Superficial

Externally, everything seems right. Here in Butuan City, religion runs rampant. Over 98% of the country is Roman Catholic, and a cross on every corner bears witness to it. As you walk down the road, you can see people going through the rosary, and a devout Catholic will cross himself every time they pass a church. There are trikes with scriptures painted on the sides, and trucks have "Jesus is love" on them. My personal favorite was the semi truck which had "Jehovah Jireh" (The Lord will Provide) painted on the back. So why are we here? What is our purpose? The word of God is inscribed on the public's transportation!

We are here because the word of God is not inscribed on their hearts. Superficially, the Filipinos speak of God, salvation, and being saved from their sins. But if you ask them why they are going to go to heaven, their answer is not Christ alone. Majority will begin to speak about works. I ran into this situation last Sunday, as we did house to house ministry with a local Baptist Church. After presenting the gospel and my testimony to a woman and her family right outside her house on the street, a shop owner next door gave my translator and I free soda and crackers. As we talked to him, he was speaking the right words about salvation. But the more I prodded, the more he spoke of works. He believed if he died with an unconfessed sin, he would not be allowed into heaven. What a fearful life to live.

I felt the story of the Prodigals Son was in order. The parable is a wonderful witness tool in a place where people believe God only loves us for our works. The pastor from the baptist church walked up and proceeded to give the story of the two thieves who were crucified with Jesus. We did not see a change in his heart, but this we did; we preached the gospel and planted sees. This is what the Lord would have us to do.

No matter where we go, who we speak to, or what they claim to believe, we preach one message - Christ crucified. From this conviction and commitment, the Lord opened doors for a bible study last night and salvation of two souls! What started as simple questions of faith and religion has led to souls being saved for eternity. We are overjoyed to see the kingdom being built as we labor on houses. Pray for the people of Butuan, the people who know and see scripture everywhere. May they have a true relationship with Jehovah Jierah, the God who will always provide.