Dear family, brethren, and friends,

The lectures in General Santos City on the home and family life continued on Wednesday with a full room as on the previous two days.  As I teach, I am calling on men scattered in the room to read passages out loud relating to the lesson and they are participating well.  

Today, having finished my lessons from the workbook on “Family Life,” I proceeded with 4 lessons on “Man’s Leadership in the Home,” whereas Jonathan and Jack finished teaching their lessons from the workbook.  The husband is responsible to set the tone and the direction of his family’s life, which is exactly why Joshua said, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Josh. 24:15).  These lessons covered the imperative of personal spiritual growth as a foundation for effective leadership in the home.  We then studied how to grow personally, grow in leading a wife, grow in leading our children, and grow in leading the family as a unit.  Some of the men expressed that they were inspired to be better leaders when they go home by implementing what we studied.

Most of the questions in the open forum carried over from a couple of yesterday’s lessons which addressed divorce and remarriage.  This is a Catholic culture and Philippine law still has no formal provision for divorce even in cases where there is adultery.  The Catholic Church teaches there can be no divorce, period.  Having grown up in this culture, many of our preachers had been under that influence and have struggled to understand that Jesus authorized divorce and remarriage for an innocent mate who puts his or her mate away for fornication.  Across the years, more and more of them have come to understand and accept this truth.  More progress was made today.  There is actually one “loophole” available in such cases in the Philippines, but it is so expensive most Filipinos cannot access it.

That being said, some of the discussion was very healthy regarding the need to work as hard as possible to save marriages when someone commits adultery.  I emphasized that Jesus gave permission but not a requirement for divorce and remarriage.  By far, the better outcome is reconciliation.  Yet, there are cases of stubborn rebellious hearts where reconciliation is not possible and that is why Jesus made the exception.

Our Thursday session brought the lectureship to a close with my 2 lessons on “Selecting a Mate: God Builds the House” (Ps. 127).  The first part is a study of God’s part and the second study focuses on man’s part in selecting a mate.  There were plenty of good questions in the open forum until we had to end at noon.  One brother asked what recourse do we have when Christians are continuing to live in their sins.  1 Thessalonians 4:15 shows that God’s pattern for discipline and correction starts with teaching, warning, and exhorting, but 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15 shows that impenitent saints should be withdrawn from in a final effort to bring them to repent.  

Another brother asked what is a preacher to do if his wife becomes unfaithful and refuses to repent – is he free to remarry?  Yes, Jesus allowed for divorce and remarriage in such cases, but Filipinos face a gauntlet in terms of getting a legal divorce and remarriage.  Even if he can be successful, many in the community and some in the church will not understand and accept his new marriage.  In some cases, it may be wise to remain single like Paul rather than to have a dark cloud hanging over his life.  Christ allows divorce and remarriage but does not command or require it.  It must be a personal decision on a case-by-case basis as each individual weighs his situation and possible consequences.

Another question was what will a couple do in cases where they want a wedding conducted with the preaching of God’s Word by a gospel preacher but the law requires qualifications which only members of the civil government can provide to conduct the ceremony.  If that is the case, the couple could have the gospel preacher conduct their actual wedding ceremony and then go the nearest government official and repeat their vows again for the sake of the law and the legal record.  God will join them when they first take their vows and the government will record it when they repeat their vows again.   Even though this creates a complication, they should comply with the government whenever possible because of Romans 13.

Brother Salvador said after the classes ended that many preachers expressed their appreciation to him for what they had learned about being better husbands and fathers, and that they intended to improve their family life.  That is the fruit of righteousness we are hoping to see!

Friday we began a two-day Bible lectureship on the theme “United, We Stand!” at the Lanton church of Christ where Jolly Julom has been preaching for many years.  The lessons are especially designed to edify and encourage preachers so that they will labor together for Christ as one, united in the truth and in their love for each other.  Over 60 souls attended today.  Jonathan Carino spoke on Abraham’s journey of faith and Jack Jaco preached from Joshua 22 about God’s people overcoming the danger of a potentially explosive misunderstanding. 

“The Heart of the Preacher” was my first sermon, based on Philippians 1 where Paul lays bare his heart for all to see.  “Marriage: Joined by God” is based on Matthew 19:6 and emphasizes the permanent nature of the marriage union.  Marriage plays a role in people’s lives all around the world and the gospel of Christ addresses this vital relationship.  I preached a two-part study entitled “Mistaken Views VS False Doctrine” showing that our growth in Christ is a lifelong process of learning to outgrow mistaken views, but false doctrines destroy our faith in the truth of the gospel.  

The open forum included discussions about how to bring the truth to various people lost in cults and false religions.  The Apostles show that we should address different groups of people according to their backgrounds and needs, but, in the end, their hearts will be drawn to the truth if they are sincerely seeking the truth.  Otherwise, no amount of talent or effective teaching will reach them.

Several questions reflected the fact that some of these preachers from the rural and mountain areas are grappling with the proper application of Jesus’ teaching on divorce and remarriage in their own lives now that they have a better grasp of the principles he taught.  They are emerging from their Catholic culture but also from their worldly backgrounds.  It is a joy to see the truth working as a powerful leavening agent in the hearts and lives of saints. 

We were blessed today to have light rain and overcast skies which cooled the atmosphere, making our work more comfortable because there is no air conditioning here.

The Saturday lectureship was well attended and everyone paid attention well in spite of the warmer weather.  Jack’s lesson from Jude 3 and Jonathan’s lesson about the importance of love in our family life were appreciated by everyone.  My morning sermons discussed “Maintaining Balance in Controversy” (Phil. 4:5), the first one focusing on Bible teaching about the importance of balance and the second one illustrating the challenge with controversies of the past 150 years. In the afternoon sessions, I studied “The Social Gospel” and “Preserving Unity in Christ.”  

The open forum generated a question about whether brethren who fall into various apostasies should be rebaptized if they want to return to the Lord and His people.  No, we learn from James 5:19-20 that erring brethren can be restored and from Acts 8:22 this process includes repentance and fervent prayer for forgiveness.  

Another question was is it right for a church to have a service focused on thanksgiving and a meal will also be served by using funds from the church treasury?  The church is free to choose any theme to be presented such as thanksgiving because we will sing, pray, and teach God’s Word pertaining to that theme.  The New Testament does not authorize using the church treasury to provide a common meal for the congregation.  The treasury must be used for the work of the church: evangelism, worship, and benevolence to meet emergency needs of faithful saints.  

One brother reported the denominational preachers had filed a case to close down the church of Christ in his community because we are “antichrist” and he wanted more information on what that means.  It means they are accusing him of being a danger to the community because he is teaching things contrary to Christ, i.e., what they really mean is that we are not following the traditional doctrines of these denominations.  1 John 2:18 says, “Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.”  False teachers were circulating among the churches in the first century and John warned they teach things different from and contrary to the teaching of Christ.  These denominational preachers were grabbing at straws in an effort to shut down the church of Christ because they cannot answer the truth we are preaching in the New Testament.  Fortunately, their case did not prosper.

We had a little added excitement while I was preaching today.  An electrical box on the wall about 3 feet from my head started popping and shooting electrical sparks.  I backed away and some men quickly came forward and tried to turn it off, but every time they reached for the switch the explosions seemed to get bigger and louder.  Finally, the box broke out in fire, but they got it under control.  No doubt, the fans and the projector overloaded the box.  I resumed preaching in the dark without the projector until they could run an extension cord to the house next door and renew the electrical connection.

On the Lord’s Day, we worshiped at the Lanton church of Christ here in General Santos City where Jolly Julom labors in the gospel and the attendance was more than 60.  The first sermon was “Come Out of Her, My People” (Rev. 18:4) followed by “Modest Dress through the Ages” (1 Tim. 2:9-10).  I met Jolly about the year 2000 and he has been steady and faithful through the years.  He has done a solid work here in General Santos City and the surrounding areas.

In the afternoon, we traveled over an hour into the mountains to the the Kyumad church in Maasim, Sarangani where Alan Moyak serves as an evangelist.  In recent years, I have observed their slow but steady effort to erect a church building.  Over 100 souls were gathered today with a roof and walls but no ceiling, no windows, no doors, and no flooring.  I climbed a small dirt bank to reach the pulpit.  They have no electricity, so I preached without PowerPoint charts from Psalm 23, “The Lord Is Our Shepherd-King,” and from Romans 8:28-39, “Victory in Christ.”  Our audience was very attentive and appreciative.  We were blessed to have overcast skies which cooled the atmosphere.  It was a blessing to visit them again.

It is now time to begin saying good-byes to all who have worked as a team during these 7 days of labor in the gospel of Christ in Mindanao.  Jonathan Carino returns to Cebu, Jack Jaco to Negros, and James Paet to Luzon while Jolly Julom and Salvador Parbo continue their work here in southern Mindanao.

My only disappointment is that in spite of taking my regular walks, I have not been able to see the moon a single time in Mindanao.  But I know my friends in many places are watching it so as not to let it fall down! 

Monday our flight from General Santos City to Manila was supposed to fly before noon, but it was delayed for several hours and we landed in Manila in the late afternoon.  Thank God, I received messages giving assurance that Jonathan Carino and Jack Jaco arrived safely in their homes, and James was on the plane with me.

One of the highlights of these trips is the visit to the Philippine Bible Society to purchase Bibles in Filipino dialects.  Tuesday, today in the Philippines, 409 Bibles were purchased and will be sent to 13 different locations by God’s good providence.  Now, I am preparing for my three flights which will take me home over a period of about 30 hours on Wednesday, beginning at 3:10 A.M., God willing. 

This trip has pushed me far behind reading and responding to many emails and I regret it.  I do not mean to ignore anyone.  Thank you for your understanding.  

I write this final report on the February trip conscious of God’s constant care and the prayers and support of many saints, which make this work possible for the salvation of souls.  In addition to 15 baptisms, 60 teaching sessions have been conducted and hopefully the lessons learned by our co-preachers will spread far and wide to both saints and sinners.  We all will see the fruit of our labors in heaven in the sweet by and by in the land where we never grow old!

In Christian love,
Ron Halbrook