Saturday, March 12, 2005
some things to think about
i just read my daily dosage of existence... ehhe... the one year bible reading thingy. ^_^ and i came across passages that are simply thought-provoking or just reinforcing some things i've learned from the past... they are:
NUMBERS 18:22
"From now on the Israelites must not go near the Tent of Meeting, or they will bear the consequences of their sins and will die..."
~okay... i was wondering how come the tent of meeting was so exclusive to the priests that only them are allowed to stand close in the presence of God. I even thought that was somehow unfair because only them can get to enjoy God in a closer relationship. this verse made me realize that God is utterly holy and pure, and He doesn't want to harm us, and if you go there tainted with sin's debt, you got to pay right away. Since sin is death, you'll get that when you are blemished in his presence... and it made me appreciate what Jesus did. Lucky are we that we live in this time when we can approach God without being struck by lighting because of our impurity. Because through Jesus we are made clean, our sins are paid. We can enjoy a loving relationship with the Father, and Jesus along with the Holy Spirit that lives in us... Isn't that a wonderful gift? Indeed! priceless and invaluable...
about offerings
NUMBERS 18:32
"By presenting the best part of it you will not be guilty in this matter; then you will not defile the holy offerings of the Israelites, and you will not die."
~ it just supports that fact that in everything we do, do our best like as if we are doing it for the Lord. This verse also strongly applies in serving God, when we offer ourselves to serve, we should offer it whole. We should be committed to it because when we fail to do so, we are not doing our best; and there's this "we could have done better" thingy. No im not referring to this dissonance when you really have tried your best and you feel like you could have done better. I'm referring to the type where you choose not to do your best because you are just plain lazy. (between options of giving your best and just do it for the sake of doing it)... No, you're not just plain lazy but selfish as well, you don't want to share to other people more of your time and effort. You may say that we barely have time and strength in this world, but that's the point! We barely have the time and even vigor that we have to give the best out of what we got. To make some parallelism between the verse i've mentioned and what i'm talking about; let's discuss some background about Israel. The Levites (the ones the verse refer to) get the offerings from the Israelites as their share (because the Lord is their inheritance). And these offerings were of the best quality; and in the verse you can see that for this share of the Levites, they should offer a tenth of what they received to the Lord and should be the best of the best. So we can see here that they get the best, and they must give the best of the best. In the same way for us, God gave us talents and gifts. God knows our capabilities well that He knows which blessings/gifts we are best at. He gives them to us (~Levite's share of the offerings by Israelites). And from what we receive, we should give Him the best (just like the Levites giving the best out of the best they were blessed with). We therefore "insult" (defile) our gifts/talents/blessings when we don't give the best out of them; and worse we reject God's gift when we don't use them at all. and I think that's really bad.
~and geez, im also affected!
Mark 16:16
"Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned"
~ this verse i think can be easily (and is easily) misinterpreted, especially by nonbelievers. and to be frank (i know many would react..but i shall not be blind about it), this stirs a commotion in a discussion between Catholics (RCs) and Christians. For some Christians, RCs are not yet saved. Maybe because of the usual thought of Mary, mother of Jesus, being worshipped, and being made an idol when you think of RCs. (yes you can approach and "kill" me with words after this but i just want to share what we just obliviously face almost everytime...be honest! we do face this struggle! well, at least i do...). I got no problem with intercessional prayers and stuff, but why are we relying on intercessional prayers through saints who are not in this world anymore when we can just go and approach Jesus right away? We got Jesus! Like as if Jesus wouldn't listen to us when we are not being referred to by the saints who are with Him right now... Why can't we just go personal with Him? I think it is more leisurely to talk to Him than to talk to the saints about Him. It's like talking to the friends of your crush about getting to know your crush and even relaying a message to your crush, when all the while your crush is just there right there sitting beside you, willing to be talked to (and even waiting for you to talk to him!). Sorry for the use of word, but I think that's ridiculous! No im not saying don't talk to saints (well actually i've never really talked to saints who have passed this world, i prefer talking to Jesus if i got the choice), I'm just saying that instead of spending more time with them, spend more time with Jesus. Didn't we ever realize that it is only through Jesus that we can come to the Father? Invest on that fact. I'm also not saying that RCs are not saved, I'm not saying at all! I strongly believe that salvation is God's grace given to those who believe;,not to those who are labeled as Christians and/or Catholics. And that grace is coupled with a loving relationship with God altogether, all in one great package!
And as for my next point, that verse, doesn't exclude people! (like what ate Cla shared..Christianity is not "exclusive"). It is not meant to draw a line between the saved and those to be condemned. It is a warning of a fact that may happen to those who were shared with the Gospel and after some long complicated story goes on wandering, denying the call that's emanating from within... But again, i find it too complicated that listing the possible explanations here may take a lifetime for me to figure out.
The verse is like, don't eat cyanide it is dangerous to your health (okay fine, i know it's exaggerated; just live with it =) ). But the people doesn't know what cyanide is. Uninformed of its dangers, they may blatantly eat it or any food that unknowingly creates cyanide in the tummy (improperly cooked cassava for example), thinking that there's nothing wrong with it. They need to be informed!
So basically, all i want to say is that the Gospel must be shared and also i suggest that we should view verses like Mark 16:16 as more like a warning and/or a call, rather than a definition that exclusively separates believers from those who don't. It is meant to welcome not to shoo people away...
It is a grim fact that not everyone will be saved, not everyone will believe in my Lord. But personally, I'm just trying to share Him to others; He is too much for me to keep. I know this may lead to further arguments and you may even say what I just said defeats the purpose of writing this entry; but hey, there are myriads of people in this world and you can never please everybody! Even Jesus can't, all the more me?Perhaps I can even declare that there are two types of people in this world, those who hates this entry and those who don't. You can even correct me if i made an utterly awful mistake (im open about it =) , but just make sure as well that you know what you are going to say. (just a friendly message 'coz i feel like this post is quite... erm... u know...)
God bless everyone!
Carpe Diem! ¶ 10:55 AM
NUMBERS 18:22
"From now on the Israelites must not go near the Tent of Meeting, or they will bear the consequences of their sins and will die..."
~okay... i was wondering how come the tent of meeting was so exclusive to the priests that only them are allowed to stand close in the presence of God. I even thought that was somehow unfair because only them can get to enjoy God in a closer relationship. this verse made me realize that God is utterly holy and pure, and He doesn't want to harm us, and if you go there tainted with sin's debt, you got to pay right away. Since sin is death, you'll get that when you are blemished in his presence... and it made me appreciate what Jesus did. Lucky are we that we live in this time when we can approach God without being struck by lighting because of our impurity. Because through Jesus we are made clean, our sins are paid. We can enjoy a loving relationship with the Father, and Jesus along with the Holy Spirit that lives in us... Isn't that a wonderful gift? Indeed! priceless and invaluable...
about offerings
NUMBERS 18:32
"By presenting the best part of it you will not be guilty in this matter; then you will not defile the holy offerings of the Israelites, and you will not die."
~ it just supports that fact that in everything we do, do our best like as if we are doing it for the Lord. This verse also strongly applies in serving God, when we offer ourselves to serve, we should offer it whole. We should be committed to it because when we fail to do so, we are not doing our best; and there's this "we could have done better" thingy. No im not referring to this dissonance when you really have tried your best and you feel like you could have done better. I'm referring to the type where you choose not to do your best because you are just plain lazy. (between options of giving your best and just do it for the sake of doing it)... No, you're not just plain lazy but selfish as well, you don't want to share to other people more of your time and effort. You may say that we barely have time and strength in this world, but that's the point! We barely have the time and even vigor that we have to give the best out of what we got. To make some parallelism between the verse i've mentioned and what i'm talking about; let's discuss some background about Israel. The Levites (the ones the verse refer to) get the offerings from the Israelites as their share (because the Lord is their inheritance). And these offerings were of the best quality; and in the verse you can see that for this share of the Levites, they should offer a tenth of what they received to the Lord and should be the best of the best. So we can see here that they get the best, and they must give the best of the best. In the same way for us, God gave us talents and gifts. God knows our capabilities well that He knows which blessings/gifts we are best at. He gives them to us (~Levite's share of the offerings by Israelites). And from what we receive, we should give Him the best (just like the Levites giving the best out of the best they were blessed with). We therefore "insult" (defile) our gifts/talents/blessings when we don't give the best out of them; and worse we reject God's gift when we don't use them at all. and I think that's really bad.
~and geez, im also affected!
Mark 16:16
"Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned"
~ this verse i think can be easily (and is easily) misinterpreted, especially by nonbelievers. and to be frank (i know many would react..but i shall not be blind about it), this stirs a commotion in a discussion between Catholics (RCs) and Christians. For some Christians, RCs are not yet saved. Maybe because of the usual thought of Mary, mother of Jesus, being worshipped, and being made an idol when you think of RCs. (yes you can approach and "kill" me with words after this but i just want to share what we just obliviously face almost everytime...be honest! we do face this struggle! well, at least i do...). I got no problem with intercessional prayers and stuff, but why are we relying on intercessional prayers through saints who are not in this world anymore when we can just go and approach Jesus right away? We got Jesus! Like as if Jesus wouldn't listen to us when we are not being referred to by the saints who are with Him right now... Why can't we just go personal with Him? I think it is more leisurely to talk to Him than to talk to the saints about Him. It's like talking to the friends of your crush about getting to know your crush and even relaying a message to your crush, when all the while your crush is just there right there sitting beside you, willing to be talked to (and even waiting for you to talk to him!). Sorry for the use of word, but I think that's ridiculous! No im not saying don't talk to saints (well actually i've never really talked to saints who have passed this world, i prefer talking to Jesus if i got the choice), I'm just saying that instead of spending more time with them, spend more time with Jesus. Didn't we ever realize that it is only through Jesus that we can come to the Father? Invest on that fact. I'm also not saying that RCs are not saved, I'm not saying at all! I strongly believe that salvation is God's grace given to those who believe;,not to those who are labeled as Christians and/or Catholics. And that grace is coupled with a loving relationship with God altogether, all in one great package!
And as for my next point, that verse, doesn't exclude people! (like what ate Cla shared..Christianity is not "exclusive"). It is not meant to draw a line between the saved and those to be condemned. It is a warning of a fact that may happen to those who were shared with the Gospel and after some long complicated story goes on wandering, denying the call that's emanating from within... But again, i find it too complicated that listing the possible explanations here may take a lifetime for me to figure out.
The verse is like, don't eat cyanide it is dangerous to your health (okay fine, i know it's exaggerated; just live with it =) ). But the people doesn't know what cyanide is. Uninformed of its dangers, they may blatantly eat it or any food that unknowingly creates cyanide in the tummy (improperly cooked cassava for example), thinking that there's nothing wrong with it. They need to be informed!
So basically, all i want to say is that the Gospel must be shared and also i suggest that we should view verses like Mark 16:16 as more like a warning and/or a call, rather than a definition that exclusively separates believers from those who don't. It is meant to welcome not to shoo people away...
It is a grim fact that not everyone will be saved, not everyone will believe in my Lord. But personally, I'm just trying to share Him to others; He is too much for me to keep. I know this may lead to further arguments and you may even say what I just said defeats the purpose of writing this entry; but hey, there are myriads of people in this world and you can never please everybody! Even Jesus can't, all the more me?Perhaps I can even declare that there are two types of people in this world, those who hates this entry and those who don't. You can even correct me if i made an utterly awful mistake (im open about it =) , but just make sure as well that you know what you are going to say. (just a friendly message 'coz i feel like this post is quite... erm... u know...)
God bless everyone!
Carpe Diem! ¶ 10:55 AM
