Classes (Re)Start

Most of the schools here in the Philippines opened today.  In my younger days, I always looked forward at the beginning of the school year.  New notebook... new... ?? I think that’s all I had then.  I never had problems using old bags or clothes or even recycled notebooks from the previous years.  New or old, it didn't matter.  All I needed was something I could use.  But of course I wanted something new every start of the year. 

It’s a different feeling when you hold in your arms something new.  It gives you renewed hope that this time it will be better than the last one.  Something new is something you will always look forward to, something you will love sharing and talking about. What’s new inspires you.  What’s new excites you.  But sometimes, it is not always that something or someone “NEW” that will give you the needed inspiration, the needed excitement.  Sometimes, it is the old one being rediscovered.  Finding something different, understanding it deeper, and appreciating it more will lead you to greater joy and happiness. 

The same goes with faith as it is with other things.  You are searching for something that will give you more meaning, more purpose.  You look for answers to your questions and instead of finding the answers, you find alternative “fixes.”  Good for you if can find the answer from a different path.  But better if you can care enough to study more and learn what’s already there.  Sometimes, the answers we’re looking for is not from without but kept within.  Sometimes, change is not even necessary.  Maybe it is just a little effort to look deeper, listen more intently. 

As we’ve invited you in the past articles, please join us as we take this journey of (re)discovering Jesus.  Join us as we take small, baby steps towards Him and get to know the Son of Man better. 

For our reference, we decided to use the New Living Translation (NLT) version of the Bible (©1996), not for any other particular reasons, but merely for easier understanding of the words.  We are still babies, you know, so we need to take “soft” foods for now. 

This is not a philosophical or theological or religious journey.  This is just about a man trying to rediscover his faith in One Man named Jesus.  This is just about a man being in front of the Divine as he tried to see a glimpse of His glory. 

Who is This Jesus?

“Jesus?  Jesus who?”

“Hi! My name is Jesus and I came from Galilee.  My trade?  Oh, yes, I am a carpenter.  I inherited a shop from my father Joseph. But, actually, I don’t do much carpentry nowadays.  I’ve been roaming around the countryside, with my small group of friends, talking to people, giving them hope and preaching the good news of God’s salvation.  We don’t have a regular place to stay, so no permanent address. We are usually seen dining with the poor, the outcasts of the society, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, the lowest of the lows and the poorest of the poor.

“From time to time, we heal the sick, cast out demons, bring dead man back to life, feed five thousand men and a lot more that most people would call miracles.  Well, scholars of the law, priests, leaders of the church and of the cities call us enemies of the religion and threat to the existing traditions and customs.  We are not pretty much the kind of preachers and teachers you may have in mind.  Most of my friends and co-workers have no formal schooling, they were fishermen and ordinary men from the lowly part of the country.  All of us, and I mean all of us, are in danger of arrest and persecution, everyday.  One day, we will die in the most painful ways.  But that’s still in the future right?  For now, I, we, just do what my Father in Heaven asks me to do.  If you trust in Me, join us.”

Imagine talking to Jesus right now and He said those lines.  What will you say to Him?  How will you answer?

“Gee, you seems to be doing a great job.  But, you see, I am too occupied right now. I got bills to pay, my parents are aging and I have to take care of them, my kids are still young and they need me most of the time.  You know, I am really busy right now.  Maybe some other time.”

“What have you been smokin’, man?  Bringing back to life a dead man?  Healing the sick, dining with harlots and tax collectors?  You must be insane?  I heard you are in constant argument with the high priest and his cohorts.  Don’t you know that you are endangering your life and that of your friends?  I wouldn’t join you, man.  Not in this life, not even in the next.”

“Jesus?  From Galilee?  Is there something good from that place?  Just talk to someone else and stay away from me.”

“Oh, I see. What you are doing seems pretty interesting.  But, what’s in it for me?”

“Sure, but let me just tell my family about it.  I need to consult my wife first, you know.”

“I have a lot of troubles of my own.  Why should I join you?”

We don’t have to look too far to see that one of these responses may resonate our own. Who is this Jesus that we should be spending our time thinking about Him and what He said or has to say? What’s in it for us?  Is there any available resources or references that we can use to know exactly who He is?  He’s too popular and yet no two individual know Him exactly the same.   

Jesus and His words are more than just fashion and fad that last for a short time and then go away.  He and His words have been with us for more than 2000 years.  And we don’t see it going away.  He’s going to stay for all eternity.  Amen.  Jesus was there even before the beginning of time. 

So who is this Jesus? 

Jesus is both Human and Divine.  Trying to understand Him with our small minds would never be enough to see how big His nature is.  

Just to have a short but clear picture of who Jesus is, let’s take a look at how John introduces Him:

“In the beginning the Word already existed.  He was with God, and He was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  He created everything there is.  Nothing exists that he didn’t make.  Life itself was in him and this life gives light to everyone.  The light shines through the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it... The One who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was going to come into the world... But although the world was made through Him, the world didn’t recognize Him whe He came... So the Word became human and lived here on earth among us.  He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness.  And we have seen His glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father.”

“For the law was given through Moses; God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ.  No one has ever seen God.  But His only Son, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart; He has told us about Him.” (John 1:1-5,9-10,14,17-18 (NLT))   

Join us in this journey as as we try to know more about this Man named Jesus.  Let us live our lives, from being good to being godly.    

An Invitation

“The night is dark and full of terror.”

That is the famous line from the TV series Game of Thrones, an adaptation of the book with the same title. 

It is a fictional line but it cannot be too far from reality.  

We are now in the age when every street and every corner is illuminated by man-made lights but we remain in darkness and hides in terror.  We live in the world of interconnected lives but with disconnected hearts.  We know what’s happening on the other side of the world but we don’t even care on what’s happening with our next door neighbor or the person sitting on the next cubicle in our workplace. We, despite all the glory and honor that man received in this world, still live in darkness and fear. 

But we know too well that there is fear only when one is left too long in the dark.  For from light, from illumination, comes forth courage and hope.  Light birngs forth true understanding and wisdom.  From lights comes life and freedom.  But that light must be searched with diligence, perseverance and eternal dedication.  We need to find that light, come what may.  But which light, for many have claimed to be bearers of light?  The Light of Faith, Lumen Fidei, which can only be found in Jesus.  

“Faith is not a light which scatters all our darkness, but a lamp which guides our steps in the night and suffices for the journey” (Pope Francis I, Lumen Fidei, #57).

For many of you who have been with us for more than a couple of years now, you know that try to dwell on the natural things and talk about how we can live the good life.  If you’ve been with us for quite a long time, you will realize that we are sharing with you things that may inspire you to live a life that you want.  But you will also be wise enough to see that we’ve been doing it the wrong way.  We encourage you live a good life instead of urging you to live a godly life – a life that imitates the life of Jesus. 

I invite you to join me, as I search for that light of faith.  This is an invitation for everyone, ordinary people who wants to go out of dark and run away from terror.  This is an invitation for everyone to march forward for their faith, their freedom, their life – both here and in eternity.  Join me in this journey of self-discovery and making Jesus more famous.   

We are going to change the theme of this site.  We will now be dedicating this site to the men and women who seeks to find not a good life but a godly life.

This is an open invitation – free of charge.  Join us as we journey towards life, using nothing but the light of faith to illumine our path, until we meet Jesus as He welcomes us in His loving arms.