires, that is to be carnal. To be spiritual is life, and to be carnal is death. So whether we obeyed the Gospel or not, with God it's already a thing of the past. But with us, we don't know that. Except that today we know that we have to obey Christ and live by faith every day a...

By Web definition, righteousness is adhering to moral principles. The word is easily understood I suppose. It basically refers to doing what is right as opposed to doing what is wrong. It is doing good instead of doing evil. Yes, every good work is righteous. Simply put, righteousness is doing good works. Righteousness is an all too familiar term in Born Again Christian circles but one which is not given due attention. And I think it is because in Salvation, it doesn't matter. But I have discovered something really powerful! It started when I read Smith Wigglesworth's article on Righteousness where he said, "I see that God has a realm of divine life opening up to us where there are boundless possibilities, where there is limitless power, where there are untold resources, where we have victory over all the power of the devil. I believe that as we are filled with the desire to press on into this life of true holiness, desiring only the glory of God, there is nothing th...

Jas 4:5 (ESV) Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, "He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us"? Born again believers make particular emphasis on man’s relationship with God. Perhaps this is one understanding that brings together the majority of the many Christian denominations. I believe that the relationship God wants to establish with man, the manner in which He wants to establish it, is not different from the way people build relationships. The husband and wife for example, before they became spouses went through that stage of courtship where normally the man tries to win the woman’s heart. Basically, what the man is trying to do at this stage is to win the woman’s trust. I believe this is also what God wants to develop in us: confidence and trust. And this is basically what faith is. To have faith in God is to trust and have confidence in God. The very foundation of any relationship is trust. And trust is not so...

Smith Wigglesworth says, “There are two kinds of faith. There is the natural faith. But the supernatural faith is the gift of God.” One day in Lancashire, and going round to see some sick people, he was taken into a house where there was a young woman lying on a bed, a very helpless case. He recalls: “Then with all my faith I began to penetrate the heavens, and I was soon out of that house, I will tell you, for I never saw a man get anything from God who prayed on the earth. If you get anything from God, you will have to pray into heaven; for it is all there. If you are living in the earth realm and expect things from heaven, they will never come. And as I saw, in the presence of God, the limitations of my faith, there came another faith, a faith that could not be denied, a faith that took the promise, a faith that believed God's Word. And from that presence, I came back again to earth, but not the same man. God gave a faith that could shake hell and anything else. “I said, C...

1Co 11:20-22 "When you come together, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat. For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk. What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not." The Corinthians must have celebrated the Lord ’s Supper the Filipino ‘bring your own baon’ style. And it appears that the Filipino ‘barkadahan’ style is also practiced by them. The Corinthian church must have been divided in factions, each to his own group. And naturally, those that are of the same socio-economic status would group together. So during meal time, them that have brought food and drinks would be full and even drunk, while others who may not be well off economically even to bring their own food go hungry. Paul is telling them, this is not the way to eat the Lord ’s Supper. Indeed it was very detest...

1Co 4:20 For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power. The Kingdom of God is not about talk, it is about power. And when we speak about power, it is something tangible. It is not imaginary. Talk is imaginary. But the Kingdom of God is about power. That is why the Apostle Paul says, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. This means that whatever we have learned from the Bible should translate to something practical, something tangible, something that we can do, something that we can put to action. And that's what power is, it is a driving force for action. Like the power of a car that comes from the gasoline that burns in its engine. That's where the car derives its power. Christ is our power! He gives us strength to do all things. And so if it has been a long time already since we became Christians and we are still sickly, we are still in poverty, and we are still experiencing a lot of problems, and we are almost always depressed because ...

Was Apollos an Apostle? In the strictest sense, he is not. But did he do the works of an Apostle? I believe he did. What about in our generation, are there people still doing the works of an Apostle? I believe there are. What about Prophets? Well, the Bible clearly says; in the last days your sons and daughters will prophesy. Probably not in the likes of Elijah or Elisha but these are the last day Prophets. There are diversities of gifts but it is only one Spirit that empowers them. The Holy Spirit that was at work in the Apostles and Prophets in Biblical times is the same Holy Spirit that is at work in Christians today. The Bible tells us that these signs shall follow them that believe; and from the time of Christ to our present generation, believers continue to grow in ever increasing numbers. It should follow that these signs also increase in manifestations. But there are some who profess that these signs passed away together with the passing of the Prophets and the Apostles. ...

I was listening to 1Peter today and I came across this Scripture: 1Pe 4:10 KJV As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. This again puts into light the Doctrine of Irresistible Grace. I've once posted on Life BS Group that there is no such thing as irresistible grace, citing: Eph 3:2 KJV If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: We know from Scripture, that the Lord does not force Himself to people. When people didn't want Him to enter their city, He peacefully went away. By dispensation it means, administration or stewardship. And Paul is saying that the dispensation of the grace of God was given to him for his ministry towards the Gentiles. And 1Pe 4:10 confirms that every believer is a steward of the manifold grace of God. And we are to minister the grace that we have received one to another. I believe this is a principle that God has ...

Below is taken from Life BS Group, a discussion group in Facebook: "Brothers and sisters in Christ, can you help me understand this verse: Rom 3:3 For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make the faith of God without effect? 'Faith of God' is also mentioned in Titus 1:1. In NIV version, it reads 'God's faithfulness.' Does this verse mean that even unbelievers are still saved?" "This was from Andrew Wommacks commentary: Paul was using the phrase 'the faith of God' in this verse interchangeably with the phrase 'the oracles of God' in Rom 3:2. He was saying that the unbelief of the Jews did not make the Word of God, or the promises of God, without effect. Therefore, the Word of God is the faith of God. No wonder faith comes by hearing God's Word: God's Word contains His faith. Paul was asking the question, "If some of the Jews did not believe God's Word, does that make God's Word of no effect?...