My Tuesday Reflection<\/p>\n\n\n\n
By Ptr Nene Rubrico<\/p>\n\n\n\n
02 November 2021<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Text:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Introduction: <\/strong>The last Sunday of last month, October 31st<\/sup>, being celebrated in the church calendar as Reformation Sunday, the event is celebrated mainly within the Protestant or Evangelical faith. According to Wikipedia\u2019s brief historical description, \u201cThe Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church\u2026 The Reformation was the start of Protestantism and the split of the Western Church into Protestantism and what is now the Roman Catholic Church\u2026the Reformation is usually considered to have started with the publication of the Ninety-five Theses by the [Catholic priest]Martin Luther in 1517..and subsequently excommunicated by Pope Leo X in 1521. The May 1521 Edict of Worms of condemned Luther and officially banned citizens of the Holy Roman Empire from defending or propagating his ideas. Luther survived after being declared an outlaw due to the protection of Elector Frederick the Wise [later, Frederick III of Saxony] who had insisted on a fair trial and the rule of law for his subject, Martin Luther\u2026\u201cThe spread of Gutenberg’s printing press provided the means for the rapid dissemination of religious materials in the vernacular. The initial movement in Germany diversified, and other reformers such as Huldrych Zwingli and John Calvin arose.\u201d My Tuesday Reflection By Ptr Nene Rubrico 02 November 2021 Text: ———————– Introduction: The last Sunday of last month, October 31st, being celebrated in the church calendar as Reformation Sunday, the event is celebrated mainly within the Protestant or Evangelical faith. According to Wikipedia\u2019s brief historical description, \u201cThe Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[6,7,21,20,9,8,5],"class_list":["post-69","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ptr-nene-rubrico","tag-church-of-the-risen-lord","tag-crl","tag-martin-luther","tag-reformation","tag-spiritual-refreshment-of-the-day","tag-upcemi","tag-upcrl"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":70,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69\/revisions\/70"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/upcrl.org\/refreshment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
After listening to a couple of sermons that Sunday morning from a variety of church pulpits in the internet, I notice a similarity of treatment of the topic by the preachers, that can be grouped together. Below, I am taking time to cull and summarize their contents, as follows:
A. What the Reformation is not
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1. Reformation without reformation \u2013 <\/strong>This is best exemplified by the blatant hypocrisy shown by the Pharisees which Jesus observed and roundly condemned. In Matthew 7:21, He told his disciples: \u201cTrue Disciples: \u201cNot everyone who calls out to me, \u2018Lord! Lord!\u2019 will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter.\u201d Ask yourself: Are you merely a believer or actually a follower of Jesus? Trusting in Jesus Christ is fundamental, but it\u2019s only the first step. Your primary purpose is to take a lifelong journey following in the Lord\u2019s footsteps \u2013 honoring him with your action and speech and increasing in Biblical wisdom.
Complete Obedience. <\/em><\/strong>A Christ follower\u2019s life is summed up in the phrase, \u201cComplete obedience.\u201d Jesus defined true Christians as those who prove their love for him by obeying his teaching (Jn 14:23). When it comes to obeying God, our only response is I will or I won\u2019t. It\u2019s tempting to say, \u201cI will, but\u2026\u201d as some of Jesus\u2019 would-be disciples did, but that\u2019s a roundabout way of saying no (Lk 9:57-62). Followers remain faithful to the Lord\u2019s plan whether doing so is easy or hard. Not only that, but they proclaim him in both blessing and calamity, and they follow him even when they are uncertain where he is leading.
2. Reformation Without Transformation. <\/strong>Followers pursue the Lord because they know that the reward is a deeper, more passionate relationship with him. They are not just waiting to spend eternity with God in heaven; eternity begins now, as they accompany him on the righteous path he has set before them. In Matthew 15 Jesus was teaching his disciples about inner purity, in contrast to the teachings of the teachers of the Law who were insisting everyone to follow the age-old tradition, of, say, ceremonial washing of hands before they eat. This is what Jesus said to Peter and the rest, in verse 16-19: \u201c \u201cDon\u2019t you understand yet?\u201d Jesus asked. \u201cAnything you eat passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer. But the words you speak come from the heart\u2014that\u2019s what defiles you. For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never defile you.\u201d In effect, Jesus warns them that from the heart proceeds evil thoughts. Proverbs 4:23 says, \u201cGuard your heart above all else,for it determines the course of your life.\u201d In addition the Psalmist writes in Psalm 51:10: \u201cCreate in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.\u201d
A reformation without transformation of the heart only creates a spiritual vacuum that is often exploited by so-called best-selling books written by the likes of Ophra Winfrey, Deepak Chopra, Joyce Meyers, etc. \u2013 that all focus on human psychology and behavioral change\u2026 behavioral change that focuses on the OUTSIDE, on the EXTERIOR; but not on the INSIDE of us, on the heart. The change must come from WITHIN, and not on the external fa\u00e7ade of the person who can still hide what is in his\/her heart.
B. What Reformation Is<\/u><\/strong>
1. Regeneration or Spiritual Change. <\/strong>By now it should be apparent that what God seeks is a Spiritual Change \u2013 a Change known as REGENERATION, or being Born-Again in the Spirit. The phrase “born again” literally means “born from above.” Nicodemus had a real need. He needed a change of his heart\u2014a spiritual transformation. New birth, being born again, is an act of God whereby eternal life is imparted to the person who believes (2 Corinthians 5:17; Titus 3:5; 1 Peter 1:3; 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1-4, 18). John 1:12, 13 indicates that being “born again” also carries the idea of “becoming children of God” through trust in the name of Jesus Christ. As Jesus hinted to Nicodemus, the foremost teacher of the Law, being born again is no small matter, for on it rests the eternal question, \u201cHow can I be saved?\u201d Jesus answers him, \u201cI tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, \u2018You must be born again\u2019\u201d (John 3:3-7).
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Conclusion:
1. Religion is NOT Reformation nor Transformation. <\/strong>In 1 Cor 6;19, the apostle Paul warns: \u201cDon\u2019t you realize that those who do wrong will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Don\u2019t fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin, or who worship idols, or commit adultery, or are male prostitutes, or practice homosexuality.\u201d Those who think they are religious \u2013 that is scrupulous in following the rituals and practices of the church, and of its leaders \u2013 are also reformed or transformed. Perhaps, but what about those who are backsliding on their sins? Religion cannot change the heart. Religion is external.
2. Only the Holy Spirit has the power to transform the heart. <\/strong>The Holy Spirit indwells in the heart of every believer, the Holy Presence that Jesus promised to everyone who believes in Him as He ascends and takes His place in Heaven, to intercede for us at the throne of God. Here on earth, it is the Holy Spirit who intercedes for us. Thus we must have that SENSITIVITY of feel the Presence of the Spirit in us and in our surroundings; to start and sustain the changed spiritual life we are having with Christ. Truly, REFORMATION IS FROM WITHIN, FROM OUR HEARTS. Amen. \u2013 pn.
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