Nieto Bible Page

  A Theology of Weeds I pulled weeds this morning and I was thinking: 1. Sin is like weeds. You don't plant weeds but they grow, and fast. Similarly you don't plant sins in a child's heart, and yet they grow and fast because they have propensity for it.  2. Weeds take the nutrients away from the plants. Instead of the plants taking the nutrients for their growth, the weeds compete for them and used it to grow themselves. Similarly sin took valuable time away from God, Eph 5:16 and use this time to propagate itself until the whole man is choke out by sin and die (spiritually lost his vibrancy or even literally die physically). This does not take eternal life away but does take enjoyment of it. Matt 13:22 3. Sometimes in pulling weeds, I pulled some plants with them because the weeds' fibrous root system interlocked with the plants'. This reminds me of the grace of God in leaving the tares and wheat together in this inter-advent age. I would have been worried that if ...

  Sometimes believers suffer to accelerate spiritual growth. Any weight lifter will tell you that weight lifting destroy muscles and when they repair they make themselves bigger and thicker than before to adapt to the stressors that destroy them in the first place. Without subjecting these muscles to muscle destroying workouts, they will not grow! Same thing with suffering- suffering allowed us to grow. When we are in the midst of adversity, this is our chance to use the doctrines we learn and apply to the situation. This will cause us to be closer to God as we rely on His provisions in our situation. Without suffering, we tend to be flabby spiritually as there is no resistance to stimulate growth. In Judges, prosperity causes Israel to turn away from God. God gave them to their enemies and before long they turn back to Him. Why? Because suffering reminds us we are not in control and we need Another to help us. Same thing with the early church. It is the persecution of the early Ch...

  Sometimes suffering is to demonstrate the power of God by demonstrating His ability to provide in grace in the midst of suffering. Paul suffered a thorn in the flesh. Some think it is his eye disease or some other physical ailments (pretty sure being beaten, stoned, or deprived while in prison will damage your health); others think a demon is literally bothering him. Whatever the cause for his suffering, God's refusal to alleviate the suffering taught Paul God's sufficient grace: 2 Corinthians 12:8-10 [8]Concerning this I implored the Lord three times that it might leave me. [9]And He has said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness." Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. [10]Therefore I am well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. It is while h...

  Other times God allowed us to suffer so having experienced what it means to suffer we can comfort someone else in the same situation. After all who can better comfort a widow than someone who herself experienced to lose a husband and experienced God's promise to be the God of orphans, widows and the poor in her own life? Our experiences with suffering allow us to share in another man's suffering.  2 Corinthians 1:3-6 [3]Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, [4]who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. [5]For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. [6]But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings w...

Another reason believers suffer is because of divine discipline. Heb 12:1-15. Just like any Father God called His sons' attention when they are violating His instructions. These can come in the form of painful experiences which can include physical death. In Ps 38 we have a record of the painful experiences of David when he sinned against the Lord by taking another man's wife and orchestrating a murder to cover it up. Until he confessed his sins to God, David is suffering. The God-given solution when things like these happen is to confess the sin and move on.  At times we suffer for the glory of God. Addressing Jacob, Israel and Judah,  Isaiah 48:9-11 [9]"For the sake of My name I delay My wrath, And for My praise I restrain it for you, In order not to cut you off. [10]"Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. [11]"For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be profaned? And My glory I wi...

  Many people believe because of pandemic, of wars brewing everywhere, of increased earthquakes and of the suffering in general that Matthew 24 is now being fulfilled. But a comparison of Matt 24 with Rev 6 (see BKC-Revelation) shows that if Rev isn't happening, neither is Matt 24. We are yet to see The Great Pretender on a white horse carrying a bow with no arrows. The only tribulation I am aware of that is being fulfilled in Matthew 24 is the loads of laundry I have to do every week and even now I have hope that if it does not rain, my clothes will finally dry (after 2 days of being hung, uggh). This definitely does not sound like,  Matthew 24:21 [21]For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. Though I will argue pretty close to it. Maybe laundry is the "little tribulation" and just a preparation for the "great tribulation." After all if endurance is the qualification to be phy...

  Acts 19:2 [2]He said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" And they said to him, "No, we have not even heard whether there is a Holy Spirit." Whether you hold that these are OT believers being incorporated into the Body of Christ or unbelieving disciples of John who believe in the need to repent and be baptized but did not know the Person they're supposed to believe in due to one thing or another (Acts 19:4), the fact remains that these disciples are ignorant of the Spirit. Whether they mean they did not know the Holy Spirit exist or they knew Him but never heard of the outpouring in Acts 2,8 and 10, the fact remains the same: the Holy Spirit is The Forgotten God of the Bible. Most of us have no problems calling The Father as God; many believe Jesus is God (I certainly do) yet more people believe The Spirit is not a Person but a mere influence or power. That is unfortunate since both OT and NT showed a very busy God working on behalf of...

  Filipos 1:3 Ako'y nagpapasalamat sa aking Dios, sa tuwing kayo'y aking naaalaala, 4 Na parating sa bawa't daing ko, ay masayang nananaing ako na patungkol sa inyong lahat, 5 Dahil sa inyong pakikisama sa pagpapalaganap ng evangelio, mula nang unang araw hanggang ngayon; 6 Na ako'y may lubos na pagkakatiwala sa bagay na ito, na ang nagpasimula sa inyo ng mabuting gawa, ay lulubusin hanggang sa araw ni Jesucristo.  Matapos ang pagbati ni Pablo, siya ay nanalangin para sa Diyos para sa mga taga-Filipos. May nakapansin na ang lahat ng epistula ni Pablo ay nagtataglay ng panalangin sa unahan, maliban sa Galatia at Tito, kung saan kinompronta ni Pablo ang legalismo sa Galatia at Creta. Isa sa mahalagang gawain ng isang ministro ay ang regular na ipanalangin ang kaniyang kongregasyon. Ang pananalangin para sa kongregasyon ay pagpapakita ng pagmamahal.  Una sa lahat ay nagpasalamat siya sa Diyos Ama. Tinawag niya itong "aking Diyos," hindi dahil sa iba ang Diyos niy...

  Another reason we suffer is a result of our own decisions. The law of volitional responsibility states that you sow what you reap, Gal 6:7. See also Hos 8:7 and Prov 30:33. Sometimes when we are in a mess we think it is because God is angry with us or we are attacked by Satan when it is simply a case of bad decisions. God respects free will and if you destroy yourself, He allowed it not because He wanted to see you destroyed but because your actions lead you to ruin. Satan wouldn't even bother destroying you when you are doing a good job destroying yourself. The book of Proverbs is all about acquiring wisdom so you can skillfully live a life that does not lead to death but prosperity. And that prosperity is not only material prosperity.  Because other people have free wills too, another reason we also suffer is because of other people. When we interact with others it is inevitable that conflict will happen as one personality rubbed against another personality. This specially...

  I feel that Romans are being brutalized as isolated passages in Romans are used to defend a works-based (grace-infused or otherwise) salvation. I find it weird, since if there are any epistles that clearly defend a justification salvation by grace through faith apart from works, it would be Romans and Galatians. So I thought I will post this. The theme of Romans is the righteousness of God. Romans discussed how to get it (imputation as a result of faith in Christ, Rm 1-5), how to walk in righteousness after post salvation (sanctification, Romans 6-8) and how that righteousness guaranteed ultimate glorification (Romans 8:16-30). Here is a proposed understanding of Romans and how it developed the idea of salvation. 1. Salutation, Romans 1:1-14 2. Theme introduced: Romans 1:15-17,  Romans 1:16-17 [16]For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. [17]For in it the righteousness of Go...