JRM Sison Chapter - October 25, 2009

The Philippines (on October 2009) has been devastated by two typhoons; ‘Ondoy’ (hit Central Luzon) and ‘Pepeng’ (hit Northern Luzon). The storms took the Filipinos by surprise. For the first time in history did Metro Manila experienced the worst flood; the streets became like rivers; cars had been tossed like toys by the raging flood; houses had been filled with mud; many lives were lost. Even Northern Luzon was hit hard by typhoon ‘Pepeng’. It forced the dams to open their gates to avoid a catastrophe that will drown many towns if the dams break. But ‘Pepeng’ was unrelentless and continued to pour its anger over Northern Luzon; towns were submerged in flood; houses were washed out and vehicles flooded by the raging waters from the rivers; many lives were lost; landslides claimed many lives and properties; agricultural properties were destroyed; millions of pesos were lost.

Then, the Filipinos became aware of the threat that a storm could bring. When typhoon ‘Ramil’ entered the Philippine area, Filipinos acted. They haven’t taken the previous typhoons seriously but now they are not taking any chances. Provinces that will be affected by the coming storm prepared for the worst; relief goods were given in advance; rubberboats and other lifesaving materials were provided; medicines were distributed; early warning device system were established. Truly that it takes a disaster for man to listen; it takes a catastrophe for man to act.

The Second Coming of Jesus Christ

The Holy Scriptures state the Second Coming of Christ. Even Jesus identified and described His Second Coming and the End Times. But Christians are taking it lightly. They are not taking it seriously. I believe that typhoons like ‘Ondoy’ and ‘Pepeng’ could be a great wake-up call for every Christians.

Are You Ready?

Ever lost a loved one? It is a very painful experience to lose someone you love. If you love someone and lose that person, a very discomforting feeling will start to embrace you. The disciples in the New Testament lost someone they love, someone that was very dear to them, someone very important, and this someone was Jesus Christ. But they were not in sorrow. Instead, you can read in Luke 24:51-53, “⁵¹ And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he was parted from them, and carried up into heaven. ⁵² And they worshipped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy: ⁵³ And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. Amen.” They were rejoicing! It is the complete opposite of what we normally feel when losing someone we love. What was the reason they were rejoicing? Acts 1:11 states that there were two men that stood with the disciples and said, “Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.” They were given a promise that Christ will come again! They were comforted with these words and came back to Jerusalem and started a great revival! Jews and Gentiles started to believe in Jesus Christ. It was because of the promise of the Second Coming of Christ that made the disciples eager and with zeal to proclaim the gospel; “Christ has come; Christ has died; Christ has risen; Christ will come again!”

What is Your Stand?

As a Christian, do you believe in the Second Coming of Christ? If you do believe then do you have the faith that the Second Coming of Christ is true? Many Christians today believe in God’s words but does not trust in them. Other Christians do not even believe that the Bible is inerrant and infallible (without error and without fault). If you can’t believe on a perfect Bible, why trust God’s words? Better yet, why are called a Christian? If you can’t accept the truthfulness of the Bible (King James Version, that is), then you can’t possibly love Jesus. Revelation 19:13 and 16 reveals that Jesus is the Word of God. John 14:23 states that if we love Jesus, we must keep His words. Thus, I ask, what is your stand on the Second Coming of Christ Jesus? Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. Rev 16:15. This verse teaches a Christian two things; to be watchful and to keep one’s garments.

Watch Always

The event at Gethsemane is an example on how to watch always. Jesus, while praying in Gethsemane, knew that His time has come. And when He came to His disciples, He found them sleeping. He woke them up and said, “Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. Mark 14:38” The disciples knew about the betrayal and the coming death of Jesus but they did not know when.

Jesus commands in Mark 14:38 can be divided into three:
     ·     Watch - eyes and ears
     ·     Pray - spirit
     ·     Physically-equipped (Readiness) - mind and body
Therefore, being watchful is not only about one’s spirit but also one’s body. Even if you are spiritually disciplined yet physically weak, you can never be watchful. To watch involve two things
     ·     Spirit
     ·     Body

It is not enough to pray if you cannot play; meaning one has to act according to one’s prayer of faith. If you won’t act, the Lord might say to you, “Your prayer is good but I need acts!” James 2:26 explains it best, “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.”

Keepeth his Garments

What amazes me when God drove Adam and Eve out of the Garden of Eden was that He made them clothes of skin for their garments (Gen. 3:21-24). Where did God take the animal skins? I believe that the skins used were the skins of a lamb (sheep). This symbolizes that as man, we are sinners, but through the sacrifice of the Lamb of God (Jesus Christ) we have been redeemed. And through the wearing of the cloth that is Jesus Christ, our nakedness (sinful nature) will be covered, making us ‘the light of the world’. It is not our sins that will be covered but our sinful nature, making us act the way God wanted us to act.

Thus, as Christians, we must always wear the cloth that is Jesus Christ so that our nakedness would not trigger the wickedness of man.

One perfect example would be on the field of basketball: to be able to identify one team from another, they must wear a uniform (called a ‘jersey’) that is unique for each team. Thus, the Laker’s Team can be identified from the Bull’s Team. Their jerseys made them unique from any other teams.

As Christians, we wear our own jerseys. 1 Peter 5:5 states that we be clothed with humility. Thus, wearing a Christian jersey doesn’t only make us unique from the world but also clothed us with humility.

Wearing a Christian jersey means that we have God’s word with us; to be able to have God’s word, we must know God’s word. And through knowing God’s word, we can proudly wear God’s jersey (read 2 Timothy 2:15 and John 8:32).

Keeping His Words

When Jesus had said “keep my words” in John 14:23, three things come in mind:
     ·     Safekeeping - “ITAGO”
     ·     Caring - “INGATAN”
     ·     Defending - “ALAGAAN”

Thus, Jesus is telling us that he that keepeth His words must do the following:
     ·     SECURE - Every Christian must secure for himself the perfect word of God, preserved in the very form of the King James Bible. Without His infallible and inerrant Book, we will be at a loss. It is the responsibility of every Christian to secure the Word of God.
     ·     STUDY - After securing God’s perfect words, it is the duty of every Christian to study God’s words. 2 Tim 2:15 states, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” We need to study to know more about His Son, Jesus Christ, and to know the promises that God has given us through His only begotten Son. We need to study to be equipped in the defense of God’s word and to teach what is necessary according to the situation that will arise.
     ·     SHIELD (DEFEND) - After studying God’s perfect words, we must be able to defend His words: Defense that will create good relationship and not chaos: Defense that will enhance the understanding of both parties about the true words of God. Defense is not about humiliation but is about meekness or humility with authority. Prov 26:4-5 state, “⁴ Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest thou also be like unto him. ⁵ Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own conceit.” Defense is answering with humility and not with vengeance and hatred. Defense is done with love and understanding.