Angat Public Market

"I am afraid," I confessed to my devoted wife as we prepared to commence the solemn work. The truth must be told: I have always been afraid. There has never been a single season when this natural man was not thus afflicted. I carry the endless, tempting voice of excuses running through my head, a train thundering but three inches from my spirit. Her steady words were a staff of strength to my trembling soul: "I would simply tell the people that salvation is found only in Christ." Immediately, I could almost hear the quiet, searching voice of the Lord Master asking me: "Since you first began this appointed labour, have you ever lacked anything?" And the answer is borne out by all my experience: Nothing, O Lord! You have always, always been faithful to supply the necessary grace for the present hour.

I must confess and pray: Forgive this miserable servant. Glorify Your Holy Name through my weakness.

The journey to the Angat Public Market is a distance of 15.3 kilometers from the border of Pandi and Bocaue. I have been petitioning the Almighty for this place since the past season of the "plandemic", making about three return trips on separate occasions, only to find the streets deserted due to the enforced curfew. I possessed no assurance that we would find a soul to hear in the afternoon, but I went with the solemn intention to preach, regardless of the number. Lo! There was a sizable crowd awaiting us when we arrived, proving again that His time is perfect.

It is a rare and seldom thing that we find ourselves standing upon the same ground level as the people while delivering the sacred message. For the Word of God needs to be heard above their heads, always. Finding a suitable, makeshift platform is therefore a necessary discipline and a strategic imperative of the ministry.

And thus, this very post proves the perfect stage for preaching unto the market here. It functions as a platform lifted well above the busy street where the commerce is transacted and is rendered visible to every eye. Behind this monument stands a large edifice of the Roman Catholic religion.

Though the thought of such proximity did momentarily cross my mind, it was never a true concern for me to be cautious regarding who might hear the sound message. My only necessary task was to stand upon the appointed place and open my mouth to proclaim the truth. As hath ever been the case, God Himself enables me with a heaven-sent boldness, granting the courage necessary to fulfill the great commission without fear of men or their institutions.

This passage in scripture was impressed upon me as it strongly applies to me and why I live in Bulacan, Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city. Acts 18:9-10

Whatever happens to me on the way and in the end I leave to God.

The first rule of prudence which I practice, and which hath saved me from the peril of many a fruitless strife, is this: to always take the necessary trouble to ask permission from the civil or local authorities. Should none be present to command the territory, then it is the duty of the witness to seek one out. Time and again, the angry listeners—those souls given to pride and disruption—will approach and question our very presence in what they wrongly claim is their exclusive domain. It aids our sacred cause tremendously to know in advance that they cannot, by right or law, do anything to justly command us to cease the preaching.

This foresight and necessary obedience to the lawful order suited our efforts well in this particular and contentious location. For when the servant of Christ conducts his mission with dignity and respect for the outward Law, the Spirit is then unhindered to work upon the hearts of men, and the enemies of the Cross are often forced to silence by their own legal constraints.

As the Word of God against sin was faithfully proclaimed, certain loud women, whose spirits were clearly set against the sacred truth, reacted not so kindly. They continuously kept up a spirit of ridicule, interrupting the preaching and berating my devoted wife again and again, demanding to know who it was that had given us the earthly permission to preach the solemn truth. The only reply necessary to such vain and vexing clamor is drawn from the eternal wellspring of truth: Woman, be quiet! God Himself commanded it.

For the authority to proclaim the Gospel of the Lord Christ issues not from the decree of any mortal governor or the tolerance of the street, but from the Sovereign Will of the Almighty. When the Spirit of God doth command, all earthly protest and foolish question must fall silent before the unassailable mandate of Heaven. The work of the Kingdom proceeds, regardless of the world's ill temper.

Even Jose Rizal was listening.

The heart takes profound comfort in the knowledge that the Father always hath people listening wherever His servants are faithfully sent. Throughout the whole hour of proclamation, there were souls who sat intently, their spirits attentive while the Word went forth in power. We finished our sacred task well past hour sixth, and it was already dark. The Bibles and the Gospel tracts which we had carried were, by the providence of God, all given away, the seed scattered upon many souls. Though we were far from our home, and were now bound to ride through open fields and remote barrios that were dark and unlit, and though this day was purportedly designated for our rest, yet was it deemed unwise to linger and seek earthly comfort in a vain dinner. The urgency of the hour and the distance to be traversed did rightly command our swift departure. For the diligent laborer finds his true nourishment not in the banquet, but in the completion of the Master's appointed task. We opted to find a simple diner along the way nearer Pandi.

My eyes were blurry as I struggled to mind the road, and my spirit began a wretched argument with the flesh: "And then what? What did you gain from this toil, and for what high purpose was it undertaken?" Thus did the temptation whisper on the weary homeward journey.

Yet, immediately the greater truth prevailed: God Himself sent forth a preacher; that much, indeed, is all that truly matters, for the perishing people did hear the Word. Without the faithful voice of the preacher, tell me, how shall the people hear and be saved?

The burden that settles most heavily upon my soul is the thought that not one of the many souls who profess to know the Lord Christ would stir themselves to come out from under their comfortable bushel. Had I simply continued to attend the regular services within the sanctuary walls, what dreadful consequences might now await me on the day of reckoning?

Praise God that He did move my feet! Over ten thousand people have now received the Gospel tract since He first commanded me forth six years ago, and likely three times that number have heard the Gospel preached in the public square—a blessed testimony, vindicating God's holy name on the great Day of Judgment. I can only offer up the fervent prayer that this number shall increase, and that more pastors and professing Christians might agree that Christ is worthy of being proclaimed, not merely within the four walls of our beautiful buildings, but more so outside, in the wide public square. Praise be to God for those faithful few who do so labor!

Am I therefore a special man because I perform these necessary duties? Not in any wise. A candle cannot boast about performing the very work for which it was created. Our purpose is simple: Have light, give light. I cannot help but be brought to the solemn wonder that this very thing is perhaps the most profound reason why our nation remains dark outside—for all the lights of Zion are stubbornly locked within the closed doors of the church buildings.

I had to shake my head and humble myself before the LORD for the thought. It is frustrating, depressing and infuriating. By His grace we arrived home safe and in time for family worship.