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Sinulog - for God's glory?
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 "The Sinulog is a religious activity and festivity. Therefore it must be pleasing and glorifying to God." Perhaps that is what you are thinking. Maybe that is the reason why you [join] the festivity. But think again. Not all religious activities and festivities are pleasing to God. In fact, He hates many of them. And why? Because they do not really glorify Him. We read in the Bible, "Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31)
Now, does the Sinulog glorify God? Any bold and honest enough to think this matter through will have to disagree. During the Sinulog, there is much wild party and many get drunk. For what energizes and gives life to most people in this religious revelry? It is no secret. It is wine or some other intoxicating substance, and not the Holy Spirit of God. This does not glorify God at all. The Bible says, "And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit" ( Eph. 5:18). The Holy Spirit should energize and control our lives and activities, not wine or some other intoxicating substance. For what happens when people get drunk? It leads to dissipation - a behavior which allows lack of concern or thought for the consequences of an action" (Louw-Nida Lex).
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Behind the Roman Catholic Mass
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More and more people are finding the practice of going to a Roman Catholic Mass rather empty and meaningless. In an age where people tend to hate just going through the motions without understanding the significance of them, it is not surprising that you may be wondering whether it is worth attending Mass.
So what is the significance of a Mass? What is the purpose of it? And why go through it? According to official teachings of Rome, the mass is the highest form of prayer because in it the Lord Jesus is being sacrifice for the sins of the dead and of the living.
A Roman Catholic Catechism declares: “ The Holy Mass is the sacrifice of the body and blood of Jesus Christ, really present on the altar under the appearance of the bread and wine, and offered to God for the living and the dead.” And this sacrifice is said to be essentially the same sacrifice that the Lord Jesus offered on the cross of Calvary. In a Roman Catholic Catechism, a question is asked: “ Is the Holy Mass one and the same sacrifice with that of the Cross?” The answer given is: “ The Holy Mass is one and the same sacrifice with that of the Cross, inasmuch as Christ, who offered Himself, a bleeding victim, on the Cross to His Heavenly Father, continues to offer Himself in an unbloody manner on the altar, through the ministry of His priests.”
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Lessons from the Twin Tower Tragedy
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Amidst much sorrow, anger, and fear, the tragic event that hit america raises many questions that demand answers: "where was god when it happened?", "why did he not do anything to stop it?", "did god allow it to happen in order to humble american pride and arrogance?"
These questions demand answers. And the Bible, God's word, provides us with definite answers. Here are Four vital biblical principles that would put the horrific event in proper perspective.
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 When a loved one dies, the emotional pain is so intense that one of the last things family members would ever think of is the expense for the funeral. This explains why funeral parlors can charge exorbitant prices for coffins, the production of which cost only 5% of their selling price.
This also explains why the rent for a small room in a funeral parlor can cost more than three months rent for a much bigger apartment or house. Moreover, this explains why the most expensive piece of land or real estate is the land where the dead are actually laid. When emotional pain is intense, money is just not a priority.
Sadly, funeral parlors are not alone in taking advantage of this emotionally painful situation. Many religious leaders do this also. The Lord Jesus Himself spoke of this concerning the religious leaders during His day. He says, “Beware of the scribes who like to walk around in long robes, and like respectful greetings in the market places, and chief seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets, who devour widows' houses, and for appearance's sake offer long prayers; these will receive greater condemnation” (Mark 12:38-40; emphasis mine).
Now, is it possible that what the Lord Jesus said about the deeds of religious leaders during His time here on earth is also what religious leaders are doing in our day? This question requires a good and honest answer.
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By: Jose Francis Martinez
The position this article takes is clearly anti-law, but it claims not to endorse wicked living among Christians (licentiousness).
Mr. Trefzger, the writer explicitly opposed the classic Reformed view of the third use of the Law, as a standard and guide to right living. He does even not want to call the imperatives and exhortations in Paul’s letters as law or as of a category of law. He writes, “while Paul gives us imperatives, commands and exhortations, they are not themselves laws and are not given as laws or in the category of law” (pgs 4 & 5).
Moreover, this writer does not also believe in the second use of the Law when it comes to believers (the Law as a mirror). It appears that he only believes in the second use of the Law when it comes to unbelievers but not believers. This is clear from the fact that he ridicules Joel Beeke’s comments about the convicting use of the law in the sanctification of believers (which the article mistakenly refers as the third use of the law). For the writer, the Law cannot even serve as a mirror to convict believers of wrongdoing and prevent the resurgence of self-righteousness. (See pgs 11-12).
So the issue here is not just the perpetuity of the 10 commandments but it is an aversion against law, any law. This is full blown antinomianism.
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Church Tax
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Non stock, non profit: non-tax?
by: Kristine S. Casa-Siervo
[ Punongbayan & Araullo]
More often than not, trustees and officers of non-stock non-profit (NSNP) institutions are appalled when they receive a letter from the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) assessing them of deficiency taxes. Unfortunately, these trustees and officers are under the impression that as NSNP organizations, they are immune from all duties and taxes.
But are non-stock non-profit organizations really exempt from the payment of all taxes?
A non-stock non profit organization is a type of corporation which may be formed or organized for charitable, religious, educational, professional, cultural, fraternal, literary, scientific, social, civic services, or other similar purposes such as trade, industry, agricultural and like chambers. No part of its income is distributable to its members, trustees or officers and any profits earned by such corporation as an incident to its operations shall be used for the furtherance of the purposes for which it was organized.
Under our Constitution, charitable institutions, churches and parsonages or convents appurtenant thereto, mosques, non-profit cemeteries, and all lands, buildings, and improvements, actually, directly and exclusively used for religious, charitable, or educational purposes shall be exempt from taxation. A similar grant of tax exemption is provided specifically for NSNP educational institutions stating that all income and assets of these educational organizations used actually, directly and exclusively for educational purposes shall be exempt from taxes and duties. (Section 4(3), Article XIV of the Constitution)
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 After many years of a pilgrim existence as a church, moving from one place to another, the Lord Jesus graciously provided us with a lot and building through the contributions and help of the members and the generosity of other churches. The present building of the church was inaugurated in 1997 and it has been such a great help to the church for our regular weekly stated meetings of worship and prayers, special times of fellowships, especial evangelistic meetings, yearly Pastors’ Conferences, regular Pastors’ Fraternal, and other activities.
Now the time has come for us to do major changes to our building in order to fit our present and future needs as a church. The increased attendance on the Lord’s Day has made the place too crowded for us, especially when we have our special evangelistic meetings. We also need rooms for the Sunday schools for children, and private rooms for pastoral counseling. In addition to this, the road besides the church’s building has become a main road for vehicles to use and noise has become a big problem during our church’s services. The peace and quite we used to enjoy during our church’s services is a thing in the past. Now the noise can become a big distraction to us.
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Church Services:
Sunday: 9am, 10:30am & 4:30 pm
Wednesday: 7:30pm
Address: [Map]
53 Maria Paloma Village
Pablo Abella St., Cebu City
Philippines 6000
Tel. No. 6332+261-8831 [+] map
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