Faith stands on the Word of God
Posted by Edison Macusi on Monday, November 8, 2010
Under: Word for the week
We continue our series on faith about what is faith and what is not faith. About two weeks ago we have been struck by Typhoon Juan but amazingly, we were spared the same effects that could have happened with Ondoy. What happened? Apparently, our new government was more discerning this time around and zeroed in for zero-casualty and evacuated villagers in the most vulnerable position of the Typhoon when it lashes out. Only the fools who waited and tried to save their cows and houses were destroyed.
Although saving your material assets is important during times of disaster, we are not always as lucky to have the time needed to even save that except our lives. Unless we have earlier brought to safety all our properties, we should not be so concerned of these as much as our own safety. It pays to think twice before going back to save your livestock over saving your own life. Most of those who died in the floods are also those who did not pay attention to the safety calls from the barangay officials or from the government. This must change as the times we are in have also changed. No longer are we spared from the effects of a changing climate and a changing atmosphere. The power that holds the winds of the earth have been released. As I have been meditating about the upscale change of power ratings of typhoons have changed, I found out that most of these super typhoons have only come recently and in higher frequency during this decade.
But just as the categories of Typhoons must change, so did also our drought spells changed and they are now in higher frequency than before putting to risk all agricultural lands and those dependent on water released by dams. Kalinga which has the Chico river stands on fertile grounds but at the same time also on the destructive paths of the river once it swells. The only choice for people living near these forces of nature is to be wise enough and put up houses made of rocks and built not on the shore levels of the river but at least beyond the past riverine paths eg 100m from the banks. Nevertheless, no one is totally safe without being alert of warnings especially in landslide and flood prone areas. Because the damage to our forests have been done by most illegal loggers and large “anonymous” companies, the least informed segment of people are also the most prone to destruction. As Hosea said, even God’s people are destroyed when they lack knowledge. Without discernment of these trends, our lack of understanding will not excuse us from destruction whether we are the victims or the villains.
The truth is for us to pursue and do what is right. The unprecedented changes in the atmosphere have been occurring all over the world. Even in our studies of marine ecosystems, the world is not changing for the better, but everyone concerned of its destruction are acting as stewards and catching every word of phrase from investigations of scientists. No one may have been prepared for this unleash of destructions that hovered today even in Malaysia, Thailand, Pakistan or in Indonesia. Floods are not common in these areas too. They were not often in the news for typhoon coverage except the Philippines, but what we are now experiencing tells us that we have breached the time period mentioned in Revelations 7:1, the angels holding back the four great winds of the earth:
After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind should blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree. The release of this judgement on the earth has happened or is happening and gradually gaining momentum. Even the common grace of God, the sun, wind, water discharge of rivers and the air we breathe will soon be scarce. This is not only due to pollution or changing climate but we have breached the time period when everything that needs to be shaken will be shaken. The only way of escape from these evil is to become informed citizens that dwells in the house of prayer. Whether you are living in the first world country or in any other country, the only house of refuge is Jesus Himself. The safest place to be is not running away from where you are called but staying in the place of service where God has placed you whether this generates little money or much money. Today we measure success by the number of cars and houses we have or the place we have been but the true measure of success is simply abiding in Jesus. Jesus spoke of this in the parable of the man who obeyed His Words saying in Matthew 7:24-27:
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man, which built his house upon the rock. “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock. “And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand. “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and it fell, and great was its fall.”
As the Lord reminds us in this Scripture, it does us no good to hear His Words unless we obey them. Our goal for understanding the times we are in must always be to obey the Lord and to do His will. Our goal must be more than just being able to stand and survive through the coming storms—we are called to be part of the forces of truth and righteousness that will prevail and conquer during the most difficult times the world has ever faced.
As a reminder, the “winds of the earth” that prevailed over the earth, sea and trees have both spiritual meaning and various interpretations, but in the light of what is happening in nature, we understand that these winds have destructive power and that it comes from the earth or is situated within the earth that have the potential to hurt man. I interpret these potentially destructive forces or winds that have been released on earth to include typhoons, floods and tsunamis, and earthquakes. Unless we have not been hearing or seeing, the movies 2012 or ice age are just some portents of what could be destructive in nature but more so the reality of exploding volcanoes such as Mt. Merapi in Indonesia and the 2004 tsunamis that levelled many cities and towns in Indonesia, Thailand, India and Sri-Lanka.
The divine authority to overcome these destructive forces of nature is not totally hidden but in fact it is plain before everyone that no government, however powerful and economically well, could in the long run sustain recovery and food aids to the victims. Only one institution and one organization can boast of the power to save mankind from the wrath to come. Only the Church has been given divinely powerful weapons to resist, hinder and stop this violence from taking place everywhere. Prayer is the only ultimate weapon we have been given that could put to silence, even reverse prophecies that are cataclysmic in nature. The power that Christ holds over nature has been demonstrated by Him all over the Scriptures. God intervened for the Israelites when they were in Goshen so that for every judgement placed upon Egypt they were spared. When Joshua fought the Amorites in the valley of Aijalon, he proclaimed that the sun and the moon should stop and the Lord heard his prayer.
Then Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel: “Sun, stand still over Gibeon; And Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.” So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the people had revenge upon their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day. Joshua 10:12-13 (NKJV)
In Job we are admonished to pray and that God will hear us when we pray: “You will pray to Him, and He will hear you; And you will pay your vows “You will also decree a thing, and it will be established for you; And light will shine on your ways. Job 22:27-28
The truth is, we have been given power and authority over nature just as the first Adam was. Adam can communicate with animals, understand their language and the workings of nature which we as ecologists and naturalists even lack the complete or even a parcel of understanding of. In spite of the years of study in nature, the reductionist approach and even whole ecosystem approach, we still do not have the same understanding as Adam could have. Solomon did have the same understanding as did Adam but we are thankful for what we have understood through the experiments and observations in science.
Until now, science is a tool to research the truth found in nature except for some deceived men who carry on apostate understanding of what could be the tread to know the truth. Thus we should be careful whether in science or in any field of understanding to not publish any incomplete understanding that we have and call it truth or revelation of the whole. The only one with the whole truth is the Word of God for the “Sum of Thy Word is Truth” it says. Thus, we are motivated to study, not to prove that the Word is true because it already is, but to find out, seek what it is telling us and then align our lives considerably according to this truth. Faith then is founded on having understood what the truth is and it is strengthened by our knowledge of truth. The more truth we know, the more we should believe that God is true and what His Word says is true. We should then believe like how He believed and know like how He knew things because we know and understand. The secret however is prayer. Prayer combines our heart’s wishes and what God wishes to speak to us and to do. Thus, to obtain the authority to bind these storms, floods, earthquakes over an area, we need to pray. We are to do it in the name of Jesus, or as if Jesus Himself is praying on earth to His Father.
“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:14-21
Although saving your material assets is important during times of disaster, we are not always as lucky to have the time needed to even save that except our lives. Unless we have earlier brought to safety all our properties, we should not be so concerned of these as much as our own safety. It pays to think twice before going back to save your livestock over saving your own life. Most of those who died in the floods are also those who did not pay attention to the safety calls from the barangay officials or from the government. This must change as the times we are in have also changed. No longer are we spared from the effects of a changing climate and a changing atmosphere. The power that holds the winds of the earth have been released. As I have been meditating about the upscale change of power ratings of typhoons have changed, I found out that most of these super typhoons have only come recently and in higher frequency during this decade.
But just as the categories of Typhoons must change, so did also our drought spells changed and they are now in higher frequency than before putting to risk all agricultural lands and those dependent on water released by dams. Kalinga which has the Chico river stands on fertile grounds but at the same time also on the destructive paths of the river once it swells. The only choice for people living near these forces of nature is to be wise enough and put up houses made of rocks and built not on the shore levels of the river but at least beyond the past riverine paths eg 100m from the banks. Nevertheless, no one is totally safe without being alert of warnings especially in landslide and flood prone areas. Because the damage to our forests have been done by most illegal loggers and large “anonymous” companies, the least informed segment of people are also the most prone to destruction. As Hosea said, even God’s people are destroyed when they lack knowledge. Without discernment of these trends, our lack of understanding will not excuse us from destruction whether we are the victims or the villains.
The truth is for us to pursue and do what is right. The unprecedented changes in the atmosphere have been occurring all over the world. Even in our studies of marine ecosystems, the world is not changing for the better, but everyone concerned of its destruction are acting as stewards and catching every word of phrase from investigations of scientists. No one may have been prepared for this unleash of destructions that hovered today even in Malaysia, Thailand, Pakistan or in Indonesia. Floods are not common in these areas too. They were not often in the news for typhoon coverage except the Philippines, but what we are now experiencing tells us that we have breached the time period mentioned in Revelations 7:1, the angels holding back the four great winds of the earth:
After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind should blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree. The release of this judgement on the earth has happened or is happening and gradually gaining momentum. Even the common grace of God, the sun, wind, water discharge of rivers and the air we breathe will soon be scarce. This is not only due to pollution or changing climate but we have breached the time period when everything that needs to be shaken will be shaken. The only way of escape from these evil is to become informed citizens that dwells in the house of prayer. Whether you are living in the first world country or in any other country, the only house of refuge is Jesus Himself. The safest place to be is not running away from where you are called but staying in the place of service where God has placed you whether this generates little money or much money. Today we measure success by the number of cars and houses we have or the place we have been but the true measure of success is simply abiding in Jesus. Jesus spoke of this in the parable of the man who obeyed His Words saying in Matthew 7:24-27:
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine, and acts upon them, may be compared to a wise man, which built his house upon the rock. “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded upon the rock. “And everyone who hears these words of Mine, and does not act upon them, will be like a foolish man, who built his house upon the sand. “And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and burst against that house; and it fell, and great was its fall.”
As the Lord reminds us in this Scripture, it does us no good to hear His Words unless we obey them. Our goal for understanding the times we are in must always be to obey the Lord and to do His will. Our goal must be more than just being able to stand and survive through the coming storms—we are called to be part of the forces of truth and righteousness that will prevail and conquer during the most difficult times the world has ever faced.
As a reminder, the “winds of the earth” that prevailed over the earth, sea and trees have both spiritual meaning and various interpretations, but in the light of what is happening in nature, we understand that these winds have destructive power and that it comes from the earth or is situated within the earth that have the potential to hurt man. I interpret these potentially destructive forces or winds that have been released on earth to include typhoons, floods and tsunamis, and earthquakes. Unless we have not been hearing or seeing, the movies 2012 or ice age are just some portents of what could be destructive in nature but more so the reality of exploding volcanoes such as Mt. Merapi in Indonesia and the 2004 tsunamis that levelled many cities and towns in Indonesia, Thailand, India and Sri-Lanka.
The divine authority to overcome these destructive forces of nature is not totally hidden but in fact it is plain before everyone that no government, however powerful and economically well, could in the long run sustain recovery and food aids to the victims. Only one institution and one organization can boast of the power to save mankind from the wrath to come. Only the Church has been given divinely powerful weapons to resist, hinder and stop this violence from taking place everywhere. Prayer is the only ultimate weapon we have been given that could put to silence, even reverse prophecies that are cataclysmic in nature. The power that Christ holds over nature has been demonstrated by Him all over the Scriptures. God intervened for the Israelites when they were in Goshen so that for every judgement placed upon Egypt they were spared. When Joshua fought the Amorites in the valley of Aijalon, he proclaimed that the sun and the moon should stop and the Lord heard his prayer.
Then Joshua spoke to the Lord in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel: “Sun, stand still over Gibeon; And Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.” So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the people had revenge upon their enemies. Is this not written in the Book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day. Joshua 10:12-13 (NKJV)
In Job we are admonished to pray and that God will hear us when we pray: “You will pray to Him, and He will hear you; And you will pay your vows “You will also decree a thing, and it will be established for you; And light will shine on your ways. Job 22:27-28
The truth is, we have been given power and authority over nature just as the first Adam was. Adam can communicate with animals, understand their language and the workings of nature which we as ecologists and naturalists even lack the complete or even a parcel of understanding of. In spite of the years of study in nature, the reductionist approach and even whole ecosystem approach, we still do not have the same understanding as Adam could have. Solomon did have the same understanding as did Adam but we are thankful for what we have understood through the experiments and observations in science.
Until now, science is a tool to research the truth found in nature except for some deceived men who carry on apostate understanding of what could be the tread to know the truth. Thus we should be careful whether in science or in any field of understanding to not publish any incomplete understanding that we have and call it truth or revelation of the whole. The only one with the whole truth is the Word of God for the “Sum of Thy Word is Truth” it says. Thus, we are motivated to study, not to prove that the Word is true because it already is, but to find out, seek what it is telling us and then align our lives considerably according to this truth. Faith then is founded on having understood what the truth is and it is strengthened by our knowledge of truth. The more truth we know, the more we should believe that God is true and what His Word says is true. We should then believe like how He believed and know like how He knew things because we know and understand. The secret however is prayer. Prayer combines our heart’s wishes and what God wishes to speak to us and to do. Thus, to obtain the authority to bind these storms, floods, earthquakes over an area, we need to pray. We are to do it in the name of Jesus, or as if Jesus Himself is praying on earth to His Father.
“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; and that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:14-21
In : Word for the week
Tags: faith stands on the word of god
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