About Aji: I am turning 25 years old this year. Among the
four children, I am the youngest. I finished BS tourism & also studied
computer hardware servicing while attending my first year at Baptist Bible
College of Asia. I started to really know the Lord when I was 18 and I first joined Nehemiah Teams when I
was 20.
Gate I, also known as the Sheep Gate represents/symbolizes
salvation.
About the Gate.
The sheep Gate is the only gate among the ten gates of
Jerusalem that was always open. And the gate that is near the temple where they
sacrifice a lamb to the Lord. It shows that everyone is welcome to enter into God's
salvation.
How is this gate
relevant to my faith today?
This is important in our Christian faith because this is the
theme of God's
purpose for us, to bring everyone to salvation through Jesus
Christ. Without
this salvation, our faith is worthless. It has been said
that, "where there is
uncertainty about how salvation is received, there is
confusion over whether salvation
can be maintained".
We can not share our faith to the lost if we ourselves do
not understand His grace & unconditional love & the guarantee that He
gives through His life. In our daily walk with God we must live in His life.
When we receive Jesus as a payment for our sins, we also receive His life. Only
in understanding this can
we truly be free as we live.
How can better
understanding this gate change my faith today?
As we continue
to walk in faith, we must look at the cross where Jesus said "It is
finished". We are saved by grace & this is not only a gift but a
guarantee of eternal life. We must walk as having been justified, sanctified
& glorified. Our assurance is God's unconditional love. When we talk about "unconditional
love" we realized that often we misjudge God's love for us because of the
guilt we have from our sins. God's salvation is not like a "credit
card" -we must remind ourselves that His salvation is freely given &
fully given to us.
Share a practical
example of living this gate out in your own life.
The very thing that I liked about this gate is learning
grace. When we talk about grace there should be no room for disgrace. We define
graceas something that costs everything for the giver and nothing for the
recipient. It is free of charge & has no string attached.
After the week that we discussed this, I was tested when I
went to the only computer shop that you can find in Kaputian market place. when
I went there, the computer does not properly receiving the signal. I already
paid for the internet but when I went back to the lady to refund my money, she
said I can't refund it any more. Worst still she kept speaking Cebuano to me even though I was speaking in Tagalog. I planned & prepared for that very day. I was so excited but I went home
disappointed. I became so
even more frustrated
as I struggled with my culture stress. I just thought, "It's okay, that is
what we call grace". But I still felt that it is not totally okay. It is
also hard for us to show grace to others especially when we think we deserve
something since it already cost us something, we always think about our rights
as a person. This is one of the hardest things we as Christians must learn to
practice everyday, grace for others.
