RESTART

Minsan ba sa buhay mo, naisip mo ba na gusto mong magsimula uli?Kumbaga sa game, eh reset? Restart? New game dahil na-GG ka? Erase erase lahat ng nasa past na? Oo, alam ko naisip mo na yan. Wag ka ng mahiya. Lahat naman ata tayo. Kasi lahat tayo nagkamali na, may nasaktan ka, at sino ba namang kakaibang nilalang ang gustong gustong pinapaalala sakanya ang mali niya di'ba? 

GOOD NEWS. Pwede tayong magsimula uli. God is a God of second chances. Minsan nga, pag di nakukuha sa second chance. May third, fourth, fifth, sixth... Di bale, God is also a God of third, fourth, fifth, up to the nth chances pa yan! As long as nagsisisi ka talaga. Merciful at forgiving si Lord. At tayo, dahil human tayo and we are never perfect, nagkakamali at nagkakamali parin tayo, dun kasi tayo mas natututo, eh. Kaya nga we need God each day of our lives.

Anyway.. The Good News. The Gospel. Alam niyo bang sobrang nakokornihan ako dati pag naririnig ko 'yan sa mga tao? Pero ngayon, I consider it the best thing na shinare nila sa akin sa buhay ko. Naliligaw nanaman tayo sa topic. Buti nalang napigilan ko ang sarili ko bago pa ako nagtalambuhay. Take 2!

The Good News. Bago natin maapreciate ang Gospel, kailangan muna natin malaman kung bakit natin sya kailangan. Parang sa mga tipikal na bagay lang sa mundo. For example! Hindi mo maaappreciate ang subject mo na Calculus kung hindi mo alam kng bakit mo ito kailangang pag-aralan. Lalo na kahirap pa naman nyan. Mapapa-Lord help me ka talaga! haha

Why do we need the Gospel? Why do we need to start over? Icocompare ko ito sa mga tipikal na pangyayari sa mundo natin. Kapag ba hindi mo alam na may sakit ka, ppunta ka sa Doctor? Pag ba pinainom kita ngayon ng gamot ng hindi mo alam kung para saan, papayag ka ba? Hindi di'ba? Pwera nalang kung type mo ang nagpapainom ng gamot sayo. Joke hahaha. Moving on, hindi ka papayag di'ba. Kasi ang alam mo, at ang sabi ng mundo sayo... wala kang sakit. Walang mali sayo. Walang problema. Well, meron. Idiagnose natin ito bago pa nito tayo patayin. Wag kang mag-alala, nandito ang Great Physician natin para gamutin tayong lahat sa sakit na'to. :-)

THE PROBLEM: SIN

May isang napakalawak na gap between us and God dahil dito. Imagine it as a cliff between two people. Tayo ang nasa isang side, si Lord ang sa isa. Napakalalim at ang hirap tawirin di'ba? One cannot come to be with the other. 

Have you ever felt distant from God? Oh, wag ka na uli mahiya. Lahat tayo naramdaman yun. Sa sobrang gusto natin na mapunan yung gap na yun, minsan akala natin pag nagsimba na tayo, o kapag nagmeditate tayo at nag-aral about sa religion natin, magiging closer na tayo Sakanya. Pero since ang gap na nagsseparate sa atin kay God ay hindi intelektwal o pisikal, it won't do us any good. Yung bangin na naghihiwalay sa atin Sakanya ay moral. 

So ano yung malawak na bangin na yun? 

"Surely the arm of the LORD is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear." -- Isaiah 59:1,2

Gaya ng namention kanina, moral gap ang meron tayo kay God. Si God, holy. Ang tao, hindi. Si God, mabuti. Ang tao, hindi. Kasi lahat tayo nagkasala. Kaya lahat, napahiwalay kay Lord. At lahat tayo, magbabayad sa kasalanan natin. Ano ang consequence? ETERNAL DEATH.

". . . for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God . . ." --- Romans 3:23

"For the wages of sin is DEATH. but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." --- Romans 6:23

Kabigat no? Death agad. Well, ganun kasi tlga eh. Nadiscover ko kung ano ba talaga ang nagawa ko dahil sa kasalanan ko. Pero syempre, kung may problema.. May solusyon.

THE SOLUTION: GOD'S SACRIFICE AND SUBSTITUTION

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” -- John 3:16

Siguro mapapatanong kayo kung bakit yun yung solution. Ang kasalanan kasi ng mundo, sa sobrang bigat at dami, nangailangan ng precious sacrifice. Ang Unico Hijo ng Panginoon. Siguro kilala niyo na kung sino yun. Si JESUS CHRIST, walang kasalanan pero sya yung nagsuffer para sa atin. Dahil sakanya, kaya righteous ang mga naniniwala Sakanya ngayon sa paningin ni God. Dati, I didn't understand kung bakit ganun ang ginawa ni God. Bakit binigay Niya yung anak Niya na walang kasalanan para sa atin, eh hindi naman natin deserve? Ngayon naiintindihan ko na. Kasi God loves the world so much, at ayaw nyang mahiwalay tayo sakanya forever. Kumbaga, si Christ ang naging TULAY para ma reconcile tayo kay God. Para makasama natin sya.

". . . Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him." -- Hebrews 9:26-28

"God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."  -- 2 Corinthians 5:21

Grabe di'ba? Parang ganito yan, eh. Yung parang nakulong ka, tapos napatawan ka na ng death penalty.. I-llethal injection ka na friend! Tapos bigla bigla, nung itutusok na sayo yung needle eh biglang tumawag ang Presidente, at sasabihin na... 

"Laya ka na.. Pinyansahan ka na." 

Grabe di'ba! Sino ba namang hindi matutuwa dun. Hindi ka na nga mamamatay, laya ka pa sa pagkakakulong! Kung ako siguro, maglululundag pa ako sa tuwa.Yun ang ginawa ni Jesus Christ para sa atin, madlang pips! 

Siya ang namatay para sa mga kasalanan natin. Sya lang ang qualified na maging kapalit ng mga bongga nating kasalanan dahil nabuhay siya ng walang kasalanan.

"In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace . . ."  -- Ephesians 1:7

"But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ."   --- Ephesians 2:13

Ngayon alam na natin kung bakit natin kailangan ang GOOD NEWS, baka maitanong mo.. 

"EH ANO NAMAN ngayon? So what?!" 

THE RESPONSE: RECEIVE GOD’S GIFT BY FAITH

Ano ang tipikal na gagawin mo kapag binigyan ka ng gift? Hindi ba madalas nating sasabihin... "Thank you!" At talaga nga namang thankful ka kasi hindi mo ito kailangang suklian o bayaran kasi nga gift nga  ito sayo. Eh ano naman ang connection ng salvation sa gift ate Clar? Heto na. Ready?

First, let us define GRACE.

Hindi po ito yung kaibigan kong maliit at cute haha.

Grace - God's gift of undeserved sanctification

Some people think good works are a way for salvation. But what does God say?

"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast."  -- Ephesians 2:8,9

By grace ang salvation natin sabi ni Lord. At ano na uli ang definition ng grace? God's GIFT of undeserved sanctification. GIFT. GIFT. GIFT.

Ang mga gift, free. Hindi naman sguro pagkabigay sa'yo ng gift sabay sasabihin eh... "500 lang yan bro. Kunin ko bayad sa katapusan ha." Ang gift of grace ni God sa atin.. FREE.

The world's equation:

GOOD WORKS + RELIGION  = SALVATION

WRONG!

God's equation:

GRACE + FAITH = SALVATION

THESE ARE OUR ATTEMPTS TO REACH GOD, which fails us every time.

We are saved by God’s grace when we realize our need for a Savior, turn from sin, and receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, putting our trust in Him alone for salvation.  If you put your faith in Christ, you acknowledge and repent for your sins, YOU WILL BE SAVED! If you are saved, you are now in Christ. You have been given a NEW HEART and a NEW SPIRIT, na magreresulta sa good works. 

If you give to the poor, or do anything good for people.. it is because God has been good to you and gumawa ka ng mabuti kasi you want to show Him you're thankful. Not because we're trying to get closer to Him. Because we already are, by the blood of Jesus!

You become a Christian NOT by doing, but by BELIEVING.

From the 121 booklet:

Prayer for Salvation

Heavenly Father . . . I acknowledge that the separation between us . . . is because of my sin . . . I confess that I have sinned . . . and have fallen far short of Your glory . . . I thank You that You sent Your Son, Jesus . . . to pay the penalty for my sin . . . I believe that He died on the cross for me . . . I believe that You raised Him from the dead . . . I am sorry for my sins . . . and I ask You to forgive and cleanse me . . . I want to turn away from everything the Bible calls sin . . . and receive You as my Lord, Master, and Savior . . . help me to love, serve, and obey You . . . for the rest of my life . . . in Jesus’ name . . . Amen!

If you have sincerely prayed that prayer, the Bible promises that the old has gone and the new has come! 

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"

2 Corinthians 5:17

Welcome to your new life! :)