Second Day of Romans Class

 With a very difficult section ahead for the Romans class today, I was up until about 2am getting prepared. Nevertheless, I had to be up at 5:30 this morning to make it on time for the start of our prayer time at 7:45am. I was no sure the covers had totally finished settling around me when the alarm went off, but it was worth it to be prepared for the day’s study. Having contracted for transportation with one of the members here in Cebu, we left the hotel at 7:15 and arrived at the venue with plenty of time to get set up before our starting time.

We began with Romans 5 this morning and went through chapter 6 by the lunch break. We discussed how we follow in the sinful steps of Adam, not by inheriting his sin, but by committing sin ourselves and thus being guilty. We noted the parallel of the path shown by Adam in contrast to the path led by Christ, showing that we are neither made sinners or made righteous apart from our will or actions. We then moved to the servitude we out to have as those who died to sin and were raised to a new life in baptism. That commitment obligates us to present ourselves as servants to Christ and His righteousness and cease a life of sin.

Our afternoon study focused entirely on Romans 7. We noted the difficulty of the chapter and took much time setting the stage by seeing how the text defines the time in which Paul is describing his situation as being captivated in sin. The text gives ample evidence of the fact that Paul is not describing his present situation as an apostle of Christ living a life elsewhere characterized as a life of faith wherein Christ lives in him (Gal. 2:20). Instead, he transports himself back to describe his plight as on held captive to the sin he had committed under the law and unable to find remedy for that sin under the law of Moses itself. Though he had a desire to serve God, he could not find acceptance with God under the provisions of the law itself because it clearly identified his sin, but made no provision of itself for taking that sin away. We had an excellent study with great attention and were able to get through the material so that there was clear comprehension in far less time than I had expected. I was able to leave the venue toward the hotel at about 4:30pm.

A very big problem has arisen with our schedule and I do not know how we are going to resolve it at this point. Next Tuesday (Nov. 17), we are ticketed to fly from Tuguegarao to Manila. However, President Obama and Russian President Putin are to arrive in Manila that day for the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) summit. On that day, air travel has been canceled in the Philippines as a security measure. The airline has informed me that my schedule has been unilaterally changed to have me returning to Manila two days later. That is impossible for both Chip and me as it would totally destroy my plans for work to be done in Manila and have Chip return to Manila after he is scheduled to depart for the U.S. from Manila. We are trying to get a flight back to Manila the day previous to our scheduled return (Monday instead of Tuesday), but that seems unlikely at this point. If I go up to Tuguegarao and no return flight is possible, it would mean taking a 14 to 16 hour bus trip over horrible roads in a cramped bus in order to get back to Manila. With the trouble I have been having with an increasing pain in my right hip and lower back, I do not think that is a good solution. In fact, I think my doctor would kill me if I did it! If I fly back to Manila on Saturday, I have no room reservation until Tuesday and no rooms are available in Manila at any price for those days. Please keep this situation in your prayers as we try to adjust and do the best we can.