Category: NOT for Filipino Export

  • What is the Greatest Love Story ever?

    If you were to name some classic love stories you might suggest Helen of Troy & Paris (igniting the Trojan War dramatized in the Iliad), Cleopatra and Mark Antony (whose love entwined Rome in a civil war with Octavian/Augustus Caesar), Romeo & Juliet, Beauty & the Beast, or perhaps Cinderella & Prince Charming. In them,…

  • What’s the Gospel? Considered through COVID, Quarantine and Vaccine

    The novel coronavirus, or COVID-19, emerged in China towards the end of 2019.  Just a few months later it had raged around the world, infecting and killing millions while spreading to every country. The lightning fast spread of COVID-19 created panic around the world.  People were unsure what to do in light of this pandemic. …

  • The Precision and Power of Pentecost

    The Day of Pentecost always comes on a Sunday.  It celebrates a remarkable event. But it is not only what happened that day but when and why it happened that reveals the hand of God. It also offers a powerful gift for you. What happened on Pentecost If you heard of ‘Pentecost’, you probably learned…

  • Is the Bible textually Reliable? Or has it been corrupted?

    Textual Criticism and the Bible In our scientific and educated age, we question many of the non-scientific beliefs that earlier generations had.  This skepticism is especially true of the Bible.  Many of us question the reliability of the Bible from what we know about it.  After all, the Bible was written more than two thousand…

  • How were details of Christ’s death prophesied?

    Christ’s “cut off” Detailed Hundreds of Years Beforehand Previously we looked at Daniel’s prediction of the coming Christ’s ‘cutting off’ after a specified cycle of years. Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem (often called Palm Sunday) fulfilled Daniel’s prophecy exactly 173,880 days after the Persian Decree to restore Jerusalem. The phrase ‘cut off ’ referred to Isaiah’s imagery…

  • The Puzzle of the Psalm 22 Prophecy

    A few years ago a work colleague, J, wandered to my desk. J was smart and educated – and definitely not a follower of the gospel.  But he was somewhat curious about the gospel so we had some warm and open conversations between us. He had never really looked at the Bible so I had…

  • The Branch: Sprouting Exactly in time to be … ‘cut off’

    We have been exploring the Branch theme in the Old Testament prophets. We saw that Jeremiah in 600 BCE continued the theme (which Isaiah began 150 years earlier) and declared that this Branch would be a King. Then, Zechariah followed predicting that the name of this Branch would be Jesus. Additionally, he foresaw that the Branch would uniquely combine the roles of King…

  • Why did a Good God create a Bad Devil?

    The Bible says that it was the devil (or Satan) in the form of a serpent who temped Adam and Eve to sin and brought about their fall.  But this raises an important question:  Why did God create a ‘bad’ devil (which means ‘adversary’) to corrupt His good creation? Lucifer – The Shining One In…

  • What is the History of the Jewish People?

    Jews are one of the most ancient peoples in the world. The Bible, ancient historians outside the Bible, as well as archeology, all record their history. We have more facts about their history than that of any other nation. We will use this information to summarize their history.  To make the history of the Israelites…

  • The Branch: Named hundreds of years before his birth

    We saw how Isaiah used the image of The Branch.  A ‘he’ from the fallen dynasty of David, possessing wisdom and power was coming.  Then Jeremiah followed up by stating that this Branch would be known as the LORD (the Old Testament name for God) himself. Zechariah continues The Branch The prophet Zechariah lived 520…