Straight From Pastor Ey

Image credit Less than two years before its 500th anniversary, we remember the nailing of Martin Luther’s Ninety-five Theses (actually titled “Disputation of Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences”) [1] on the door of Wittenberg Castle Church on October 31, 1517.  The Ninety-five Theses or “Disputation of Martin Luther on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences.” Image credit It was a protest against the selling of the papal indulgences by the Roman Catholic Church. Pope Leo X authorized the selling of the indulgences to raise funds for the Basilica. Luther objected to the fact that the Roman Catholic Church was offering to sell certificates of forgiveness, and that by doing so it was substituting a false hope (that forgiveness can be earned or purchased) for the true hope of the gospel (that we receive forgiveness solely via the riches of God’s grace). The Roman Catholic Church claimed it had been placed in charge of a “treasury of merits” of all of

Image credit There are those who claim, “All we have to do is to love and worship God! You don’t need doctrine to do just that!” They think that doctrine (or right teaching) is not needed for faith. But they are mistaken. (What is doctrine? It “is an organized summary of what the Bible teaches about the most important issues of life.”)  [1] The prophet Moses declared, Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. (Deuteronomy 6:4-5) [2] Note that doctrine ( “The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” ) comes first before devotion ( “You shall love the Lord your God” ). The more we know about God, the more we ought to love Him. How can we really love God when we don’t even know who He truly is? Image credit When the Samaritan woman asked our Lord Jesus where we should worship, He answered,  But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will

God gave me the privilege to discuss the historicity of our Lord Jesus Christ in the online radio talk show of PATAS (Philippine Atheists and Agnostics Society ) yesterday evening, October 18, 2015. It was a respectful interview. You may listen to the audio recording below.  NOTE: Due to the typhoon Lando  (international name Koppu), the Internet signal was not that strong. Hence, the audio quality may not be that good. I pray that God would open more opportunities for us " to give an answer to everyone who asks [us] to give the reason for the hope that [we] have." (1 Peter 3:15b, NIV)

Authorities carry a shooting victim away from the scene after a gunman opened fire at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Ore. on Oct. 1. Image and caption  credit The 26-year-old gunman, Chris Harper-Mercer, barged into a classroom at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon with guns blazing. He shot the professor point blank. Everyone in the classroom dropped to the floor.  The gunman, while reloading his handgun, ordered the students to stand up if they were Christians… And they would stand up and he said, “Good, because you ’ re a Christian, you're going to see God in just about one second” …And then he shot and killed them. [1] The gunman, Chris Harper-Mercer. Image credit He shot in the head those who stood up. He shot in the legs those who said no or did not speak up. As of last count, 10 people were killed. Seven others were injured. The police killed the shooter, who “had body armor with him and was heavily armed, with a large amount of ammunition—eno