3 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God , 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift , through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus , 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood , to be received by faith . This was to show God ’ s righteousness , because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins . 26 It was to show his righteousness at the present time , so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus . Romans 3 : 23-26 ESV

Have you ever heard of Sodom and Gomorrah ? If you are a Bible reader , you may have read that God told Abraham , He was going to see with His own eyes if what He was hearing was true . It did not mean that He did not know what was going on there but for the sake of Abraham He spoke in human terms . It was told in Genesis18 : 20 , 21 , ESV “ 20 Then the LORD said , “ Because the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great and their sin is very grave , 21 I will go down to see whether they have done altogether [ a ] according to the outcry that has come to me . And if not , I will know .”.

I would like to borrow the words from the Biblical Research Institute what they said about “ SIN ”. “ When did you hear the term “ sin ” the last time ?” It is not the Canadian “ S I N ”.

“ We do not talk about sin any longer . If you make a mistake society would suggest not to admit it . You could possibly damage your feeling of selfworth or others could turn against you , some would argue . Therefore , mistakes should not be admitted . Yet we know that not everything is okay with us , and sometimes we suffer because of it .. So , let ’ s face the problem rather than run from it ” What do we know about sin ? You may have heard about the term “ Mortal sin ”. It is supposed to be a BIG SIN . There are supposed to be seven mortal sins , but we are not going to talk about them . We will concentrate about SIN .

Is sin mortal ? Yes , it is . Because of sin , Jesus died for the sins of all mankind . But He Himself did not sin . He gave us a way to escape its penalty . 1 John 3 : 8 says , “ He who sins is of the devil , for the devil has sinned from the beginning . For this purpose the Son of God was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil ”. Sin is mortal no matter how small or great , if not confessed to God and forgiven , will lead to death . The Bible is very clear about that .

What did Adam and Eve do ? All they did was to eat of the forbidden fruit . They did nothing worse than that but they DISOBEYED God . God told them not to eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil or they will die . They did not believe

God , but rather believed a lying Satan who said they would not really die but they would be like God . They did die in the end . Their eyes were opened , but they saw their nakedness , and they did not become like God .

So , What is sin ? Let the Bible tell us in the following texts . John 16:9- Sin is separation from God . It is not to believe in Jesus , 1 John 3 : 4 , -It is transgressing God ’ s commandments . John 8 : 34 , Sin is slavery . See James 4 : 17 . WHO is a sinner ? All have sinned . Romans 3 : 9-12 , 23 ; John 1:8 , Matthew 5 : 21 , 22,27 , 28 . Jesus is the only exception . He did not sin Hebrews 4 : 15 . What are the consequences of sin ? Genesis 3 : 6-9 , 4:8 , - Pain , suffering , sickness , and whatever is negative . Romans 6 : 16 , 23 Death to all for the wages of sin is death .

“ Although it is common to deny the reality of sin , it can be seen everywhere . It is manifested on a large scale in wars , “ ethnic cleansing ”, terrorism , oppression , and crimes on other nations , culture people , etc . It is also on the individual level . A telling description is found in 2 Timothy 3 : 1-5 , You can be certain that in the last days there will be some very hard times . 2 People will love only themselves and money . They will be proud , stuck-up , rude , and disobedient to their parents . They will also be ungrateful , godless , 3 heartless , and hateful . Their words

will be cruel , and they will have no self-control or pity . These people will hate everything that is good . 4 They will be sneaky , reckless , and puffed up with pride . Instead of loving God , they will love pleasure . 5 Even though they will make a show of being religious , their religion won ’ t be real . Don ’ t have anything to do with such people .”

The only solution to the sin problem is Jesus Christ alone . 2 Corinthians 5 : 21 , 1 John 2 : 1 , John 6 : 47 , 51 . 1 John 1 : 9 . “ He is faithful to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness “ Thus we have inner peace , joy , restored relationships , a good conscience and eternal life with God .

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 Seventh-day Adventist Church at 13062-104 Avenue , Surrey . Welcome .

Our new shepherd , Pastor Leomar Macaraig also takes care of the Vancouver Filipino and Burnaby Fil- Can SDA churches . His phone number is ; 604-928-3579 . Every Friday , we have a Bible Study 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 .

The story is told about a taxi driver who wanted to get rid of three drunken men who fell asleep as soon as they boarded his cab . He started the engine , and after some moments announced that they had arrived at the men ’ s destination . As he was alighting , the first man gave him money . The second man gave him a hurried pat on the back . And the third man gave him a punch , for driving too fast !

Today is Good Shepherd Sunday . In today ’ s Gospel ( Jn . 10 : 11-18 ), Jesus teaches us that a good shepherd is one who sacrifices and goes out of his way for his sheep . On the other hand , a hireling has no commitment or sacrifice for the sheep at all . We ask ourselves today : Am I a good shepherd or a hireling ? We also ask ourselves : Am I a good or a bad sheep ?

Today is also World Day of Prayer for Vocations Sunday . Let us pray for more generous men and women who are willing to answer God ’ s call to become good shepherds for His flock . The number of vocations for the priestly and religious life is dwindling . Let us continue to pray for more vocations to the priestly and religious

life .

Let us earnestly pray for priests and religious who heed the call , not for the money or for the show , but who are ready to go wherever they are sent , and who are willing to do whatever mission they are called to do . Yes , let us pray for prayerful , humble , kind and joyful servant leaders — good shepherds .

Life is a mission . Let us focus on life as a vocation , not a vacation . We are not in this world just to have a good time or to be comfortable . Let us live not only successful but also meaningful lives .

Public servants are supposed to be good shepherds , committed to serve and protect the people . Sad to say , many of them are arrogant and selfish hirelings , who serve for a fee and who give nothing for free , or if ever , calculatingly . Their life motto seems to be : “ One for you , two for me .”

Think about this : “ Everyone gives joy to this world , some when they enter , and some when they finally leave .”

“ You missed your chance .” This is

the saddest statement to hear when we finally meet our Creator . If you have been given money , power , and talents , please make sure you don ’ t waste them on yourself . Put them at the service of other people , and to give glory to God . To whom much is given , much is also required … And please , don ’ t leave behind your dirt , your trash , your mess when you leave this world .

Sharing with you “ The 5Ps for the rest of my life ” written by 77-yearold Noel Trinidad ( Inquirer Lifestyle , 4 / 15 / 18 ): 1 . I will be positive . 2 . I will be productive . 3 . I will be patient . 4 . I will be pleasant . 5 . I will be prayerful . Note that what will make our sunset years meaningful is not so much about DOING as BEING — being positive , being productive , being patient , being pleasant , and being prayerful .

Summer is here , and so is the heat . Elections , too , are here , and so are the “ trying-hards ” and the “ wannabes .” It is our choice : to elect good shepherds or hirelings . Let us choose leaders who have a strong sense of vocation , and not those who see life as one big

fun summer vacation .

Sharing with you this beautiful prayer : “ Lord , remind us that what worries us today may just be a bit of information that will not even merit a line when our life story is written . Help us to magnify You , not our concerns and problems . You are a BIG GOD , far bigger than our biggest problems . Help us to trust You more and worry less . Help us not to be afraid . Amen .”

Bantay Matanda invites you to a lay forum on “ Summer-related Diseases ” at Tuklong ni San Jose in Christ the King Seminary , E . Rodriguez Sr . Blvd ., Quezon City , on April 28 , Saturday , 9 a . m .– 12 noon . For inquiries , please call 373-22-62 / 998-25-48 / 0917- 4167849 . A moment with the Lord : Lord , remind us that life is a mission , a vocation , and not a vacation . Amen !( Inq . net )