My Passion
Passion is something you love doing. Unlike a job, where you need to be paid for you to do it, a passion is something you would pay to do, if necessary. Needless to say, you would do it, gladly, and for free. It might not look like it, but my true passion is studying, preaching and teaching the Bible. Now, before you all fall off your chairs, let me share a screenshot from an old blog of mine circa 2007:
All my prior rantings have been about my issues with growing up illegitimate, my struggles through the different schools, my own rebellion against practically all manifestations of legitimate authority, but I've never really said what else happened.
I entered UP as a wide-eyed, Bible-quoting believer, but left it an angry atheist. It would take 6 more years before a turnaround happened.
The year was 2004, and I was newly married, jobless and penniless. Granted, many people fall into depths of despair and there have an encounter with the Divine, but that was not something I wanted. I left my faith in 2003 because of two main reasons: I felt that those who were supposed to be my "brothers and sisters in Christ" were nothing more than goody two-shoes hypocrites whose commitment were good only on Sunday morning, and I felt that Christianity was intellectually indefensible. During that time, it was a sort of hobby for me to debate with self-professed Christians, and that often ended up with me poking holes at their faith and ridiculing them for lack of a coherent response, except to say that "in their hearts, they believed." That was ridiculous: one could sincerely believe in a Santa Claus in the North Pole, complete with reindeer and a flying sleigh, but sincerity does not turn wishful thinking into reality. Thus, despite the emotional tug, I wanted to make sure I wasn't rushing back into some childish default mode. I wanted to know if the Bible, Jesus and God were for real, and if I would not become the butt of jokes among my atheist friends for worshiping some myth.
Thankfully, I found an old volume of Josh McDowell's EVIDENCE THAT DEMANDS A VERDICT in an second-hand bookstore in Cebu. Josh was a former atheist who studied Christianity in order to disprove it, only to end up becoming not only a committed Christian but also a dedicated apologist and itinerant preacher.
The book contained the argument of how the resurrection could be proven by historical-legal argument, much in the same manner that we now do not dispute that someone named Plato or Julius Caesar once existed. There was ample evidence that "something" happened, causing a committed band of Jews to risk life and limb, expulsion from their families, culture and religion and, eventually, face martyrdom in the name of some carpenter's son who claimed to be the Messiah the Jewish Scriptures hinted on.
Can one sincerely believe in a lie? Yes, and in one's fanatical belief, even cause him to be willing to kill, and even die for it. History, both ancient and modern, is replete with stories of fanatical religious warriors who have done this. The Waffen SS of Hitler's regime have done abominable crimes and fought to the last man in the name of the lie of Nazism. As Hitler once said himself, "Make the lie big, make it simple, keep saying it, and eventually they will believe it."
Can this case be the same for the apostles? If anybody knew whether the resurrection took place (and this would be the game-changer, since no one ever rose from the dead), it would be them. If this was a carefully fabricated myth, would they be willing to die for it, even knowing that by simply recanting, they would be allowed to live? Logic militates against someone willing to give up all for something he knows to be false.
In his letter to the Corinthian church, Paul uses a self-effacing argument:
"14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.
15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that the raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised.
16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised.17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied."
(1 Corinthians 15:14-19)
I was stunned by such brutal honesty. And only a few sentences before that, he not only declared that Christ rose from the dead, but also named witnesses, mentioning that over five hundred have been eyewitnesses to the risen Christ, "most of whom are still alive" (as of the time of his writing). In other words, he was saying, "If you don't believe me, then ask them yourself."
With that, and with other arguments, I knew I not only believed in an emotional sense, but that it was something I could wholeheartedly embrace.
Of course, this was simply the beginning of a long journey into studying the Bible carefully and intently, and I realized that most people sadly lived with the lie that the Bible was something obscure and could only be comprehended by highly trained clergymen. I discovered the truth in the saying that "The Bible: Simple enough that a child can understand it; deep enough that a scholar can drown in it."
Paul wrote to Timothy that:
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
(2 Timothy 3:16-17)
How can something be profitable if it were obscure? Theologian and pastor RC Sproul points out the real problem:
"Here, then, is the real problem of our negligence. We fail in our duty to study God's Word not so much because it is difficult to understand, not so much because it is dull and boring, but because it is work. Our problem is not a lack of intelligence or a lack of passion. Our problem is that we are lazy. "
This became a challenge for me: to help people overcome their laziness and fear that "reading the Bible will make you crazy," and since then, I have continued to study and teach the basic principles that help a person understand the Bible, or what is formally called in theological circles as hermeneutics Many have been surprised that these are the same principles that one uses to study any written document, and the core principle is the same for secular and sacred writings: read, understand and interpret the text in its proper historical and literary context. In other words, read carefully. Treat prose as prose, poetry as poetry, figures of speech as figures of speech.
Many people, including those in clerical positions, get this wrong because of either laziness or having been conditioned to think of the Bible as something so totally otherworldly you would think it fell from heaven, complete with leather binding and gold trimming. Yet as one song describes it:
"The Bible was inscribed over a period of 2000 years in times of war and in days of peace
By kings, physicians, tax collectors, farmers fishermen, singers and shepherds.
The marvel is that a library so perfectly cohesive could have been produced by such a diverse crowd
over a period of time which staggers the imagination.
Jesus is its grand subject,
our good is designed
and the glory of God is its end."
– Casting Crowns, The Word Is Alive
This is most clearly seen in the New Testament, where we learn that we were born sinners by nature and choice, unable and unwilling to desire God, much less please Him. Yet God, in His mercy, sent His only Son to die on the cross and pay the penalty for the sin of people like you and me, so that by repenting and trusting in Jesus, we can be forgiven and received by God1. Our core problem is not that we live meaningless lives, but that we seek to find meaning in career, meditation, hobbies, girls, and whatnot, and "labor for that which does not satisfy" (Isaiah 55:2).
This is not a winnable proposition for many, because first we have to admit that we are wrong, dead wrong, about God and about many things in our life. To most, it will be offensive, narrow-minded and bigoted, but if this were so, then Jesus would be the biggest bigot, because He said that "no one comes to the Father EXCEPT through me." (John 14:6) It may be offensive, but just like bitter medicine, it has to be taken in. Of course, one cannot and should not force it on others, but like anything one is truly passionate about, keeping it to yourself is like plugging a hole in a dam about to burst.
How is my passion seen in my work
Being a secular, government organization, one cannot explicitly teach the Bible in the office, but during flag ceremonies, meetings, and informal discussions, I look for opportunities to talk about it, and refer to it when I have coaching time with my staff.
I have shared ebooks with other colleagues, as well as numerous online friends, many of whom I have not even met in person, including Study Bibles, references, commentaries, Bible Dictionaries and other helpful books.
How is my passion seen in my family
part of my library
My bookshelves are full of theology books, and my wife would kid me that my references would be enough to start a small seminary. I tell her that my tablet has even more in soft-copy format. But kidding aside, this is seen in the time we spend as a family when we gather for short devotionals and worship time. I tell my kids Bible stories, teach them to memorize verses, and take an active role in teaching them the doctrines of the Bible. I always encourage questions, and develop an atmosphere of inquisitiveness, rather than just compelling the children to follow basta! Everyone at home has his or her own Bible, and we teach them, in age-appropriate ways, to read for themselves and not just rely on someone else's interpretation or dogmatic pronouncements. This habit is consistent with Luke's record of the Berean Jews:
Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.(Acts 17:11)
How is my passion seen in my daily life
All of these have not turned me into a walking, breathing saint, complete with a halo. I am still as human as the next person, and also stumble, sometimes horribly, and sin. The irony of studying God's Word is that it not only reveals to you what God has caused the inspired writers to put to pen, but it also reveals more and more the true condition of your heart. For example, an act with overt altruism can actually be fueled by self-aggrandizement and pride. Familiarity with this has taught me to try to be more patient with others, to be more forgiving, and to seek to put myself in their shoes.
How is my passion reflected in my life's journey
In 2012, I was torn between the decision to pursue a Master's Degree in Divinity or take up my MBA. For promotion purposes, the former would satisfy the official requirements of the Civil Service, since the program was CHED-accredited and the particular degree was not specified. However, the schedule proved to be erratic, and would require me to take days off from work in order to attend weekday classes. I decided that I would work on my MBA first, and following graduation, take up my Divinity studies. These would prepare me to be of more use in ministry later. After all, why should I hurry when I could not imagine myself becoming a pastor (I desired to be, but knew I was not called to be one).
Teaching Hermeneutics in church
Providentially, last year, I was given the opportunity to be part of a team of men and women who planted a small church in Cebu City. I felt as though for the first time that I was finally involved in something I have long desired to do. I had already taught theology on and off to members of my previous church, under the supervision of our pastor, but this time, I was to serve in the capacity of a co-elder (in effect, a co-pastor) together with two other long-time friends. One of our commitments in this infant church, New Covenant Church - Cebu, was to be centered in accurate expository preaching as one of the core values. This means we were deliberately going to limit our preaching style to teaching only what the text actually teaches (paying close heed to context of course), in contrast to the practice of many who use the sermon in an allegorical manner, or use it to teach principles on how to get rich.
This put my growing (and it has grown again just a few days before I started writing) library into good use, because I have always found it profitable to seek counsel from even more learned teachers, theologians, pastors, and scholars who have devoted entire lifetimes in study.
This is my challenge to you, dear reader, if you have bothered to read up to the last few sentences: get your Bible and start reading. If you do not know where to start, I can help you, just as I too have benefited from others whom God has enabled me to meet. The Bible is more than a dusty paperweight or religious decoration: it contains what God has revealed to us, so that ordinary people like you and me might enjoy genuine, lasting and meaningful fellowship with Him.
Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light to my path.
Psalm 119:105
Soli Deo Gloria!
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1Romans 3:10-26, Romans 5:6-8, Acts 16:31, Acts 20:21)
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