Philippine Asian News Today Vol 19 No7 | Page 24

Wisdom from the Word
24 RELIGIOUS PHILIPPINE ASIAN NEWS TODAY April 1 - 15 , 2017
Wisdom from the Word
Ben Berto

This we Believe Absolutely- The Remnant and its Mission 2

Then I saw another angel Rev . 8:13flying in the midst of heaven , Eph . 3:9having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth — Rev . 13:7to every nation , tribe , tongue , and people — 7saying with a loud voice , Rev . 11:18 “ Fear God and give glory to Him , for the hour of His judgment has come ; Neh . 9:6and worship Him who made heaven and earth , the sea and springs of water .”
R e v e l a t i o n
14 : 6 , 7 NKJV
HAPPY EASTER TO EVERYONE ! Aren ’ t we glad that there is a resurrection and that Jesus became the First Born from the dead ? Jesus broke the bonds of death and cancelled the eternal funeral for all the saved . Without the birth , death , resurrection and ascension of Jesus back to heaven of the Messiah , we will have no hope and our faith will all be in vain . Thank God he loves us so much !
In the 1840s a Baptist ex-Army captain , William
Miller , started preaching the Good News that “ Jesus is coming soon ”, in the eastern United States . He based his message in the 14th chapter of Revelation about the three angels ’ messages and of course , John 14 : 1-3 . From east to west , north and south , William Miller preached the Good News in America . In the Southern hemisphere , a Catholic priest named Father Lacunza started preaching the same message and many thousands heard about the imminence of Jesus ’ coming back again . This time he will come tin glory to claim all the saints on earth , the living and the dead . All the dead on earth who are saved will be resurrected and join the living on a journey to heaven for a thousand year-vacation . Many people from all walks of life and denomination believed on the Word . We continue with the Statement of Beliefs .
THE REMNANT ’ S MESSAGE
“ At the heart of the
remnant ’ s message is the eternal Gospel . God has always had only one way for men and women to be saved : faith in His gift made available through Jesus Christ . Those who are chosen will lift high the cross of Christ so every one can see it and live ( John 3 : 14- 18 ). The distinctive nature of the three angels ’ messages – calling attention to the widespread apostasy against the law of God , the beginning of the judgment , and the imminence of the end- is what gives the proclamation of the gospel its singular urgency and power today .
The remnant is a prophetic reaping movement . God has faithful believers all over the world , members of many denominations and religions . Under the pressure of earth ’ s final events , the central issues in the conflict between Christ and Satan will be seen more clearly , and the dividing
line between the followers of each one will become more and more apparent . As a result , the remnant will become a nucleus around which God ’ s true people from all parts of the world will gather < Revelation 18 : 1-4 . By the time of Christ ’ s second coming the world be divided in just two groups .
EVERY BELIEVER IS A MESSENGER
“ In these final days of earth ’ s history , every believer is called to become a part of God ’ s remnant people . Each one is called to assume the privileges and responsibilities of God ’ s end-time church in the world . Above all else , these people will exalt Jesus Christ and His work of salvation , demonstrating through a living faith that they have accepted their salvation . They will present to men and women every where the validity of God ’ s law-so despised by modern society — and their duty to keep it . By word and deed they will bear witness to the
approaching end of human history , warning everyone , inviting every one , and pleading with everyone .” ********* For prayer , questions and Bible study , call Ben at 604-581-1278 , Junjun at 778-927-8040 , and Stanley at 604-700-3053 . You are invited to worship with us every Sabbath ( Saturday ) at the Abundant Life Community Seventhday Adventist Church at 13062-104 Avenue , Surrey . Welcome .
Our new shepherd , Pastor Leomar Macaraig also takes care of the Vancouver Filipino and Burnaby FilCan SDA churches . His phone number is ; 604-928-3579 . Every Friday , we have a Bible Stud with the Pastor . Everybody is welcome to attend , whether you are a Seventh-day Adventist or not . The Word of God is for everyone . Our address is 9495- 132 Street , Surrey .

Moments

Fr , Jerry M . Orbos , SVD

The Lord ’ s way

No joke today . It ’ s the Holy Week . The first Holy Week was full of pain , suffering , betrayal , and abandonment . But there is a story to be told — the story about a God who loved us so much that He sent His only Son to suffer and die for us and for our salvation .
In today ’ s Gospel ( Mt . 27 , 11-54 ), we hear the narration of the Lord ’ s Passion . The last hours of Jesus ’ life on earth were painful and ugly , but so full of love for you and me . Whatever prayer , penance , or good works we do this week , let ’ s do them out of personal gratitude for God ’ s tremendous love for each one of us .
“ Let it go .” Holy Week is that special time of the year when we let go , and let God . Let us look into our hearts and identify the “ baggage ” that we should just let go of — whether hatred , anger , an unforgiving attitude ,
pride , selfishness , and bad habits that imprison and cripple us . Make that good confession . Take the road of peace and reconciliation .
Please remember that the Holy Week is not so much about feeling good about ourselves as doing good for others . Piety should lead us to generosity . Let us take the road of sharing our time , talents and treasures , and let us do so with joy , humility and sincerity .
“ If your spirituality has not changed your character , then it has not done much for your soul .” I don ’ t remember now who said this , but the lesson is clear : Our “ closeness ” to God should make us better persons , in all aspects . Amen !
Humility is the key . In this Holy Week , let us all take time to bow our heads and kneel before God and acknowledge Him as our
Creator , our God , and our Father . We are not gods , and no one of us should play god or pretend to be God . Let God be God , and let man be man . Man , be not proud .
Humility is also the key to many of our relationship problems . Let us reach out to one another , and take time to mend and renew our relationships . A good place to start is in our homes , in our families , in our circle of friends . And let that small circle become a big , and bigger , circle .
If we were to look at our country from the point of view of the Holy Week , where are we now ? Are we on Good Friday still , or Easter Sunday already ? Are we still on the Way of the Cross , or on the Road to Emmaus ? More than ever , let us be prayerful and vigilant . And let us always be involved . It is our country . It
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is the only one we ’ ve got .
How little we are , and how fragile life is ! This was my thought after we felt the earthquake in Batangas last April 4 at about nine in the evening . In moments like those when we were so helpless , and we could not even flee , all we could really do was pray . In this Holy Week , let us reflect on our mortality . We all will leave this world someday , sooner or later , and the question we should be asking is : Who am I , and what have I done ?
My uncle , Ben Muñoz , older brother of my Mama , turned 100 years old last April 6 . Praise God ! Who gets to be a hundred ? How does one get to be a hundred ? My cousin , Dr . Tante Muñoz , made the following computation on 100 years : 36,525 days , 876,600 hours , 52,596,020 minutes .
But that ’ s just the mathematics of it . The other significant part is what we make out of it .
Congratulations , Uncle Ben ! And , thank you , for the love and the inspiration .
Think about this : “ Age is merely the number of years that this world has been enjoying you .” This is a good thought , and a good challenge for all of us to live well . Otherwise , the saying could be : “ Age is merely the number of years that this world has been tolerating you .”
Inviting you to watch our TV Lenten specials to be shown over Channel 2 ( 4 p . m . -5 p . m .): Holy Thursday , “ Fully Alive for Others ,” and Good Friday , “ New Life .”
A moment with the Lord : Lord , teach us to live worthwhile , meaningful and holy lives . Amen . ( inquirer . net )