RUN THE RACE #1 - PTR. ALVIN GUTIERREZ - 10AM MORNING SERVICE

COMMITMENT

Liham ni Andres Bonifacio kay Ka Oryang

1897 Mayo 1

Mahal kong Oryang,

Mali ka. Hindi kita nakasalubong upang sa dulo ng kalsada, ako ay liliko sa kanan at ikaw sa kaliwa. Sapagkat saan man tayo dalhin ng ating pakikibaka, ikaw lang ang aking itatangi at makailang ulit na ihaharap sa pulang bandila.


Hindi tayo nagpalitan ng mga kwento upang sa pinakahuling tuldok ng pangungusap, ang karugtong ay alingawngaw ng katahimikan. Walang pagod kitang aawitan ng imnong pambayan, Oryang. Hindi kailanman ako mauubusan ng salita upang maialay sa iyo bilang mga tula. Maging ang bulong at buntung-hininga’y magpapahayag ng pagsinta sa tulad mong umiibig din sa bansa.


Hindi tayo sabay na tumawa, nagkatinginan, at tumawa pa nang mas malakas, upang sa paghupa ng halakhak ay may butil ng luha na mamimintana sa ating mga mata. Loobin man ng Maykapal na pansamantala tayong magkawalay, tandaan mong ang halakhak at sigaw ng ating mga kasamahan ay sa akin rin.


Hindi ka dapat masabik sa akin sapagkat ako’y mananatili sa iyong piling. Hindi kita niyakap nang ilang ulit upang sa pagkalas ng mga braso ko sayo ay maramdaman mong iniiwan kita. Habambuhay akong magiging tapat sa ating panata, Oryang. Kapara ng binitawan kong sumpa sa ngalan ng bayan, tayo’y mananatiling katipun, kawal, at bayani ng ating pagmamahalan.


Hindi tayo bumuo ng mga alaala sa umaga, tanghali at gabi upang sa muli mong paggising ay maisip mong hindi tayo nagkasama sa pakikidigma. Hindi ko man hawak ang bukas, nais kong tanganan mo ang aking pangako na ilang ulit kong pipiliing mabuhay at pumanaw upang patunayan sa iyong mali ka.


At kung magkataong ako’y paharapin sa ating anak na si Andres, buo ang loob kong haharap sa kanya at sasabihin ko sa kanyang mali ka. Hindi ako bumati sa simula upang sa huli ay magpaalam.

Ikaw ang aking bayan,Andres

THE GOSPEL AND CHURCH MEMBERSHIP

EPHESIANS 4:1-16

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 2 Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. 3 Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called;

EPHESIANS 4:1-16

5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. 8 This is why it says: “When he ascended on high, he took many captives and gave gifts to his people.”

EPHESIANS 4:1-16

9 (What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended to the lower, earthly regions? 10 He who descended is the very one who ascended higher than all the heavens, in order to fill the whole universe.) 11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up

EPHESIANS 4:1-16

13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. 14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.

EPHESIANS 4:1-16

15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

Why We Date The Church?

(1) We are independent.


(2) We are indifferent.


(3) We are immature.


(4) We are indecisive.


(5) We are ignorant.


Why We Need To Stop Dating The Church?

Because God’s Word says membership in the local church is

important.Why We Need To Stop Dating The Church?

LOCAL CHURCH IS IMPORTANT.

• Membership in a local church is not biblically commanded.

• Membership in a local church is biblically implied.

MEMBERSHIP IS IMPLIED.

• Membership is implied by church gatherings. • The church is both universal and

local.• The local church is a visible

expression of the universal body of Christ.

LOCAL CHURCH IS IMPORTANT.

• Membership is implied by church discipline.

• Membership is implied by church leadership.

• Membership is implied by church accountability.

The Importance of

the Local Church

EPHESIANS 4:15-16

15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.

(1) We are recipients of a new covenant.

The Importance of the Local Church

Baptism is a declaration that

we belong to Jesus.We are recipients of a new covenant.

(2) We are members of a

new community.The Importance of the Local Church

Baptism is a declaration that

we belong to each other.We are members of a new community.

MEMBERS OF A NEW COMMUNITY

• The church is entrusted with servants of the Word.

• The church is equipped to be the servants with the Word.


• Together, we want to know the truth of Christ.• We guard one another from

deception.

• We guard one another from division.

• Together, we want to imitate the character of Christ.


• Together, we want to display the fullness of Christ.• We guard one another from

distraction.


• Love is the distinguishing mark of the church.

• Love is the essence of church membership.

LOVE IS THE ESSENCE

• We join a church for the good of ourselves.

• We join a church for the good of other Christians.

LOVE IS THE ESSENCE

• We join a church for the good of non-Christians.

• We join a church for the glory of God.

CONCLUSION

Defining the Relationship

Membership in the local church involves committing your life in covenant with other believers to show the Gospel to each other

and to spread the Gospel to the world. Defining the Relationship

EPHESIANS 5:25-27

25Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, 26so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, 27that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.

RICK AND DICK HOYT

Rick was born in 1962 to Dick and Judy Hoyt. As a result of oxygen deprivation to Rick’s brain at the

time of his birth, Rick was diagnosed as a spastic

quadriplegic with cerebral palsy. Dick and Judy were advised to

institutionalize Rick because there was no chance of him recovering, and little hope for Rick to live a “normal” life. This was just the beginning of Dick and Judy’s quest for Rick’s inclusion in

community, sports, education and one day, the workplace.

Don’t run alone.

Defining the Relationship.

RUN THE RACE #1 - PTR. ALVIN GUTIERREZ - 10AM MORNING SERVICE

Spiritual