Dumaguete - Beginning

This would be the first post of a very long backlog that I hope to fill after nine months of not blogging. Since my last post in August, a lot has happened, the majority of which has been related to daily Family Worship. Being overwhelmed and exhausted was what took up the greater part of the missing time. As things begin to wind down, I will try again to resume documenting from where I left off.

Sometime in December last (if my failing memory serves its duty), I received a casual invitation from the worthy Pastor Nate Sonner of the Reformed Presbyterian Church in Dumaguete. The invitation concerned a solemn conference upon the matter of planting biblical and reformed churches, scheduled for the nineteenth day of May, with the notable Dr. Al Baker of Vanguard Presbytery as the designated speaker. I confess I did not initially ponder the matter deeply, yet I went forth in simple faith and extended the invitation to several of the brethren in our small gathering. Immediately, a plan was established: we began the consistent, weekly habit of setting aside money within our make-shift piggy bank. By the time the month of March arrived, such was the merciful faithfulness of the Lord that we found ourselves completely booked and every necessary detail of the journey entirely sorted out for us. It is a source of great comfort to see how the Almighty moves not only in great events, but also in the smallest acts of obedience and the humble preparation of the saints.

It is a most sobering and profoundly comforting truth to learn how much of what our ears received on the first day of the lecture did correspond with such unity to our existing views and humble practice. This remarkable affirmation yields us great solace and a deep, abiding conviction: that our Heavenly Father did not, for one moment, abandon us to fend for ourselves by the mere light of human reason. Instead, He hath graciously led us to true teaching by the undeniable power of the Holy Spirit. This is evidenced by the fact that such truth was revealed to us, even in the absence of a schooled or accredited leader. The Lord himself was our Teacher, and to Him belongs all the praise for guiding the feet of His children into the path of sound doctrine and godly discipline.

 

Immediately following the close of the conference, we were moved to action. The time for mere hearing had passed, and the hour for diligent labor had arrived. We seized the opportune moment to spread the good news of Christ's reconciliatory ministry directly into the local community. It is with joy we record that of the multitude of tracts which we disseminated, only three were rejected. All the others were received with a truly warm appreciation. We encountered no difficulty whatsoever in distributing these precious slips of truth, as the common folk readily accepted them from our hands. We carried with us the blessed burden of five hundred tracts, intended for five hundred souls, and were permitted to execute the distribution in full. Now, our human task is done. It remains only for the LORD to be pleased to work through these small seeds of the Word, bringing forth the spiritual harvest in His own perfect time.

 

In the course of our mission, we were divinely favored to encounter and speak with a long-time witness for Christ. This faithful brother hath, for a span of many years, made it his solemn duty to frequent this very location, daily interacting one-on-one with the souls that pass along this public boulevard. His enduring perseverance was a clear rebuke to our own occasional weariness. We took a deliberate moment to offer mutual encouragement and fraternal blessing before we were obliged to part ways, both being compelled to continue with the pressing work appointed to us. It is a sweet consolation to know that even in the vastness of the world's darkness, others maintain a constant vigil and labor alongside us in the Lord's vineyard.

I was directed by the Lord's hand to secure an excellent vantage point directly before many souls seated upon benches, even as a company prepared for a program set for the afternoon hour. Having been uncertain if my mechanical amplification would pass the scrutiny of the airport customs, I resolved, in full dependence upon the Almighty, to rely solely upon the Lord to furnish the voice required for preaching in the open air. To speak for a full hour into a bullhorn is already an undertaking of no small difficulty; but to rely upon the natural voice alone is an entirely different matter, and one that proves exceedingly brutal upon the throat.

Yet, as I passed the thirty-minute mark, I was filled with holy amazement to discover that my throat was not dry, and my voice retained its fullness and vigor. I was able to see the multitude across the field—some seated and some standing—turned entirely toward my position. As I labored to clearly highlight Christ's redemptive work upon the Cross, I could only offer my deepest petition: that the Heavenly Father would be pleased to use this humble hour to work the Gospel into the very hearts of those He had so providentially gathered to hear.

Photo by M

As I mused upon the labors so recently executed, my thoughts were drawn to the lecture’s mention of President Trump’s re-election in America. I considered the commentary of the multitude upon the public social media, who conclude this event to be nothing less than a welcome return to regular sanity—a restoration of the former state of things. But what was that former state? Alas, a time when the common soul was as depraved as ever. I reasoned thus: God, in His infinite forbearance, is merely granting the American Christians additional, precious time to prosecute the urgent advancement of the Gospel Work, rather than allowing them a mere season to breathe a sigh of relief from the damage inflicted by a previous administration. 

In this same measure, the very 'peace' we presently enjoy here in the Philippines serves as a heavy indictment upon professing believers. 

These are they who complacently cover their eyes and ears to the terrifying reality of souls dying every single day without hearing the blessed Gospel. They glory only in their intricate theology, content to silently attend church for one brief hour, one day in the week. If one ponders the matter with true spiritual gravity, it is deceptively easy to die for Christ in a single, heroic act of martyrdom. The true, impossible difficulty lies in the arduous, lifelong labor of living for Him every single day—a work which cannot be accomplished by the energy of the flesh, but only by the abiding power of His Holy Spirit.

It is a truth undeniable that work remains to be done, and though it is entirely true that the fields are already white unto the harvest, it is a far more sobering reality that the laborers remain tragically few. The vast majority, alas, refuse to forsake the comforts of their 'air-conditioned walls'. They will not go to where the lost souls congregate, nor will they speak the Gospel for Christ's sake. They decline to seek out those remote places where the name of our Savior is yet to be heard, and where souls have yet to comprehend the redemptive work He wrought upon the Cross.

The faithful must be roused! It is demanded of us that we take the Kingdom of Heaven with violence, that we prevail and wrestle in ceaseless prayer, so that God's name may be singularly glorified when He gathers the wheat into His eternal barn. It is our duty also to live such lives that His name shall be vindicated when He comes to righteously judge the sin of the world and its unrepentant inhabitants. May the Lord grant us the zeal to flee from the ease that shames His commission.

Photo by K

We ministered diligently for the two full days of our stay here, extending the Gospel of grace to every soul we could access in every corner of the locality. So tireless was our effort that we even found ourselves knocking upon the very windows of the patrol cars, the drivers of the tricycles, and the keepers of the parking outposts. It is a most heartening testament to this place that all willingly accepted the tracts with a ready smile. The people of Dumaguete are, indeed, a people of such remarkable friendliness and gentle disposition. Alas, I cannot offer the same sincere report concerning the temperament of the people dwelling in my native city. I am compelled to observe that the souls in Dumaguete remain, to an appreciable degree, 'untainted' by the apathetic and jaded outlook now so prevalent in Manila. This blessed place is truly ripe for the Gospel work; it is a field ready for the sickle. To imagine the multitude of other localities like this, which would so readily and warmly accommodate the Gospel message, is to be seized by both hope and profound distress. The sheer number of the unreached souls in this world is, to say the least, staggering to the contemplative mind.

If only professing believers would truly begin to believe that they possess the one true message ordained to rescue perishing sinners, then indeed would we witness a greater number of Christians aggressively evangelizing within their own circle of influence. For we see this: The Mormon believes his error with greater steadfastness. His works of evangelism are a public shame to the godly. The LGBT pursues his iniquity with a louder clamor; his passion for sin is manifest. They are not shy of their belief. When we were on the green, we marked a group of JW's corrupting the ears of the people with their false Gospel. We saw but one true Christian about the work, and he stood alone. The world looks not to the Church for hope because the modern Church offers no power. It offers only vain programs, a mere imitation of the world's spectacles. The need of the hour is not for better organization, but for an unshakable conviction that compels the believer to shatter his silence and proclaim the Savior's name.

How can one who has the remedy for death keep silent about it? How can one begin to tell the people about God when he has yet to tell God about the people? Daniel prayed thus, 'We have sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments..' Daniel 9:5

It is a visible truth that everyone prays: the Buddhist performs his ritual, the Satanist addresses his dark master, the Religionist chants his dogma, the Hindu bows to his idol, and the Christian speaks his form. But we must pose the sobering question: Has the prayer offered by the modern church achieved anything whatsoever to turn the world upside down, in comparison to the mighty works wrought by the mere one hundred and twenty souls who knelt together in the upper room in the book of Acts?

Nay, all we have managed to effect is the filling of our elaborate buildings with apathetic, comfortable people. These souls solemnly affirm the truth that "unless a kernel of wheat fall to the ground and die, it remains alone," yet they fight with all their might to preserve their ease and to secure a life of respect and comfort in the very world that hated their Lord. They remain tragically afraid to lose their lives—in reality, merely their reputations and their convenience—in the urgent, aggressive work of evangelizing the lost. Our prayers are often but a hollow noise, devoid of the fire and conviction that precedes true, world-altering transformation. This sin shows that the will is not yet bent to Christ's command.

Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence, As when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence! When thou didst terrible things which we looked not for, thou camest down, the mountains flowed down at thy presence. For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.
Isa 64:1-4  

 We need to come to a place of desperation. Like Hannah, we need to be desperate in our prayers. 

 

Photo by M

In the months passing, I confess to bearing a great apprehension concerning the day of my departure for Dumaguete. My heart was entirely against the prospect, and I desired almost not to go. Yet, I possessed the firm, spiritual conviction that I must go, for the Lord's sake. I was also deeply motivated by the desire that the brethren accompanying me should be granted the invaluable experience of witnessing what it truly means to be a missionary for the Gospel’s cause. Indeed, my central human purpose in undertaking the journey was to furnish this necessary object lesson for the souls traveling alongside me.

Even on the very last night, as we packed the necessary provisions, the desire of my flesh still cried out against the going. But I have learned, through much travail, that obedience is rendered sweetest and most fragrant when the flesh doth utter its stubborn 'Nay,' yet the Holy Spirit doth firmly command, 'Do.' It is in that moment of submission that the soul finds its truest rest and the Lord receives His due glory.

The anxiety concerning my departure has scarcely left my spirit, and yet, behold! The journey is done, and I find myself returned to this very desk in my own home, penning these sober lines. One truth above all others is thus brutally impressed upon my soul: Time is passing, swift as the arms upon the clock. Soon enough, the day shall arrive when I too must pass from this earthly scene. And in this solemn light, I am left to feel utterly pathetic in my half-heartedness—in what I have dared to call my 'service' to the King.

I must, by the sheer grace of God, cultivate the discipline to look past the vanity of today and fix my gaze unwaveringly into the vastness of eternity, to that awful moment when I must stand before the Lord God Almighty. Then, the only question that shall truly matter will be this: Have I truly, thoroughly lived for Christ? May the terror of that inevitable day stir my soul to a greater earnestness from this day forward.

May the LORD have mercy upon my wretchedness.