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paSTOR`S PAGE
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July 2018
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July 1
The Holy Communion is the expression of the divine love and suffering of the Savior for the sake of men, to bring them out from under the wrath of God. At first, there was no suffering in creation because the Creator made it "very good" (Genesis 1:31). After sin entered into creation, suffering also entered in the form of conflict, pain, disease and death (Gen. 3:15-19) The purpose of the Savior's coming into our world was to free the people from sin, spiritual death and eternal death, but this spiritual regeneration does not eliminate suffering from the human life. In a moment of deep suffering, when the Savior was carrying the cross to the place of the crucifixion, godly women were criying out of compassion but He said to them, "...do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children... For if they do these things in the green wood, what will be done in the dry?" (Luke 23:28,31) The burden of suffering was always present in the people of God, but the greatest problem was not the suffering itself but the fear that suffering was sent by God, a God full of love, who inexplicably finds pleasure in the suffering of His children. Using the method of identification, we distinguish good people from bad people or friends from enemies by the good or the evil that they do to us. Using the same method of identification, how does God's love reconcile with the suffering to which His children are subjected? Does suffering come from God or is it allowed by God? To find out the answer to this question, it is good to remind ourselves that the will of God is twofold: directive and permissive. His will is directive when He, as the Creator and Lord of creation, decides to do something, and no one can stand against it. His will is permissive when He does not decide, but only allows. For example, God decided that Balaam should not curse the Jewish people at Balaak's request, but because of the insistence of the prophet who was financially motivated God allowed him to act. Much suffering followed and a donkey had to stop him from his disobedience. In general, the suffering of God`s children cannot be explained, but only accepted by faith (Romans 8:28) or unaccepted by complaining (Matthew 13:21). No child doubts his father's love, even when he takes him to the hospital for a painful operation. Sometimes suffering has explicable purposes. Sometimes suffering is a consequence of sin (Luke 13:1-5), other times suffering is a method to correct the life of His people (Judges 2:22-3: 6). Sometimes suffering is a means by which people are tested and purified (James 1:3). Jesus suffered in the Passion Week for the sins and afficltions of men. The Savior's torments give us a new significance of suffering because of the substitution purpose it had. This substitute suffering shows us how One can suffer in the place of all and as a representative of all. That is why He is presented by the O.T. like the Servant who suffers. When Saul of Tarsus converts, the first thing God does is to show him how much he will suffer for His Name. Most of the apostles suffered much and died as martyrs, and the same thing happened to many Christians from the generations that followed until this day. So suffering has a new meaning for the members of the body of Jesus, who are glad to share in His sufferings (Romans 8:17, 2 Cor. 1: 5). The cross of present suffering is interwoven with the glory of eternity that will come, as was the case with the Savior Jesus. The Holy Communion is a moment of contemplation and acceptance of His sufferings.
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July 8
God made Adam from the dust of the earth, He made Eve from one of Adam’s ribs, and He placed them in the Garden of Eden. The family according to God’s model is the solution to man’s happiness. In looking at the span of time that has passed since creation until now, we observe that the institution of family has remained, but its model has been redefined. Loneliness, cohabitation, adultery, polygamy, LGBTQ, etc. are proposals that are dirty and inefficient and they cast people into unhappiness and debauchery. When a new generation of children appear on the scene of history, they form their own mentality about the world and life in the process of the first 20 years of existence. Depending on the cultural medium and the educational system that influences them in their first years of life, multiple models of the family have gained contour, which young people seem to practice in marriage: 1. The traditional model – promoting the superiority of the man and polygamy 2. The modern model – promoting the emancipation of the woman and the unisex mode 3. The Biblical model – promoting personal sanctification, fidelity in marriage, unity through love and respect. The first book of the Bible offers us the following directional principles: 1. Man’s need explains the rationale of the family. The family exists because the needs of man are met in its interior: happiness, communication, procreation, protection, education, love, marriage, fidelity, companionship, belonging, care, funeral. Marriage is a principle of life, the celibate is an exception, reason for which loneliness is not a solution. When Adam woke from the sleep brought on by the Lord, he married Eve and he was never again alone. The rationale behind family is explained by man’s needs, fully fulfilled only in marriage. 2. The divine solution explains the success of family. When God thought about an appropriate helper for the man, He made Eve. Money, friends, reputation, position, opportunities, or education are not the appropriate help for a man, but the wife is: “he who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord” (Proverbs 18:22). All the opportunities of the world cannot equate to the importance of a good wife in the life of a man. It is interesting that even though Adam was in Eden with God, he felt the need for fellowship with someone with the same nature as himself. 3. Parental detachment explains the attachment to the life partner. The only reason for which a young person may detach from parents is to attach to a life partner. The lack of detachment to parents in marriage may negatively affect the attachment of the spouses. No matter how young a family may be, it is a self-contained family. It is necessary for the parents to be in the lives of the young family, but only with a consultant role, not an executive one and only if their presence is positive. 4. The presence of the family explains the nudity without shame. The Bible affirms the fact that “Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame” (Genesis 2:25). The family is the only place where nudity is neither shameful nor sinful. The failure of many families begins with the exposure of nudity in public places, through a lack of modest clothing, unhealthy friendships… It is precisely because of this personal opportunity – marriage – that an intimate relationship with someone else is a sin. The Bible says that this sin is the only sin “against the flesh”, allowing us to understand that adultery is a “greater” sin. For this reason, Paul says, “but since sexual immorality is occurring, each man should have sexual relations with his own wife, and each woman with her own husband” (1 Corinthians 7:2). God’s blessing is directly proportional with fidelity in marriage. God never blesses sin. The cross on the hill at Calvary demonstrates how much God hates sin. May God bless our families.
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July 15
In chapter 8, the evangelist John presents us with the striking contrast between divine holiness and man’s sin, between the love of God and the hypocrisy of the human being. The text presents several events and a few people: 1. Love, forgiveness and the wisdom of the Savior Jesus Christ. He prays for people on the Mount of Olives, then goes to the temple to worship God, but there he meets many people and teaches them about the kingdom of heaven. 2. Hate, political game and the hypocrisy of theologists and religious leaders. Because they hated Jesus since he confronted the institutionalization of their spiritual lives and their hypocrisy, the Pharisees bring a woman who they had caught in adultery. While cunningly exploiting the situation, they challenge the Savior, addressing Him in public: “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?” Their question put the Lord in between two bad responses. If He did not condemn her, He was against the law of Moses. If He condemned her, it would be like attempting to seize command of the Roman authority, the only one who had the right to condemn someone to death – they themselves reaffirmed this at the Lord’s crucifixion, before the Roman governor, Pilate. The fact that they did not bring the man she committed adultery with demonstrates that they had no interest in truth and justice, but simply wanted to trap Jesus. It is even likely they orchestrated this adultery to create the context they needed. If they had been driven by truth and justice, they would have repented when Christ answered, “who among you is without sin should cast the first stone”. They had no strength to repent, even though they knew very well what they needed to do; they chose instead to simply leave. 3. The enduring drama of a woman with few morals. She did not come to Jesus of her own initiative, nor did she come to worship Him or to thank him; rather, she was brought by escort and accused of adultery. This experience confirms the fact that there are people who will only come to Christ when they are suffering or ill. Seeking pleasure, profit, or love, this woman places herself under the wrath of God and the punishment of men. Love always leads to suffering when it is understood or practiced incorrectly. a. Love only IF…. The commercial love. This is the love that we receive only if we meet certain conditions and criteria. This kind of love is expressed as follows: “I love you if you do what I ask”. What happens if you don’t do it? What happens if they meet someone who does what they want better than you? b. Love BECAUSE… The competitive love. This is the love that we receive because of how we are, because of what we have, or because of what we do. This love is produced from a certain quality or condition in the life of the loved one. This kind of love is expressed as follows: “I love you because you are beautiful”. What happens years later when she will no longer be as beautiful? What happens when he finds someone more beautiful? c. Love…. Unconditional love. This love is not quantified with an IF or a BECAUSE, it simply stands alone. This love forgives, offers a second chance. The only chance the woman caught in adultery had was to be judged in a time and place where Jesus, the Son of God, was present. He answered her, “neither do I condemn you “, because He would soon be condemned in her place. Still, He said to her, “go and sin no more”, because here He does not take her place, but simply helps her. And so, do we, who know what others should do, know what we ourselves should do?
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July 22
Every person’s mother is one of the most important people to them. Oliver Wendell Holmes said that “youth withers, love settles, the leaves of friendship fall to the earth, but the secret hopes of a mother survive everything”. But even greater than the love a mother is the love of God; every mortal being has had this experience. The Savior Jesus Christ came by boat from the Decapolis in Gennesaret, a city in the north of Galilea. There, he had healed many, and then had a contradictory conversation with the Pharisees and the scholars from Jerusalem. After these events, the Lord, accompanied by His disciples, traveled to the cities of Tyre and Sidon, found at approximately 30 and 50 miles respectively from Gennesaret. Tyre and Sidon were two prosperous Phoenician cities on the shores of the Mediterranean Sea; they were luxurious and very debaucherous. While the Savior and His disciples passed through the area of these cities, a local mother of Syrian/Phoenician descent ran to the Lord, asking that He free her daughter from demons. This event helps us to better understand the Saviors’ character filled with strength, mercy, love and goodness, but also that of the mother who is filled with faith, dedication, sacrifice, perseverance, humility, and patience. For this reason, Neale Donald Walsch said so beautifully that “my mother was my first encounter with an angel”. Why does it seem that sometimes the faith of a mother is treated with indifference by God? (Matthew 15:22-23a) I. How was the faith of this pained mother manifested? 1. A pained mother fights for the liberation of her demonized child – “My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly” (Matthew 15:22). Through her great motherly love, she behaves unconventionally in public, “she cried out”. 2. A Canaanite woman calls Jesus “Lord”, while His disciples called him “teacher”. It is worth noting what this stranger saw in the son of a carpenter from Nazareth. 3. A non-Jew who knows the history and genealogy of the Savior “Son of David”, while the Hebrew nation and its leaders still contest the Messiah, the Son of David, to this day. 4. A pagan woman in pain asks the Lord for mercy. Because of His great mercy, God does not give us what we deserve – eternal punishment – but gives us instead eternal life, because of His great grace. II. How was the apparent indifference of the Savior manifested toward this mother? The Bible remarks that “He did not say a word”. The silence of the Savior did not discourage her though. Similarly, David prayed and then he waited for the mercy of the Lord – “In the morning, LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly” (Psalm 5:3). Faith does everything it can and then waits for the Lord to do the rest. The Savior’s attitude towards the faith of this desperate mother was not indifference, but analytical. A single person burned in pain for the little Canaanite girl who was possessed by a demon – and this person was her mother. In her love as a mother, she accepted to be ignored, humiliated, insulted, so that in the end she could be victorious, appreciated and blessed. People saw a desperate woman, a victim of evil demons. The Lord saw a warrior, a woman whose faith demanded healing for her daughter. This is how the mother who gave us life is or was. This is why the Lord tells us in the Bible Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother”—which is the first commandment with a promise— “so that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.” Ephesians 6:1-3
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July 29
Every preacher and every listener wonders at least once in a lifetime how were the sermons of the apostles of the Lord have, how did these sermons look and what were their characteristics? We understand from the NT books that Paul was a good theologian and writer, while Peter was a good preacher. How did a sermon of the great apostle look? Reading the book of Acts, we find in chapter two Peter`s sermon at the Pentecost, in which we discover the characteristics and the results of his sermon:
1. PETER'S SERMON CONFRUNTS: "...you have crucified Him and killed Him by the hands of the lawless" (v. 23) Peter speaks to the religious leaders and the city administration, confronting them with their own compromise. he does not preach to please them but to present the truth, proclaiming Jesus Christ. Peter's purpose was not to retaliate, but to lead them to repentance by acknowledging the sin they had done. Because their sin was public, their repentance had to also be public, and the apostle confronted them, forcing them to repent. 2. PETER'S SERMON EXPLAINS: "...he poured what you see and hear" (v. 33). Peter wanted to make justice when he confronted them, but he also wanted to bring light when he explained the significance of the event they despised. He helped them understand that the miracle they see is the fulfillment of Joel's prophecy. Although they had and knew the Word, they were unable to interpret and explain it. 3. PETER'S SERMON APPLIES: "Repent ye... every one of you shall be baptized... then ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (v. 38) It is easy to see that people were listening to the sermon, but they did not understand its message. they understand its words, but do not know how to apply it practically. Peter has the wisdom to show how the teaching of his sermon can be applied in practice, pointing out the main ideas of the spoken message. The purpose of the sermon is not just to confront, turning the preacher into a religious hero who reveals the sins of the hearers. Peter's sermon confrunts, but then explains with the Bible why their deeds are bad. He argues with the Gospel, speaking to them directly, but respectfully and plainly. The result of such a sermon was the conversion of three thousand people who later were baptized in water, baptized with the Holy Spirit, and became active members of the Church of God. And it all began with a sermon, a sermon in which the truth confrunts, the wisdom explains and the love applies. The three thousand people have listened to many sermons in their towns` synagogues, but they lacked in truth, love and spiritual wisdom. But Peter's sermon from two thousand years ago had these elements and the result was the conversion of three thousand people.
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