Christian Blog

Similar to the physical exercise I did, we also need to do spiritual exercise. This involves exercising our faith through attending church, reading and studying the Bible, practising what it teaches, and sharing the Word to others.

Jesus said, "Everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock." Matthew 7:24

Have we ever thought what if we carried the Bible around in our purses or pockets?  What if we flipped through it several times a day? What if we turned back to go and get it if we forgot it? What if we used it to receive messages? What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it? What if we gave it to Kids as gifts? What if we used it when we travelled? What if we used it in case of emergency?

Unlike our cell phones, we don't have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the phone bill.

When Jesus died for us, he was thinking of you...

That's what Jesus did. He already paid the price for our bill of sins when He died on the cross for us. During His last supper, Jesus shared the wine with His disciples and said, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." Matthew 26:28  

 Jesus said, before He was taken to Heaven, "It is finished." John 19:30

What other gods are out there? These are those which people tend to worship, whether we admit that we worship and venerate them or not. They are not necessarily another all powerful being but whatever rules your heart and your life might be your god. It may be your wealth (Matthew 6:24), possessions (Matthew 6:19-21), or other worldly things (Mark 7-21:23).

Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin." John 8:34

In Romans 6:23, it is written that "...the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." And Jesus said, "...whoever believes in me shall not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16

These are the promises of God, just hold on to them.

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"I have come that they may have life, and to have it in full." John 10:10

God declared, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways."  Isaiah 55:8  "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55:9

He may say 'Yes' to some of your prayers, 'No' to others, or 'Wait' for the rest. God knows what's best for us, like a father to his son or daughter. 

Our Lord Yeshua (Jesus) said, "Seek first God's kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Matthew 6:33

When Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan River, Heaven opened and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on Him, and a voice from Heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased." Matthew 3:16-17

Jesus talks about God, His Father, most of the time in the Bible.  He even taught us how to pray to in this, "Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name.." Matthew 6:9

Did you know that Jesus tells us that "Do not call anyone on earth ‘father', because you only have one Father who is in Heaven."  Matthew 23:9

Later that day, again I had a hard time looking for a table in the food court and when I did I was standing beside the table for the occupants to clean up when another man stepped in and asked them if he can have their table. Instead of arguing that I was there first, I let the man have the table. When I pushed the cart I was holding a few steps away, there was a perfectly clean table waiting for me and my family!

God always have something better for you if you abide by his words. It is written in James 4:6, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble."

We often hear people or actors in the movies saying "Oh my God" (OMG) as an expression, but why would they call God whenever they're excited or frustrated? Would they look cool to say OMG?

 Let's be reminded of one of the 10 commandments God gave Abraham to tell the people to follow: "You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name." Deuteronomy 5:11

Unfortunately, every time we hear them used as an expression we tend to ignore or even laugh, as I myself was guilty before when I watch "Friends" and they use OMG as their common expression, but on whose expense are we making fun of here?

Do not be like doubting Thomas who wants to see the holes in the hands and side of Jesus before he believes that he rose from the dead. Jesus said to him, "Because you have seen me, you have believe, blessed are those who have not seen me and yet have believe." John 20:29

We must believe before we can see Jesus in our lives.

How to spot a true Christian? Look at their fruits.

Jesus said, "No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. Each tree is recognized by its own fruit." Luke 6:43

"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." Galatians 5:22

Aim to have all of these in your life, so that you can be called Children of God.

We were exposed to the tradition of being baptized while we are still babies, but do we know the reason why we need to be baptized?

Apostle Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." Acts 2:38  It thus says that we need to repent at the same time we are baptized, as baptism represents the forgiveness of our sins as long as we ask for forgiveness from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus said, "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned."  Mark 16:16   Again, our Lord says we must believe in Him when we get baptized in order to be saved from eternal death.

As babies, are we aware that we are being baptized, at the same time repenting from our sins and believing in Jesus as our Lord and Saviour? Surely not, that's why Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." John 3:3

He doesn't mean physical birth or the Christian...

New distractions are abound these days, just look at the iPad, etc.. These are not necessarily unhealthy, but if it's keeping us away from reading the Bible, going to Church, saying our Prayers, attending to the needs of our family, and other things which are pleasing to Him, then we should watch out, as B.U.S.Y. means "Being Under Satan's Yoke".

"Everything is permissible, but not everything is beneficial.  Everything is permissible, but not everything is constructive." 1 Corinthians 10:23

1 Timothy 6:6-10 says, "Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that."  The reality is that when we die, we cannot take the riches of this world with us wherever we are going.

"People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction." Some people I know have 2 jobs, but they don't have quality time for their family anymore. Their own health may be compromised. More so, they couldn't go to church every Sunday to thank the Lord due to their jobs.

"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs."  It is not the money which is evil, as the Lord knows we need this, but it's the love of...

This is where your faith comes in. Faith is believing someone who you do not see, hear or touch. We cannot see, hear or touch God because "God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth". John 4:24

"Without faith it is impossible to please God" because anyone who comes to Him must believe that he exists, and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. Hebrews 11:6

In the Ten Commandments, God said, "You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below.

You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God.." Deuteronomy 5:7-9

In Isaiah 44:6, this is what the Lord says, "I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no god."

I pray to God that He gives us wisdom to understand His words, amen.

Do you see chores as burden to you? You don't like throwing out the garbage, cleaning the plates, washing and ironing clothes, mowing the lawn, cleaning the house, etc..

Apostle Paul said, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." Colossians 3:23

It also can be applied in all things that you do in your life. 

"Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." Colossians 3:17

Picture this in your mind, Ray-An drew a large circle on the white board, he wrote God's name on top of the circle. Then on the upper left of the circle he wrote there the word Blessings and on the lower left corner the word Man. He drew arrows pointing to each one.  After that, Ray-An wrote on the lower right hand corner of the circle also the word Blessings and on the upper right hand corner the word Man again. He also drew arrows pointing to each one. Then after that, Ray-An drew the last arrow pointing back to God.

What does this all mean? It means that God is the one providing Man with all things that he needs. Jesus said, "Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33.

And...

"For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."  Matthew 12:46-50

Aren't you thrilled to be called brothers and sisters of Christ? He came down to the world to have fellowship with us. "To all who received Jesus, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God." John 1:12

What did Jesus said when He was tempted by the devil to change the stones into bread? "Man does not live on bread alone, but on every Word that comes from the mouth of God." Matthew 4:4

Ray-An's dare makes sense, doesn't it? If we are eating our meals 3 times a day 24/7 for the nourishment of our bodies, how often do we need to feed our soul?

My brother in the church told me that a lady who attended the Ray-An Fuentes music ministry last Saturday wanted to be a Christian after she heard Ray-An's message but she didn't know how and where to start. He said to her, you can be a Christian right here, right now! And after he explained to her what it means to be a Christian, she was crying as she received Jesus in her life. She is now saved. She already fulfilled her ‘bucket list'.

Is an item on your bucket list to be saved by Jesus? You don't need to wait until you get old or sick before you get to know Jesus. Life's too short, you might...

Before when I read this verse, I have pondered what did Jesus mean by this? Not only recently when I seek His wisdom so that I can truly understand His words did I came to realise that the "old wineskins" pertains to our "lifestyle".

When we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Saviour, we became a new creation in His eyes, "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come!" Romans 5:17 So once we accepted Jesus in our life, our lifestyle would start to change, not by our own will but by the will of our Father in Heaven.

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 "There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.." Romans 8:1

It was during these moments of questioning that she heard the still, small voice of her Heavenly Father speak to her heart.  "You are a wife and mother because that is what I have called you to be.  Much of what you do is hidden from the public eye. But I notice. Most of what you give is done without remuneration. But I am your reward. Your husband cannot be the man I have called him to be without your support. Your influence upon him is greater than you think and more powerful than you will ever know. I bless him through your service and honor him through your love. Your children are precious to Me. Even more precious than they are...

Our Lord Jesus said, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field." 

"Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it."

"Once again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away. This is how it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come and separate the wicked from the righteous and throw them into the fiery furnace, where there...

I went to the Melbourne CBD twice this weekend and as I'm quite new in driving I had to use my trusted Garmin GPS. The GPS would tell me every turn I have to take, speed and red light cameras, and if I made a wrong turn, it will always find a road I have to go to arrive at my destination.

I would compare the GPS to the Bible, treat it as your personal GPS in life. It will tell us which way (turn) to righteousness, where the pitfalls (cameras) are in our lives, and if we commit a sin (a wrong turn), it will always correct us so that we will surely arrive safely in Heaven (final destination)

Before I really don't understand the word Grace when I use it during my prayer or when asked to pray in a group. Having our Bible Study one time, our leader read a scripture in Tagalog, and when Grace was translated, it read "Tulong" or "Help" in other words.

So every time you pray, we should ask for God's Grace or Help in times not only of need but in everything that we do.  "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."  1 Corinthians 10:31

In Deuteronomy15:4, it was declared that, "There should be no poor among you, He will richly bless you, if only you fully obey the Lord your God and are careful to follow all His commands.

If there is a poor man among your brothers, do not be hardhearted or tight-fisted toward your poor brother.  Rather be open-handed and freely lend him whatever he needs.

Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.

There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be open-handed toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land."

In Leviticus 25:35, " 'If one of your countrymen becomes poor and is unable to support himself among you, help him as you would an alien or a temporary resident, so he can continue to live among you.

Do not take interest of any kind from him, but fear your God, so that your...

Did we ever stopped and think why did Jesus have to die? 

It is because no one is righteous (Romans 3:10) and we all have fallen short of God's standards (Romans 3:23).  Since God loves us so much, He wanted to save His people from their sins and eternal suffering (Matthew 1:21) so that's why He sacrificed His one and only Son for the payment of our sins for us to have eternal life (John 3:16).

Jesus said during His last supper, "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins." Matthew 26:28

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All that is required of us is to believe in JESUS.  "Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned." Mark 16:16

"There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and lived in luxury every day. At his gate was laid a beggar named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell from the rich man's table. Even the dogs came and licked his sores. "The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham's side. The rich man also died and was buried.

In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, 'Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.' "But Abraham replied, 'Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but now he is comforted here and you are in agony.

And besides all this, between us and you a great...