God's Messenger in the last mission of salvation

THE IGLESIA NI CRISTO (Church Of Christ), which was officially registered in the Philippines on July 27, 1914 is God's final mission of salvation, prophesied to emerge at the "ends of the earth" or in the last days--- the period when the world's end is already near (Matt 24:3,33,6-8). No other work of salvation comes after it, for it immediately precedes the day of harvest or judgment Day (Rev. 14:13-16; Matt. 13:39).  Thus, the man sent to carry out this divine mission, brother Felix Y. Manalo, is God's Last Messenger.

Brother Manalo's task was described in biblical prophecy as that of a ravenous bird---"a bird of prey from the east, The man who executes [God's] counsel, from a far country" (Isa.46:11, New King James Version). The people to whom he was sent by God were being held back by the "north" and by the "south" (Isa.43:5-6, Ibid.); hence, his mission was to save them or to "snatch them from the fire" (Jude 1:23, New International Version) and bring them near
god's righteousness or the gospel, which is His power to salvation (Isa. 46:11-13; Rom. 1:16-17). The north and the south from whose clutches the Messenger would free God's people our time represent Protestantism and Catholicism, respectively (Modern Times and the Living Past, p.346; The Reformation, p.366).  Historically, the pioneer members of the Church of Christ in these last days, prior to their conversion, were from these  last days, prior to their conversion, were from these religions.

The work of God's Messenger in these last days was also revealed by means of a vision to Apostle John, who prophesied about" another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God.  And he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, saying, 'Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads'" (Rev. 7:2-3, NKJV).

Angel, from Greek angelos, means "messenger" (Webster's Third New International Dictionary, p. 82) and the task of the one seen" ascending from the east" was to "seal" God's servants on their foreheads. the seal of God is the Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of their inheritance, and sealing is done by reaching the gospel (Eph. 1:13-14).

As prophesied, the work of this messenger of God would commence at the end of the sixth seal and the beginning of the seventh--a period marked by two specific  events: people hiding "in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains" (Rev. 6:15).

The "wind" refers to war wherein "chariots like a whirlwind" and "horses [that] are swifter than eagles" would be employed (Jer. 4:11-13, 19).  This found fulfillment in the First World War--" the first war in three dimensions" in which "cities where bombed from the air" (World History, p. 478) through airplanes that were used as "aerial cavalry" ("horses swifter than eagles"). The tank, "a kind of armored automobile which could move even on rough grounds because it was built like a tractor" was the fulfillment of " chariots like whirlwind", was also first used in this was.

The four angels holding back the wind or war were the four leaders of nations who signed the Treaty of Versailles, which officially ended World War I.  They are known in history as the  Big Four:  Orlando of Italy, Lloyd George of Great Britain, Clemenceau of France, and Wilson  of America (World History, p 494). As these events unfolded, God's messenger would be seen "ascending from the east" or whose work had begun to take off.

No one can refute the fact that the messenger being referred to is Brother Felix Y. Manalo, for no other person in the whole world perfectly fits the biblical description of his mission. And as members of the Iglesia Ni Cristo throughout the world fondly commemorate hiss 130th birth anniversary on May 10, 2016, their hearts are filled with gratitude to God for counting them worthy to be beneficiaries of this last work of salvation, begun by His messenger in these last days.

By DENNIS C. LOVENDINO
Editor in Chief
God's Message May 2016
Special Issue.

Does the Bible teach that Jesus is the true God?

Christ's divinity, the alleged foundation of the so-called Christendom, has no biblical basis.

For THE IGLESIA NI CRISTO (CHURCH OF CHRIST) the teaching that presents the Son, Jesus Christ, as God contradicts the biblical teaching that the Father is the only true God.  Those who think that they are able to reconcile these opposing propositions by accepting them both are nevertheless undermining the strict monotheism of the Bible.

To the Iglesia Ni Cristo, therefore, Christ could not be God.  What is He then? He is a man.
   This views could easily be misunderstood as it has, as a matter of fact, been misinterpreted by the critics of the Iglesia Ni Cristo.  They thought that the Iglesia Ni Cristo's belief that Christ is not God is equivalent to denigrating Him.  They have also taken it to mean that the Iglesia Ni Cristo does not believe in Christ.  These, of course, reflect a superficial knowledge of the doctrine of the Iglesia Ni Cristo.

How does the Iglesia Ni Cristo regard Jesus Christ?
The Iglesia Ni Cristo firmly believes that Christ is Lord just as the Bible teaches: "let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified" (Acts 2:36 Revised Standard Version).  Notice how, in this and in other verses, Christ is obviously distinguished from God.

The Lord Jesus Christ is the Savior because God exalted Him as such: "God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins" (Acts 5:31, Ibid.)

The Savior and Lord Jesus Christ is also the mediator between God and men.  "For there is one God," Apostle Paul says, "and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus" (I Tim. 2:5 Ibid.).

The Iglesia Ni Cristo recognizes Christ as its head.  For  "He is the head of the body, the church" (Col. 1:18, Ibid.) He is the founder and foundation stone of the Church.  He said:  "on this rock I will build my church"  (Matt. 1:18, Ibid.). Jesus Christ of Nazareth "is the stone which was rejected by you builders, but which has become the head of the corner.  And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:11-12, Ibid.).

To further prove the high degree of devotion that it has for Christ and in obedience to God's express will, the Iglesia Ni Cristo worships Christ.  This  is because,  "God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and very tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Phil. 2.9-11, Ibid.).

Those who accuse the Iglesia Ni Cristo of denigrating the Lord Jesus Christ either do not know its doctrines of are deliberately blurring the issue at stake.  The bring it to clear focus again, let us consider the biblical passage that the Iglesia Ni Cristo adduces to prove that Christ is man, in spite of the power and glory bestowed by God upon him.

To begin with, we may cite Christ's own affirmation of His nature.  "But now,"  He said to the Jew, 'you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God," (John 8:40, Ibid.) Christ attests that He is man, a man distinct from God from whom He heard the truth.

On the day of Pentecost, Apostle Peter preached, "men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with might works and wonders and signs which God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know" (Acts 2:22, Ibid.).  Again, a distinction is made between the man Jesus Christ and the God who attested Him with mighty works and wonders.

Christ, being the mediator, could not be God at the same time,

because that would lead to the ridiculous notion that Christ is a mediator of one.

Apostle Paul, likewise points out that Christ is man, In I Timothy 2:5, which we have already quoted, he said that the "one mediator between God and men" is "the man Christ Jesus." The significance of this statement to the issue at hand is heightened in the letter of Paul to the Galatians which says, among other things,  "Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one" (Gal.3.20, King James Version). Christ, being the mediator, could not be God at the same time, because that would lead to the ridiculous notion that Christ is mediator of one.  It is however perfectly correct to say that He, the mediator, is man, because there is  not only one man but rather many men, mediated to the one God.

Apostle James gives his testimony about the nature of Christ when he said,  "You have condemned, you have killed the righteous man: he does not resist you" (James 5:6, RSV).

Long before the birth of Christ, the prophet Isaiah foretold,  "He was despised and rejected by men: a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief..." (Isa.53:3, Ibid.) Verse 4 immediately distinguishes Him from God:  "Surely he has borne our grief and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted."

In many instances in His life on earth, Christ had been subjected to human frailties, experiencing hunger  ("And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was hungry" --- Matt.4:2 Ibid.); thirst  ("After this Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the scripture), 'I thirst" --John 19:28, Ibid.); weariness ("... and so Jesus, wearied as he was with his journey..."-- John 4:6, Ibid.); sleepiness ('...he was asleep"---Matt. 8:24, Ibid.); and finally death ("...they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead..."---John 19:33, Ibid.).

We can go on and on citing verse after verse to prove that Christ is man.  Proponents of the God-man theology however delight in dismissing this as an exercise in futility since they also believe that Christ is man.  "That Christ is man," they say, "does not imply that  He is not God."

If Christ were the true God, and if it were His resolute purpose to make known the true God,

is it not rather strange that He never explicitly proclaimed, 

"I am the true God"? Instead, the Bible records the many instances when

Christ pointed to the Father as the God that should be known by all...!!!

To face the question directly "Does the Bible teach that Jesus Christ is the true God?" which we set out to answer here, we might as well ask:  Does the Bible allow the concept of a being which is at once God and man?

Ezekiel 28:1-2 states:  "The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, Thus saith the Lord God; Because thine heart is lifted up, and thou hast said, I am a God, I sit in the seat of God, in the midst of the seas; yet thou art a man, and not God, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God" (KJV).

"Thou art a man, and not God." To God, one's being man is sufficient proof of one's being not God. Why? Because God Clearly states in Hosea 11:9.  "I am God, and not man" (Ibid.).  So the fact that Christ is man is sufficient proof that He is not the true God.

One of the greatest missions of Christ here on earth is to make known to all who the true God is. Apostle John says, "No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known" (John 1:18, RSV).  This is one of the reasons why the Son of God has come; to give us understanding to know Him, who is true, namely the true God and eternal life  (I John 5:20)  Such undertaking has cost Him much.  He was despised and rejected. He was nailed on the cross to die like a criminal.

If Christ were the true God, and if it were his resolute purpose to make known the true God once and for all, is it not rather strange that He never explicitly and clearly proclaimed,  "I am the true God"? If He did say anything like that it should have been recorded in the Bible considering the enormous significance of such pronouncement. Instead, the Bible records the many instances when Christ pointed to the Father as His God and the God that should be known by all.  Right up to His last breath He never once referred to Himself as God:  "And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, 'E'lo-i, la'ma sabach-tha 'ni?' which means "My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me?" A few moments later,  "Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed his last" (Mark15:34,37, Ibid.).

His death would have been doubly tragic if, after having risked so much, He failed to do what He was supposed to do, that is, if He were the true God.  But he is not.  Neither was His death in vain; the true Christians have profited rom His teachings.  They have arrived at the knowledge of the truth that the Father is the only true God..



Published in Pasugo: God's Message
March - April 1985

Republished by Bro. Bienvenido C. Santiago (Issue Feb. 2016)
Editor in Chief (The current General Evangelist of the Church
and head of Evangelism in the Iglesia Ni Cristo.).

BEGINNINGS. The Iglesia Ni Cristo was preached by Brother Felix Y. Manalo, God's Messenger in these last days, and was registered in the Philippines on July 27, 1914. From its first local congregation in Punt, Sta. Ana, Manila, the Church quickly spread not only throughout the metropolis but also to the neighbouring provinces in Luzon and across in Luzon and across the islands of Visayas and Mindanao. When Brother Felix Manalo was lain to rest in April 1963, the Church had already established ecclesiastical districts in more than half of all the provinces in the country.

EXPANSION. In 1968, the Church, led by Brother Eraño G. Manalo, the Executive Minister then, successively established the first two local congregations outside the Philippines--Honolulu, Hawaii and San Francisco, California in the USA. Thus began the Church's expansion in the Far West and eventually around the world.

From then up to the end of the 70s, the Church went on to spread throughout the continents of North America (establishing local congregations and group worship services [GWS] in other states and Europe (the first local congregation, London [now Battersea], was established in 1972); Australia, mid- '70s; Asia (China, by way of Hong Kong in 1974; Thailand in 1976; and Japan in 1977); and Africa (Nigeria and South Africa in 1978).

By the end of the '80s, there were local congregations and GWS in the Scandinavian countries and their neighbors.
The first local congregation in Latin America was established in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba in 1990.  Congregations were also established in world cities that are of great relevance to the history of Christianity---Rome, Italy on July 27, 1994; Jerusalem, Israel on March 31, 1996; and Athens, Greece on May 10, 1997.

At the dawn of the new millennium, the Church's mission reached South America with the establishment of GWS in Brazil and Peru. Before Brother Eraño was laid to rest on 31, 2009, the Church had been spreading continously in different parts of the world.

CENTENNIAL AND BEYOND. Through the leadership of its present Executive Minister, Brother Eduardo V. Manalo, the Church continues to progress and succeed.  Its memberships has been constantly increasing. Thousands of minsters and Church officers are being added worldwide. The construction and renovation of houses of worship, Church edifices, and other structures also continue, not only in Washington, DC; Barcelona, Spain; and Amsterdam, The Netherlands are just a few of those outside the Philippines that were dedicated to God in recent years, thus strengthening the Church's presence in other countries worldwide.

On July 21, 2014, the Iglesia Ni Cristo inaugurated the Philippine mega structure that sits in Ciudad de Victoria, Bocaue, Bulacan was the venue of the Church's grand centennial celebration held on July 27, 2014 which was attended by millions of its members from all over the world.

The Pasugo Reader's Question:

I AM NOT fully aware of the different practices of various religions , but I find what I saw on television about some Iglesia Ni Cristo members who spoke against it being expelled not only puzzling but disturbing.  Hoping you could shed light on this.

Allan Sanchez
From Antipolo, Rizal


Editor's reply:

Expelling members of the Church has a biblical basis.  Apostle Paul wrote the  Christians, thus:  "God along sits in judgment on those who are outside.  Drive out that wicked one from among you [expel him from your church]'  (I Cor. 5:13 Amplified Bible, emphasis ours).  The bible speaks of only one true Church Of Christ (Col. 1:18, Rom, 12:4-5; Acts 20:28, Lamsa Translation).  God wants the true Church to reach perfection (Eph. 5:27) which cannot be achieved  if there is someone among the members who has a wicked or perverse heart, such as one who "stirs up dissension" (Prov. 16:28, New International Version)-- a desire that is "earthly, unspiritual (animal), even devilish (demoniacal)" (James 3:15, AMP). Moreover, Apostle Paul admonished the early Christians to "watch out for those who cause division" and to "keep away from them" (Rom. 16:17, NIV) And even from of old, God commanded: "You must distinguish between the holy and the common, between the unclean and clean..." (Lev.10:10 Ibid.).

Hence, expulsion of such members from the true Church Of Christ is not only allowed, but even mandated by God.

ESTABLISHED BY CHRIST

THERE ARE PEOPLE who find it hard to believe that it was our Lord Jesus Christ Himself who established the Church Of Christ or Iglesia Ni Cristo which emerged in the Philippines.  "How could He," they usually ask, "when He is already in heaven?" They say this on the presumption that in establishing an organization the founder must necessarily be present.

A Prophecy made
Before His glorious ascension, the Lord Jesus made a prophecy regarding the Church Of Christ That would emerge in the Philippines. He said:

"I have other sheep too.  They are not in this flock here.  I must lead them also.  They will listen to my voice. In the future there will be one flock and one shepherd."  (John 10:16 Easy-to-Read Version)

Jesus spoke of His "other sheep" that would, at a future time, become on flock.  These other sheep were not yet in the fold or flock that existed during the time of Christ and His Apostles in the first century.  They have yet to listen to His voice and were yet to be called to become one flock.

To hear or listen to the voice of Christ is to put His words into practice---to obey or follow them (Matt. 7:24-25,  New International Version). And what people need to follow was emphasized by our Lord Jesus himself.  He declared, ".....I am the door of the sheepfold.....anyone who comes into the fold through me shall be safe" (John 10:7,9, New English Bible).

Those who enter through Christ, the door of the sheepfold, become His sheep and are found in the fold or flock.  The fold or flock is the Church Of Christ (Acts 20:28, Lamsa Translation).
    
The prophesied other sheep of Christ, therefore, are those to be called by the Lord at a future time to be one flock or Church Of Christ.

Through divine authority
Though Christ's call necessitates listening to and understanding His words, not all Bible preachers today can teach His words that will bring people into the true Church.

Those who have exclusive authority to preach the pristine gospel are the ones sent by God-- His messengers:

"How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?..."(Rom. 10:14-15 NIV).

On the other hand, those who use the Bible and claim to preach the gospel, but without divine authority, only preach a perverted gospel that is really no gospel at all (Gal. 1:6-8, Ibid.) and will lead people to damnation.

God's policy since the beginning has always been to send messengers who will preach His laws and commands. To reject the messenger of God is equivalent to rejecting both the Lord Jesus Christ and the Lord God (Luke 10:16).
   
Called by His name
Why are we certain that the "other sheep" of Christ mentioned in John 10:16 refers to the Church of Christ that emerged in the Philippines? How many groups of people compose the Church established by Christ? In Acts 2:39, it is written:
    
"For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call." (New King James Version)

Apostle Peter mentions three groups of people that make up the Church established  by Christ.  The first two groups referred to as "you and to your children" were the Jews and the Gentiles who had already been called by God and became members of the Church during the first century (Rom. 9:24). The third group--those who are afar off--are those who, then, were yet to be called by God into the Church (Col. 3:15: 1:18) They were not yet members of the flock or Church in the first century.  They are the members of the Church Of Christ prophesied to emerge in the future.

But where from "afar off" would this third group emerge?  The prophecies in the Book of Isaiah teach that this group would emerge in the Far East, in the islands of the sea:

"From the far east will I bring your offspring, and from the far west I will gather you." (Isa.43:5, Moffatt Translation)

"Therefore in the east give glory to the LORD, exalt the name of the LORD, the God of Israel, in the islands of the sea." (Isa. 24:15, NIV).

True to these prophecies, the Church of Christ emerged  in the Philippines, a nation in the Far East (Horacio dela Costa, Asia and the Philippines, p.169) composed of more than 7,100 islands. Aside from being acknowledged by God Himself as His children (Isa. 43:5-6), the members of this prophesied Church will be called by His name:

"Fear not , for I am with you; I will bring your descendants from the east, And gather your from the west; I will say to the north, 'Give them up!' and to the south, Do not keep them back!' Bing My sons from afar, And My daughters from the ends of the earth---Everyone who is called by My name, Whom I have created for My glory' I have formed him, yes, I have made him." (Isa.43:5-7, NKJV).

The name by which God's nation in the Christian Era is called, is that which God gave Christ (John 17:11, Today's  English Versin), hence, the name Church Of Christ (Acts 20:28 Lamsa; Rom. 16:16).

The True Founder
Take note that when the third group of people were called to become members of the church of Christ, the Lord Jesus Christ had long been in heaven.  He did not have to come down to preach His words in order to establish His Church in the Philippines; instead, a  messenger was sent to do this task.  Listening to and accepting the preaching of this messenger is equivalent to listening to and accepting the Lord Jesus Christ (Luke 10:16; John 13:20).

And so, the fact that Brother Felix Y. Manalo was the one who preached this Church in 1914 does not make him its founder.  Like the apostles, he was merely instrumental in preaching the true gospel of Christ, so that the believers in these last days would be called to become part of the true Church Of Christ which the Lord Jesus Christ Himself has established.  Brother Manalo is the messenger of God (Isa.41:9-10; 46:11-13)  through whose preaching of the pure gospel Christ stabled His Church in these last days.

Hence, the emergence of the Church Of Christ in the Philippines if the fulfillment of Christ's prophecy regarding His other sheep.  The true founder of the Church Of Christ that emerged in the Philippines, therefore, is Christ Himself...!!!


By SIEGFRED T. GOLLAYAN
GOD'S MESSAGE July 2015 [volume 67- Number 7 ISSN 0116-1636]

TRUE BAPTISM 

TO MAKE PEOPLE KNOW how they can be save, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior, commanded His disciples:  "And He said to them, 'go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.  He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned"  (Mark 16:15-16, NKJV).

Thus, the Savior Himself taught that one cannot be saved without receiving and believing in the gospel, and being baptized.  However, it is important to know if the baptism received by a person is the true baptism taught in the Bible.

Which the true baptism?  Apostle Paul teaches:  "For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--- whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free-- and have all been made to drink into one Spirit." (I Cor.12:13, Ibid.)

Accordingly, the true baptism is the baptism into the one body.  Which is the one body?  the one body of Christ (Eph. 4:4), the church headed by Him (Col. 1:18) and which He will save (Eph 4:4), ---the Church Of Christ (Acts 20:28 Lamsa Translation).  Thus, if one truly desires to receive the true baptism or the baptism that will lead to salvation, he needs to be baptized into the true church Of Christ.

What is gained by a person who is baptized into the Church Of Christ He becomes a true disciple of Christ of a true Christian (Acts 11:26), for the Lord Himself commanded His apostles, thus:  "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Sprit"  (Matt 28:19, NKJV).

What blessings are in store for those who have received the true baptism and have become Christ's disciples or members of the Church Of Christ?  Apostle  Peter said, "...Repent and be baptized, everyone 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, NIV).

Hence, if we receive the true baptism, we receive the blessings that come with it---we become a true disciple of Christ, we are forgiven of our sins, we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, and we become worthy of God's grace of salvation on judgment Day.

By Ervin M. Almedina

God's Message Magazine

Issued April 2016



"I Share to my friends and relatives the teachings of the Iglesia Ni Cristo because they need and want also salvation. What I am doing in my life, they need to do the same for salvation."

- Brother Srinivasu Rao Vankamanidi, a former Senior Pastor of the Pentecostal Church in India.

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