It is another year to behold joyous faces, share warm hugs with huge smiles, narrate fun stories from the holidays, and again belong to the community that shares the common faith in Christ. PAW might just be a morsel compared to the vast population in the metropolitan area of Cebu but God has been good in using this small community to minister to the struggling lives in pursuit of holiness.
Our Wednesday gatherings start with fun, welcoming games followed by the singing of Christ-centered songs and then the highlight of the night which is the faithful exposition of the Word. This is followed by case studies and honest discussion within the blocks and is ended with PAW Dance which is our unwritten signal that the informal fellowship is about to begin and be paired with flavorful evening snacks. This mid-week fellowship has been an air breather for some young professionals exhausted from work and for students swamped up with school assignments. It is a beautiful blessing for everyone to be reminded of our life’s ultimate pursuit — Christ.
This year started with something unusual but equally exciting in going through the Word as we embarked on studying certain doctrines of our faith. We spent three Wednesdays in January unpacking what Justification truly means. The new series kicked off with setting a right and Biblical view of the fall in the Garden of Eden and undoubtedly, it stirred some questions that were healthily discussed during the block time. Afterward, we needed to swallow a hard pill that we are innately sinners. The truth that the first man, who is Adam, rebelled against God by eating the forbidden fruit of knowledge of good and evil causing the whole of humanity to eternal damnation in hell followed the kickstart Wednesday. We now know that we inherited this sinful nature of our federal head Adam (Romans 5:12). Not only does our sinfulness come from inheritance but also by choice, not only in unintentional commitment of “mistakes” but in continual personal choosing to rebel against a holy God.
Sadly, many people think that the way to reverse the dreadful outcome of our sinfulness is by doing good things through being morally and externally upright. Wednesdays in January helped us understand that no matter how good we are and how we perfectly fit in this world’s standard of morality, we will always fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:10-12). No human will ever be justified by his sacrificial doings (Galatians 2:16). Thankfully, the story of Justification does not end there, but we are given a hope that we will be pardoned before a Holy God only through Christ - trusting that the assurance of our salvation and our permanent redemption is ONLY through and in Christ.
Honest discussions of our failings are most of the time uncomfortable and much more the act of bringing into the light the shameful, sinful things we’ve done through accountability. Many may find it unusual, but we praise God for breaking our hearts to pieces and for the Word that will ever humble us as we show our vulnerability to our blockmates.
Struggles against sin constantly discourage and make us feel hopeless about changing our depraved hearts. A community that exalts Christ and perseveres in Biblical teaching is a means of grace. This means of grace reminds us that in this fallen world, the justification of our sins is final and irrevocable because it was already finished on the cross. May this truth echo deep in our souls and be amplified every day as we live and start a new year with the never-changing God.
Member of MCF-Cebu
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