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October 10, 2008
OLD BOSSES NEVER DIE THEY JUST SIT ON THEIR ASSET
BY MELCOR VIRATA
Sigma Rho Bible study
THE editors of www.batasnews.com decided to reprint, as Melcor Virata's column,
a memorandum circulated among members of the Sigma Rho Fraternity of the UP
College of Law in 2004 yet, for its highly relevant subject matter today.
The memorandum follows:
FOR : ALL SIGMA RHOANS
SUBJECT : SIGMA RHO BIBLE STUDY AND OTHER FRAT TRIVIA
DATE : 10 MARCH 2004
1.There were 18 of us last Friday night with 7 brods; Dong Poliquit, Judge
Johnny Nabong, Bert Mercado, Froi Kampitan, Dodie Aguila, Mario Frez and myself.
Two were attending for the first and
hopefully not the last time. One was a friend of Dong Poliquit while the other
was a friend of Judge Nabong from Cagayan de Oro who visits him every now and
then.
2.Froi joined us late as he came from a meeting but left right away for nearby
Kowloon house when he saw we only had egg pies and poncanitas. He came back with
pancit canton, jumbo siopao and delicious dumplings. There was just a little
left for the guards when the eating was over.
3.Our lesson was on the 22nd chapter of Rick Warren's book which is really now
taking the Christian community here by storm regardless of sect and
denomination. So many churches and fellowships are
studying the book in small group discussions.
4.The chapter is about our being created to be like Christ, which is another
important life purpose. The world inculcates in us the desire to succeed in our
careers, business concerns, material and
professional aspirations so we can accumulate wealth, power and fame. These
become the driving forces in our lives. In the process we become ambitious,
selfish and proud when all along what God
really wanted was for us to be like His Son Jesus Christ. Weren't we created in
the image of God?
5.God is definitely concerned with our character rather than our comfort. That's
why becoming Christlike could be the most worthwhile and significant ambition
and purpose one could ever have in this earthly life. It truly is a lifetime
goal.
6.In Matthew 5:1-12 (the beatitudes), we are taught to be humble, meek,
righteous, merciful, pure in heart, and peacemakers. And yet don't we all find
ourselves so lacking and wanting when measured against these virtues?
7.In Galatians 5:22-23, we are told that "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy,
peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
" Do we find our attitudes, values and lifestyles compatible with these? Are our
hearts filled with love, joy and peace that we often find ourselves patient with
our loved ones, kind with strangers, honest with our dealings and
transactions, faithful in our relationships, gentle in our speech and manner,
and self-controlled in our human desires and lusts? How I crave that I could
heartily say yes to both queries!
8.The bible's love chapter in I Corinthians 13 says that "love is patient, love
is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude,
it is not self-seeking, it is not easily
angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but
rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always
perseveres" If we test the kind of love we
have against these standards, are we going to have a passing mark?
9.Let's be honest and stop kidding ourselves. Our thoughts, values, attitudes,
habits, inclinations, preferences, lifestyles are often incompatible with the
above-cited bible passages. We choose to be
proud than humble. We choose to be corrupt than righteous. We choose to be
judgmental than merciful. We choose to be selfish than generous. We choose to be
right than kind. We choose to criticize than praise. We choose to harbor anger
and resentments than forgive and forget. We choose to compromise than stand up
for what is right.
We choose to please men than please God. We choose to seek and crave for the
praise and approval of men than the grace and mercy of God. This list can go and
on. It's not going to change the fact how
despicable, rotten and miserable we are deep inside our heart of hearts.
10.It's impossible to be Christlike if we're simply to rely on our own efforts
and sheer will power to be good. New years' resolutions no matter how
well-intentioned will not make a difference. You will fail. Self-reformation, no
matter how determined, will also fail for old habits will come back. We need the
Holy Spirit to produce godly or Christlike character.
11.Regeneration is a must before we can ever attain Christlike character. A
born-again experience is required. The Spirit of God has to give life to what is
spiritually dormant and dead in us. And
once we go through this life-changing experience, our active cooperation is now
required in the Holy Spirit's work of sanctifying and transforming us from our
sinful, fallen and depraved natures.
12.Active cooperation means we must choose to let go of old ways, old and bad
habits and attitudes. This is extremely difficult. Letting go and completely
giving up certain addictions, ingrained
habits, customs, traditions, practices and beliefs that are opposed to godliness
is easier said than done especially when you're with Sigma Rhoans.
13.We must also change the way we think. Unless and until our way of thinking
becomes aligned to the mind of God, we will never develop Christlike character.
Romans 12:2 says "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be
transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and
approve what God's will is his good, pleasing and perfect will." We must admit
that our
thinking patterns and habits are now worldly, secular, humanistic, selfish and
self-centered. While deep inside we know that life is fleeting, that there is
life after death, that a heavenly kingdom
awaits us when we die, our demeanor and lifestyle suggest otherwise.
14.We must develop new and godly habits if we are serious about having the
character of Christ. This would require a huge amount of spiritual discipline.
Daily bible reading, regular times for intense prayer, bible studies,
fellowshipping with other Christians for comfort and encouragement, attending
Christ-centered and bible-believing churches are just some of the habits we can
develop and strengthen in ourselves. To many of us, these are activities that we
normally shy away from. They rank so low in our order of priorities.
15.Dong Poliquit and I regularly send out text messages to a list of brods and
friends we invite to the Friday bible study. Just a few even bother to reply. In
fact, Dong Poliquit has a mailing list of 1000 individuals composed of brods and
non-brods. He regularly mails them Christian literature and invitations to
several luncheon or dinner functions every month. He seals the letter envelopes
with his own tongue although his wife and maid help him every now and then.
He himself pays for the cost of the stamps.
16.This is his personal ministry. New names are being added to the list every
now and then. He has been sending inspiring Christian literature to these people
for more than 10 years now yet less than
2% even bother to acknowledge or say thanks. Just goes to show that when it
comes to spiritual things, most people would rather do something else. Let's
talk and think about God only during Sundays or Holy Week and 3 hours for a
worship service is already a violation of our rights. To think that God gave His
only Son as a sacrifice for our own sins so we could be saved from hell. And
this is how we often repay Him.
17.God also molds our character through the Bible, through people and through
circumstances and situations that occur in our daily lives. If we read the bible
regularly and seriously meditate upon its words, we will realize it is a
powerful tool in exposing our
faults and flaws, our deceitfulness and depravity. It also shows us the abundant
goodness, grace, love and mercy of God. Despite our stubbornness, He never gave
up on us.
18.The people that God sends our way are also instrumental in our character
development. Our parents, our spouses, our children, our teachers and mentors,
our churchmates, our brods, our friends, our officemates, our peers, and a host
of other individuals who come in all shapes and forms with varying personalities
and perspectives, they all play a vital role in our character formation as we
relate and interact with them in the daily grind and routine of life.
19.Some of them will bring sunshine into our lives. Some will be like food that
will nourish and nurture us so we could be strong. Some will be like flowers in
the garden making our life so bright
and colorful. Some will come like dark and gloomy clouds as they seem to give us
nothing but disappointments and discouragements yet always realizing afterwards
how we came out bruised and battered yet better persons. Some will come like
booming thunder or raging storm.
We feel afraid, shaken to the core, trembling in fear, dying of worry yet once
again realizing that after the storm there is sunshine, after the tears come the
smiles, after the sunset there is sunrise, after war there is peace.
20. Such is life. People and circumstances teach us. All the time. Some of us
learn fast and move on. Some are slower to learn and so wallow in misery a
little longer. It's not about money. You won't need it when you're in the grave.
It's not about possessions. What good are they in the next life? It's not about
pomp and power.
History is filled with men who craved for those and they're all very dead now.
Forgotten. Ignored. Reduced to items of information so wecan learn from their
lives and their deeds. Problem is, many of us never seem to learn.
21.It's about being humble for what are we when measured against the vastness
and infinity of the universe. It's about being meek, kind, gentle, good, caring,
forgiving, patient, considerate, understanding. It's about honesty and integrity
amidst a world corrupted by deceit and immorality.
It's about love when more and more people are becoming cold, aloof and uncaring.
Go to the malls
or the streets that are teeming with people. You'll see zombies left and right.
People who are lost. People who have been absorbed by the pattern of this world.
22.It's about God and His will and purpose for us. We seem to have forgotten
that He created us in His image so it's not surprising if He wants us conformed
to the likeness of His Son. It's but
understandable if He want us to be Christlike. That should be our goal. The road
towards it is long and winding with lots of bumps and ruts along the way. But
still we move on. It's going to take a
lifetime to go through that road. Let's pray that as we trudge along this long
and bumpy road we become more and more like Christ each part of the way.
23.Let us bear in mind that there are two things we will never see in heaven.
Sin and evangelists. Christ lived in a sinful world but He was sinless.
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