Life, when you have a passel of sons, is not always good tidings of great joy.  Sometimes it includes good chidings of great boys.  ​I have five great boys (and one terrific girl) and they occasionally (okay, often) require me to do some good chidings.  

A good chiding should include the good tidings.  It should include the Gospel.

I say this because I think we sometimes miss it.  (I know I do.)  We give our rebuke and, especially if the child has already made a profession of faith, we stop there.  If we have a child who has not yet turned to Christ with his whole heart, we often will give the Gospel.  ("You punched your brother.  See?  You need Jesus to save you from your sins.")  But the Gospel isn't just for unbelievers.  

The Gospel is also for us--we who know Christ and love Him.  We who follow Christ.  We who take up our cross and deny ourselves.  We who can even say, with Paul, "I die daily."  We, also, need the Gospel. We need the memories of it and the meditations on it.  We need the effects of it to cleanse our lives.  The Gospel isn't just for regeneration.  It is also for sanctification.

When I heard about a Christian leader a few years ago who had sinned greatly, my first thought was, "The Gospel is for such a time as this." 

When I faced a time of despair in my own life, when my faith felt minuscule and my troubles and sins seemed overwhelming, I reminded myself, "The Gospel is for such a time as this."

When my husband and I counseled a Christian couple who had slashed their marriage apart with sin and were painfully trying to stitch it back together, this thought gave me hope, "The Gospel is for such a time as this."

The Gospel is for believers as well as unbelievers.

The thought that Jesus Christ died on the cross to save me from my sin doesn't just affect my eternal security, it affects my daily sanctification.

It sends me to my knees in contrition when I have sinned.  It causes me to fix my eyes on the object of my faith and not just stew about the perceived depth of my faith.  It reminds me that Jesus doesn't just cleanse me from pre-regeneration sins but also from my sins NOW.  (How often do we fall into that kind of thinking?)

When guilt knocks at my door, Christ's blood answers it.  When Satan's mocking accusations threaten my peace, the sacrifice of my good Shepherd restores my soul.  Because of the Gospel, I know that I can always triumph.  The head of the serpent has already been crushed.

The Bible says that the goodness of God leads us to repentance.  What gives a sin-blackened Christian hope to even begin to confess and forsake sins?  The cross.  The depth of Christ's love.  The goodness of God.

When you, as a parent, give good chidings to your children, include the Gospel.  Even if they are already saved.  The Gospel is for such a time as this.

And the next time you find yourself in a position of sin (probably a few minutes from now, if you are fully human), remind yourself that the Gospel is for such a time as this.

I only see white and gold.  One internet source says that I am in the majority:  76% to 24%.   Which means that the majority of us are. . . 
Wrong.

Even though our perceptions scream that we are right. 
And even though many other people agree with us.

It is funny when it is only an optical illusion about a dress.

But what about when it is a spiritual illusion?

What about when the majority of the people around us are being fooled into thinking that marital infidelity is more fun than marital bliss?  The consequence of that is weighty:  a generation of children growing up in single family homes, emotionally maladjusted. 

What about the Australian woman I met on the island of Palawan last year, who was so evangelistically vegetarian that I heard about it before I had even known her 10 minutes?  She was appalled by the deaths of animals in slaughter houses, condemned to die in order that people might, well, eat.  But when I brought up the horrific reality of abortion, she brushed off the slaughter of innocent babies as an unfortunate necessity.

That woman is suffering from a terrible spiritual illusion.

What about those who honor the sins that God calls an abomination?  Masterminding movies that treat it as funny or hip.  Promoting those who do such things to roles as talk show hosts. 

God calls it an abomination.  Man calls it cool. 

Spiritual illusion.

But the biggest spiritual illusion of all is the one that is driving many people right down a wide path leading straight to destruction.   The vast majority of us here on earth are on that path.   It is the illusion that we can save ourselves.  Or worse, that we don't even need saving.  That there is no such thing as sin.  That there is no such thing as hell.  That, in fact, there is no such thing as God.  Or if there is, we certainly can't know Who or What He is.

I think that this latest web-based viral opinion poll proves that the vast majority of people can indeed be dead wrong.

The dress is clearly blue.  All we needed was proof.  
Someone snooped around and located the source of the dress.  
When we go there--to the creator of the dress--we see the dress in the light of reality.  We know the truth and the truth sets us free from the optical illusion.

So also, when we go back to the Creator of this world, we get truth.

Sanctify them through Thy Truth.  Thy Word is truth.  (John 17:17)
I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No man cometh unto the Father but by me.  (John 14:6)
And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.  (John 8:32)

Are you putting your faith in spiritual illusions?  You can be set free.  Get to know truth.  Don't just stick with majority opinion.  The majority can be wrong.  The internet proved it last week.

Do some snooping around.  Go to the Source.  Find truth.  And when you find truth, you will find Jesus Christ holding out His hands to you:  He is the way, the truth, and the life.

Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.  For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.  (Matthew 7:13-14)

Most beautiful sight yesterday?

College students walking down the middle of the road in a clothes-drenching thunderstorm, huddled beneath rainbow-hued umbrellas, reading. . . 
About Jesus Christ.

That beats Pinterest, folks, anytime!

I have to admit:  it wasn't the most outwardly optimistic afternoon for an evangelistic outreach.  When we drove onto the campus of the University of the Philippines, the sky was already hanging low and dark.  It had been blistering hot and sunny all day.  Not one of the nine of us had brought an umbrella.

By the time we pulled into the parking lot, thunder was rumbling.  By the time we were officially parked, lightning was flashing above us.  

The rain started then, first just a tiny splash or two on the windshield, but it quickly became a downpour. We stared out the windows at the watery world around us.

I was the most timid among the crew.  "I think we should go home," I suggested.  

But my husband had a crazy idea:  "I'll pull up next to that covered sidewalk and someone can jump out and give tracts to all the people there!"

"Yes!" our Bible college students said.
"Yay!" our boys shouted.  (Preteen boys don't see rain; they see a Divinely-installed sprinkler system.)

The thunder crinkled and crackled like fireworks popping.  

I looked at the lightning streaking the sky.  I looked at the metal over the sidewalk.  I looked at the sheets of rain between here and there.  And I felt a terrible disappointment.

I had awakened at sunrise and prayed for this moment.  We had prayed before we left the house.  We had prayed in the car, too. . . three times!  So why all this rain?

But I have a husband who doesn't see storm clouds.  He sees souls.  

So we came up with an even better plan.  One of our team members recommended going down a side road to a covered place with food stalls and there try to catch people who were stranded by the rain.  We would have a captive audience.

It worked like a dream.  My husband dropped us off where we could scurry from car to cover.   Our three companions (one graduate and two students) almost immediately engaged people in gospel-driven conversations.  My boys and I stood in the middle of a wind- and rain-swept sidewalk and passed out tracts.  Eventually the rain diminished for awhile to a mere sprinkly annoyance and we moved to a nearby building.  

There I saw an older man sitting on the stairs.  I pointed him out to Tim.  "I'll wait in the car so you can talk to him," I offered.  So we swapped roles, and I became the de facto driver of our illegally parked car.  

I watched him go over and sit down on the concrete steps beside the man.  I watched Ian two steps above him: a college student sharing the gift of life with another college student.  I watched my daughter and our two ladies, Donna and Shen, pass tracts to the college students as they walked past. And I watched secular university students walk down the middle of the road in the rain, reading about Jesus Christ. 

And while I sat there and watched it all, I pondered a significant verse.

Ecclesiastes 11:4.  He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. 

Because my husband and our evangelistic team refused to look at the clouds, we sowed.  I have faith that we will reap also. Four people heard the gospel yesterday that wouldn't have if we had allowed foul weather to stop us. George and Chester, the two men on the stairs, were especially interested in the conversations and had many questions.  

Later that night, I sat in church and listened to Ian give a testimony.  He put the last piece in place for me when he pointed out God's sovereignty in the form of rain.  

Chester, the art student he spoke with, was only there BECAUSE OF THE RAIN.   He had gone there without an umbrella and thus had to wait for the Divinely-installed sprinkler system to stop before he could leave.

So I say to you:  Don't look at the clouds! 

Our circumstances may never look perfect, but God is working in the midst of them.  Those un-optimistic looking circumstances may be the very tool God will use.

So go today and share the gift of eternal life with someone.  
Sow.  And reap. 

Imagine your church has no walls. . . 
To separate you from all the people outside.  All that you do or say or sing is clearly seen and heard by those around you.  Even if they weren't intending to attend church that morning, they were there. . . just outside your non-existent walls.  Praise God!

Imagine your church has no walls. . . 
To separate you from the great big huge needy hurting population outside.  So you reach out your arms and invite them in.  The poor ones, the rich ones, the tiny ones, the sick and hurting ones.  The ones aching with sin.  All the ones who need Christ so badly. 

For some of you this is so normal that you wonder why I would even mention it.  

. . . But there are others of you who can't wrap your minds around this.  You sit in your padded pews with the air conditioning (or heat) keeping the sanctuary at a delightful predetermined temperature.  Your babies are safely and happily playing in a fun, soft playroom.  Your preacher wears a funny metal piece on the side of his face so that you can hear him even when he moves away from the pulpit.  Your piano is protected from floods, heat, humidity, and mice, and thus churns out music fit for the heavenlies.  You don't even know it is raining until you leave the building.

There is nothing wrong with that!  That is a marvelous blessing!  Do you appreciate it fully?
Walls can be wonderful, protecting things.  In many parts of the world, walls are a necessity.

But sometimes walls also keep the people out.  The very people you are trying to reach.  They drive past your walls and wonder what you are doing in there.  People, aching with sin, needing a Savior.  You have the answer.  But you have to invite them in to hear it.  You have to go to them with the truth that will set them free.

Jesus preached on the mountainsides.  He knew rain, heat, and cold.  He reached people.  His kingdom was not of this world, and He wasn't concerned about building walls.  He was concerned about people.


Sometimes we are too content with our walls.

Our enemy is sneaky.  
He is sly.  
He is slimy and despicable.  

Some people don't realize this.  They have joined his side.

Instead of being on guard against him, they have cozied up and become friends.  

They watch his movies and laugh at his jokes.  They surf his internet sites.  They dance to his music.  

What they don't know is killing them.  Spiritually.

And the whole armor of God just sits there in their closet.  Unused.  Why put on armor to protect yourself against a friend?  

They don't understand the nature of this enemy's warfare. 

But Paul did.  That is why the first thing Paul tells us about our enemy is the nature of his warfare:  his warfare is one that employs deception, cunning or scheming.  

In other words, he is not going to fight fair.  He will not fight like a gentleman.  He will lie, deceive, trick, and use any manner of slimy schemes in order to unseat us from winning the war to walk worthy.  

Satan has a whole arsenal of unscrupulous tactics:

1. He lies to you about God. (Genesis 3)
2. He lies to God about you. (Job 1-2)
3. He tricks you into doing something you know is wrong. (I Chronicles 21:1)
4. He lies even to those in his own army. (I Kings 22:20-22)
5. He hurls unfounded accusations. (Zechariah 3:1, Revelation 12:10)
6. He is the Father of Lies. (John 8:44)
7. He disguises himself as an angel of light. (II Corinthians 11:14)
8. He stalks you like a roaring lion, employing vicious strategies in order to take down his prey. (I Peter 5:8)

​God has equipped you to fight your enemy.  Don't join his side!  Armor up and go out to fight against him!

Soldiers of Christ, arise, and put your armor on, 
Strong in the strength which God supplies through His eternal Son;  
Strong in the Lord of Hosts, and in His mighty power: 
Who in the strength of Jesus trusts is more than conqueror.  
--Charles Wesley

Blood, sweat, and tears. 
 
Students graduating from BJMBC can tell you all about it.  Each one has to successfully pass their written and oral comprehensive reviews, which have put butterflies in the stomachs of the most diligent and sent others from the room weeping.
That is not the purpose, of course.  We are not trying to traumatize our students right before we transfer their tassel from one side to the other. 
No, the purpose is to see how hard they have worked over the last four years.  How much have they retained?  Did they really internalize these truths, thus allowing their profit to appear to all?  Or have they simply crammed their way through the years, studying just for a grade on a test?
We want our students to graduate, not because they have passed tests, but because they have learned truth.
Other colleges want the same thing.
So when I read this article about "Recto University," where anybody who wants to can purchase a fake diploma from the Metro Manila college of their choice for about 12 US dollars, I was filled with righteous indignation.  

But I was not surprised.  Man, in his depravity, often looks for shortcuts to success.  

They also look for shortcuts to heaven.
Remember the "Indulgences" sold by Johann Tetzel?  "As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs!"  Tetzel took it even further than that, claiming that indulgences were certificates of forgiveness for sins past and even future.  Planning to rob a bank tonight?  Buy an indulgence this morning.  Bingo, you are already covered!
Indulgences were fake documents spawned by false dogma.  Drive-through deliverance from sins.

But then, a couple of weeks after I read that article,  something happened that really burned on my heart.

We were at the University of the Philippines, talking to people about the thing that matters most:  their souls.  Two men entered into conversation with us, one of them immediately saying, "I am a Christian too!"  He even told us the name of the large evangelical church he attends here in Metro Manila.  
But as the conversation went on, and Tim explained from the Word of God what it means to be a follower of Christ, and what Jesus means when He says, "Except a man be born again, he cannot enter the kingdom of God," the man appeared genuinely baffled.  He kept saying, "I've never heard this!"

So he told us his story.  
Apparently his boss had wanted to have only "Christians" in his employ, so he sent all his employees to a short seminar at this particular mega-church.  At the end of the seminar, they baptized them and sent them home with certificates.  
Certificates of salvation.

Fake documents.

I hope that someone out of that group was genuinely converted that day.  I hope that the mega-church that held the seminar tried hard to explain clearly the Gospel.  
But for this particular man, all they offered was a fake document.

So I would like to ask two questions today:

1. Are you holding on to a fake certificate of salvation?  Is your hope of salvation your baptism, your church membership, or simply a prayer copied from someone else's lips, not genuinely latched to a truth in your heart?  Salvation is not mouthing a mindless prayer.  It is not church attendance or church membership.  It is not something we are born with.  It is not baptism.  It is faith in Christ alone, in His sacrifice on the cross.  It is the substitution of Christ's righteousness for my sin.
   
2. Do we, who care for the souls of others, ever give them fake certificates of salvation?  Do we offer false assurance?
   

Like Luther, we need to nail some theses to the walls of our lives.  There are no shortcuts to heaven. Jesus says, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No man cometh unto the Father but by me."  He finished the job with His blood, sweat, and tears.

Don't trust in certificates. 
Trust in Christ.




If you are not sure that your sins are completely forgiven, please read this document from our mission board called "What If."

The house we live in is destined for destruction.
We plan to tear it down within a year or so and replace it with a building for Bob Jones Memorial Bible College.
It is, in fact, condemned already.

Don't feel sorry for me.  This is a good thing, actually.  With 5 wildly active boys ten years old and under, we are thankful not to have to worry about every new ding.
But this does affect what we do with the house.

For instance, repairs are carefully weighed.  Window screens with holes get replaced because Tim and I have both had Dengue Fever and, let me assure you, I would be grateful if it were a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
But some repairs will not be going on here at our residence.

For instance:
--Our plumbing is humorous.  
It involves a completely incomprehensible maze of blue plastic pipes above ground (which have been punctured and turned into geysers by overzealous shovel wielders and bike riders).  We don't know which pipe goes where and as long as I have water flowing in all the normal places, I honestly don't care. 
Inside the house, our plumbing includes random knobs and nozzles which, as far as we know, aren't actually connected to any water flow.  
We don't fix these plumbing quirks.  Why spend money on something that is already destined for destruction?

--Our flooring also has issues.  
Wood floors are gouged, water pocked, and warped.  A few tiles have been broken or gone missing.
We don't plan to refinish the floors.  We did the kitchen floor a while back after flooding ruined the vinyl tile.  It was a week of unending dust and banging and mess to lay the new tile.  Never again.  
Why spend time on something that is destined for destruction?

--Our roofing is holey.  
We will have to compensate by using buckets during the rainy season.  If it gets really bad, we will fix a sheet or two of metal.  Not the whole thing.  
Why spend effort on something that is destined for destruction?

This morning I walked the crowded streets near our church in Metro Manila.  As a foreigner, I am an object of blatant curiosity.  "Good morning, ma'am," people call to me.  They stand waiting for a cut of fresh meat hanging in a meat-seller's stall.  Waiting for a jeepney ride.  Waiting for destruction.
Condemned already.

Houses and souls have nothing in common.  What we won't spend on a ramshackle house, we will--we must--spend on these people.  Time, money, effort, our very lives. . . None of it wasted.  

This is our mission.

John 3:17-18
For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.