Saturday in Cebu

Our studies on the subject of “The Person and Work of the Holy Spirit” went well. If you followed these reports in the September trip, you may remember that we were invited to speak at the Sunday services of the “Bright and Morning Star Church” (known as BMS). They are a mix of some with Baptist backgrounds as well as others with Pentecost or charismatic backgrounds. We began our classes a little after 9am, had a short break for lunch and finished about 3:30pm after a question/answer period.

The group had asked that I present lectures on the subject of the “manifestations of the Holy Spirit,” so I edited and reorganized a series on the Holy Spirit done several years ago at home. The six lessons in the series were:

•      The Person of the Holy Spirit
•      The Holy Spirit in the Old Testament
•      The Holy Spirit’s work in Revelation
•      The Miraculous Action of the Holy Spirit in Scripture
•      The Miraculous Action of the Holy Spirit in Apostolic Time

o   (This lesson contained a part dealing with the purpose and duration of miracles)

•      The Holy Spirit’s Work in Salvation

After the lessons, there was a period for questions from the audience about the lesson. It was obvious that the points taught in the lessons were new to many of the audience. Several seemed to be shocked by the things taught from the Bible having never considered them before. So, the question/answer period began with whether I believe that God could heal today. We looked at James 5:14-18 to show God still acts by His providence in answer to the prayers of His saints. In that context, prayers for healing are specifically addressed. We also noted that the prayers of a righteous man avails much according to verse 16. We then discussed the difference between that kind of providential action in keeping with the natural laws and the miraculous healings in Bible times. We also covered the meaning of the Holy Spirit “indwelling the Christian” and showed it was taught just as the indwelling of the Father and the Son, but that all were done through a medium, not by a physical presence of the divine person of the Holy Spirit being located within the body of the Christian. Several other points were also raised and discussed, but there seemed to be a good reception to the teaching.

After the conclusion of the study, I talked with the man who is one of the leaders, David. He has extended the invitation to speak both in September as well as today and tomorrow. I told him that I was having a great deal of pain and swelling with my leg and that I had to be on a plane departing for Manila at 1pm tomorrow so that a doctor could check me out. I suggested that it might be better to have Jonathan take my place for that time, but he insisted that they would rearrange their services to let me go first and then leave for the airport. So, the fact that they are still leaving the door open is a good sign. Please pray that this door will continue to be open and that other faithful brethren might be able to continue the teaching that needs to be done.

Finish in Angeles City - On to Cebu

5/15/16

The classes on 1^st Timothy through Titus ended yesterday on schedule in Angeles City. We covered the three chapters of Titus in the three hours we had for study. Some of the material from chapter one had already been covered when we discussed the work and qualifications of elders, bishops or pastors. Several other parts of Titus were a restatement of points made in the two letters to Timothy, so we did not go into detail again on those matters either. We had a more in depth focus on the second half of chapter two as well as the third chapter. Towards the end of our time, I took time to give special emphasis on the nature of teaching that Paul characterized as “sound doctrine” as well as the need to make sure our lives are consistent with that “sound doctrine” in every way with respect to our morals, diligence of preparation, honesty, fellowship, depth of study and sincere faith.

When we ended the class, I still needed to go back to the hotel and pack quickly so that we could make the extended checkout time we had arranged. We ended up beating it by ten minutes. While we were checking out, Lordy took Rody and Tessie Gumpad to the bus so they could get to Pasay where he is to preach Sunday. He then returned for the rest of us and we went to the adjacent mall so I could get something for lunch. All of the others had already eaten and I knew it would be too late to eat when we got to Cebu. I ended up getting into my hotel in Cebu a bit after 10pm and promptly hit the bed. The bed felt fantastic!

11/16/18

Today was a rest and preparation day. The first half of the day was spent catching up on sleep and relaxing. Throughout the afternoon, I have been getting ready for the all-day lectureship with the denominational group visited on the last trip to Cebu. If you followed the reports on that trip, you might recall that I preached on “The Inspiration of the Scripture” for that group on a Sunday morning. Just before this trip, they called Jonathan asking if I could preach again and we readily agreed. After I had already left home, they asked if I could teach in some Saturday classes on “The Holy Spirit.” We agreed to give a full day of classes on the subject and they are providing their building for the venue. Please keep this effort in your prayers!

Several at home have asked about the problem I have had with my right leg and foot. It is still swelling some, though less than before. However, the pain is still there. When I return back to Manila on Sunday afternoon, I plan to go see Dr. Teresa Toreja (the daughter of the late Ben Cruz) who is an excellent doctor. The main thing I want to verify is that there is no blood clot causing the problem. Hopefully, it will be a minor problem that I can take care of after I return home. Thanks for the prayers on this as well!

Last Full Day in Angeles City

As planned yesterday, we covered all of 2^nd Timothy today. In the morning session, we were about an hour late getting started. So, we only had time to finish chapter one before the lunch break. We looked in some depth at what Paul said about the background and upbringing of Timothy. He was given the great blessing of a faithful grandmother and mother, as well as learning from Paul’s teaching, but he had to develop his own faith. Paul also noted that he wanted Timothy not to be ashamed of the Lord’s testimony or Paul since Paul was a faithful servant of God, suffering for the Lord’s cause. We finished the morning by emphasizing the commitment Paul showed as one absolutely assured of the faithfulness of God.

During the lunch break, we had a power reduction that took one of the two air conditioners out. (The one on the right in the picture was the offending machine!) So the heat began to build then and increased throughout the day. After I had finished teaching through 2^nd Timothy, there was a full blackout while Lordy, Rody and Jonathan were clarifying the points covered from the text. I could not help but think about what Leslie had told me concerning home – it had snowed on Monday in Oklahoma! I had to work hard at not envying as we sweated along!

The afternoon session covered the remainder of the book. We stressed the repeated admonitions for Timothy to be diligent in promoting and defending the truth as well as making sure his life was conducted in harmony with the gospel. In contrast to that, we noted the repeated warnings about those whose lives would exemplify an opposition to the gospel. Though it was very warm during the afternoon session, the attention was good.

The Lord willing, we will finish our classes tomorrow in Angeles City. Rody and Tessie Gumpad will take a bus to Pasay as soon as we can conclude the classes and get back to the hotel as a bus goes from the adjacent mall directly to Pasay. Tomorrow evening, Jonathan and Nanette Carino will fly with me to Cebu City where we have work to do with the denomination group we visited on the September trip. Please keep these efforts in your prayers as we seek to help people know and obey the gospel.

Classes in Angeles City Continue

We began considering of the qualifications for bishops or elders in yesterday afternoon’s session. The qualifications were examined by category. We looked at two yesterday and covered the other two to start today’s morning session – those dealing with the preparation for teaching God’s word and those regarding leadership in the family. After that, we discussed the qualifications of deacons. We then completed the first half of 1^st Timothy 4 before the lunch break.

After lunch, we covered the remainder of the letter. We had extended study and discussion on a variety of topics from the text:

·     - Whether there is a limit to the benevolent obligation of the church or whether it is unlimited in its scope

·     - The evidence necessary in order to charge an elder or Christians

·     - The responsibility of Christians to live within social structures, even when unfair, in order to help lead people to Christ

·     - The need to focus our teaching and conduct on the word of God and reject useless disputes

·     - The problems presented to oneself and others by materialism and greed

So, we are ready to start and finish 2^nd Timothy tomorrow and conclude with the study of Titus on a half-day of classes Thursday.