The Good Ol’ Days – A New Year´s Perspective

It’s probably a habit for most of us that every time we approach the New Year we look back at the year that has passed by and see how we handled it.  Has 2017 been a good year to us or not?  What were the significant events that happened in 2017 that produced the most impact in our own lives?  Some people look back at the past year positively in terms of blessings and lessons learned but others, they sadly look at the past year in terms of regret, missed opportunities and problems -- that came their way. 

Looking back at the good old days may have positive or negative impact depending on your perspective in life.  To some people, looking back at the past brings back unhappy memories.   And it´s hard not to get caught up with our sad experiences in life.  We heard the saying “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, today is a gift, that´s why it´s called the present.”

Master Oogway, Kung Fu Panda  

BACKGROUND:

The Bible teaches us that King Solomon is the wisest person who has ever lived.  This is mainly because instead of asking God for riches and long life, he asked God for wisdom so he can rule His people well and God was pleased with him.  You can find this in 1st Kings Chapter 3.

So God did not only give him wisdom but he made him wealthy and powerful.  People from different kingdoms will come to him for advice like the Queen of Sheba.    This is the reason why we have books in the Old Testament like Ecclesiastes and Proverbs that is full of sound advices and wise sayings.  But just like any other person, King Solomon had a weakness.  Do you know what that is?  He was a ladies´ man.  He loves women.    Can you imagine having 700 wives? Can you imagine having 700 mothers-in-law?

King Solomon had it all in life but he had a lot of regrets in life.  In his old age when he wrote Ecclesiastes, he said “everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind.” 

Being in the ministry for more than fifteen years and as a pastor for almost nine years, I have seen church workers who started really strong and passionate in the ministry.    But over the years, they start to change.  The fire starts to dwindle down and the passion begins to fade. 

Here´s what I observed – sometimes, when their life situation changes, their commitment and attitude towards serving in the Church also changes.    Some people got married, some had babies, some got a new job, a new home, a new pastor, some moved to a different church or some even lost a loved one.  Don’t get me wrong – not everyone changes in a negative way.  There are some people who have greatly improved but I have seen a lot of people who have changed over the years or maybe, to put it bluntly – they have become less and less active in the ministry.  

When I became a pastor of our church, I met some of these people, who used to be active in the ministry and loved to talk a lot about The Good Ol’ Days.  They will always tell you about how different it was during their time, how they were more active, how ministry was more exciting and how people were more involved.  That their children did this and did that.  If we have a fundraising today, they will tell you they have raised more funds.  If we have a Children’s concert in our time, they will tell you that the Children’s concert during the time of their kids were much better.  If you talk to them about joining the Family Camp, they will tell you that camps during their time were more exciting and there´s more adventure.  You ask them to join even a simple parlor game during parties, they will tell you --- oh, we´ve been there, we´ve done that, just ask the newcomers to join.  They never stop looking back at The Good Ol’ Days and it seems like they can never move on.  

One favorite question of mine to these types of people – 

Anyare?  What happened?  How come they are no longer active? How come we don’t see their passion anymore?

Talking too much about the past, especially in a church setting can have some disadvantages.  Dwelling too much on the Good Ol’ Days sometimes produce negative effects. When these old timers get together, they love to talk about the good ol’ days, whether intentional or not, they begin to form small cliques and separate themselves especially from the new comers. Please don’t get me wrong, oftentimes there are no bad intentions,  but they don’t  realize that -- 

Dwelling on the Good Ol’ Days too much…

Either knowingly or unknowingly, dwelling too much on the Good Ol´ Days sometimes give rise to pride. And we know what pride does to a person, right? The Bible says pride goes before destruction. And just like what we learned in the Bible Study of Boanerges last night, in the book of the Prophet Micah “And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

Let us have some New Year´s Perspectives from the Scripture that we read today:

Solomon said in verse 8:

The end of a matter is better than its beginning

Pastor Ramil.  I like how you end of your sermon and not the beginning.  Church members are happier when the preacher reaches his CONCLUSION rather than the INTRODUCTION.  They want the sermon to finish.  Of course that’s not what we meant here.   We’re not saying here that the end is better than its beginning per se but rather

Lesson 1:  It is very important to finish what you have started.

I say “in most cases”  because obviously there are exceptions to this rule.  If you start “wrong”  and its obvious – you better stop it right away.  This is more applicable to our life goals or even ministry.   

Have you met someone who’s only good at starting something?  They like to initiate, they have lots of ideas, they are very passionate about something but never had the courage and the perseverance to finish it.

  

In the Philippines, we have a term for this.  It´s called “Ningas Cogon.”  “Ningas” in English means a “spark” and Cogon is like a type of dry perennial grass that is used to build houses in the old days.  Cogon can spark fire quite easily but it also easily dies down.   Ningas Cogon is a negative cultural trait of very enthusiastically starting things, but then quickly losing enthusiasm soon after.

This is very true with some of us.  How many of you here made some wonderful and promising resolutions during the new year of 2017?  Initially you were so passionate about it but after a few weeks… you’re back to your old ways.  Some of us are just good in starting.

It is so sad that we come to greet a new year and you will look back  how fast 2017 has come and gone by and all you have is regret over the things that you have fairly started quite well in the year but wasn’t able to finish.  But to be honest with you,  it’s not easy to finish what we started.  We need a strong determination and for God’s children, especially if we are talking about the ministry, we need the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit in order to finish what God called us to do.  We are simply too vulnerable, with all the temptations around us and telling us to quit, telling us that we are not good enough to follow through what we have promised the Lord to do.  

So Don´t be a Ningas Cogon

We should surrender our issues to the Lord and He will help us get through and finish what we started.  Aren´t you glad we have a God of second chances?  This New Year, He is giving us another chance to start anew and be able to do what we failed to accomplish last year. 

Solomon said in verses 8-9 ..

“and patience is better than pride. Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools.” (v.8b-9)

When speaking about patience, James used the analogy of a farmer.  He said be patient brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains.

Lesson 2:  Patience, not pride, will help us focus on finishing what we started.

In Filipino – “Pag may tiyaga, may nilagang baka.”  The opposite of this lesson in Filipino – “Ang lumalakad ng matulin, kung matinik ay malalim!”

In the world we live in today, it’s all quick and instant.  Whenever we need information – just Google it.  So technology and even social media train us to be impatient, that waiting is not good and it’s not worth our time. If we want anything, we get it now.  We want to buy something, we order online.  We have visitors, we just order Chinese food for delivery.  We want to research on something, we research in the internet.  We want to tell another person that we are angry with him… just text the poor guy and show him all kinds of special angry characters on your cell phone .

One of the most common reasons why we cannot finish what we started is PATIENCE.  We don’t have it.  Or we have very little of it.  On the other hand, some people are full of pride.  They are ashamed that they move on with their goals and if they fail, they will be the laughing stock so they will just quit early in the game.  In most cases, we need to experience struggle.

There was once a man watching a wiggling cocoon.  After an hour, he noticed a split on bottom of cocoon.  Another hour, a butterfly appeared and was able to only free half of its body.  Another hour has passed, only half was free, the butterfly kept on struggling but half of its body was still stuck in the cocoon.  So the butterfly kept on wiggling and struggling and wiggling and struggling to get out.  The man became impatient, he took a pair of scissors and freed the butterfly from the torture that was happening right before his eyes.   The butterfly got freed but never took flight, it died a few days later. Butterflies need the struggle, they need to stimulate wings and make him strong - in order to fly away, the butterfly needs to patiently struggle.

I usually here this from older people… and of course I am now one of them.  “Mabuti pa nung araw… blah blah blah”  In the good ol’ days life is much better.  Is that even true?  IN the good ol´days, 25 cents lang ang Pop Cola.  But your salary was probably 300 pesos a month.  Actually, if we can just be objective about it… life is much difficult in the olden days. What kind of toys and games do we play when we were young?  

We play makeshift and home-made toys. Tumbang Preso. Trumpo. Teks. Syato.  Luksong Baka.  Luksong Tinik.  Gagamba.

Our piggy bank is made of coconut shell.    We clean the house using coconut husk.  We make toy guns out of papaya branches.  We go to school wearing slippers.  No money.  Of course we are proud of being able to do those things.  But let me ask you something – those who are in my generation.  When we were young … do you think if there is XBOX or Ipad or Wii or Nintendo Switch during our time… do you think we would still choose to play Siyato or Trumpo?  Probably not.  We just didn’t have much choice!  Life was hard.  Not too many options for us but we need to survive and make the most of our childhood, right?

So don’t say “old days are better.”  Of course there are better things in the olden days but in general, be objective, life was much harder then.

Nowadays we have Boxing Day, we go to Tommy or Guess or Forever 21.  We buy gadgets at Best Buy and furniture at The Brick.  We´re mad because of traffic.  Ano ba to? Traffic? Well, because we have a car.  In the Old Days, not everyone has a car!

In verse 10, Solomon wrote:

Do not say, “Why were the old days better than these?”  For it is not wise to ask such questions.

Solomon is telling us… don’t dwell too much in the past.  Move on.  He knows that dwelling too much in the past is like carrying too much baggage.

Lesson 3:  Not dwelling too much about the past helps us accomplish more in the future.

Some people, even in the way they dress --- they can’t let go of the past.  They still wear clothes that probably looked good on them when they were 20 and they had a 20-inch waistline.  But now they are already 50.  Their waistline is also 50.  So give it up.  Leave the 80s.

It is not wise to dwell on the past. Think about it:

a.  Would you really want to repeat your first few months in Canada?

b.  Do you want to go through all your exams in college again?

c.  If you were sick before, do you want to go through your surgery again?

d.  If you’re a mother, do you want to give birth to five babies again?

FINAL THOUGHTS

I like how the Apostle Paul puts it in his letter to the Philippians 3:8-14.  I think these verses summarize what we have talked about.

But one thing I do:   Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead,  I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.  (Philippians 3:13b-14 NIV)

Paul used the analogy of a runner.  He knows that as a runner, looking back all the time will definitely slow him down.  He compares himself with a runner whose only goal is to win the prize set before him.

He knows that the past is like a shadow, a dark looming figure before him.  He was a persecutor of Christians.  He had participated in a lot of murders against Christians.  If he looks at his past, he will definitely be frustrated and feel that he is worth nothing.  First, he tried forgetting what is behind, he strained toward what is ahead (that’s forward looking) Then he press on (that is what he does at present).  He press on. And press on.  And press on.  He was patient. 

He wrote to Timothy --  In have fought the good fight, I have kept the faith, and I have finished the race.

We have learned last year that life is not all there is.  There is more to come.   This Earth is not our final destiny.   

Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega.  He is the beginning and the end.  He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion!

This New Year, a lot of people would like to be forward looking and make some resolutions.  I have a suggested list for WCCC Maple Ridge.

Practical Resolutions for the New Year:

Read the Bible every day and finish it in one year

Early and not be late during Sunday service

Always have a daily prayer time  

Participate and be active in a ministry this coming year 

R.E.A.P.

If we say that the Bible is God’s word, if we profess that the Bible in inerrant, if we claim that the Bible is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness --- then it will definitely be for our benefit and advantage if we READ it, right?   If we say that PRAYER is like our hotline to God, then why not do it on a more regular basis. ALWAYS have a prayer time. 

Please do you best not to be late for our Sunday Service.  It is very important. If you are a parent, you are setting a good example to your children.  If you are late, your children will think that it is ok for them to be late. I also dream that all members of WCCC Maple Ridge will become participants and not just spectators every Sunday.  I want you to be involved.  To serve and to help out in whatever way you can in this church. 

LET US PRAY.

Prayer:

Wherever you are, whatever you situation you may be -- you need the love of Jesus in your life. Please say this prayer sincerely from your heart:  

Father God, I confess all my sins to you today.  Please forgive me.  Today, I open my heart to your Son Jesus Christ.  I accept Him in my life as my Saviour and as my Lord.  May the Holy Spirit come to my life and make me the kind of person you want me to be.  In Jesus Name, I pray.    Amen.

The above article is an excerpt from a sermon delivered at WCCC Maple Ridge during its Sunday service on  January 7, 2018.

I apologise if there are grammatical and spelling errors. I also apologise if I have missed acknowledging or making proper references to my sources, if any,  as it is purely unintentional.

If you are looking for a church in British Columbia, Canada please visit our website at:  www.wordchristiancommunity.com

Out of Egypt

We are all familiar with the Christmas story -- from the angels appearing to Mary, and to the shepherds in the field, the difficulty of finding a place for baby Jesus, the manger scene, the Magi following the star, and their gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. For most of us, since we were young, we have grown very familiar with all the details about the story of Christmas even if some of them were not necessarily found in the Scripture – we have embraced them out of our tradition as some of these stories stirred our minds with a sense of jubilance and excitement about the real meaning of Christmas. 

Christmas has always been a message of good tidings which were to be shared with all people: that Christ, our Messiah, our Savior, was born on earth and walked with us. 
 A lot of times the story that we hear, the musical play that we watch or the church sermon that we listen to – leads us .. up and until the birth of Christ or the visit of the Magi where gift giving was clearly emphasized and for a lot of people, this is our favorite part. For some people this is where our minds are tangled upon.  What kind of gift shall I give to my family, or to my friends or what kind of gift shall I give to myself?  There is another part of Christmas that we are oftentimes very excited upon, parties and food!    

The Gospel of Matthew has always been regarded as the Gospel to the Jews.  Matthew wrote the gospel to convince his fellow Jews that Jesus was the Messiah as foretold in the Old Testament. His gospel was written from a Jewish viewpoint for a Jewish audience and one of his goals is to prove  that the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah points  to no other than Jesus Christ. 

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”  When King Herod heard this, he was disturbed. He called together all the chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born.  “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet Micah 5:2 has written “But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.”  Matthew is telling his readers that hey, Jesus is fulfilling these prophecies.

Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.” Did you notice that last line?  There was a bit of a deception there, right? Do you really think Herod was going to worship Jesus? Of course not, in fact, the following events tell us the opposite.

The Magi went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.  
On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

Based on what the Bible tells us, we debunk some of the myths associated with the Magi.  
First, they are not Kings.  
Second, there´s not three of them although the Bible mentioned three gifts but it doesn’t mean there´s three of them.  
Third, they did not visit Jesus on the night of his birth.  They came much later probably a few months after Jesus was born and if you read your Bible, Joseph´s family was already living in a house at this time.  

Now we are going to read our Scripture for today.  This is what happened after the visit of the Magi.

13 When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”
14 So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, 
15 where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

BACKGROUND:
We know that the calendar we use today is divided into two eras and  amazingly it's based on the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ.  B.C. means Before Christ and A.D. means Anno Domini which is Latin for “in the year of our Lord.”  Please take note though that Jesus wasn´t born in Year Zero.  In fact, there was no Year Zero because after 1 BC comes 1 AD.    
The Bible does not provide the exact year in which Jesus was born in Bethlehem. But if we closely examine the chronological details of history, it narrows the possibilities to a reasonable window of time.

Matthew 2:1 tells us that Jesus was born during the days of King Herod. He is also known as Herod the Great or Herod I.  History tells us that Herod the Great died in 4 B.C.
After Joseph and Mary fled from Bethlehem with Jesus, Herod ordered to kill all the boys 2 years old and younger because he wanted to kill Jesus. This indicates that Jesus could have been as old as 2 before Herod’s death. 
Christ must have been born sometime between 6 and 4 B.C.
In 2012, Pope Benedict XVI  of the Catholic Church finally admitted the miscalculation made by a European Monk Dionysius Exiguus, or Dennis the Small, in the 6th century. He is best known as the inventor of the Anno Domini (AD) era, which is used to number the years of both the Gregorian and Julian calendars.

Nazareth is the hometown of Mary and Joseph located in Northern Israel. In 5 B.C., just before the birth of Christ, Luke 2:1 tells us that   Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken so they had to go to Joseph´s ancestral town.
Joseph and Mary traveled from Nazareth to Bethlehem for about 120 kms.

Because of the census which required a lot of people to go back to their hometown to register, it was difficult for Joseph and Mary to find an inn.  So it was not the typical scene that we see during Christmas nativity scenes where the neighbours were mean to Joseph and Mary that they shut their doors to them.  It was just a busy time.

We are told from the Scripture that we read that after the wise men had left, Joseph is told in a dream to flee to Egypt.  He was informed of this because Herod the Great will soon issue a command that all male children two years old and younger, in and around Bethlehem, are to be put to death.  Herod's cruel actions fulfilled an Old Testament prophecy by the prophet Jeremiah regarding the slaughter of innocent children in Israel.  Why Egypt and not just in other towns or other parts of Israel?   Well they had to be outside the jurisdiction of Herod and later on we´ll learn some important lessons about it. 

The family traveled from Bethlehem to Egypt for about 70 kms.

Soon after Herod died in early 4 B.C., Joseph had another dream where an angel tells him it is safe to return to Israel.  They soon began their travel back to Judea and Bethlehem.   However, as they approach Judea, Joseph learned that Herod Archelaus, the eldest son of Herod the Great, is the new ruler of the area.  Unfortunately, like his father Herod the Great, Archelaus rules with tyranny and cruelty. 
Joseph's fear was confirmed when God sent him a another warning in a dream. So instead of going back to Bethlehem, the family continued their travels northward to their hometown of Nazareth.

After Herod´s death, they traveled to Nazareth which was about 170 kms.
 Nazareth was a city in Galilee.  But guess what? It was ruled by another son of Herod the Great named Herod Antipas, although this son was slightly less violent than his older brother Herod Archelaus.  

Jesus was called “out of Egypt” up to Nazareth fulfilling the prophecy in the Old Testament.  In a few verses in Chapter 2, Matthew was able to prove to his readers that the birth of Christ and the circumstances surrounding His birth confirmed that He is the Messiah as prophesied in the Old Testament.  
Jesus spent his childhood and young adult years living in Nazareth, which fulfilled the prophecy stated in Matthew 2:23. It was implied that Jesus´ step-father Joseph may have died sometime between his 12th and 30th birthday.  Jesus continued to live in Nazareth until he journeyed to Capernaum to begin his public ministry.

The prophecies fulfilled according to Matthew are the following: 
Prophecies Fulfilled:
• Messiah will be born in Bethlehem (Matt. 2:5, Micah 5:2,4)
• Israel will weep for her children (Matt. 2:18, Jer. 31:15)
• He will be called out of Egypt (Matt. 2:15, Hosea 11:1)
• He will be called a Nazarene (Matt. 2:23)

In Matthew 2:15, he quoted an Old Testament passage in Hosea 11:1 which says:

“When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.”
Most Bible Scholars agree that this prophecy was more of a pictorial prophecy.  It is more of a type of Christ and Matthew used it as an analogy comparing the relationship of God as Father to the nation of Israel.  Because of His love for His children, He called them out of Egypt which represented slavery and bondage bringing them to the Promised Land.  
When I was studying these passage, I also noticed an element of contrast.  God called His Son out of Egypt, which for a period of time, served as His place of refuge and safety.   God called Jesus out of Egypt also to send Him to the Promised Land but not necessarily for His own safety and protection.  Jesus was called out of Egypt primarily for the safety and protection of EVERYONE of us.  He was called out of Egypt in order to fulfill the will of the Father.

LESSONS:
I believe we can draw a few lessons from our story this morning. 
The redemption plan of God is something unimaginable, it´s definitely unthinkable.  Can you imagine God sending His only begotten Son to walk on Earth and eventually be crucified?  And with all the Old Testament prophecies about the coming of the Messiah and how He will crush God´s enemy, Satan must have been long planning a counter-attack.  In our story, we can say that King Herod´s actions of killing all those innocent children were definitely an evil scheme to prevent Jesus from fulfilling His mission. 

1.  Whenever God does something good for His children, rest assured that the enemy will try to do the opposite.

God devised His redemption plan, sent His son Jesus Christ with complete humility and meekness of a baby in a manger. Satan on the other hand came up with a counter attack by obviously influencing King Herod to murder innocent children.  The enemy wanted to prevent Jesus from growing up and being able to fulfill His calling because Satan knew that this prophecy will put an end to his control of this fallen world.

I don´t know about you but have you experienced receiving a wonderful blessing from the Lord.  You were so happy. Everything seems to be working fine.  You were so excited.  You just joined WCCC as an official member. You became part of a very productive ministry.  Then all of a sudden, for apparently no reason at all, something “bad” happens.   I believe sometimes, the enemy is involved.  He tries to spoil our joy of experiencing the blessing provided by God and he tries to counter-attack God.  This is the reason why some people don’t want to be very happy anymore.  They say that if they are very happy one day, they expect that tragedy awaits the following day.
Every time we appoint a key church leader, for example somebody responded to become a pastor or to become a church leader like President of the Board or like an Elder or Ministry Head.  We always tell the person, watch your guard.  Don´t bring down your guard.  The enemy is watching for an opportunity. He is out there to steal, kill and destroy.  

It reminds me of the 4th fight of Pacquiao and Marquez on December 8, 2012.   Pacquiao was doing very well on that sixth round with left and right jabs pushing Marquez to the ropes. With a split second of Pacquiao trying to set up a left jab,   for a split second he took down his defense and Marquez took this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity giving Manny a right hook straight to his mouth bringing Manny down flat into the canvass with his face down.   

Sometimes our Christian life is like that.  We´re too quick to put our guards down.  Sometimes we get so high and we bask in our accomplishments and cherish those moments but we end up putting our guards down.  

The Apostle Peter said “Be on your guard. Your enemy the devil is like a roaring lion. He prowls around looking for someone to chew up and swallow.”

The Apostle Paul said in Ephesians 6:10 “be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.” Paul was very clear.  Be strong in the Lord, not relying on your own strength.  

2.  God allows “bad” things to happen for the time being to accomplish His bigger purpose.

God could have stopped King Herod from slaughtering those little children but He did not.  Not because He could not, but He did not.  
Remember in the past I preached to you one of the most difficult and relevant arguments we face today, especially by our children.  You can find this also in Norman Geisler´s books.
IF GOD IS ALL-POWERFUL, HE COULD DEFEAT EVIL.  
IF GOD IS ALL-LOVING, HE WOULD DEFEAT EVIL.
BUT EVIL IS NOT DEFEATED.  EVIL IS HAPPENING EVERYWHERE. 
SO EITHER GOD IS NOT ALL-POWERFUL OR NOT ALL-LOVING BUT HE CANNOT BE BOTH.  OR THERE IS NO GOD!
Did you hear that argument? You share Christ to someone this Christmas he brings up this argument. Isn't it difficult?

I am thankful because prior to hearing this argument we have spent two months talking about END TIMES and we learned that YES, God allows some “bad” things to happen for the time being.  He allowed the serpent to trick Eve.  He allowed Satan to do bad things to Job.  He allowed King Herod to kill the innocent children.  He allowed the Jews and the Romans to crucify Christ.  He allowed the 911 bombings. He allowed the Las Vegas shooting.  And in the future, He will allow the GREAT TRIBULATION to happen here on Earth.  But in the end of days, we know that GOD will finally put an end to evil.   WHY? Because the God we worship is all-powerful and an all-loving God!
He has a plan.  A plan bigger than all of us.  Beyond our understanding. And we caught a glimpse of that plan in the book of Revelation.  
It says there that “One day!” Say it to the person beside you “One day!” God will wipe every tear from your eyes and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain.  All these things are gone forever.”

3. We need to patiently wait for God´s perfect timing in order to fully respond to His calling.
Just like the family of Joseph, God may just be protecting us from danger during this period of wait.  He may just be preparing us or equipping us for our calling. The Bible did not say how long did Jesus stay in Egypt but again we can make some calculated guess that He lasted there for several months. It took thirty years for Jesus to start His ministry.   That´s a long wait.  If Jesus waited that long and even His first public appearance at age thirty was an act of humility being baptized by John the Baptist, why can´t we be the same. 
Sometimes we are too over-eager to join the ministry.  We want to serve.  We want to feel good. We want people to see us.  Sometimes we join the ministry for the wrong reasons.  But a lot of times, God wants us to wait.   So if I ask someone here to join the ministry, and you told me you are waiting for God´s timing, I will respect that.  Just make sure you are indeed trying to listen from God.  

CONCLUDING THOUGHTS.

God called Israel “out of Egypt” which represents bondage.
He called Jesus “out of Egypt” in order to fulfill His calling.
For the nation of Israel, Egypt represents bondage.  It represents slavery. Egypt was the centre of the world at that time.  Anything worldly, you can find in that place.  Egypt at the time represents anything the world has to offer.  God took His children away from that place. He allowed them to cross the Red Sea and brought them to the Promised Land.  
In the same way, He called JESUS out of Egypt in order to start fulfilling His calling.  

Is God calling you out of your own “Egypt?” He wants you out of your bondage.  He wants you to go out and fulfill your calling.
What´s your response? Are you prepared to take the call even if it means the enemy may have to put a mark on you and start pestering you head on?  Israel responded to God´s love by worshiping a Golden Calf and it disappointed God.  What about you? Will you disappoint Him?

Are you ready to get out of bondage and fulfill your calling?
Christmas is a good time to ponder upon these things.  God did not come to this Earth so that we can have a party each year, have lots of food and sing Karaoke.  Christmas is more than just giving of gifts, or going on shopping, or having fancy dinners and even holding family reunions.  God has a better plan in mind.  It´s called his Redemption Plan and He wants us to be part of that plan. 

I admire our passion and excitement when its Christmas season.  
I hope and pray that this passion and excitement will not only be present during Christmas time but will continue throughout the year.  That our concern in fulfilling the Great Commission in reaching for the lost  will have the same passion and excitement – not only during Christmas time but consistently throughout the whole year.

Prayer:

Wherever you are, whatever you situation you may be -- you need the love of Jesus in your life. Please say this prayer sincerely from your heart:  

Father God, I confess all my sins to you today.  Please forgive me.  Today, I open my heart to your Son Jesus Christ.  I accept Him in my life as my Saviour and as my Lord.  May the Holy Spirit come to my life and make me the kind of person you want me to be.  In Jesus Name, I pray.    Amen.

The above article is an excerpt from a sermon delivered at WCCC Maple Ridge during its Sunday service on  December 17, 2017

I apologise if there are grammatical and spelling errors. I also apologise if I have missed acknowledging or making proper references to my sources, if any,  as it is purely unintentional.

If you are looking for a church in British Columbia, Canada please visit our website at:  www.wordchristiancommunity.com

Pearly Gates and Street of Gold

A man dies and goes to heaven.  After walking on the street of gold, he now stands in front of the Pearly Gates where St. Peter is waiting. 
St. Peter says, "Here's how it works. You need 100 points to make it to heaven. You tell me all the good things you've done, and I´ll give you a equivalent number of points for each item, depending on how good it was. When you reach 100 points, you get in."  
"Okay, that sounds fair" the man says, "How about this, I was married to the same woman for 50 years and never cheated on her, even in my heart."   
"That's wonderful," says St. Peter, "that's worth 1 point!"   
"One point? Are you serious?" he says. "Well, I attended church all my life, been part of home groups and I supported its ministry with my tithe and service."  
"Terrific!" says St. Peter, "that's certainly worth another point."  
"One point again? Oh my! How about this: I started a mission project in the mountains and also worked in a shelter for homeless veterans."  
"Fantastic, that's good for one more point," he says.  
"One more point?" the man cries, "I´m running out of good works.  At this rate, I won´t make it.  The only way I get into heaven is by the grace of God!" 
St.  Peter said "You got it, come on in!"

I´m sure you’ve heard of lots of stories about the Pearly Gates.  A person dies, he goes to heaven.  He meets St. Peter, so he either lets the person through the gates and into heaven, or he sends the person to hell.  I think we have covered several topics about eschatology and I am sure a lot of you now understand that the popular understanding about heaven is not exactly how the Bible describes it. 

After Final Battle, the next major event is the Great White Throne (GWT) Judgement.  All those in hell will be brought forth to face final judgement.  All the wicked from all eras of history will be resurrected and stand before God.  The Bible tells us that the sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what they had done. Those whose name was not found written in the book of life will be thrown into the lake of fire and they will be tormented there for eternity.

The Great White Throne judgement is something that we cannot even imagine or think of happening.  But this is a real event.  Since the history of man, we´ve seen how corrupt, how disobedient and how man has rejected God.  It´s just unimaginable to even think of any person we know who can be judged at the Great White Throne.   I thank God, the Revelation to the Apostle John did not end in a negative note.  He saw the final scene of God´s revelation which is something so beautiful for those who have surrendered their lives to Christ.   

The Bible is God´s Word. Isaiah 40:8 says “The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever."

After the completion of all these end-time events, the heavens and the earth as we know it, will pass away and will be changed by the Lord with something new.  How blessed we are that God is already showing us what´s going to happen in the future.  The Bible has mentioned so many times that this world is not our home. This body we live in is not a permanent body.  This world, this body is like a tent.  We are just using it on a temporary basis.   The Apostle Paul tells us in Romans12:2 “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”  God does not want us to feel at home in this world because he is going to change this world anyway.  If we become so attached in this world, we may not enjoy the new one that He is preparing for us.  We cannot put our trust on something that is temporary or something that will not last long, Amen? Psalm 20:7 tells us that “some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.” Who do you put your trust into?  Is it in your own abilities?  Your savings account?  Who do you put your trust into? Is it in your own strength?  

1. It is wiser to trust Jesus because everything else in this world is temporary.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. Matthew 24:35

This is the first point that I would like for everyone here in this room to understand.  Everything around us will disappear.  Everything around us will be destroyed.  Our mindset should be like that of a tourist or a stranger or a camper here on Earth. We´re not citizens here.  We´re not even permanent residents because our citizenship is somewhere else.  This is not our permanent home. We are here in the meantime.  We are here for the time being. We are here as ambassadors representing Christ, and we are supposed to tell people about who we are representing.  One day, God will call us home. He does not expect us to eventually change our citizenship and stay here forever.  

It read a story about a missionary named Henry Morrison.  After forty years of being a missionary to Africa, Henry and his wife returns to New York for retirement because of old age.  
As their ship neared the dock, Henry saw the crowd waving to them and he said to his wife, “Look at that crowd.  They haven't forgotten about us”.  Unknown to Henry, the ship also carried President Teddy Roosevelt, returning from a big hunting trip in Africa.  As the president stepped from the boat, with great fanfare, as people were cheering, flags were waving, bands were playing, and reporters waiting for his comment, Henry and his wife slowly walked away unnoticed.  They hailed a cab, which took them to the one-bedroom apartment which had been provided by the mission board. 

Over the next few weeks, Henry tried, to put the incident behind him.  One evening, Henry said to his wife, “This is all wrong.  The president comes back from a hunting trip and everybody throws a big party.  We give our lives in faithful service to God for all these many years, but no one seems to care.”  His wife cautioned him that he should not feel this way.  Henry replied “I know you're right, but I just can't help it.  It isn't right.”

His wife then said, “Henry, you know God doesn't mind if we honestly question Him.  You need to tell this to the Lord in prayer.   Henry then went to his bedroom, got down on his knees and, began pouring out his heart to the Lord.  “Lord, you know our situation and what's troubling me.  We gladly served you faithfully for years without complaining.  But now God, I just can't get this incident out of my mind...”   When he was about to finish prayer, he felt something like a hand on his shoulder and a still small voice from the Lord saying, 'But Henry, you are not home yet!'”
God knows that whatever we do here on Earth, we´ll never be completely happy or satisfied because we´re not supposed to, because we are not home yet. The last two chapters of the Book of Revelation gives us a clear and vivid picture of what this new home looks like.  

2.  This world is not our home.  God will do an “extreme make-over” and we must look forward to the new heavens and new earth. 
“… for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea”  Revelation 21:1
At this point, the recorded history of man as we know it is at its end.  Christ has gathered His saints during the Rapture. (1 Thessalonians 4:15–17). The Tribulation has passed (Revelation 6—18).  The battle of Armageddon has been fought and won by our Lord Jesus Christ (Revelation 19:17–21). 
Satan has been chained for the 1,000-year reign of Christ on earth (Revelation 20:1–3). 
The Final Battle has happened and everyone who turned against God has been defeated, and Satan has received his just punishment, an eternity in the lake of fire (Revelation 20:7–10.) 
The Great White Throne Judgment has taken place, and mankind has been judged (Revelation 20:11–15).
In Revelation 21:1 God does a complete make-over of heaven and earth. 

3.  The New Earth will be heaven.  This is where God and His people will dwell for eternity.
“God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  Revelation 21:3

The new heaven and new earth are what some people call the “eternal state” which we will be discussing later.  So just to be a bit technical about it, the new heaven and the new earth refers to a new earth with heaven meaning the new atmosphere and most likely a new universe or space around it.  We also defined heaven as the abode of God Almighty and since God will reside on this New Earth with His people for eternity, the new Earth is therefore heaven in the sense that God will dwell on it.  There is a specific place or city in this New Earth where God and His people will live.  It´s called the New Jerusalem.  

God shows a glimpse of the New Jerusalem to John in his vision.  In verse two,  “The Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.”   It´s funny because the Bible did not say God has just created the New Jerusalem.   It was described as just coming down which could mean that it has already been prepared even before that time.

Well, Jesus said something about this in John 14:3.  He said He will go and prepare a place for us.  Isn´t it a great comfort knowing that He could be preparing this place at this very moment? The New Jerusalem is a city located in this new earth. 
The New Jerusalem
This is where God will dwell with His people forever.

The New Jerusalem is also called the Tabernacle of God, the Holy City, the City of God, the Celestial City or the Foursquare.  This is where God will dwell with His people forever.  
It´s a place of TWELVES as we have read in Revelation 21. 
There will be twelve gates guarded by twelve angels. The twelve gates are actually twelve pearls and on these gates were written the twelve tribes of Israel. 
It has twelve foundations, bearing the names of the twelve apostles. 
The New Jerusalem will be huge. John records that the city is twelve thousand furlongs or stadia which is nearly 1,400 miles long, and it is as wide and as high as it is long—it is a perfect cube.
You know, I can probably imagine a city 1,400 miles long but it blows my mind to know that the New Jerusalem is also 1,400 miles high.

The city will be dazzling in every way. 
It has twelve pearly gates and a great street of gold as pure as transparent glass.  
It is lighted by the glory of God and the New Jerusalem will be a place of unimaginable blessing. 
There is one other thing that catches my attention about the New Jerusalem. We will get to see the Tree of Life again, for it stands in the middle of the New Jerusalem, where it bears “twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month.  Access to the tree of life will be reinstated, and darkness will be forever banished (verse 5). Eden will be restored. 

Before I conclude, let me discuss something very important with you. I would like to explain:

The “intermediate state” is a theological concept that speculates regarding the kind body that believers have in heaven, if any, while they await for their physical bodies to be resurrected. 

The Bible is clear that when a believer dies, his is with the Lord.  The Bible also makes it clear that the resurrection of believers has not yet occurred, meaning that the bodies of deceased believers are still in the grave.  The first batch of believers receiving their glorified bodies will be during the Rapture. So, the question of the intermediate state is whether believers in heaven are given temporary physical bodies while in heaven, or whether believers in heaven exist in a spiritual or non-corporeal form until the resurrection.

Well, the Bible does not give a great amount of detail regarding the intermediate state. The only Scripture that specifically, but indirectly, speaks about this issue is, you may want to take note or turn your Bibles to, Revelation 6:9 which says  “… I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained.” 
The word “soul” in this verse comes from the Greek word “pseuche” (pronounced PSOOKHAY) which means “the soul as an essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death.” 

In this specific verse, God gave the Apostle John a vision of those who will be killed because of their faith during the end times. In this vision those believers who had been killed are under God’s altar in heaven and are described as “souls.” So, from this one verse, the biblical answer for the intermediate state is that it would seem that believers in heaven NOW are in spiritual/non-corporeal form until the resurrection. 
But even if deceased believers are in spiritual form, I believe they can feel “comfort” from the Lord because of His presence and this was explained by Jesus´ story about the Rich Man and Lazarus. When a believer dies, we are not like Casper the Friendly Ghost who are just in limbo who looks like a marshmallow.  

Listen to this. This is very important.  Currently, heaven is a spiritual place. Therefore, it seems that there is no need for temporary physical body if we die today because we will go to a spiritual heaven. Whatever the intermediate state is, we can rest assured that believers in heaven are perfectly content, enjoying the glories of heaven and worshipping the majesty of the Lord. 
The new heaven that ultimately awaits believers is the New Heavens and New Earth in Revelation 21, specifically the New Jerusalem.   This time, heaven will indeed be a physical place. Our physical bodies will be resurrected and glorified, God will make it perfectly fit for eternity on the New Earth. It is called our ETERNAL STATE.

The eternal dwelling place of believers will be the new earth. The new earth is the “heaven” on which we will spend eternity. It is on the new earth where the New Jerusalem, the heavenly city, will be located. Heaven—which is the new earth—is a physical place where we will dwell with glorified physical bodies (1 Corinthians 15:35-58). The heaven that believers will experience will be a new and perfect planet on which we will dwell. It will likely be similar to our current earth, or perhaps even a re-creation of our current earth, but without the curse of sin.

FINAL THOUGHTS

  
In the new earth, there will be no more sin, no more evil, no more sickness, no more suffering, and no more death. 
If we say the Heaven is the New Earth because this is where God will dwell along with His people, what about the New Heavens because the Bible says “new heaven and new earth.”  It is important to remember that in the ancient mind, “heavens” also referred to the skies and outer space.
So, when Revelation 21:1 refers to the new heavens, it is likely indicating that the entire universe will be recreated—a new earth, new skies, a new outer space.  

So the idea of  “pearly gates” in heaven is based on a reference in the book of Revelation describing the twelve gates of New Jerusalem. It is yet to come. In popular culture, the “pearly gates” are thought of as the entrance to heaven, but Revelation shows the gates as belonging to the New Jerusalem. This city is not exactly synonymous with what we know as “heaven” at this very moment. The Bible says the pearly gates will always be open: they “will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there” (Revelation 21:22–25). 

There is only one passage of Scripture that mentions a great street of gold and it is as pure as transparent glass, in Revelation 21:21. So does this verse tell us that there will literally be streets of gold in heaven? And, if so, what is the importance or significance of a literal street of gold? The Greek word translated “gold” is chrusion, which can mean “gold, gold jewelry, or overlay” so it´s literal. There will be a street of gold in the New Jerusalem.  But why does God want us to know something so detailed like a street of gold?

In eternity, we will not be focused on earthly treasures anymore. While man pursues treasures like gold on earth, one day it will simply be no more than a pavement for the believer in heaven. No matter how many precious jewels or materials make up the physical construction of heaven, nothing will ever be of greater value than the God who loves us and died to save us and we shall be with Him forevermore.
Christmas is coming.  If you have not yet fully trusted Christ as your Savior, then I urge you think about it and receive Him in your life.  The pearly gates will be entered by God´s people ONLY and “Nothing unclean will ever enter it, nor anyone who does what is detestable or false, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”

Prayer:

Wherever you are, whatever you situation you may be -- you need the love of Jesus in your life. Please say this prayer sincerely from your heart:  

Father God, I confess all my sins to you today.  Please forgive me.  Today, I open my heart to your Son Jesus Christ.  I accept Him in my life as my Saviour and as my Lord.  May the Holy Spirit come to my life and make me the kind of person you want me to be.  In Jesus Name, I pray.    Amen.

The above article is an excerpt from a sermon delivered at WCCC Maple Ridge during its Sunday service on  November 26, 2017

References:

1. Revelation of Jesus Christ by John F. Walvoord

2. Bible Study Tools.com 

3. Gotquestions.org

I apologise if there are grammatical and spelling errors. I also apologise if I have missed acknowledging or making proper references to my sources, if any,  as it is purely unintentional.

If you are looking for a church in British Columbia, Canada please visit our website at:  www.wordchristiancommunity.com