Posts

Maybe in the millennium

By
Image
  Minsan nakikita ko sa Facebook ang aking mga friends na nagtatravel sa magagandang lugar o kumakain sa magagarbong restoran. I will admit nawish kong sanaol. But the truth is maraming bagay na nais kong gawin ngunit hindi ko magawa. Laging may priorities. Laging may hadlang. Trabaho. Pamilya. Church. Kaya minsan sinasabi ko sa misis ko, “Someday.” Kapag nakatapos na ang mga bata. Kapag nabayaran na ang mga utang. Maybe sa Millennium . Yes, I believe in a future earthly kingdom kung saan maghahari si Cristo for a thousand years in righteousness. And after that one thousand years, and a short rebellion by Satan and his Gog and Magog Army, that kingdom will merge with the eternal state . Dahil diyan, hindi ako nagmamadali. I can delay any gratification for the hope of that future. Mas interested akong maging overcomer ngayon kaysa ubusin ang aking buhay sa layaw. As a believer in Christ, I have eternal life that cannot be lost. I can afford to wait sixty or seventy years (o...
Post a Comment
Read more

Keep it so simple

By
Image
  I have heard so many presentations of the salvation message and some are clear and some aren’t. Ang simpleng kundisyon upang magkaroon ng buhay na walang hanggan ay pananampalataya kay Cristo . Ngunit kung pakikinggan mo ang mensahe ng karamihan, kung saan-saan nakakaabot ang mensahe. May narinig akong kailangan mong magsisi . May nagsabing kailangan mong bumalik sa Panginoon (how exactly can you do that?). May nagsabing kailangan mong magbagong buhay. May nagsabing dapat mong tanggapin si Jesus bilang personal na Tagapagligtas at Panginoon . Bakit hindi na lang tayo manatili sa lenggwahe ng Kasulatan ? Ang nag-iisang kundisyong sinasabi ng Kasulatan ay manampalataya kay Cristo. For some reason, hindi nasasapatan dito ang mga tao at kailangang magdagdag ng iba pang kundisyon o kaya ay baguhin ang kundisyon ng kaligtasan. Keep it simple. Ang object ng kaligtasan ay si Cristo. Ang kundisyon ay manampalataya. Huwag na nating baguhin o pahirapin o palabuin ang kundisyon ng kaligt...
Post a Comment
Read more

Performative preachers

By
Image
  Gusto nilang laging may hawak na mikropono kahit wala namang sinasabi. Gusto nilang laging nasa sentro ng atensiyon. Gusto nila ang pagkilala ng madla. They dressed different, they talk holy and they act a certain way. Welcome to the world of performative preachers . Sino ang mga performative preachers? Sila ang mga mangangaral na excited magturo ngunit kulang sa aral. Hindi pinag-aralan nang malalim ang Kasulatan ngunit very dogmatic sa kanilang pronouncements. Walang humility ngunit arogante sa kanilang pagpapahayag. Makikita mo ang mga ito sa haba ng strings of Dos and Donts. Why not? Mas madali ang mag-display ng panlabas na kabanalan kaysa sa panloob na pagbabago. Through a series of dos and donts, they are trying to change the spotts of the leopard (plus point ang nakakaalam ng reference na ito). Sa halip na magbigay ng tutok at sistematikong oras sa pag-aaral ng Biblia at hayaan itong baguhin, una sa loob, bago ang panlabas, masaya na silang mamulot ng mga outlines mu...
Post a Comment
Read more

Do not let the world make you cruel

By
Image
  The world is cruel to the weak. And it is natural to get even. Don’t let that happen to you. If you do, you become the very person that abuses you. Wala ka nang pinagkaiba sa kanila. The oppressed is now the oppressor. Alam ng Diyos na napakalaki ng temptation to avenge. That is why He said, “Vengeance is mine.” Ayaw Niyang tumigas ang ating puso sa poot and miss the blessings of developing healthy relationships. Kapag pinatigas natin ang ating puso, nakakaiwas tayo sa pain. But it also means we miss the joy of developing genuine relationship with others. Love carries with it vulnerability. To love is to risk pain. And when we’re hurt, pain can drive us to want to get even. To be cruel. That will destroy our capacity for life and love. Leave justice to where it belongs. Huwag nating ilagay ang hustisya sa ating mga kamay. Yes we will feel good for a moment. We will feel powerful. But in the end it will destroy us. Vengeance has a way of changing us for the worse. Wala ako...
Post a Comment
Read more

Gracious in speech

By
Image
  Putok sa FB feed ko si Alvin at Izzy. And honestly hindi nakatutuwa. Matutuwa sana akong may Kristiyanong viral dahil sa pagpaliwanag ng mensahe ng buhay. Kaso ang nakikita ko ay pagtuya. And in fairness may basis ang pagtuya.  Now let me clarify that I am with Alvin on the issue of transgenderism , purity culture and sexuality. Natutuwa akong laban siya sa mga sumisira ng Biblical view of sex and gender. Pero I will be honest, and I am sure maraming agree, off-putting at very arrogant ang kaniyang arrive.  May paraan upang ibahagi ang turo ng Biblia sa mga paksang ito nang hindi arogante ang dating. I mean nagagawa ito ng Focus on the Family , at ibang pro-family organizations. Let's face it: truth hurts. No matter how gracious we are in sharing the Word of God, people will be offended for they reject God's Word. Mas nais ng tao ang mga ideya at pagpapahalaga ng sanlibutan.  So we should expect to be persecuted for our beliefs .  And that is my point. It is...
Post a Comment
Read more

Kapag mali, bitawan mo na

By
Image
  Kapag mali, bitawan mo na. Hindi katapangan o katapatan ang patuloy na manghawak sa mali.  Sometimes we can be stubborn. Kahit pinakita na kung saan tayo nagkamali, ayaw nating bumitaw. For some reason we become attached to our mistakes. Iniisip nating masyado na tayong baon, malalim na at malaki ang ating taya, panindigan na. Sasabihin pang, "Bahala na. Nagkasubuan na eh." O kaya, "Huli na ang lahat. Diyos na bahala." Aba dinamay pa ang Diyos.  Eto ang katotohanan: lahat tayo ay nagkakamali at kung tayo ay buhay pa, may pagkakaroon pang magbago at magsimulang muli.  There is no reason to become a victim of our past or wrong decisions. Wala naman siguro tayong Stockholm's syndrome .  May mga inabusong kahit nilayo na ay bumabalik pa rin. Parte rito ay mababang self-esteem . Iniisip na wala nang tatanggap pa sa kaniya. Another is the feeling of helplessness na walang options. Much better ang maling pamilyar kaysa nagsimula ng bagong buhay on uncharted territor...
Post a Comment
Read more

What is truth to you may not be truth for me

By
Image
  What is truth to you may not be truth for me.  Uso ang kasabihang iyan. Now I wonder if this statement is true for me o sa nagsabi lang.  This is relativity and I am pretty sure ang nagsabi nito ay hindi seryoso rito. Nobody can consistently live this statement. Imagine sinerohan ko ang student dahil sa maling solusyon sa problem and then sabihan niya akong the solution may be wrong for you but for me perfect iyan? Or bayaran mo ng kulang ang iyong tax and sabihin mong maaaring kulang sa iyo pero sakto iyan para sa akin.  These examples may sound absurd and because they are.  When it comes to what is truth and what is moral, we need a standard. It cannot be human standard dahil hindi tayo magkakasundo kung sino sa ating mga humans ang dapat gawing standard. We are selfish enough to make ourselves the measure of all things but deny the same to our neighbors.  What we need is God's standard and that standard is the Bible . If we wanted to know God's stand...
Post a Comment
Read more

Why not? What's the issue?

By
Image
  I am not sure why this becomes a big deal though I have my suspicion. Maraming taong nagtagumpay sa buhay (tumubo sa negosyo, nakapasa sa board exam, nanalo ng acting awards, etc) ang regular na in-ascribe sa Panginoon ang kanilang tagumpay pero walang nagtaas ng kilay kung paano sila tinulungan ng Panginoon.  My suspicion is hindi gusto ng mga critics kung anuman ang "sinabi" ng Panginoon. Sa kulturang hindi marunong makipagdayalogo, ang tanging alam gawin ay cancellation.  This is immaturity.  Now to be clear, hindi ako pabor sa metodo ni Alvin Aragon . In a previous blog I write on " Making enemies for the sake of making enemies " (see here: https://nietobiblepage.blogspot.com/2026/02/making-enemies-for-sake-of-making.html) . In my opinion there is more gracious way of sharing God's Word. And in my opinion we have to make a careful distinction between what the Bible actually says and what we think it says (yes I believe wearing bra is an area of freedom, ni...
Post a Comment
Read more

Makikiraan

By
Image
  Sa dami ng problema, kalamidad at kriminalidad sa mundong ito, I am glad that this is not our home. We're just oassing through.  Biro nga lagi sa ating mga Kingdom Now friends, if this is the kingdom, I must be in the slum area.  The Bible says we're aliens and pilgrims. Our citizenship is in heaven. We're just foreigners on our way to our true home. So it doesn't make sense to love this world. That is treason since our true home is at war (a spiritual war ) with this world.  Time will come when this world will be cleansed by God and claimed by Christ for His own, but that is not today.  Today we live as sojourners.  This world will hate us. The present ruler of the age is trying to stop us from reaching our full potential as God's sons. Don't let him stop you for reaching Christ-likeness .  If you read your Bibles, you know the good news: a new world is coming where righteousness and love will be the spirit of the age- eternal age.  Manatiling...
Post a Comment
Read more

Maaari bang maging Cristiano ang isang homosexual?

By
Image
  My answer to this question will not please everyone. Some believers will think that I am not Christian enough and unbelievers will think I am heavy handed. I will write my conviction though.  Diretsong tanong: Maaari bang magkaroon ng buhay na walang hanggan ang isang homosexual? Diretsong sagot: Oo. Ayon sa Juan 3:16 , Gawa 16:31 , at marami pang pasahe, ang nag-iisang kundisyon upang magkaroon ng buhay na walang hanggan ay ang manampalataya kay Cristo. Hindi sinabing kailangan mong tumigil sa pagiging homosexual o dapat ka munang maging straight. Ang sinabi ay ang nanampalataya ay may buhay na walang hanggan.  Samakatuwid ang sinumang manampalataya kay Cristo, homosexual man o heterosexual, ay may buhay na walang hanggan.  I think malinaw ito sa marami.  Ito ang sunod na tanong: Kung ang mananampalataya kay Cristo ay manatili sa kaniyang kabaklaan, nawawala ba ang kaniyang kaligtasan? Sagot: Hindi. Once saved, always saved. Ang eternal life ay eternal. Kun...
Post a Comment
Read more