Wisdom from the Word
24 RELIGIOUS PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY March 1 - 15 , 2017
Wisdom from the Word
Ben Berto
16 Simon Peter answered and said , “ You are the Christ , the Son of the living God .” 17 Jesus answered and said to him , “ Blessed are you , Simon Bar-Jonah , for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you , but My Father who is in heaven . 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter , and on this rock I will build My church , and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it . 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven , and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven , and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed [ d ] in heaven .” Matthew 16 : 16 , 17 NKJV
6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture , “ Behold , I lay in Zion A chief cornerstone , elect , precious , And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame .”[ a ] 7 Therefore , to you who believe , He is precious ; but to those who are disobedient ,[ b ]“ The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone ,”[ c ]
Jesus established His Church on the earth , a Church that fully “ keeps the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus .” Revelation 14 : 12 He established it on
Moments
Fr , Jerry M . Orbos , SVD
This old story was told to me a few days ago by Fr . Joseph Panabang , SVD , a Filipino missionary who has worked in Ghana , Africa , for 30 years , and is currently on home vacation : A daring photographer entered a house to take a picture of a ghost believed to haunt the place . He succeeded in doing so . But when he had the film developed , the photo came out blurred . Why ? Because the spirit was willing , but the flash was weak !
In today ’ s Gospel ( Mt . 17 , 1-9 ), we learn about the “ flash ” of the Transfiguration of Jesus , which was so strong that His face shone like the sun , and His clothes became white as light , leaving such a powerful effect on Peter , James and John . The Lord will manifest Himself to us if only we let Him , if only we make time so we can really
THIS WE BELIEVE ABSOLUTELY ; THE CHURCH
the “ spiritual Rock that followed them , and that Rock was Christ ” 1 Corinthians 10 : 4 , not on a mortal man named Peter , who later denied Jesus three times . If He established His church on Peter , Jesus would have said , “ I will build my church on you ”. Peter called Jesus the Chief Cornerstone ( 1 Peter 2 : 6 , 7 ) Very clearly , Jesus did not delegate the headship of the church on any of the apostles but rather sent them on a mission to evangelize the world . It is written , “ 18 And Jesus came and spoke to them , saying , “ All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth . 19 Go therefore [ a ] and make disciples of all the nations , baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit , 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you ; and lo , I am with you always , even to the end of the age .” Amen .[ b ]
We again continue with the Statement of Beliefs of your friends , the Seventhday Adventist Church on the CHURCH .
“ While we must personally accept the salvation that God offers in Christ , once we become Christians we are
know and experience
Him .
Often , the problem is that we do not give Him that chance . Take note how Peter babbled right away that he wanted to build three tents at the mountain of the Transfiguration . Again , that ’ s the problem with most of us . We react right away , and do things in haste when all that God is asking of us is that we listen to Him . “ This is my beloved Son , with whom I am well pleased . Listen to Him .” Yes , let us listen to God more , listen to Him well , and listen to Him again and again amid everything that is happening in our country , and in the world .
Is the Lord pleased with me and the life I am living ? This is the question we all should ask ourselves , especially in this Lenten season . We are so engrossed in pleasing ourselves or pleasing others . Many of us
no longer alone . As members of Christ ’ s body , the church ( Ephesians 1 : 23 ) we now have a collective identity . Just as we were once “ in Adam ” condemned to death , we are now in Christ , sharing His life ( 1 Corinthians 15 : 22 ). God has always had a people on earth whom He called and set apart from the rebellious world . In ancient times the community of God ’ s people was the descendants of Israel , and it was through them that His grace was manifested ( Acts 7 : 38 ). In the New Testament times the church fulfilled this purpose . The church is a community , a family , a fraternity . Its Head is Christ , and its members are men and women who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Saviour ( Acts 2 : 47 ). “ Consequently , you are no longer foreigners and aliens , but fellow citizens with God ’ s people and members of God ’ s household , built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets , with Christ Jesus as the chief Cornerstone .( Ephesians 2 : 19 , 20 ).
THE CHURCH AND SALVATION
“ While it is important to be a member of the church , in itself church membership is no guarantee that we belong to God . He scrutinizes the thoughts of the heart and know those who are truly His as opposed to those who merely make a profession of His name . All true believers are a part of “ His whole family in heaven and on earth ” Ephesians3 : 15 ), the church universal that is as much invisible as it is visible ( Hebrews 12 : 18-24 ). The church of God has many purposes . First of all , it is a community that praises Him . It confesses that Jesus Christ as Lord of Heaven and earth , our Creator , Sustainer , and Saviour . Church members meet together to take spiritual nourishment from the Word , sharing with each other , building each other up , “ spurring one another on toward love and good deeds ” Hebrews 10 : 24 . The church gathers together to celebrate the Lord ’ s Supper , the memorial of Christ ’ s death on our behalf , and the anticipation of His second coming . The church exists to serve the world , to go to the ends of the world with the good news of salvation in Christ , making disciples of all nations ( Matthew 28 : 18- 20 ). The church ’ s mission is to continue the love , healing
Transfiguration moments
spend our whole lifetime pursuing our personal worldly agenda or seeking worldly approval , even to the point of giving up our principles , values , and our very souls . We have a God to serve , we have a mission to do , and we have a final destination : heaven .
“ Rise , and do not be afraid .” How consoling , how assuring , to listen to this message from Jesus . Any one of us who has stumbled , or experienced failure , pain , persecution , and oppression must hold on to the Lord . Fear is useless . What is needed is trust . Remember that the evil one is the master sower of fear . He is also the great accuser . Let us not be intimidated or stifled by fears and accusations . Go back to the constant message of the Psalms : “ The Lord is my light and my help ; whom shall I fear ? The Lord is the stronghold of my life ; before whom shall I shrink ?” ( Psalm
27 , 1 )
We believe in transfiguration , not elimination . God gives each one of us a chance to grow , to change , and to become better persons . Please remember that if God were to deal with each of us as we deserve , then none of us would survive .
Sharing with you this beautiful reminder from the prophet Nehemiah : “ This day is holy to our Lord . Do not be grieved ; Don ’ t be sad because the joy you have in the Lord is your strength .” Let us not be burdened by trials , disappointments , and fears . Let the “ flash ” of the Transfiguration help us to be strong , to be hopeful , and to move forward .
In this Lenten season , let us find some quiet time to be closer to the Lord . Have you really experienced Him as a loving Father — gentle , understanding , and forgiving ? Pray to the Lord to reveal and salvation that began with Jesus .
AUTHORITY OF THE CHURCH
“ Since Christ is the Head of the church , it has special a special authority ( Matthew 16 ; 13-20 ; John 20 : 21 , 22 ). It speaks on Christ ’ s behalf , telling the world about His will and challenging all human beings and reasoning with all concerning “ rIghteousness , self-control and the judgment to come ”( Acts 24 : 25 ). While it is true that in ages past church authority was used to commit major injustice , it is equally serious error to refuse to respect its authority altogether . Underlying church authority is the Bible , which God has given to build up the church . We have the example of people like Ananias and Sapphira to warn us against treatIng lightly anything that pertains to the church and its authority ( Acts 5 : 1-11 )
“ T h e r e f o r e , membership in the church is both a great privilege and a solemn responsibility . In the church we feel at ease , for there we raise our voices to God ; we are warned by His Word ; we gain our sense of identity in fellowship with His people ; we gather around His
CONT NEXT PAGE
Himself to you in a more personal way . And be assured : If God touched you once , He will touch you again and again in His own time , according to His will and grace .
Let us also offer prayers and sacrifices this Lent for our loved ones who need healing , transfiguration , and conversion , and even and especially for our enemies , and those who hate and persecute us . Prayers and sacrifices are powerful , and they work .
Think about this : “ Let the washing machine remind us that trials in life twist , spin , and knock us around , but in the end , we come out cleaner , brighter , and better than before .”
A moment with the Lord :
Lord , thank You for not giving up on us . Help us not to give up on one another . Amen .
WWW . PHILIPPINEASIANNEWSTODAY . COM