December 18, 2014^th Year of Our Lord

Dear family, friends, & brethren,

After my arrival in Auckland, New Zealand about 5:00 P.M. on December 8, Ronnie Salunga drove me to his house where I quickly ate, showered, changed clothes, and began the first service of our gospel meeting at 8:15. They reserved the first session for the 8 members of the Meadowood church: the Ronnie Slaunga and the Randy Cabrillas families. Four are young people ranging from ages 12 to 24, so I began with “Young People, Study the Bible.” After our open forum, we dismissed in the basement and went upstairs to visit and enjoy refreshments.

On Tuesday our audience included a sister who has learned the truth but still attends a liberal church with her husband, a friend of Angela Salunga, a Jewish man with his Catholic wife, and a devout Catholic couple, for a total of 13. The lesson “When Peter Confessed Christ” examined Matthew 16:13-19 verse by verse to show Christ came to save souls through the preaching of his Apostles. That is how he established his church, not by establishing religious hierarchies, organizing denominations, or constructing elaborate cathedrals.

The Jewish man noted that all the “Christian” groups are divided over things Christ did not teach. He attended last time I was here. It is evident he does not regard the Jewish religion to be true. We discussed the modern state of Israel and he agreed it is just another human government without any special divine status. He rightly noted that whenever the U.S. falls, Israel will fall with it. Our meeting ended at 10:00 P.M. and we continued more informal visiting and discussion upstairs. What a privilege it is to work with these saints!

Rick Halnas is a Filipino living and working in Timaru on the South Island where there is no sound church. He joins the Sunday services here and at Jimmy Battung’s house in Manila via Skype. He is joining our studies each night in the same way.

It is a constant challenge to barely keep up with email when making these trips. I worked on it late last night, and on and off again Wednesday while also preparing for the evening’s lesson. This pace continued all week which explains why I was not able to send out reports until now. Nine of us were present for the service plus 7 visitors, making a total of 16, including Catholics, Baptists, and Methodists. “The Gospel Makes Us Right with God” covered the right God, the right Savior, the right gospel, the right baptism, the right church, and the right life.

A Catholic who has attended several times in the past is convinced his religion is not true. He was very attentive and made good contributions during the open forum. A Methodist originally from Malaysia tried to defend his religion by saying their leaders have attended seminaries qualifying them to explain the Bible. I took him to Mark 16:16 and showed him how these “experts” change, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved,” to read, “He that believeth is saved and shall be baptized. He agreed this is what he had been taught. I then told him he would be shocked to learn that many seminary professors do not believe the most fundamental truths of the Bible such as the inspiration of Scripture, the virgin birth of Jesus, and his bodily resurrection.

Another fellow approached me after we dismissed to ask help in clarifying the meaning of faith because the term has such an indefinite meaning among religious people. True faith is based on concrete evidence and is not an ephemeral subjective emotion as is clear in John 20:30-31, Luke 1:1-4, and 1 Corinthians 15:5-8. He immediately got the point and was delighted.

After the visitors left, the brethren had a good discussion about what we can expect our efforts to accomplish. If we focus on how many are baptized, we will be disappointed because we have no control over the hearts and decisions of other people. Our duty is to clearly teach the truth and thus give people the opportunity to understand and obey. If they do not have a submissive and obedient heart toward God, that is not our responsibility.

This discussion was provoked by reflecting on the large number of people who have heard the gospel since the Meadowood church began in December 2009. One family added to the church has been steadfast. Another family was baptized but soon fell away. I pointed out to the brethren that they are fulfilling their God-given mission by sowing the seed of the kingdom. We cannot measure the ultimate result of that seed entering so many hearts. It may bear fruit in future years of which we will not be aware until the Last Great Day!

The brethren agreed we must press forward and not discourage ourselves by trying to measure the results of gospel preaching. I commended them for their perseverance and their unusual effectiveness in getting people to study the Bible. I greatly admire what these brethren are doing and count it a privilege to have a small part in their labors! My faith, hope, and love grows because of this fellowship with such devoted saints.

As Thursday the 11^th began I worked until 3:00 A.M. finishing and sending out the report dated December 1-8, so did not arise until 9:00 A.M. – a lazy streak! Along with ongoing email correspondence I worked on preparing for the large order of Bibles to be finalized in Manila next week. I took a break to walk during the afternoon which boosts my energy, then got ready for our meeting. Eleven attended including Nancy, a Catholic lady from Columbia who lives and works here in Auckland. She remembered hearing me a couple of years ago and returned.

My subject was “The Blood of Christ and Baptism,” showing that the death of Christ provided a perfect sacrifice for all the sins of all the world, and baptism is a condition to receive pardon from sin. During the open forum a wide range of questions arose such as the relationship between repentance and restitution, why people do not see the need to obey the gospel, and how to avoid bitterness when people wrong us.

On Friday we left mid-morning to travel 5 hours to Ohope, Whakatane which is south and east of Auckland in the Bay of Plenty region. About half of the 36,000 population descended from native Maori Polynesians. Along the way we toured the Pohutu Geyser park at Rotorua including active geysers and a pool of boiling mud. Images of 12 Maori gods stand at the entrance. An exhibit showcases live kiwi birds, the only bird that cannot fly.

Abner and Lani Salanguit have gradually formed a congregation of 15 Filipinos meeting in their home at Ohope. Over 20 crowded into the house for tonight’s study of the theme “Back to the Bible.” Christians, Catholics, and Protestants participated in this study of distinctive features of God’s plan for our salvation, for the New Testament church, and for godly living. The study began about 8:00 P.M. and ended at 11:00, but informal discussions continued even later.

A very interesting question arose in the context of premillennial teaching about God giving the Jews special access and advantages for salvation during “the end times.” I explained that God used Israel to bring the Savior into the world, but the Great Commission proclaims the same gospel to all mankind (Mk. 16:15-16). Galatians 3:26-28 shows there is no longer a Jew-Gentile distinction but all who believe in Christ and submit to him in baptism receive the same salvation. He was greatly relieved because the error he had been taught caused him to experience envy and bitterness toward the Jews, but now he can lay aside all such feelings.

Everyone in the Salanguit’s house slept late on Saturday because we were exhausted from the late night of study. Abner, Ronnie, and I walked on the beautiful beach nearby after breakfast, witnessing God’s handiwork. We then had further fruitful discussions with the Salanguits at an ice cream shop before hitting the road. These are first-generation Christians living in N.Z. Their commitment to strictly follow the original gospel helps them to see weaknesses in the liberal institutional trends and programs. More work is needed in the Ohope congregation and their hearts are open to learn and grow.

We had to drive hard and eat lunch in the car in order to reach Auckland in time for an evening service. In addition to our usual 8 souls, we had a Filipino couple visit from a denominational background. The lesson was on “The Purpose of Our Lives.” God created us in His image to be His companions and friends. The gospel restores us to fulfill this purpose.

Our meeting started at 7:00 P.M. and finished at 10:00. Good questions during the open forum included why does Genesis 1:26 use the plural “us” for God, what is the nature of the resurrected body, what is the new heavens and new earth in Revelation 21:1, is spanking appropriate to discipline children, is it wrong to be angry when the homosexual agenda is pushed, is it wrong to work for a business connected to a false religion or which promotes sin, etc., etc. What a joy and a privilege to study with people who hunger to learn God’s truth!

On Sunday, December 14, the 8 regular members and myself gathered for the morning worship. Thinking of the needs of the 4 young people ages 12-24, I taught two lessons on “Selecting a Mate: The Lord Builds the House (Ps. 127).” We studied God’s part in providing marriage and in guiding us to find the right ate, and then our part in trusting God and following His instructions which lead to the right mate. The young people were very attentive and appreciative, as were their parents.

At the evening service 7 visitors joined us for a study of “Marriage: God’s Gift to Man & Woman.” Our visitors included three who attend the liberal church in town, a married couple who attended earlier (he is Jewish, she is Catholic), and a young Korean lady from a denomination and her Chinese male friend who teaches college chemistry but has no religion. The Korean lady has attended services here occasionally for the past couple of years. She had some very good questions seeking to clarify the woman’s role in marriage and the church, and she was very receptive.

After dismissing and taking refreshments upstairs, we watched a 30 minute video entitled “Evolution VS God: Shaking the Foundations of Faith.” An interviewer approaches university professors and students to show them by asking appropriate questions that evolution is accepted by faith without evidence, whereas the evidence for God is all around us. It is exceptionally effective because of the simplicity of the approach.

Fourteen attended Monday night including Louneill and Cecilla Erasmus who had been taught the truth years ago by Fred Liggin in South Africa. They have been in N.Z. for 18 months and recently contacted Fred searching for a sound church. He referred them to us because of their interest in the gospel and their desire to obey it. Louneill came from a second generation family of Christians and grew up hearing the truth. Cecilla came from a conservative Dutch Reformed family. After they married, Fred had home studies with them and they attended services but never obeyed the gospel. They now realize they were given a priceless advantage by knowing the truth and should not have neglected to obey it. Also, they are concerned that their children ages 3 and 10 should grow up knowing the truth.

They came to the service ready to be baptized. After the study of “The Great Commission (Matt. 28:18-20),” they confessed Christ and were baptized for the remission of their sins in the Salunga’s bathtub – it was a tight fit, but we made it! They were literally beaming with joy and thanksgiving after their conversion. They are committed to worshiping with the Meadowood church. This is a major step forward for the congregation because it is no longer a Filipino congregation but is international. The Erasmus family has relatives in the area and plans to talk with them about serving the Lord.

On Tuesday the 16^th we came to the 9^th and last day of our gospel meeting. The lesson discussed “Serving Christ in the Local Church” in order to encourage these saints to press forward in the good work they are doing. Our attendance was 12. A young man named Carlos who is somewhat knowledgeable in the Bible asked what he should do because he found the denominations he visited did not strictly follow the Bible. I told him the first step is to clarify God’s plan leading to salvation in Mark 16:15-16 because man-made churches change this plan as well as many other things. After we reviewed the passage, he promised to continue to study, and asked for my email address.

It has been a great joy to work with the Meadowood church for the 6^th time since it began in 2009. I commended the brethren for their growth through the years and challenged them to be even more diligent now that two precious souls have been added to their number.

My flights from Auckland, N.Z. to Sydney, Australia and on to Manila went very well on Wednesday. After a long day’s travel, no one had to rock me to sleep! Today, Thursday the 18^th, was set aside to finalize the order for hundreds of Bibles. I had emailed my order in advance to Vicky Franco at the Philippine Bible Society. Atoy Franco took me to the P.B.S. so that Vicky and I could finalize various details to purchase and ship 2,447 Bibles in various dialects, costing nearly $20,000. This is by far the largest order I have ever made. This was made possible by many donations large and small. God knows and will reward every donor. On behalf of hundreds of Filipinos who will rejoice when they receive their Bibles, THANK YOU, dear brethren!!!

God willing, I will fly home tomorrow morning with a thankful heart to God and to all of His saints who make these trips possible.

In Christian love, Ron Halbrook

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