Revelation and Faith

with Salvation History

Main Reference: Believing Unto Discipleship: Jesus of Nazareth
by Fr. Lode Wostyn, CICM
 Course Outline
• The Bible: A Guide for my Life
• The Biblical Message: God Offering Salvation
• Images We Have of Jesus: Do They Matter?
• Jesus of Nazareth
• Jesus and the Kingdom
• The Suffering, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus
• Who Is This Man?
• Towards a Filipino Christ: Si Mang Hesus Isa sa Atin
Jesus and the Kingdom
• Ang paghihirap sa mundong ito ay
pansamantala lamang.
• Walang hustisya sa mundong ito. Sa langit
natin ito matatagpuan.
• Mas mahalaga ang kapakanan ng kaluluwa
kaysa sa katawan.
• Hindi ito ang tunay na mundo.
• Ang simbahan ay hindi dapat makialam sa
pulitika.
• Si Kristo ay babalik sa wakas ng panahon.
Popular Ideas Concerning
 1. The Kingdom of God: Heaven

Heaven is understood as somewhere above the clouds where God dwells.

It is a place of joy we long for after our sojourn in this valley of tears.
 If what matters is
going to heaven, what
about living on earth?
Religion becomes
separate from the
concrete issues of
society like poverty,
corruption, and
injustice.
2. The Kingdom of God: the Church

“Outside the Church there is no salvation.”

http://spawnskies.blogspot.com/2010/08/widely-visited-catholic-churches-in.html
Some people or groups question the Church’s political involvement on
the strength of the legal principle of Church-State separation.
(Art. 2, Sec. 6, 1987 Constitution)
3. The Kingdom of God: the End of the World

http://www.sickchirpse.com/dead-fish-birds-crabs-is-this-the-end-of-the-world/
 The idea of the Kingdom of God developed from the
experiences the Israelite people had of Yahweh, their God.
Through history, they experienced God as giving them
salvation.
They understood salvation as deliverance from slavery,
possession of land, victory over enemies, fertility of the
land, prosperity of the family, the gift of wisdom, the
expectation of a messiah, and life beyond death.

Kingship
 They understood that the primary task of their kings was to
lead them and to make them into a nation in which justice and
equality would reign. But their kings failed in their duty.
Prophets announced that God himself would rule over Israel.
He would lead the nation to justice, equality, abundance and
well-being.
 The land or house you
were forced to sell
because of poverty will
be given back to you, all
your utang incurred
from banks and 5-6 are
wiped clean, etc.
For Isaiah, God’s Kingdom is the good news of liberation and
justice for the poor and oppressed. (the blind see, the deaf
hear…). Isaiah does not envision souls going to heaven. The
Kingdom is new life for all creation.
 The Year of the Lord’s Favor
“The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
because the Lord has anointed me
to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn.”
(Is. 61:1-2)
“In that day the deaf will hear the words of the scroll,
and out of gloom and darkness
the eyes of the blind will see.
Once more the humble will rejoice in the Lord;
the needy will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
(Is. 29:18-19)

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:

to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?”
(Is. 58:6)
1. The Kingdom of God as Good News
 The Kingdom as Good News
• “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind
receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are
cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised
up, and the poor have good news preached to
them. And blessed is the one who is not offended
by me.” (Mt. 11:4-6)
• “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me. He has anointed
me to bring good news to the poor, to proclaim
liberty to captives and new sight to the blind; to
free the oppressed and announce the Lord’s year of
mercy. (Lk. 4: 18-19)
• “The people who lived in darkness have seen a
great light; on those who live in the land of he
shadow of death, a light has shone.” (Mt 4:16)
• He bore our infirmities and took on himself our
disease.” (Mt 8:17)
• “A voice cries in the wilderness: Prepare the way for
the Lord, make a path straight. Every valley will be
filled in, every mountain and hill be laid low,
winding ways will be straightened and rough roads
made smooth. And all mankind shall see the
salvation of God.” (Lk 3:4-6)
Jesus echoes Isaiah’s dream of the kingdom. The
kingdom of God is a new world. It is on earth.
For Jesus and his contemporaries, the kingdom is
synonymous with salvation.
For them, salvation
did not mean
escaping earth and
going to “heaven.”
It is, rather, living a
beautiful,
meaningful life on
earth.
2. The Good News of the Kingdom Does
Not Ask for Performance
“Kaya mo ba ang kaya kong gawin?”

We accept people
depending on their
capacity to pass our
requirements: OE,
PAASCU, etc.
• Magpakabuti ka kung gusto mong makapasok sa
kaharian ng Diyos.
• Ang langit ay para sa mga mabubuti ang kalooban.
• Wala kang karapatang pumasok sa langit.
• Buhay ka pa’y nasusunog na ang kaluluwa mo sa
impiyerno.

We put so much emphasis on what we can do as pre-

requisite to the coming of the kingdom.
 We think the coming of the kingdom depends primarily on us.

For Jesus, the Kingdom is a gift. It is God's doing. It is an offer.

We can only inherit it.
• The King will say to those on his right: ‘Come,
blessed of my Father! Take possession of the
kingdom prepared for you from the beginning
of the world.’ (Mt 25:34)
• Do not be afraid, little flock, for it has pleased
the Father to give you the kingdom. (Lk 12: 32)
For Jesus, God’s generosity is greater than our
faults and failures.

The Prodigal Son Lk. 15:11-32

• Jesus did not think that
our entry into the
Kingdom depends solely
on what we can do with
our life.
• He saw conversion itself as
a gift from God.
• The gospels present that it
was after people
experienced Jesus’ healing
touch and comforting
words that changes
happened in their lives (Lk.
7:36-50; 19:1-10; 5:17-26;
Mk 10:46-52).
Jesus usually sat at table with the outcast and sinners
(Lk. 14: 12-24). Nobody was required to do something to
be worthy of the meal.
Conversion is a response to God’s graciousness. It is a
result rather than a pre-condition. The Kingdom is a
gift and a task. Yet, what we do is encompassed
by God’s gracious and
transforming presence.

Our doing, our involvement, is itself a gift.

3. The Kingdom as an End to Power Relationships
In modern societies, including the Philippines, one’s rights and
privileges depend on how much power or influence one can
wield or flaunt.
Jesus dared to hope for a society in which distinctions would have no
meaning. For him, power, like wealth, is not a master. It is servant.
One who has power, one who has influence, must serve.
 “At that time the disciples came to Jesus
and asked him, “Who is the greatest in the
kingdom of heaven?” Then Jesus called a
little child, set the child in the midst of the
disciples, and said, “I assure you that
unless you change and become like little
children, you cannot enter the kingdom of
heaven. Whoever becomes lowly like this
child is the greatest in the kingdom of
heaven, and whoever receives such a child
in my name receives me.” (Mt 18: 1-5)
 The true basis of human relationship for Jesus was
compassion (malasakit). As God accepts people for what they
are, so we are called to do the same.
2. The Kingdom is Offered to All
 “Healthy people
don’t need a
doctor, but sick
people do. I did
not come to call
the righteous but
sinners.” (Mk 2:17)
Jesus understood the kingdom of God as solidarity with all persons.
Solidarity is based on compassion – that emotion that rises from
deep within us at the sight of somebody suffering or in need.
• Compassion made
Jesus love people
because they are
persons. On the
contrary, he never
gained the respect
and friendship of most
of the influential when
he chose to deal with
the rabble of his
society.
5. The Kingdom as Future and Present
 For Jesus, the Kingdom of God is “among” or “in the midst” of his
contemporaries. Jesus saw the kingdom as present in his ministry of
making people whole.
Behind Jesus’ idea of the Kingdom is an experience of God. This
experience of God’s graciousness is an experience of salvation.
• Salvation as used in the Bible refers
to God’s will, which seeks the highest
possible good of the human person in
God. It is the setting free from all
kinds of need of the individual and
the community. But although the
biblical meaning of salvation is rooted
on earthly realities, it cannot be
reduced to earthly well being only. It
is related to the good of the whole
human person in this life and beyond.
Salvation as Ginhawa
• The Kingdom as Good News
• The Good News of the Kingdom Does Not Ask
for Performance
• The Kingdom as an End to Power
Relationships
• The Kingdom is Offered to All
• The Kingdom as Future and Present
[Jesus’ understanding of the Kingdom and its relevance in Philippine society]
 1. The Kingdom of God as “Rice and Fish on the
Table” (Kanin at ulam sa Mesa)

If the kingdom is good news, there is no better good news for the
hungry than enough food on the table.
“The bread that is spoiling in your house
belongs to the hungry.
The shoes that are mildewing under your
bed belongs to those who have none.
The clothes stored away in your trunk
belongs to those who are naked.
The money that depreciates in your
treasury belongs to the poor!”
- St. Basil the Great
War on Minerals

War on Minerals
2. The Kingdom of God as Wise Use of Political
Power
• If the kingdom is to be good news of liberation, it
must include liberation from the difficulties of life
brought about by the abuse or misuse of power.
2. The Kingdom of God as “Healthy and Safe
Environment”
• If the kingdom is an array of blessings, then it
includes the blessing of a habitable, healthy,
and safe environment.
• Let us no longer consider the world as just a
“bridge” through which we travel on our way
to “heaven.” Let us see it as our home and
preserve it for our selves and for future
generations.
“I hope this country will deserve to be what God meant
it to be: a happy, prosperous nation.”
– Sen. Mirriam Defensor Santiago, Closing Statement, 1st Presidential Debate 2016
CiC