BEING BIBLE BELIEVING CHRISTIANS TIES EVERY NATION INTO A GOD’S BIG FAMILY
The fact that the Philippine economy has continued to perform strongly since 2010 and that the Philippines remains among the fastest growing Southeast Asian economies seems to reflect God’s promise of blessings upon those who trust in God. ...
Then Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in front of the whole assembly of Israel, spread out his hands toward heaven and said: “LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like you in heaven above or on earth below—you who keep your covenant of love with your servants who continue wholeheartedly in your way. You have kept your promise to your servant David my father; with your mouth you have promised and with your hand you have fulfilled it—as it is today. “Now LORD, the God of Israel, keep for your servant David my father the promises you made to him when you said, ‘You shall never fail to have a successor to sit before me on the throne of Israel, if only your descendants are careful in all they do to walk before me faithfully as you have done.’ And now, God of Israel, let your word that you promised your servant David my father come true.
“But will God really dwell on earth? The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! Yet give attention to your servant’s prayer and his plea for mercy, LORD my God. Hear the cry and the prayer that your servant is praying in your presence this day. May your eyes be open toward this temple night and day, this place of which you said, ‘My Name shall be there,’ so that you will hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place. Hear the supplication of your servant and of your people Israel when they pray toward this place. Hear from heaven, your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive. …“As for the foreigner who does not belong to your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of your name— for they will hear of your great name and your mighty hand and your outstretched-arm—when they come and pray toward this temple, then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Do whatever the foreigner asks of you, so that all the peoples of the earth may know your name and fear you, as do your own people Israel, and may know that this house I have built bears your Name. 1KINGS 8:22- 30, :41- 43.
Solomon built the Temple in Jerusalem and prayed for its dedication to God, including a prayer for the royal family, the true significance of the Temple, his nation’s problems, and even for the foreigners who would come to believe in the Lord God. Solomon’s plea was based upon the Abrahamic covenant initiated by God Himself: ‘I will make you (Abraham) into a great nation, and I will bless you …and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you’.
In the New Testament time, the Lord Jesus taught the Samaritan woman that the place of worship had become irrelevant, now that Christ came from heaven because the salvation of the world would come through Christ. Accordingly, all nations and individuals who believe and worship God in the power of the Spirit and in truth will be blessed by Him today.
According to a recent survey conducted by the Philippine government, the Filipino residents favour one book above all others, which is the Bible. In a survey conducted by the National Book Development Board, more than 72% of Filipinos said that the Bible was their most read book in the past year.
According to “God Reports”, bible readership has risen significantly since 2012 in the Philippines, and Evangelical Bishop Noel Pantoja, chairman of the Philippine Bible Society said: ‘It reveals [the Filipino people’s] desire to know God and make Him known all over the country and around the world’. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte also admitted that history bore witness to the “profound impact of the Bible on the life of nations”, and Bishop Bastes estimated on the basis of the survey that: ‘If families have an average number of five members, 50 million Filipinos have a chance to read, pray and share their insights of the Bible’.
The fact that the Philippine economy has continued to perform strongly with an average annual expansion of 6.3% since 2010 and that the Philippines remains among the fastest growing Southeast Asian economies (source) seems to reflect God’s promise of blessings upon those who trust in God. In contrast, Japan remains an atheistic country, or a polytheism country without any faith.
However, the following article reminded me of the presence of a common history Japan and the Philippines share. The title of the japantimes.com reads: ‘Philippines honours Japan’s Christian feudal warlord Takayama Ukon’.
On 21st Dec. the Philippines honoured Takayama Ukon, a Japanese feudal warlord who was exiled to the Southeast Asian country 404 years ago and arrived in the Philippines on 21st Dec.1614 because he was a Christian. The municipal government of Manila declared 21st Dec. as “Takayama Ukon Day” in his honour. Marking the anniversary of his arrival, an agency of the Department of Tourism launched a walking tour featuring areas related to Ukon in the historic area of Intramuros, situated within modern-day Manila.
The article explains Takayama Ukon (高山右近) was ‘born into a samurai-class family in Osaka in 1552, a time of political upheaval and civil warfare. Ukon went on to become the lord of Takatsuki Castle (高槻城) and to participate in various battles under preeminent warlords Oda Nobunaga (織田信長) and Toyotomi Hideyoshi (豊臣秀吉).
However, during the reign of the Tokugawa Shogunate (徳川幕府), which outlawed Christianity, the aging Ukon was exiled to the Philippines for holding on to his faith amid the persecution of its followers. Arriving with his wife, a married daughter and five grandsons, as well as some 350 other Japanese Christian exiles, Ukon was warmly welcomed in what was then a colony of Spain, and given the honor of a parade-in-review of Spanish troops in recognition of his military standing.
During his brief time in the country, Ukon devoted his time to prayer and the evangelization of 3,000 non-Christian Japanese in what is now the city’s Paco district. He succumbed to a tropical ailment on Feb. 3, 1615, just 45 days after his arrival. His remains are buried in Manila’.
It is very moving to know how deeply and earnestly Ukon spent the last few months of his life in an exiled land (Philippines), in utter devotion to God and other countrymen’s salvation.
The Tourism Department’s Assistant Secretary Roberto Alabado, pointing out the Philippines’ record in accepting refugees during the 20th century, such as the White Russians, Jews and Vietnamese, said: ‘Ukon may just be among the first of those who benefited from the country’s welcoming attitude very early on. …This shows we are always welcoming people from all over the world, no matter who you are, no matter where you’re from, and no matter what your religion is,’ and he concluded: ‘Takayama Ukon is part of us, as we are a Christian nation’.
