[Indiana]

Concerning oneness in a city wherein many Christians dwell, I was in Cagayan de Oro City, the Philippines from July 2012 till Feb 27, 2013 and wrote a letter upon returning to the Seattle area. After a meeting at a Baptist conference on spreading the gospel and the Baptist church around the world, I cajoled with one of the pastors and missionaries present about dropping the label, Baptist. He stood firm and proudly said that the label is "our distinction".

Whenever a distinction is made, however, in the Body of Christ with the attitude that "our assembly of believers is special, genuine inclusive oneness with other believers is forfeited, it seems to me. In saying this, I am considering the points of specialty made in the Local Churches and foisted upon believers within and without, building a wall and a distinction. Special leader, special ministry - and also a special calling is needed, as I was personally told by a long-time leader about myself and others. "Not everyone can make it here, it takes a special calling to be in the Lord's recovery."

Paul Cox once noted when he heard this: it sounds like the Marines, who only need "a few good men". And the actuality in the Local Churches today is that they do only have a few good men and women - and their special distinction.



LETTER:

I was surprised in the Philippines to see so many public transportation vehicles, jeepneys and taxis, marked with declarations of the Lord Jesus on them, creating an atmosphere of familiarity with God and the things of God. And, this was in the face of a Muslim presence there.

I soon learned of the three distinct groupings of those associated with the name of Christ - the Catholics, the denominational Christians, and the born-again believers.

I made a few friends in each of the groupings, but especially with born-again believers, of which there are many, and they have had a strong influence on their Catholic friends, relatives, and co-workers. Many Catholics have been and are being converted to Christ by being brought to the born-again Christian meetings and hearing the word of God, receiving it with joy and with conviction in their heart. Brother Rex said, "I just sat there in the meeting and felt that God was speaking directly to me." Kristine had a similar experience and a ton of weight was lifted from her when she responded to the gospel, and she wants to give her testimony to everyone. Lettie said she was a devout Catholic and began to have a Bible study with 6 other Catholics, and they were all led to leave Catholicism, including her husband, and came into fellowship in a born-again group.

I wrote a tract about what each of these three groupings has in common and how they can be one. Here is something from that unfinished writing:

"The Catholics, Christians, and born-again people have the same Bible, many of the same teachings, and have heard the same Bible stories in Sunday school growing up. Thus, they have the same God, same Christ, same Holy Spirit, and, generally speaking, believe much the same as the other.

"What then separates them? Adherence to the Bible. Some mix the word with faith and begin a personal relationship with God, while others do not. Hebrews 4:2 says: “For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it.”

My main contacts during my 8-month stay were with 3 of these born-again groups.
In one of the groups, on Monday evenings we would hear a word for 30 minutes, then break into groups of 5-6 around a table and go over what we just heard and begin to digest that word. We did this with the help of a handout sheet to guide us and provide questions for us.

I was surprised that two at our table of brothers were newly saved and one other was newly recovered. Each of these brothers had established for themselves a time with the Lord in the morning, reading the word and praying, and looked forward to these Monday night meetings for edification - from 6:30 to 8:30 (a little dinner included). This practice of digesting the word from the 30-minute sharing proved to be an invaluable exercise, good for building up one another in the words of the faith. This group of believers desire to "know Christ and to make Him known" through the sharing the gospel message.

Another group I met with was a house church, where Mark and Mary Ann opened their home for fellowship. They had under their care about 10 believers, with 5 of them saved only 6 months to a year, all sisters. This group also has a hunger for the word and spend time with the Lord, reading the word and praying.
Mark, who is a 35 year-old pastor, and I began to contact a few people in two villages and address their needs. Ernesto is a brother we helped, whose wife attended regularly the house church meetings. He could not attend meetings due to medical problems he had, but we began to get him treated with the help of a brother in the U. S. who was the one who had introduced me to Mark and had made 5 visits to Cagayan de Oro before I arrived.
This care for one family member increased the morale in the family and two sisters moved back home, joining also the Bible study begun for the family. We could see how such care for one family member could help build the family, and also the church, in love. Roberto, a brother-in-law, attended the Bible study and Mark, laying hold of the opportunity, led him to receive the Lord! (Roberto was out of work and began living in the home of Ernesto just at this time.)

Before leaving the Philippines, I went back to see a pastor (of Jane’s group), having spent a few weeks with this group upon my arrival there. We had a very good Saturday afternoon men's group meeting with five of us over "the reasons why we need to spend time in the word". It was a very interactive time with special attention to two younger married brothers and their need.

And, then there is sister Joy, as you know, with her experiences with the gospel in still another group of born-again believers. I hope to maintain contact with all the above for some ongoing fellowship together for their encouragement, and ours. I am invited back, and you are all invited also. Mark's parting word reflects the appreciation they have for fellowship and care.

Hello Brother Steve,

Thank you so much for the times that you have shared with us. As Sis. Bebe said, maybe you are like an angel sent from God to help us in our difficult situations... helping me with our basic needs, my mother in-law "Eding" in her hospitalization, and Ernesto's Medicine and other...

I'm very sorry, for my lack of time in fellowship with you. God knows my heart of how I desire for us to have often fellowship or do visitations to our brethren here especially the new ones like Alvan. Perhaps, I am just carried away looking for ways to provide the basic needs of my family. I have 7 mouths to feed at home and where do I get the 250.00 Pesos a day for our food? Of course I need to work (Doing Electrical Jobs, Fixing Appliances and T shirt Printing... Ask God for direction, what to do for each day for us to have something to eat. Not all the time that there will be costumers. Again, I need to pray. Thank God, that there has not been a time that during our meal time there was no food to serve at the table. Praise God. He is our Jehovah Jireh!

Tomorrow, you will be leaving us. But your legacy is always in our hearts. You had laid treasures in heaven where moth and rust cannot destroyed.

Together with my family and the Church of Christ here in Camaman-an, we love you brother Steve! We will truly miss you. See you again.

Always in Christ,
Mark and Mary Ann