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Monday, December 14, 2009
Overcoming Worries in Life
THEME: OVERCOMING WORRIES IN LIFE
TEXT: MATTHEW 6: 25-34
Prepared by: Bishop Danilo O. Bantilan Th.D.,DRE
Founding President/CEO
Introduction
There is no one today living on this planet earth that they don’t have worries in life or cares of life. After the man’s fall, humanity suffered a lot because of disobedience to the Word of God and then the whole creation suffered the consequences, Paul said in Romans 8:18, 22 “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us, for we know that the whole creation groaned and travailed in pain together until now. Today let’s listen, study and masticate the Word of Jesus comes from His mouth directly was addressed to His disciples, theologically, He is transcendent God no human being could reach Him; but by His grace and mercy He find ways and came down from heaven to earth to have fellowship with the Human being again and revealed his glory. He is the truth and the way going to His Kingdom. “Oh what a man that You are mindful of him”. These verses are the common passages in the Bible. And then may be some have memorized this passage. This was one of the messages of our Lord Jesus Christ on His sermon on the mount of Olives. The first subject He taught was about the beatitude Chapter 5-7, are the series of messages about life and how would be able to manage it. And also He taught about choosing one master, He said, we can’t serve two masters. He taught also the subject about the true treasures in heaven. And lastly, He taught the subject about worries in life. Jesus taught His disciples on how to deal these lesser, minor, common kind of worries in life. And today, let’s focus our attention on this subject matter.
This is the Idea of Jesus, on how to deal with all worries and cares of life. He gave some word of warning, comfort and encouragement, which was first addressed to His immediate Disciples.
How would we overcome all of our worries in Life?
Let’s take a look the Idea of Jesus, compared to the idea of the pagans. If we carefully observed this passage there was a contrast between the pagan concept and the practice of religious people and the “Kingdom concept” taught by the Lord Jesus Christ to His disciples.
Jesus here dealt this kind of issue, a humanistic and materialistic way of life that has been integrated to the human being. And it’s so hard to overcome. But we need to deal this seriously if not, it will become a big hindrance for our faith and trust in God.
Matthew 6: 25-34 If we summarize these verses, the main idea of Jesus is to teach and warn His Disciples to focus on the source of care which is God; who created the heavens the earth and they should trust Him, and believe that there is God the Father who Created the whole universe and care His creation. He is a good God! After He created the planet earth He never abandoned it and toke a rest and sleep. Jesus taught this subject to encourage them and change their mind set about their belief of false gods. They were influenced by their religious culture, the old concept of understanding about God plus with the pagan Idea that there is no God they were theism who cares the whole universe, and that’s why Jesus said, look at the birds, grass, and the flowers. God cares for them!!! Your Father, our Father. meaning He is sovereign God, in other words;
He is great, He never changes. Even me, I consider myself nothing incomparably to the greatness of God, He owns and manage the whole universe!
Jesus here, doesn’t say that they should stop or abandoned their Job or livelihood, and have a full time ministry. It’s a wrong interpretation if we conclude that they abandoned their means of living. Otherwise they become stumbling block to their family of being irresponsible person not supplying the basic needs.He said pagans run after these things! The word “Pagan” One who has no religion/ Heathen- a person who does not belong to a widely held religion
Comes from the Latin word "paganus” The term "Pagan" was widely used by Atheists, Agnostics, Humanists, etc. This kind of people existed before Jesus begun His earthly ministry.
How would we overcome all of our worries in Life?
1. God’s of This World “The Existence of God” (verses 25-32 a)
People in the ancient world worshiped a multitude of different gods. Each had its own story? Its own myth? Of the origin, the character, the blessings and curses they offered, and the worship each demanded. These myths often recalled ancient events either involving the true God (many ancient religions had a story about a flood) or the past history of the people who worshiped god. In contrast the Bible clearly teaches monotheism? The belief in one God? Who is the creator of all things? The belief in and the worship of the myriad of deities in the ancient world must be traced to the corruption of the knowledge of people had the true God. The nature and character of the gods and goddesses the ancients created reflect Human nature. These deities have some qualities which might be considered good? Like justice or mercy? As well as some very perverted characteristics? Like promiscuous sexuality or vengeful hatred. Study of the pagan religions is really a study of the view ancient people had of themselves, or the way they wished they could be. For their gods were created in their own image. The Bible often refers to these gods. This does not mean they actually existed, but rather they were a subjective reality in the minds of their worshipers (Rom. 1:18-25). Paul attributes the character of these created deities as a gateway to the source of evil...the devil himself (1 Cor. 10:19-21). The Bible contains the story of the great conflict between good and evil, or God and Satan. For that reason, the warnings against the worship of false gods, the punishments for that worship, the call to worship the true God and to invite others to worship him to resound throughout Scripture. It is most Helpful to understand the beliefs people of the Bible held about their deities for this will help to understand the way the Bible message is presented? As the correct understanding of reality in contrast the pagan one. Many Biblical stories highlight the contrast between God and the gods. Baal, the Canaanite god of fertility, of rain, storm and flood, is a fake. Only God has the power of rain. So Elijah demonstrated to King Ahab and Israel (1 Kings 17-18). Baal does not have control of the floods but Yahweh does. So the people of Jericho learned (Josh. 3). The New Testament is the same. The God Yahweh and his son, the Messiah Jesus, are the truth. The pagan gods are created in human image and therefore only evil. Many of the stories of the New Testament include elements that strongly confront the mythology of the gentile world as false and evil. Aesculapius is not the god of healing, but Jesus is. Demeter is not the bread giver, but Jesus is. Many of the lesser gods were thought to be the product of a human mother who had relations with a god, making her child the son or daughter of god. But only Jesus had a divine birth and by a miracle not by a licentious relationship with a deity. Knowledge of the Greco-Roman religious of the first century will highlight how powerfully the life and teachings of Jesus declare that paganism is a lie. A lie that brings only death. Life comes only from the true God.The deities of the New Testament are those of the Greek and Roman pantheon. As the pagan beliefs of the Greeks and Romans mixed with the native religions of the east (especially Asia) the deities became increasingly perverted and immoral. The Greeks did not believe that the gods created the universe, but that the universe created the gods. Heaven and earth were the first parents. Their children were the Titans, ancient gods of great strength and power, who were rarely worshiped any longer in the first century. These Titans included Ocean, the Sun, and Atlas who held up the earth. The grandchildren of the heaven and earth were the Olympian gods like Zeus and Hera his Wife, their children Athena, Apollo, Aphrodite, and Artemis as well as Poseidon, Hades, and others
That’s the enemy of the true God. Here comes Jesus, introducing God the Father, Who created the whole universe. And taught His disciples the manner of prayer, our Father which art in Heaven (Matt.6:9). Jesus in human point of view, he taught His disciples to acknowledge the one and only true God. The implication of our Father meaning - He is the source, the creator. The word Father in Hebrew word. ABBA- literally means the source of all things.
11. Don’t Focus on the Minor Things. (Verses 25-28 b)
“Jesus said, your Heavenly Father knew before you ask anything” (Matt. 6:8)
Theologically, He is an omniscient God, He knows everything. He doesn’t create us without providing a means on how we live; God is a God of order. He created first the heavens and the earth from out of nothing. The Theologians love to say the word “Ex-nihilo” created from out of nothing. After He created the heavens and the earth and then He created: Waters, land, lights, sea, fishes, birds etc. After that in the six days, He created man. Meaning the provision was already made before man was created. The need of man was there in order to live and enjoy a sweet fellowship with God and His creations. Don’t focus on minor things. We have only one life to enjoy God is so concern for our lives on how we live and manage.
2.1 LIFE IS IMMATERIAL BEING
Only life is immaterial being, the body is material, but life or the spirit is immaterial. “Spirit” in Latin SPIRARE, to breathe." Thus it equals both the Hebrew (RUACH) and Greek (PNEUMA) for "breath." The phrase "spirit of God" is reasonably rendered "Breath of God" or "Wind of God." The word "spirit" has taken on a corporeal tone like the word "ghost." Likely, if the word PNEUMA had been rendered "breath" or "wind" in English the Holy Spirit would not have developed so strongly in English as a Person part of the Trinitarian Godhead. Some translators actually do render RUACH as "wind" in Genesis 1:2.
“… The LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” (Gen. 2:7 KJV)
Your breathe that you have breathe today is life from the Lord, so keep on worshiping Him because time will come that this life that we have been enjoying will return to God who gave it.
When the body dies it will return to the ground and the spirit will return to God who gave it (Eccl. 12:7)
Why we worry and anxious of anything?
According to one Psychologist ABRAHAM MASLOW:
All human behavior is driven by the same basic needs:
1. Water
2. Food
3. Housing
4. Protection
5. Security
6. Preservation
7. Clothes
8. Self- actualization
9. Significance
What a tragedy, to think that the basic priority driving most human is that of simple survival!
Man does not live by bread alone, in 1993, when I decided to fast and pray within 21 days to seek God’s Presence and His will. First thing I did was to overcome my fear of death.
• Fear of death
“The flesh says, if you fast you will die,” you got to eat food.
Man should eat at least 3 times a day, in order to live.
Praise God! I overcame the fear of death; I’m still alive until now with Jesus doing His mission.
In Matthew Chapter 4:4 the devil came to Jesus and he said, if you are the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” What was the answer of Jesus, the devil knew that in human point of view Jesus was hungry, But Jesus said, Man doesn’t live by bread alone but by every Word (logos in Greek) that come out from the mouth of God.”
“Material needs”
Sometimes we Christians are willing to sell our soul just to have a lot of money to feed our stomach! What happen to the Church today?
One of the Disciple of Jesus Bartholomew was skinned alive and beheaded after preaching in India, according to one tradition. But the Martyrdom of Bartholomew says he was stuffed in a sack and dumped in the sea. But He never gave up his faith in God.
2.2 LIFE IS PRECIOUS IN THE SIGHT OF GOD
If we have worries in life just look around and see the birds in the sky and the flowers in the fields, if we try to do this surely we can remember the goodness of God on how He cares the creation including you and me.
Cast your care upon Him and He will cares for you (1Peter 5:7)
May be you will say, Pastor I’ve been doing that for many years excellent! But how deep, how wide and how high our relationship with God.
If we have worries or problems today just sit down and be relax and then count God’s blessings one by one:
1. Your life
2. Your life
3. Your life
This is exactly the major blessing from the Lord.
Praise the name of the Lord. !!!
For decades well-intentioned Christians have promoted the myth that when a person becomes a Christian his troubles will immediately vanish.
"Come to Jesus" they say, "and your life will be easy, rosy, happy, and problem free."
"Come to Jesus" they say, "and all your financial woes will disappear."
"Come to Jesus and your health problems will fade away."
"Come to Jesus and your circumstances will immediately begin working in your favor."
"Come to Jesus and all your negatives will become positives."
"Come to Jesus and all your struggles, frustrations, and difficulties will be erased."
Christians aren't exempt from life's troubles.
We tend to forget what Jesus said in John 16:33 (NIV). "In this world you will have trouble." With these words I believe that Jesus was telling us to avoid a naive kind of Christianity where we condition our faith purely on our circumstances. Life is tough. Life is full of hassles and inconveniences and problems and many griefs. As Christians, as believers, as followers of Christ, we aren't exempt from these troubles.
Sometimes even as we live in obedience to Christ, our circumstances may grow worse. Sometimes even though we make the right choices, things may still fall apart. Sometimes even though we love our families, those we love may betray us. Throughout life troubles will persist. Eventually all of
Us, despite our love for God and despite our faith, will grow weak, become ill, and die. Life is anything but a smooth ride. The terrain of life is rough. There are unexpected twists and turns, bumps and potholes, detours and treacherous disruptions.
Jesus is a realist. He calls life as it really is. "In this world you will have trouble." But notice Jesus' last words in John 16:33 (NIV). He makes a startling statement. "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
Did you hear it? "But take heart! I have overcome the world." Jesus doesn't promise his followers a problem-free life. Instead he provides us with a means of victory through which we can triumph over our troubles. Your present crisis, whether it be a health crisis, marriage crisis, family crisis, financial crisis, or job crisis isn’t the definitive or final word. In essence, Jesus tells us, "Don't lose sleep. Don't worry. Put your trust in me. No mountain is too high; no sea is too deep, no trouble is so impossible." "But take heart! I have overcome the world!"
How do we rest in Christ's victory?
The issue for us this morning is how do we rest in Christ's victory?
How do we let go of all the pent-up anxiety and worry we are experiencing?
How do we let go and take heart and truly walk by faith, trusting in the one who has overcome our troubles?
Worry is our most natural response to the troubles we encounter throughout life.
Worry is something we do with our minds.
It is a self-destructive thought process.
The Webster's Dictionary defines worry with a whole string of phrases.
To worry is to choke or strangle. To worry is to harass by tearing or biting.
To worry is to touch or disturb something repeatedly.
To worry is to change the position of, or adjust by repeated push hauling.
To worry is to assail with rough or aggressive attack or treatment, to torment!
To worry is to subject a thing to persistent, nagging attention.
To worry is to afflict with mental distress or agitation.
In summary, worry is nothing less than mental self-torment!
Worry disrupts our thinking, it consumes our thoughts, and it chokes out God's Spirit. Worry pesters the mind. It agitates, it disturbs, it wrestles, it needles, and it distorts reality. Worry keeps us from functioning as we should. It keeps us from trusting God. As one man said, "Wrestling with worry is like wrestling with an octopus." The entanglements of worry are hard to ignore and are extremely difficult to break free from.
This morning virtually everyone here came with his or her own set of worries. Your worries are consuming your thoughts even now as I speak. They are the same thoughts that were on your mind when you went to sleep last night. They are the same thoughts that were with you when you woke up this morning. And they are the same thoughts that will continue to nag you throughout the day.
Right now your mind is racing through all the possibilities and scenarios. The "what if’s." You're wondering how things are going to play themselves out. Will I be laid off? Will I have enough money at the end of the month? I don’t have enough income how to sustain my family?
Do you have worries today? Just raise your hands! But to those you don’t have worries just raise your hands because I reward you today and ask you what is your secrete.
As we turn to Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus takes on our worries and our troubles. He literally commands us to stop worrying about things. But he does more than that. He equips us to do so by offering us four perspectives. There are four perspectives that will silence our worries.
Four perspectives that will silence our worries.
1. The perspective of life silences our worries.
In Matthew 6:25 (NIV) Jesus says, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?"
You see, we have a tendency to focus on the less important instead of on the most important. Life is infinitely more important than anything else we have to do in this world. Life is more important than clothes, food, house payments, cars, and our keepsakes. Life is more important than our appearance, our weight. Life is more important than our hobbies, school work, recreation needs, and job title. Life is more important than our outstanding debt, retirement plans, and so on.
2. Reflecting on the gift of life has a way of silencing our worries. Jesus asks, "Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?"
Sometimes we just need to pull back and look at our worries in light of the perspective of life. Have we so exaggerated the importance of something that it has come to mean everything? Does this thing we worry so much
About really mean that much in light of the value of our very life or the life of a loved one? In Matthew 6, Jesus offers another perspective in addition to the perspective of life.
3. The perspective of productivity silences our worries.
In Matthew 6:26-27 (NIV) Jesus says, "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"
Jesus' question is most relevant to our lives. Does worry add to our lives?
A few years back the Harvard Business Review published a revealing statistic that said sixty to ninety percent of all medical office visits are stress-related! From a medical standpoint it has been proven that the stress of worry steals life.
---- >Worry generates stress, which in turns weakens our bodies.
---- >Worry makes us more susceptible to illness and puts us at greater risk for disease.
---- >Worry is the primary cause of headaches, back aches, sleep disorders, breathing trouble, bladder problems, mental breakdowns, and psychological disorders.
---- >Worry is a source of memory loss.
---- >Worry can dramatically impact our moods, making us irritable and cranky.
Jesus asks a good question. "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" In terms of productivity, worry doesn't help us gain a thing. It doesn't improve our circumstances. It doesn't improve our health. Worry doesn't change our children's behavior. It doesn't pay the bills. Worry doesn't put food on the table. It doesn't put clothes on our backs. If anything, worry takes away from our life instead of adding to it.
Worry is one of the most unproductive things we can do in life, which is why we do it. It is easier to worry than to take action and solve a problem. It is easier to passively fret about an issue than to roll up our sleeves and resolve it. Worry has absolutely no practical value to us. It is an unproductive waste of time. From the perspective of life, life is more important than any worry we have. From the perspective of productivity, worry is a life-shortening waste of time.
4. The perspective of faith silences our worries.
In Matthew 6:28-32 (NIV) Jesus continues, "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in his entire splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?" So do not worry, saying 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things and your heavenly Father knows that you need them."
In Matthew 6:28-32, Jesus raises the question of faith and he points out that our heavenly Father knows what we need even before we ask him. If God is willing to take care of the lilies and the grass and the birds of the air, then how much more would he be willing to take care of all our needs? Back in Matthew 5:45 (NIV) Jesus says, "He (God) causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."
Throughout scripture God has promised to take care of all of our needs. Often our biggest difficulty is distinguishing between needs and wants.
------ ->distinguishing between needs and wants <------
When it comes to our needs, God asks that we simply trust him to provide. Are you worried about your house payment? Your house is a castle or condo to most of the world! Don't have any money? You can pick up change off the street or collect cans and be richer than most people throughout the world. Worried about gas prices? Me I don’t have a car, we don’t own building for Church but yet God supply the 18 thousand pesos Php. Rental every month including the ARCT School, because we have theological School. Most people don't have transportation or roads! God has already met all of our needs. He has been faithful to his promise.
I was extremely challenged by the words of George Muller in a
Christianity Today article.
"The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety." God wants us to trust him with our worries. He wants us to let go and have faith.
The perspective of life, the perspective of productivity, and the perspective of faith changes everything when it comes to worry.
The perspective of God's kingdom silences our worries.
In Matthew 6:31-34 (NIV) Jesus says, "So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things
will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
Application
Now is the time to trust Our Heavenly Father, we can cry to Him Abba Father- He is the source of all comforts. In times of pain, hurts, trials, frustrations and desperation. The Bible says, He never leaves us nor forsakes you. When the tough and hard times comes on our way and you found yourself that nowhere to run, just remember that there is God who
love us and care for us; the availability of His help is always ready all the times. In our hard situation that’s the time that we could felt the Gentle
Touch of Jesus. And He will say, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I give you rest.” (KJV). Peace of mind, in the midst of trouble! He is our peace (Shalom) in Hebrew word. My peace I give unto you that the world cannot afford to give!
How would we overcome our worries?
31"Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?'
32"For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
33"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (New American Standard Bible)
It brought negatives and manipulate to the mind of the Disciples of Christ!
He was talking about priorities in life.
What is our priority?
A. GETTING PRIORITIES IN ORDER.
“Anxiety over lesser matters will disappear when we put God’s Kingdom first.”
Putting God first!
Jesus said, seek first His “Kingdom” why we need to seek first His Kingdom
Instead of masticating our worries in life; just think about God’s Kingdom. Why God’s Kingdom? Why Jesus introduced that kind of Idea, what is in the mind of Jesus when He say that to His disciples? Historically there was an existing Kingdom, ruled by the wicked kings for more than 400 years and the Jewish nation were expecting the coming King that would be able to rescue them from economic and political oppression. That’s why Jesus said to Nicodemus in John 3. “unless a man be born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God” What does it mean? The meaning, you are born in the flesh, but you must be born in the kingdom of God. The invisible Kingdom and now became visible. How to be born in God’s Kingdom, just believe Jesus the Son of God that’s all. And then you will become a citizen or son and daughters of God belong to His Kingdom. According to their religious culture these religious leaders they don’t believe Jesus as a Messiah.
If we read the four Gospel; the central theme of the sermon of Jesus was focus on God’s Kingdom. “Kingdom” in Greek word basileia, translated "kingdom," denotes sovereignty and royal power.
Virtually all other occurrences of basileia, when referring to the Kingdom of God, point to the literal dominion that Christ will establish at His return (Matthew 6:33; Revelation 11:15). As "heirs of God" in training to inherit that future Kingdom (Romans 8:15-17; Matthew 25:34; Revelation 20:4, 6), Christians are thus already subject to the sovereignty and authority of that Kingdom, although not yet residents of it.
Jesus Christ, ruler of the coming Kingdom, is the Lord and Master of Christians now (Philippians 2:9-11). God rules the lives of converted Christians who voluntarily obey Him and His laws. They submit themselves to God's basileia—His royal sovereignty and power. They individually are part of the Church, the Body of Christ, which God also rules. But the Church collectively looks to God's coming world rule when the basileia will be fully established.
The first visible Kingdom was lost, because of Adam’s fall of not rightly obeying the Law of God. And then because of the lost of God’s Kingdom the consequences man was separated from the presence of God. And then Man made a religion to search God. Religion was a man way of coming to God. And it produces a system and legalism. Religion and denomination often Times it breaks relationship. “This is my Church” “this is my ministry” I will not help you because you are not belongs to my denomination. But God’s kingdom produces relationship and citizenship. Denominations and Churches are just a small agent on this material world pointing to the big picture of the coming Kingdom of God and then all of us will serve the only One God forever and ever.
The President doesn’t own the whole country and lands or people. But the King owns the country, people and lands. He is the LORD; if we rent an apartment we have the landlord. Meaning the Owner. Because we live on this earth we have the God LORD, not a drug lord.
What is God’s Kingdom?
Definition of God’s Kingdom?
It is the governing influence of a king over his territory (Domain), impacting it with his personal will, purpose and intent, producing a culture, values, morals and lifestyle that reflects the king’s desire and nature of for his citizens.
What is the meaning of God’s Kingdom?
What does it mean? When He says seek His Kingdom?
Meaning God must be our priority!!!
----- >If we have God as our King of Kings and Lord of lords. ---- >He owns lands, people, the planet earth even the whole universe. And then we are citizens in His Kingdom because we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior and now He our king. In John 1:12 …” As many as received Him, to them He gave power (legal right) to become the sons of God. Then why we worry? The King responsibility is to supply everything we need. Because we’re citizens in His Kingdom. And have a legal right to claim, Lord your Word says, if I call you, you will answer me, if I ask you will give according to your will, your will be done not my will. We are not just a member but citizens in His Kingdom. The member when they ask for something they were cried out too much, but citizens claim their right according to the Word of God.
Jesus said, “…Your Father knoweth what things ye have needed of, before ye ask Him.” (Matt. 6:8)
1. REDISCOVERING THE PRIORITY
What is our priority in life?
The greatest secrete to living effectively on earth is understanding the principles and power of priorities. Lives on earth hold no greater challenge than the complicating daily demand of choosing among competing alternatives for our limited time.
Our life is the sum total of all the decisions we make every day, and those decisions are determined by our priority.
2. Define what is priority?
Priority is defined as:
1. The principal thing
2. Putting first things first
3. Establishing the most important thing
4. Primary Focus
5. Placing in order of importance
6. Placing highest value and worth upon
7. First among all others.
If our priorities determine the Quality of life and dictate all of our actions and behavior, then it is essential that we understand and our priorities.
• “The greatest tragedy in life is not death but life without a purpose.”
• Life with the wrong priorities. Life’s greatest challenge is in
Knowing what to do.
• The greatest mistakes in life is too busy but not effective.
• Life’s greatest failure is to be successful in the wrong assignment.
• Success in life is measured by the effective use of one’s time.
Your time is important because your time is your life. Every second, minute, hour, days, weeks, months and year are the steps going to 6 feet below the ground. And the key to effective use of your time is establishing correct priorities.
a. First thing first.
When your priorities are correct, your presence and time protect your life, correct priority is the principle of progress because when you establish your priority according to your purpose and goals the progress is guaranteed. Correct priority protects your time. When you set the right priorities, then you use your time for intentional purpose; your time is not abused or wasted. Correct priority protects your talents and gifts.
Failure to establish correct priority. Causes you to waste your most important commodities:
b. Your time and energy.
When your priorities are not correct, you will find yourself busy with the wrong things, majoring on the minor, doing the unnecessary, or becoming preoccupied with the unimportant. Incorrect priorities in your life will cause you to invest in the less valuable engage in ineffective activity, and abuse your gifts and talents.
We go to work every day, and some even hold down two or more jobs, just too secure water, food, clothing, housing, and protection.
Priority in religions prayers and petitions is for personal needs, human needs drive religion.
Sometimes, God will check our theology of prayer base on His Word.
Seeking on material things is the earth centered mind. Jesus, taught the subject of prayer in His disciples He said “ Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread.
The phrase “daily bread” here is a very important phrase. Some interpreted this as a material needs but I think the intended meaning of this Word is more than material needs. I believe it refers to the gift of life. Because if we say that it is refers to our needs; how about the millionaires, billonairs they have a lot of money to sustain all the rest of their lives. Therefore this manner of prayer is not applicable to them; is it applicable for the people who are materially poor. Jesus is saying this manner of prayer “give today our daily bread” meaning your life is a gift from God, its free but we need ask God’s extension of our lives everyday. Jesus said “ I am the bread of life” everyday is a brand new life from the Lord. And then if we have life we can have a hard work just earn money to sustain our family and many things we want too. In light of God's eternal kingdom, is there anything we should worry about? Worry is something for the earth-centered mind, not the kingdom-centered mind. The earth-centered mind thinks that this world is all there is and desperately worries whenever things get out of balance. The earth-centered mind magnifies its problems one thousand times bigger than they really are. It confuses wants with needs and distorts reality. The earth-centered mind has settled down its roots and is banking everything on this life.
In contrast, the kingdom-centered mind realizes the truth of Jesus' words in John 16:33 (NIV), "In this world you will have trouble." The kingdom-centered mind realizes that what we see and experience in this life is only but a fraction of reality. There is so much more in store for us. The kingdom-centered mind looks forward to the day when according to Revelation 21:4 (NIV), "He (God) will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
Worry focuses our hearts and minds toward earth. Faith focuses our hearts and minds toward heaven.
God's purpose for our lives is that we direct our faith toward God. We are to trust him always, in every circumstance, regardless of the troubles we face. The perspective of life reveals the things that we should no longer worry about. The perspective of productivity reveals those things that we should take action to resolve.
The perspective of faith clarifies the difference between needs and wants and insists that God is actively working to meet all our needs. The perspective of God's kingdom reminds us that this world is not our home. God is preparing our hearts for eternity.
C. GOD’S PRIORITY
God established His priority at the beginning of creation and made it clear by His own declaration to mankind. Jesus Christ came to earth and re-
established God’s number one priority. Should it surprise us to discover that God’s priority for mankind is completely opposite to man’s priorities!
There’s nothing more powerful than an Idea. Ideas created and now control the world we live in.
When an idea is conceived it is called a thought; when a thought is conceived it is called a concept. Concepts are the material that dreams are made of and they serve as the substance for living and interpreting life. Everything humans have made or invented was first preceded by an idea.
“May be you can kill a person, but can’t kill his idea.”
The most powerful motivation in the heart of man is the pursuit of power. Why is the desire to control our environment and circumstances so overpowering to humanity? The answer is found in the very nature and heart of the human spirit.
Man was created to exercise power and designed to manage it. The motivating purpose for the creation of the human species was to dominant the earth and its resources, the result of the Creator’s desires to extend His ruler ship from the supernatural realm to the physical realm. His plan and program was to do this though a family of spirit children He would call His sons. The record of this creative act is found in Genesis 1:26:
B. RIGHTEOUSNESS
Why Righteousness?
Meaning we are rightly obeying the Word of God. Following of what is Ethical and Biblical standard of God within the boundary of Christian attributes.
Originally God created man faultless and pure being.
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule (have dominion) over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Gen. 1:26-27)
Man was both created and made. Both of these words are important and are distinctively different in the original Hebrew language. The word created is from the Hebrew
-word Bara which means to create from nothing. And the word make is from the
-word asa which means to form from something that is already created.
Therefore man is the integration of parts that were created from nothing and things that were already made.
This mystery describes the production of man’s spirit- being directly from the Spirit of God, thus make man a composite of the nature, attributes and characteristics of His “source”, which is God the Creator Himself. It is also note worthy at this point to understand that the word “source” in the original Hebrew is the word Abba which we translate as “Father”. This is why God is considered the “Father” of all mankind. He sourced us all and thus we posses His nature and likeness.
Jesus suggestions to man is go back to the original state of man by seeking God’s righteousness first. And then we cannot take for granted for this because without doing this it’s for us to go to the next level of God’s rewards, that He says, “All these things will be added unto you” the is no short cut way. We need to go first to first step.
1. God
2. Righteousness
3. Rewards
Illustration
There was a story of man strapped on his roof-top during a flood. First his neighbor passed by in a rubber boat asked him to jump in. “No thank you,” he said, “God will provide.” He gave the same reply when a police
Speed boat and then a military helicopter offered to rescue him. When he died and went to heaven, he accused God of not saving him. God boomed, “I sent you two boats and a helicopter, what else did you expect?”
The Lord has a varied ways to meet our needs, the company that we work. God used that to supply our basic needs, the Church supplied Spiritual foods. But the problem is we don’t acknowledge that this is God’s provision then we continue on murmuring.
Choose God as our Top priority in life! And He is responsible to care our need.
Conclusion
Let us walk by faith with confidence in Jesus Words today.
If we look at the life of the disciples of Jesus on how they gave their lives for the service you will be amazed how they won the war. They were persecuted and died in a martyr doomed.
How did the disciples die?
King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the Church. He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword. Acts 12:1-2
Though the Bible records the fate of only Judas Iscariot and James, early Church leaders said most of the others died as martyrs – killed for preaching about Jesus.
1. Simon Peter. “Crucified at Rome with his head downward,” wrote Origen, a Church leader in the AD 200s. This seems to fulfill what Jesus told Peter would happen: “When you are old. You will stretch out your hands ….’ Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God” (John 21: 18-19).
2. Andrew, Peter’s brother. Crucified on an X – shaped cross, according to the Acts of Andrew, a book written in the Ad 200s.
3. James, son of Zebedee. The first disciple to die as a martyr, he was executed by King Herod Agrippa – probably beheaded “with a sword”
(Acts 12:2)
4. John, brother of James. Died a natural death in about AD 100 at what is now Ephesus, Turkey.
5. Philip. Crucified in Turkey, according to one tradition.
6. Bartholomew. Skinned alive and beheaded after preaching in India, according to one tradition. But the Martyrdom of Bartholomew says he was stuffed in a sack and dumped in the sea.
7. Thomas. Speared to death in what is now India after starting several Churches there.
8. Matthew. Martyred with an ax or a sword in Ethiopia, according to the most popular of many traditions.
9.James, son of Alphaeus. Crucified in Egypt, according to one tradition – in Iran.
10. Thaddaeus (Judas, son of James). Crucified or hacked to death with Simon the Zealot in what is now Iran, according to one story.
11. Simon the Zealot. Martyred with Thaddaeus in Iran, according to one tradtion. Another story says he was cut in two with a saw.
12. Matthias. Chosen to replace Judas Iscariot, he was stoned and beheaded, according to one story.
Let’s continue to serve God, no matter what happen, trust and obey his Word. Don’t pray that we can skip from worries and trials in life but pray how to face and overcome with the help of God. Have faith in God! Our faith will touch to the heart of God. The Bible says… “Without faith, it is impossible to please Him... “(Heb. 11:6)
Prepared by: Bishop Danilo O. Bantilan Th.D.,DRE
Founding President/CEO
Church of Christ Brings Revival, International, Inc.
TEXT: MATTHEW 6: 25-34
Prepared by: Bishop Danilo O. Bantilan Th.D.,DRE
Founding President/CEO
Introduction
There is no one today living on this planet earth that they don’t have worries in life or cares of life. After the man’s fall, humanity suffered a lot because of disobedience to the Word of God and then the whole creation suffered the consequences, Paul said in Romans 8:18, 22 “For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us, for we know that the whole creation groaned and travailed in pain together until now. Today let’s listen, study and masticate the Word of Jesus comes from His mouth directly was addressed to His disciples, theologically, He is transcendent God no human being could reach Him; but by His grace and mercy He find ways and came down from heaven to earth to have fellowship with the Human being again and revealed his glory. He is the truth and the way going to His Kingdom. “Oh what a man that You are mindful of him”. These verses are the common passages in the Bible. And then may be some have memorized this passage. This was one of the messages of our Lord Jesus Christ on His sermon on the mount of Olives. The first subject He taught was about the beatitude Chapter 5-7, are the series of messages about life and how would be able to manage it. And also He taught about choosing one master, He said, we can’t serve two masters. He taught also the subject about the true treasures in heaven. And lastly, He taught the subject about worries in life. Jesus taught His disciples on how to deal these lesser, minor, common kind of worries in life. And today, let’s focus our attention on this subject matter.
This is the Idea of Jesus, on how to deal with all worries and cares of life. He gave some word of warning, comfort and encouragement, which was first addressed to His immediate Disciples.
How would we overcome all of our worries in Life?
Let’s take a look the Idea of Jesus, compared to the idea of the pagans. If we carefully observed this passage there was a contrast between the pagan concept and the practice of religious people and the “Kingdom concept” taught by the Lord Jesus Christ to His disciples.
Jesus here dealt this kind of issue, a humanistic and materialistic way of life that has been integrated to the human being. And it’s so hard to overcome. But we need to deal this seriously if not, it will become a big hindrance for our faith and trust in God.
Matthew 6: 25-34 If we summarize these verses, the main idea of Jesus is to teach and warn His Disciples to focus on the source of care which is God; who created the heavens the earth and they should trust Him, and believe that there is God the Father who Created the whole universe and care His creation. He is a good God! After He created the planet earth He never abandoned it and toke a rest and sleep. Jesus taught this subject to encourage them and change their mind set about their belief of false gods. They were influenced by their religious culture, the old concept of understanding about God plus with the pagan Idea that there is no God they were theism who cares the whole universe, and that’s why Jesus said, look at the birds, grass, and the flowers. God cares for them!!! Your Father, our Father. meaning He is sovereign God, in other words;
He is great, He never changes. Even me, I consider myself nothing incomparably to the greatness of God, He owns and manage the whole universe!
Jesus here, doesn’t say that they should stop or abandoned their Job or livelihood, and have a full time ministry. It’s a wrong interpretation if we conclude that they abandoned their means of living. Otherwise they become stumbling block to their family of being irresponsible person not supplying the basic needs.He said pagans run after these things! The word “Pagan” One who has no religion/ Heathen- a person who does not belong to a widely held religion
Comes from the Latin word "paganus” The term "Pagan" was widely used by Atheists, Agnostics, Humanists, etc. This kind of people existed before Jesus begun His earthly ministry.
How would we overcome all of our worries in Life?
1. God’s of This World “The Existence of God” (verses 25-32 a)
People in the ancient world worshiped a multitude of different gods. Each had its own story? Its own myth? Of the origin, the character, the blessings and curses they offered, and the worship each demanded. These myths often recalled ancient events either involving the true God (many ancient religions had a story about a flood) or the past history of the people who worshiped god. In contrast the Bible clearly teaches monotheism? The belief in one God? Who is the creator of all things? The belief in and the worship of the myriad of deities in the ancient world must be traced to the corruption of the knowledge of people had the true God. The nature and character of the gods and goddesses the ancients created reflect Human nature. These deities have some qualities which might be considered good? Like justice or mercy? As well as some very perverted characteristics? Like promiscuous sexuality or vengeful hatred. Study of the pagan religions is really a study of the view ancient people had of themselves, or the way they wished they could be. For their gods were created in their own image. The Bible often refers to these gods. This does not mean they actually existed, but rather they were a subjective reality in the minds of their worshipers (Rom. 1:18-25). Paul attributes the character of these created deities as a gateway to the source of evil...the devil himself (1 Cor. 10:19-21). The Bible contains the story of the great conflict between good and evil, or God and Satan. For that reason, the warnings against the worship of false gods, the punishments for that worship, the call to worship the true God and to invite others to worship him to resound throughout Scripture. It is most Helpful to understand the beliefs people of the Bible held about their deities for this will help to understand the way the Bible message is presented? As the correct understanding of reality in contrast the pagan one. Many Biblical stories highlight the contrast between God and the gods. Baal, the Canaanite god of fertility, of rain, storm and flood, is a fake. Only God has the power of rain. So Elijah demonstrated to King Ahab and Israel (1 Kings 17-18). Baal does not have control of the floods but Yahweh does. So the people of Jericho learned (Josh. 3). The New Testament is the same. The God Yahweh and his son, the Messiah Jesus, are the truth. The pagan gods are created in human image and therefore only evil. Many of the stories of the New Testament include elements that strongly confront the mythology of the gentile world as false and evil. Aesculapius is not the god of healing, but Jesus is. Demeter is not the bread giver, but Jesus is. Many of the lesser gods were thought to be the product of a human mother who had relations with a god, making her child the son or daughter of god. But only Jesus had a divine birth and by a miracle not by a licentious relationship with a deity. Knowledge of the Greco-Roman religious of the first century will highlight how powerfully the life and teachings of Jesus declare that paganism is a lie. A lie that brings only death. Life comes only from the true God.The deities of the New Testament are those of the Greek and Roman pantheon. As the pagan beliefs of the Greeks and Romans mixed with the native religions of the east (especially Asia) the deities became increasingly perverted and immoral. The Greeks did not believe that the gods created the universe, but that the universe created the gods. Heaven and earth were the first parents. Their children were the Titans, ancient gods of great strength and power, who were rarely worshiped any longer in the first century. These Titans included Ocean, the Sun, and Atlas who held up the earth. The grandchildren of the heaven and earth were the Olympian gods like Zeus and Hera his Wife, their children Athena, Apollo, Aphrodite, and Artemis as well as Poseidon, Hades, and others
That’s the enemy of the true God. Here comes Jesus, introducing God the Father, Who created the whole universe. And taught His disciples the manner of prayer, our Father which art in Heaven (Matt.6:9). Jesus in human point of view, he taught His disciples to acknowledge the one and only true God. The implication of our Father meaning - He is the source, the creator. The word Father in Hebrew word. ABBA- literally means the source of all things.
11. Don’t Focus on the Minor Things. (Verses 25-28 b)
“Jesus said, your Heavenly Father knew before you ask anything” (Matt. 6:8)
Theologically, He is an omniscient God, He knows everything. He doesn’t create us without providing a means on how we live; God is a God of order. He created first the heavens and the earth from out of nothing. The Theologians love to say the word “Ex-nihilo” created from out of nothing. After He created the heavens and the earth and then He created: Waters, land, lights, sea, fishes, birds etc. After that in the six days, He created man. Meaning the provision was already made before man was created. The need of man was there in order to live and enjoy a sweet fellowship with God and His creations. Don’t focus on minor things. We have only one life to enjoy God is so concern for our lives on how we live and manage.
2.1 LIFE IS IMMATERIAL BEING
Only life is immaterial being, the body is material, but life or the spirit is immaterial. “Spirit” in Latin SPIRARE, to breathe." Thus it equals both the Hebrew (RUACH) and Greek (PNEUMA) for "breath." The phrase "spirit of God" is reasonably rendered "Breath of God" or "Wind of God." The word "spirit" has taken on a corporeal tone like the word "ghost." Likely, if the word PNEUMA had been rendered "breath" or "wind" in English the Holy Spirit would not have developed so strongly in English as a Person part of the Trinitarian Godhead. Some translators actually do render RUACH as "wind" in Genesis 1:2.
“… The LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” (Gen. 2:7 KJV)
Your breathe that you have breathe today is life from the Lord, so keep on worshiping Him because time will come that this life that we have been enjoying will return to God who gave it.
When the body dies it will return to the ground and the spirit will return to God who gave it (Eccl. 12:7)
Why we worry and anxious of anything?
According to one Psychologist ABRAHAM MASLOW:
All human behavior is driven by the same basic needs:
1. Water
2. Food
3. Housing
4. Protection
5. Security
6. Preservation
7. Clothes
8. Self- actualization
9. Significance
What a tragedy, to think that the basic priority driving most human is that of simple survival!
Man does not live by bread alone, in 1993, when I decided to fast and pray within 21 days to seek God’s Presence and His will. First thing I did was to overcome my fear of death.
• Fear of death
“The flesh says, if you fast you will die,” you got to eat food.
Man should eat at least 3 times a day, in order to live.
Praise God! I overcame the fear of death; I’m still alive until now with Jesus doing His mission.
In Matthew Chapter 4:4 the devil came to Jesus and he said, if you are the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.” What was the answer of Jesus, the devil knew that in human point of view Jesus was hungry, But Jesus said, Man doesn’t live by bread alone but by every Word (logos in Greek) that come out from the mouth of God.”
“Material needs”
Sometimes we Christians are willing to sell our soul just to have a lot of money to feed our stomach! What happen to the Church today?
One of the Disciple of Jesus Bartholomew was skinned alive and beheaded after preaching in India, according to one tradition. But the Martyrdom of Bartholomew says he was stuffed in a sack and dumped in the sea. But He never gave up his faith in God.
2.2 LIFE IS PRECIOUS IN THE SIGHT OF GOD
If we have worries in life just look around and see the birds in the sky and the flowers in the fields, if we try to do this surely we can remember the goodness of God on how He cares the creation including you and me.
Cast your care upon Him and He will cares for you (1Peter 5:7)
May be you will say, Pastor I’ve been doing that for many years excellent! But how deep, how wide and how high our relationship with God.
If we have worries or problems today just sit down and be relax and then count God’s blessings one by one:
1. Your life
2. Your life
3. Your life
This is exactly the major blessing from the Lord.
Praise the name of the Lord. !!!
For decades well-intentioned Christians have promoted the myth that when a person becomes a Christian his troubles will immediately vanish.
"Come to Jesus" they say, "and your life will be easy, rosy, happy, and problem free."
"Come to Jesus" they say, "and all your financial woes will disappear."
"Come to Jesus and your health problems will fade away."
"Come to Jesus and your circumstances will immediately begin working in your favor."
"Come to Jesus and all your negatives will become positives."
"Come to Jesus and all your struggles, frustrations, and difficulties will be erased."
Christians aren't exempt from life's troubles.
We tend to forget what Jesus said in John 16:33 (NIV). "In this world you will have trouble." With these words I believe that Jesus was telling us to avoid a naive kind of Christianity where we condition our faith purely on our circumstances. Life is tough. Life is full of hassles and inconveniences and problems and many griefs. As Christians, as believers, as followers of Christ, we aren't exempt from these troubles.
Sometimes even as we live in obedience to Christ, our circumstances may grow worse. Sometimes even though we make the right choices, things may still fall apart. Sometimes even though we love our families, those we love may betray us. Throughout life troubles will persist. Eventually all of
Us, despite our love for God and despite our faith, will grow weak, become ill, and die. Life is anything but a smooth ride. The terrain of life is rough. There are unexpected twists and turns, bumps and potholes, detours and treacherous disruptions.
Jesus is a realist. He calls life as it really is. "In this world you will have trouble." But notice Jesus' last words in John 16:33 (NIV). He makes a startling statement. "In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
Did you hear it? "But take heart! I have overcome the world." Jesus doesn't promise his followers a problem-free life. Instead he provides us with a means of victory through which we can triumph over our troubles. Your present crisis, whether it be a health crisis, marriage crisis, family crisis, financial crisis, or job crisis isn’t the definitive or final word. In essence, Jesus tells us, "Don't lose sleep. Don't worry. Put your trust in me. No mountain is too high; no sea is too deep, no trouble is so impossible." "But take heart! I have overcome the world!"
How do we rest in Christ's victory?
The issue for us this morning is how do we rest in Christ's victory?
How do we let go of all the pent-up anxiety and worry we are experiencing?
How do we let go and take heart and truly walk by faith, trusting in the one who has overcome our troubles?
Worry is our most natural response to the troubles we encounter throughout life.
Worry is something we do with our minds.
It is a self-destructive thought process.
The Webster's Dictionary defines worry with a whole string of phrases.
To worry is to choke or strangle. To worry is to harass by tearing or biting.
To worry is to touch or disturb something repeatedly.
To worry is to change the position of, or adjust by repeated push hauling.
To worry is to assail with rough or aggressive attack or treatment, to torment!
To worry is to subject a thing to persistent, nagging attention.
To worry is to afflict with mental distress or agitation.
In summary, worry is nothing less than mental self-torment!
Worry disrupts our thinking, it consumes our thoughts, and it chokes out God's Spirit. Worry pesters the mind. It agitates, it disturbs, it wrestles, it needles, and it distorts reality. Worry keeps us from functioning as we should. It keeps us from trusting God. As one man said, "Wrestling with worry is like wrestling with an octopus." The entanglements of worry are hard to ignore and are extremely difficult to break free from.
This morning virtually everyone here came with his or her own set of worries. Your worries are consuming your thoughts even now as I speak. They are the same thoughts that were on your mind when you went to sleep last night. They are the same thoughts that were with you when you woke up this morning. And they are the same thoughts that will continue to nag you throughout the day.
Right now your mind is racing through all the possibilities and scenarios. The "what if’s." You're wondering how things are going to play themselves out. Will I be laid off? Will I have enough money at the end of the month? I don’t have enough income how to sustain my family?
Do you have worries today? Just raise your hands! But to those you don’t have worries just raise your hands because I reward you today and ask you what is your secrete.
As we turn to Matthew 6:25-34, Jesus takes on our worries and our troubles. He literally commands us to stop worrying about things. But he does more than that. He equips us to do so by offering us four perspectives. There are four perspectives that will silence our worries.
Four perspectives that will silence our worries.
1. The perspective of life silences our worries.
In Matthew 6:25 (NIV) Jesus says, "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?"
You see, we have a tendency to focus on the less important instead of on the most important. Life is infinitely more important than anything else we have to do in this world. Life is more important than clothes, food, house payments, cars, and our keepsakes. Life is more important than our appearance, our weight. Life is more important than our hobbies, school work, recreation needs, and job title. Life is more important than our outstanding debt, retirement plans, and so on.
2. Reflecting on the gift of life has a way of silencing our worries. Jesus asks, "Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?"
Sometimes we just need to pull back and look at our worries in light of the perspective of life. Have we so exaggerated the importance of something that it has come to mean everything? Does this thing we worry so much
About really mean that much in light of the value of our very life or the life of a loved one? In Matthew 6, Jesus offers another perspective in addition to the perspective of life.
3. The perspective of productivity silences our worries.
In Matthew 6:26-27 (NIV) Jesus says, "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?"
Jesus' question is most relevant to our lives. Does worry add to our lives?
A few years back the Harvard Business Review published a revealing statistic that said sixty to ninety percent of all medical office visits are stress-related! From a medical standpoint it has been proven that the stress of worry steals life.
---- >Worry generates stress, which in turns weakens our bodies.
---- >Worry makes us more susceptible to illness and puts us at greater risk for disease.
---- >Worry is the primary cause of headaches, back aches, sleep disorders, breathing trouble, bladder problems, mental breakdowns, and psychological disorders.
---- >Worry is a source of memory loss.
---- >Worry can dramatically impact our moods, making us irritable and cranky.
Jesus asks a good question. "Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?" In terms of productivity, worry doesn't help us gain a thing. It doesn't improve our circumstances. It doesn't improve our health. Worry doesn't change our children's behavior. It doesn't pay the bills. Worry doesn't put food on the table. It doesn't put clothes on our backs. If anything, worry takes away from our life instead of adding to it.
Worry is one of the most unproductive things we can do in life, which is why we do it. It is easier to worry than to take action and solve a problem. It is easier to passively fret about an issue than to roll up our sleeves and resolve it. Worry has absolutely no practical value to us. It is an unproductive waste of time. From the perspective of life, life is more important than any worry we have. From the perspective of productivity, worry is a life-shortening waste of time.
4. The perspective of faith silences our worries.
In Matthew 6:28-32 (NIV) Jesus continues, "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in his entire splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?" So do not worry, saying 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things and your heavenly Father knows that you need them."
In Matthew 6:28-32, Jesus raises the question of faith and he points out that our heavenly Father knows what we need even before we ask him. If God is willing to take care of the lilies and the grass and the birds of the air, then how much more would he be willing to take care of all our needs? Back in Matthew 5:45 (NIV) Jesus says, "He (God) causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous."
Throughout scripture God has promised to take care of all of our needs. Often our biggest difficulty is distinguishing between needs and wants.
------ ->distinguishing between needs and wants <------
When it comes to our needs, God asks that we simply trust him to provide. Are you worried about your house payment? Your house is a castle or condo to most of the world! Don't have any money? You can pick up change off the street or collect cans and be richer than most people throughout the world. Worried about gas prices? Me I don’t have a car, we don’t own building for Church but yet God supply the 18 thousand pesos Php. Rental every month including the ARCT School, because we have theological School. Most people don't have transportation or roads! God has already met all of our needs. He has been faithful to his promise.
I was extremely challenged by the words of George Muller in a
Christianity Today article.
"The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith, and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety." God wants us to trust him with our worries. He wants us to let go and have faith.
The perspective of life, the perspective of productivity, and the perspective of faith changes everything when it comes to worry.
The perspective of God's kingdom silences our worries.
In Matthew 6:31-34 (NIV) Jesus says, "So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things
will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
Application
Now is the time to trust Our Heavenly Father, we can cry to Him Abba Father- He is the source of all comforts. In times of pain, hurts, trials, frustrations and desperation. The Bible says, He never leaves us nor forsakes you. When the tough and hard times comes on our way and you found yourself that nowhere to run, just remember that there is God who
love us and care for us; the availability of His help is always ready all the times. In our hard situation that’s the time that we could felt the Gentle
Touch of Jesus. And He will say, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I give you rest.” (KJV). Peace of mind, in the midst of trouble! He is our peace (Shalom) in Hebrew word. My peace I give unto you that the world cannot afford to give!
How would we overcome our worries?
31"Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?'
32"For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
33"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. (New American Standard Bible)
It brought negatives and manipulate to the mind of the Disciples of Christ!
He was talking about priorities in life.
What is our priority?
A. GETTING PRIORITIES IN ORDER.
“Anxiety over lesser matters will disappear when we put God’s Kingdom first.”
Putting God first!
Jesus said, seek first His “Kingdom” why we need to seek first His Kingdom
Instead of masticating our worries in life; just think about God’s Kingdom. Why God’s Kingdom? Why Jesus introduced that kind of Idea, what is in the mind of Jesus when He say that to His disciples? Historically there was an existing Kingdom, ruled by the wicked kings for more than 400 years and the Jewish nation were expecting the coming King that would be able to rescue them from economic and political oppression. That’s why Jesus said to Nicodemus in John 3. “unless a man be born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God” What does it mean? The meaning, you are born in the flesh, but you must be born in the kingdom of God. The invisible Kingdom and now became visible. How to be born in God’s Kingdom, just believe Jesus the Son of God that’s all. And then you will become a citizen or son and daughters of God belong to His Kingdom. According to their religious culture these religious leaders they don’t believe Jesus as a Messiah.
If we read the four Gospel; the central theme of the sermon of Jesus was focus on God’s Kingdom. “Kingdom” in Greek word basileia, translated "kingdom," denotes sovereignty and royal power.
Virtually all other occurrences of basileia, when referring to the Kingdom of God, point to the literal dominion that Christ will establish at His return (Matthew 6:33; Revelation 11:15). As "heirs of God" in training to inherit that future Kingdom (Romans 8:15-17; Matthew 25:34; Revelation 20:4, 6), Christians are thus already subject to the sovereignty and authority of that Kingdom, although not yet residents of it.
Jesus Christ, ruler of the coming Kingdom, is the Lord and Master of Christians now (Philippians 2:9-11). God rules the lives of converted Christians who voluntarily obey Him and His laws. They submit themselves to God's basileia—His royal sovereignty and power. They individually are part of the Church, the Body of Christ, which God also rules. But the Church collectively looks to God's coming world rule when the basileia will be fully established.
The first visible Kingdom was lost, because of Adam’s fall of not rightly obeying the Law of God. And then because of the lost of God’s Kingdom the consequences man was separated from the presence of God. And then Man made a religion to search God. Religion was a man way of coming to God. And it produces a system and legalism. Religion and denomination often Times it breaks relationship. “This is my Church” “this is my ministry” I will not help you because you are not belongs to my denomination. But God’s kingdom produces relationship and citizenship. Denominations and Churches are just a small agent on this material world pointing to the big picture of the coming Kingdom of God and then all of us will serve the only One God forever and ever.
The President doesn’t own the whole country and lands or people. But the King owns the country, people and lands. He is the LORD; if we rent an apartment we have the landlord. Meaning the Owner. Because we live on this earth we have the God LORD, not a drug lord.
What is God’s Kingdom?
Definition of God’s Kingdom?
It is the governing influence of a king over his territory (Domain), impacting it with his personal will, purpose and intent, producing a culture, values, morals and lifestyle that reflects the king’s desire and nature of for his citizens.
What is the meaning of God’s Kingdom?
What does it mean? When He says seek His Kingdom?
Meaning God must be our priority!!!
----- >If we have God as our King of Kings and Lord of lords. ---- >He owns lands, people, the planet earth even the whole universe. And then we are citizens in His Kingdom because we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior and now He our king. In John 1:12 …” As many as received Him, to them He gave power (legal right) to become the sons of God. Then why we worry? The King responsibility is to supply everything we need. Because we’re citizens in His Kingdom. And have a legal right to claim, Lord your Word says, if I call you, you will answer me, if I ask you will give according to your will, your will be done not my will. We are not just a member but citizens in His Kingdom. The member when they ask for something they were cried out too much, but citizens claim their right according to the Word of God.
Jesus said, “…Your Father knoweth what things ye have needed of, before ye ask Him.” (Matt. 6:8)
1. REDISCOVERING THE PRIORITY
What is our priority in life?
The greatest secrete to living effectively on earth is understanding the principles and power of priorities. Lives on earth hold no greater challenge than the complicating daily demand of choosing among competing alternatives for our limited time.
Our life is the sum total of all the decisions we make every day, and those decisions are determined by our priority.
2. Define what is priority?
Priority is defined as:
1. The principal thing
2. Putting first things first
3. Establishing the most important thing
4. Primary Focus
5. Placing in order of importance
6. Placing highest value and worth upon
7. First among all others.
If our priorities determine the Quality of life and dictate all of our actions and behavior, then it is essential that we understand and our priorities.
• “The greatest tragedy in life is not death but life without a purpose.”
• Life with the wrong priorities. Life’s greatest challenge is in
Knowing what to do.
• The greatest mistakes in life is too busy but not effective.
• Life’s greatest failure is to be successful in the wrong assignment.
• Success in life is measured by the effective use of one’s time.
Your time is important because your time is your life. Every second, minute, hour, days, weeks, months and year are the steps going to 6 feet below the ground. And the key to effective use of your time is establishing correct priorities.
a. First thing first.
When your priorities are correct, your presence and time protect your life, correct priority is the principle of progress because when you establish your priority according to your purpose and goals the progress is guaranteed. Correct priority protects your time. When you set the right priorities, then you use your time for intentional purpose; your time is not abused or wasted. Correct priority protects your talents and gifts.
Failure to establish correct priority. Causes you to waste your most important commodities:
b. Your time and energy.
When your priorities are not correct, you will find yourself busy with the wrong things, majoring on the minor, doing the unnecessary, or becoming preoccupied with the unimportant. Incorrect priorities in your life will cause you to invest in the less valuable engage in ineffective activity, and abuse your gifts and talents.
We go to work every day, and some even hold down two or more jobs, just too secure water, food, clothing, housing, and protection.
Priority in religions prayers and petitions is for personal needs, human needs drive religion.
Sometimes, God will check our theology of prayer base on His Word.
Seeking on material things is the earth centered mind. Jesus, taught the subject of prayer in His disciples He said “ Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread.
The phrase “daily bread” here is a very important phrase. Some interpreted this as a material needs but I think the intended meaning of this Word is more than material needs. I believe it refers to the gift of life. Because if we say that it is refers to our needs; how about the millionaires, billonairs they have a lot of money to sustain all the rest of their lives. Therefore this manner of prayer is not applicable to them; is it applicable for the people who are materially poor. Jesus is saying this manner of prayer “give today our daily bread” meaning your life is a gift from God, its free but we need ask God’s extension of our lives everyday. Jesus said “ I am the bread of life” everyday is a brand new life from the Lord. And then if we have life we can have a hard work just earn money to sustain our family and many things we want too. In light of God's eternal kingdom, is there anything we should worry about? Worry is something for the earth-centered mind, not the kingdom-centered mind. The earth-centered mind thinks that this world is all there is and desperately worries whenever things get out of balance. The earth-centered mind magnifies its problems one thousand times bigger than they really are. It confuses wants with needs and distorts reality. The earth-centered mind has settled down its roots and is banking everything on this life.
In contrast, the kingdom-centered mind realizes the truth of Jesus' words in John 16:33 (NIV), "In this world you will have trouble." The kingdom-centered mind realizes that what we see and experience in this life is only but a fraction of reality. There is so much more in store for us. The kingdom-centered mind looks forward to the day when according to Revelation 21:4 (NIV), "He (God) will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
Worry focuses our hearts and minds toward earth. Faith focuses our hearts and minds toward heaven.
God's purpose for our lives is that we direct our faith toward God. We are to trust him always, in every circumstance, regardless of the troubles we face. The perspective of life reveals the things that we should no longer worry about. The perspective of productivity reveals those things that we should take action to resolve.
The perspective of faith clarifies the difference between needs and wants and insists that God is actively working to meet all our needs. The perspective of God's kingdom reminds us that this world is not our home. God is preparing our hearts for eternity.
C. GOD’S PRIORITY
God established His priority at the beginning of creation and made it clear by His own declaration to mankind. Jesus Christ came to earth and re-
established God’s number one priority. Should it surprise us to discover that God’s priority for mankind is completely opposite to man’s priorities!
There’s nothing more powerful than an Idea. Ideas created and now control the world we live in.
When an idea is conceived it is called a thought; when a thought is conceived it is called a concept. Concepts are the material that dreams are made of and they serve as the substance for living and interpreting life. Everything humans have made or invented was first preceded by an idea.
“May be you can kill a person, but can’t kill his idea.”
The most powerful motivation in the heart of man is the pursuit of power. Why is the desire to control our environment and circumstances so overpowering to humanity? The answer is found in the very nature and heart of the human spirit.
Man was created to exercise power and designed to manage it. The motivating purpose for the creation of the human species was to dominant the earth and its resources, the result of the Creator’s desires to extend His ruler ship from the supernatural realm to the physical realm. His plan and program was to do this though a family of spirit children He would call His sons. The record of this creative act is found in Genesis 1:26:
B. RIGHTEOUSNESS
Why Righteousness?
Meaning we are rightly obeying the Word of God. Following of what is Ethical and Biblical standard of God within the boundary of Christian attributes.
Originally God created man faultless and pure being.
Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule (have dominion) over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Gen. 1:26-27)
Man was both created and made. Both of these words are important and are distinctively different in the original Hebrew language. The word created is from the Hebrew
-word Bara which means to create from nothing. And the word make is from the
-word asa which means to form from something that is already created.
Therefore man is the integration of parts that were created from nothing and things that were already made.
This mystery describes the production of man’s spirit- being directly from the Spirit of God, thus make man a composite of the nature, attributes and characteristics of His “source”, which is God the Creator Himself. It is also note worthy at this point to understand that the word “source” in the original Hebrew is the word Abba which we translate as “Father”. This is why God is considered the “Father” of all mankind. He sourced us all and thus we posses His nature and likeness.
Jesus suggestions to man is go back to the original state of man by seeking God’s righteousness first. And then we cannot take for granted for this because without doing this it’s for us to go to the next level of God’s rewards, that He says, “All these things will be added unto you” the is no short cut way. We need to go first to first step.
1. God
2. Righteousness
3. Rewards
Illustration
There was a story of man strapped on his roof-top during a flood. First his neighbor passed by in a rubber boat asked him to jump in. “No thank you,” he said, “God will provide.” He gave the same reply when a police
Speed boat and then a military helicopter offered to rescue him. When he died and went to heaven, he accused God of not saving him. God boomed, “I sent you two boats and a helicopter, what else did you expect?”
The Lord has a varied ways to meet our needs, the company that we work. God used that to supply our basic needs, the Church supplied Spiritual foods. But the problem is we don’t acknowledge that this is God’s provision then we continue on murmuring.
Choose God as our Top priority in life! And He is responsible to care our need.
Conclusion
Let us walk by faith with confidence in Jesus Words today.
If we look at the life of the disciples of Jesus on how they gave their lives for the service you will be amazed how they won the war. They were persecuted and died in a martyr doomed.
How did the disciples die?
King Herod Agrippa began to persecute some believers in the Church. He had the apostle James (John’s brother) killed with a sword. Acts 12:1-2
Though the Bible records the fate of only Judas Iscariot and James, early Church leaders said most of the others died as martyrs – killed for preaching about Jesus.
1. Simon Peter. “Crucified at Rome with his head downward,” wrote Origen, a Church leader in the AD 200s. This seems to fulfill what Jesus told Peter would happen: “When you are old. You will stretch out your hands ….’ Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God” (John 21: 18-19).
2. Andrew, Peter’s brother. Crucified on an X – shaped cross, according to the Acts of Andrew, a book written in the Ad 200s.
3. James, son of Zebedee. The first disciple to die as a martyr, he was executed by King Herod Agrippa – probably beheaded “with a sword”
(Acts 12:2)
4. John, brother of James. Died a natural death in about AD 100 at what is now Ephesus, Turkey.
5. Philip. Crucified in Turkey, according to one tradition.
6. Bartholomew. Skinned alive and beheaded after preaching in India, according to one tradition. But the Martyrdom of Bartholomew says he was stuffed in a sack and dumped in the sea.
7. Thomas. Speared to death in what is now India after starting several Churches there.
8. Matthew. Martyred with an ax or a sword in Ethiopia, according to the most popular of many traditions.
9.James, son of Alphaeus. Crucified in Egypt, according to one tradition – in Iran.
10. Thaddaeus (Judas, son of James). Crucified or hacked to death with Simon the Zealot in what is now Iran, according to one story.
11. Simon the Zealot. Martyred with Thaddaeus in Iran, according to one tradtion. Another story says he was cut in two with a saw.
12. Matthias. Chosen to replace Judas Iscariot, he was stoned and beheaded, according to one story.
Let’s continue to serve God, no matter what happen, trust and obey his Word. Don’t pray that we can skip from worries and trials in life but pray how to face and overcome with the help of God. Have faith in God! Our faith will touch to the heart of God. The Bible says… “Without faith, it is impossible to please Him... “(Heb. 11:6)
Prepared by: Bishop Danilo O. Bantilan Th.D.,DRE
Founding President/CEO
Church of Christ Brings Revival, International, Inc.
Dramatic Call from the Lord!!!
I am Bishop Danilo O. Bantilan, the founding President of Church of Christ Brings Revival, International, Inc., and, recently, the founding President of Asian Revival College of Theology, Inc., located at 3f Elipe Building, Elipe Park Carmen Cagayan de Oro City 9000, Philippines. I was born in the province of Bacolod lanao Del Norte, one of the towns on the Island of Mindanao. ( Some called this Island a battleground of Christians and Muslims, and I accustomed to the Great War that has taken place here since my birth.) I was raised in a poor family, and my father was a drunkard who had no stable job at that time. My mother was a market vendor who went to the market every day to sell bread and coffee. Since I was born until this very day, she has awaken at 3:00 A.M every day to cook the food and prepare the coffee she will sell that day at the market. That was the only way she knew to provide what was needed to sustain her family. She and my father had eight children, four boys and four girls, and I was the fifth from the eldest. My family was a devoted Roman Catholic family, but my father was a quack doctor and practiced witchcraft. I had personally observed the work of darkness in our family, and the chaos and troubles we had resembled a war zone. There was no shalom, or peace, and all I heard every day was my mother and father shouting at each other because my father would come home late at night, and it was obvious that he had been drinking hard liquor. When I reached my high school years, my mother enrolled me in a Roman Catholic School managed by the priest and nuns. I will never forget what she said to me at that time. She said, “ You should study at this school so that, when you finish, you will not be like your father.” Even though I knew exactly what she meant, those words broke my heart because I loved my father so much.
While I was in the school, I was influenced by the (religious priests) indeed, I became their assistant during mass every Sunday, and I also became a member a Choir group. Deep down in my heart I felt that someday I would be one of them serving the Church. When I graduated from high school in 1986. I told my mother about my dream and desire to serve the Church. Her response was negative, which did not bother me, because I knew that she felt she could not afford to pay my tuition to go the seminary to be a priest. One day my oldest brother came home from his service in the Armed Forces of the Philippines for a vacation break. He said he had a good news for me. He said that there were job opening in Cagayan de Oro City, he asked me to go there with him and apply for a job since I could not go to college. It was a nice gesture on his part, but I was not happy with his plan Because it was counter to my desire to become a priest and serve God. He also challenge me to become a soldier like him, and even though I felt I had no choice but to go with him to Cagayan de Oro City, I was quite frustrated and unhappy about the situation. then, I asked my mother for permission to go with my brother to Cagayan to apply for a job, and she said, "Yes"! You should go. " but when I looked at her, there were tears flowing from her eyes, and she said, " While you are young, you stayed with me, but now that you are older, you will depart from me and go away from home, but go and be a good boy" My mother loved me so much because I was one of her favorite children in our family; she called me "Tata" which means favorite, and I never forgot this blessing from my mother.
Sometimes our human plans and ways are not the ways of God. Why? Because I found my Savior, Lord, and King in Cagayan de Oro City. One of my friends from my home town, who was already a Christian, lived in Cagayan. He invited me to attend the Full Gospel Church with him, and, for the first time , I felt that I clearly understood the meaning of life and a sense of direction. There was a big difference between that experience and what I had known as a member of the Roman Catholic Church. My experience at the Full Gospel Church changed my life dramatically and became a real turning point in my life. My personal encounter with God took me to a higher level of faith in God, and I made the commitment to serve only Him no matter what happens. Then Persecution began; my brother was very angry with me because he had invested a lot of money and effort to get me to apply to service in the Armed Forces. I had passed all of the examinations, and I was already in the Camp preparing for my training to become a soldier. Instead, I decided to quit immediately, my favorite verse in the Bible at the time was when Jesus said, " If you want to be my disciple take up your cross and follow me" (Mathew 10:38.) This verse has brought me a Spiritual strength in the lord. thus, I was very determined not to pursue a Military career, because I knew my God, and I heard His call to study in the Bible College of the Seminary. In 1987, I was reading in the Gospel of Mathew, and I forgot to eat lunch; instead I went to sleep on a bench inside the Church. While I was asleep, I dreamed I saw God likened to the face of my Earthly father; His face and eyes were as shiny and bright as sun at noontime. Then, I fell off the bench on to the floor and I could see nothing but the light from God. After a while, I saw the face of my heavenly Father again. His hair was gold, and He was clothed with a white robe. He was holding a golden Bible in his right hand, and He gave it me. After He handed the Bible to me, amazingly, it was like a video film, and I saw myself preaching to a crowed of people, teaching and healing them. After I woke up, I cried a lot and said “ Lord, I will respond if You will help me, Lord. But why me Lord? Because of You, I will dot it.” I saw myself as in the Book of Isaiah, Chapter 6, where the prophet said, “Here am I, send me” I also thought of the Apostle Paul’s encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, described in Acts 9. through my personal encounter with God, I am totally convinced that the Lord has called me to be one of His instrument to glorify His name before He takes me home in heaven. I now understood that God will make a way when there seems to be no way. It was really a realization of what I had dreamed years before in high school, that is to become His servant through God’s Divine providence. It is good that I failed to fulfill my ambition of becoming a priest when I was in Roman Catholic Church. I now realize that God intervened because He had not yet revealed His plan for me to become a Pastor. The bible says, “ Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart” (Psalms 37:4 KJV0. Then, I enrolled in Mindanao bible college at the Seminary, and one day while I on the Campus, I received news that my oldest brother, the one who took me to Cagayan de Oro City, had died. When I got home, one of my brothers said, “ You must take his place as a soldier! “ “I said No, that is not what God has called me to do.” After the funeral, I returned to the Seminary. A year later, I received the bad news that my father was dying, and I rushed immediately to my home and ministered to him. I asked my father to confess his sins before God and receive Jesus in his heart. He cried, and I knew that the tears that flowed down his face indicated his repentance. I was so happy at that time, because, before he died, my father got saved and accepted Jesus as His Lord and Savior. I graduated from the Seminary in 1992 with the Bachelor of Theology (B,TH.) Degree. While I served as Pastor of one of the largest Churches in the City, I also pursued my studies by taking the program to acquire my Master in Divinity (M.Div.) Degree, which I successfully completed in 1997. And I take another course Doctor in Theology (Th.D.) which I successfully completed in 2008. Recently I take another two Doctorates, Doctor in Religious studies (DRE.) in progress. I’m thankful to the Lord for His amazing grace and provisions to guide and led me to His perfect plan and design to be one of His co- worker servant and steward for His Kingdom. In the midst of the mountains of desperation ups and down in life especially in the ministry, problems, trials, persecutions and temptations, I felt His mighty presence gracefully holding me with my cooperation and in conformity of His will, I have come out victorious and not defeated. I’m now on the way of my destiny in Him alone and His ministry is fast growing, locally and internationally. As I looked back my early conversion at the age of 18 years old, as a young boy serving God. Oh! what amazing grace beyond of my imagination or think on how He keep my life for a great purpose. He answered my prayer that I could able to pursue my studies in Doctorate. To God be the glory the things that He has done, may His name be glorified in my personal testimony. One thing that I have learn from the Lord is, we should know that we have been called and should be determined in our destiny, by holding His hand no matter what happen, be firm in our decision, especially when we know that it is the will of God. We don't have any other business while we are on this planet earth is to please our Creator, the great Engineer the potter and King of Kings and Lord of Lords Jesus Christ our savior. Thank you and May the Lord will bless us all.
In Christ’s Kingdom
Bishop Danilo O. Bantilan, Th.D.,DRE
Founding President of Asian Revival College of Theology, Inc.
3f Elipe Building, Elipe Park Carmen Cagayan de Oro City 9000 Philippines
Website: www.arcteduc7.com
I am Bishop Danilo O. Bantilan, the founding President of Church of Christ Brings Revival, International, Inc., and, recently, the founding President of Asian Revival College of Theology, Inc., located at 3f Elipe Building, Elipe Park Carmen Cagayan de Oro City 9000, Philippines. I was born in the province of Bacolod lanao Del Norte, one of the towns on the Island of Mindanao. ( Some called this Island a battleground of Christians and Muslims, and I accustomed to the Great War that has taken place here since my birth.) I was raised in a poor family, and my father was a drunkard who had no stable job at that time. My mother was a market vendor who went to the market every day to sell bread and coffee. Since I was born until this very day, she has awaken at 3:00 A.M every day to cook the food and prepare the coffee she will sell that day at the market. That was the only way she knew to provide what was needed to sustain her family. She and my father had eight children, four boys and four girls, and I was the fifth from the eldest. My family was a devoted Roman Catholic family, but my father was a quack doctor and practiced witchcraft. I had personally observed the work of darkness in our family, and the chaos and troubles we had resembled a war zone. There was no shalom, or peace, and all I heard every day was my mother and father shouting at each other because my father would come home late at night, and it was obvious that he had been drinking hard liquor. When I reached my high school years, my mother enrolled me in a Roman Catholic School managed by the priest and nuns. I will never forget what she said to me at that time. She said, “ You should study at this school so that, when you finish, you will not be like your father.” Even though I knew exactly what she meant, those words broke my heart because I loved my father so much.
While I was in the school, I was influenced by the (religious priests) indeed, I became their assistant during mass every Sunday, and I also became a member a Choir group. Deep down in my heart I felt that someday I would be one of them serving the Church. When I graduated from high school in 1986. I told my mother about my dream and desire to serve the Church. Her response was negative, which did not bother me, because I knew that she felt she could not afford to pay my tuition to go the seminary to be a priest. One day my oldest brother came home from his service in the Armed Forces of the Philippines for a vacation break. He said he had a good news for me. He said that there were job opening in Cagayan de Oro City, he asked me to go there with him and apply for a job since I could not go to college. It was a nice gesture on his part, but I was not happy with his plan Because it was counter to my desire to become a priest and serve God. He also challenge me to become a soldier like him, and even though I felt I had no choice but to go with him to Cagayan de Oro City, I was quite frustrated and unhappy about the situation. then, I asked my mother for permission to go with my brother to Cagayan to apply for a job, and she said, "Yes"! You should go. " but when I looked at her, there were tears flowing from her eyes, and she said, " While you are young, you stayed with me, but now that you are older, you will depart from me and go away from home, but go and be a good boy" My mother loved me so much because I was one of her favorite children in our family; she called me "Tata" which means favorite, and I never forgot this blessing from my mother.
Sometimes our human plans and ways are not the ways of God. Why? Because I found my Savior, Lord, and King in Cagayan de Oro City. One of my friends from my home town, who was already a Christian, lived in Cagayan. He invited me to attend the Full Gospel Church with him, and, for the first time , I felt that I clearly understood the meaning of life and a sense of direction. There was a big difference between that experience and what I had known as a member of the Roman Catholic Church. My experience at the Full Gospel Church changed my life dramatically and became a real turning point in my life. My personal encounter with God took me to a higher level of faith in God, and I made the commitment to serve only Him no matter what happens. Then Persecution began; my brother was very angry with me because he had invested a lot of money and effort to get me to apply to service in the Armed Forces. I had passed all of the examinations, and I was already in the Camp preparing for my training to become a soldier. Instead, I decided to quit immediately, my favorite verse in the Bible at the time was when Jesus said, " If you want to be my disciple take up your cross and follow me" (Mathew 10:38.) This verse has brought me a Spiritual strength in the lord. thus, I was very determined not to pursue a Military career, because I knew my God, and I heard His call to study in the Bible College of the Seminary. In 1987, I was reading in the Gospel of Mathew, and I forgot to eat lunch; instead I went to sleep on a bench inside the Church. While I was asleep, I dreamed I saw God likened to the face of my Earthly father; His face and eyes were as shiny and bright as sun at noontime. Then, I fell off the bench on to the floor and I could see nothing but the light from God. After a while, I saw the face of my heavenly Father again. His hair was gold, and He was clothed with a white robe. He was holding a golden Bible in his right hand, and He gave it me. After He handed the Bible to me, amazingly, it was like a video film, and I saw myself preaching to a crowed of people, teaching and healing them. After I woke up, I cried a lot and said “ Lord, I will respond if You will help me, Lord. But why me Lord? Because of You, I will dot it.” I saw myself as in the Book of Isaiah, Chapter 6, where the prophet said, “Here am I, send me” I also thought of the Apostle Paul’s encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, described in Acts 9. through my personal encounter with God, I am totally convinced that the Lord has called me to be one of His instrument to glorify His name before He takes me home in heaven. I now understood that God will make a way when there seems to be no way. It was really a realization of what I had dreamed years before in high school, that is to become His servant through God’s Divine providence. It is good that I failed to fulfill my ambition of becoming a priest when I was in Roman Catholic Church. I now realize that God intervened because He had not yet revealed His plan for me to become a Pastor. The bible says, “ Delight thyself also in the Lord; and He shall give thee the desires of thine heart” (Psalms 37:4 KJV0. Then, I enrolled in Mindanao bible college at the Seminary, and one day while I on the Campus, I received news that my oldest brother, the one who took me to Cagayan de Oro City, had died. When I got home, one of my brothers said, “ You must take his place as a soldier! “ “I said No, that is not what God has called me to do.” After the funeral, I returned to the Seminary. A year later, I received the bad news that my father was dying, and I rushed immediately to my home and ministered to him. I asked my father to confess his sins before God and receive Jesus in his heart. He cried, and I knew that the tears that flowed down his face indicated his repentance. I was so happy at that time, because, before he died, my father got saved and accepted Jesus as His Lord and Savior. I graduated from the Seminary in 1992 with the Bachelor of Theology (B,TH.) Degree. While I served as Pastor of one of the largest Churches in the City, I also pursued my studies by taking the program to acquire my Master in Divinity (M.Div.) Degree, which I successfully completed in 1997. And I take another course Doctor in Theology (Th.D.) which I successfully completed in 2008. Recently I take another two Doctorates, Doctor in Religious studies (DRE.) in progress. I’m thankful to the Lord for His amazing grace and provisions to guide and led me to His perfect plan and design to be one of His co- worker servant and steward for His Kingdom. In the midst of the mountains of desperation ups and down in life especially in the ministry, problems, trials, persecutions and temptations, I felt His mighty presence gracefully holding me with my cooperation and in conformity of His will, I have come out victorious and not defeated. I’m now on the way of my destiny in Him alone and His ministry is fast growing, locally and internationally. As I looked back my early conversion at the age of 18 years old, as a young boy serving God. Oh! what amazing grace beyond of my imagination or think on how He keep my life for a great purpose. He answered my prayer that I could able to pursue my studies in Doctorate. To God be the glory the things that He has done, may His name be glorified in my personal testimony. One thing that I have learn from the Lord is, we should know that we have been called and should be determined in our destiny, by holding His hand no matter what happen, be firm in our decision, especially when we know that it is the will of God. We don't have any other business while we are on this planet earth is to please our Creator, the great Engineer the potter and King of Kings and Lord of Lords Jesus Christ our savior. Thank you and May the Lord will bless us all.
In Christ’s Kingdom
Bishop Danilo O. Bantilan, Th.D.,DRE
Founding President of Asian Revival College of Theology, Inc.
3f Elipe Building, Elipe Park Carmen Cagayan de Oro City 9000 Philippines
Website: www.arcteduc7.com
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