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By EDWIL D. ZABALA
THIS YEAR MARKS the 140th birth anniversary of Brother Felix Y. Manalo (1886–1963), the man we, members of the Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church Of Christ), believe to be God’s last messenger as attested to by biblical prophecies. Notwithstanding persecution, we continue to remember his life and faith knowing that through his labors, we received the pure words of God and hence the hope for salvation. This is so because in every period or era, the work of God for the salvation of people begins with a message and a messenger. In each salvific mission, His messengers not only speak His message but also carry it out to administer people’s reconciliation with Him (II Cor. 5:18–20).
People were separated from God and became His enemies because of their sins (Isa. 59:2; Col. 1:21). To return to God, their first step must be to accept the authority or election that God gave to the one whom He sent to speak His message:
“Jesus answered and said to them, ‘This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent’.” (John 6:29 New King James Version)
The sending of messengers is God’s work: John the Baptist was sent ahead of Christ to prepare His way (Isa. 40:3; John 1:19–23); the Lord Jesus Christ, God’s greatest messenger, was sent to do the work foretold about the anointed Savior (Isa. 61:1–2; Luke 4:17–21); Apostle Paul was sent to bring the message about Christ to the Gentiles or non-Jews after Jesus had gone up to heaven (Isa. 49:6; Acts 13:47). God’s prophetic words in the Bible direct people to those whom He has chosen to be His messengers—He speaks about them beforehand.
What was true then remains true now. Thus, Christ tells us to believe in the one whom God sent. Any church that does not have God’s messenger, or does not accept the truth and importance of God’s sending of His messenger, is a false church.
To be sent as a messenger of God is a calling from Him. No man can take for himself this honor and right no matter how much he wants to be one and no matter what his qualities are (Heb. 5:4). God sends His messengers for the good of His people:
“And the Lord God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them, because He had compassion on His people and on His dwelling place.” (II Chr. 36:15 nkjv)
God’s purpose in sending His messengers is so noble—He wants to show His mercy and love for His own people. During the time of ancient Israel, the Israelites disobeyed Him and turned their backs on their duty to worship Him, which meant turning away from Him. Yet God sent messengers to them to tell them to return to Him because He did not want them to be condemned in the end.
During the Christian era, God commissioned Apostle Paul as a messenger to the Gentiles, “to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light” (Acts 26:17–18 nkjv). While people are in darkness, they are also under Satan’s power. But through the work of God’s messenger, people will be taken out of darkness, be brought to God, be forgiven of sins, and be counted among those who will receive what God promised.
But despite God’s noble intent in sending His messengers, there were those who rejected them and, “made fun of God’s messengers, ignoring his words and laughing at his prophets” (II Chr. 36:15–16 Good News Bible).
Other messengers were verbally abused to dissuade others from valuing God’s teachings that they preached (Jer. 18:18). As a result of their ill-use of God’s messengers and the message they brought, Israel lost its right to serve God: “Israel has been without the true God …” (II Chr. 15:3 nkjv). They had forgotten that God commanded His people to seek His laws from the mouth of His messengers and not just from anybody: “… And people should seek the law from his mouth; For he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts” (Mal. 2:7 nkjv).
The folly of ancient Israel was something the first-century Church of Christ fell into after the time of the apostles. As the former turned away from God, so did the latter which was led astray (Dan. 9:11; Jer. 11:10; Matt. 23:9; Heb. 12:9 Lamsa Translation; II Thess. 2:3–4; Rev. 18:2 King James Version; I Pet. 5:13 Douay [fn.]; I Tim. 4:1, 3 kjv). Thus, we are not surprised if even now, there are those who malign and reject the truth that one cannot return to God and serve Him outside of God’s work of commissioning His messenger.
For the true Church Of Christ to emerge in these last days, God sent a messenger, tasked to preach the gospel, described as God’s righteousness and power to salvation (Rom. 1:16–17).
God foretold that He would call His chosen servant “from the ends of the earth” (Isa. 41:9–10 nkjv). This refers to the time when the end of the earth is about to come (I Cor. 10:11 kjv, gnb). The Lord Jesus Christ gave signs whereby His followers would know the beginning of such time: one world war followed by another. Earthquakes, calamities, widespread hunger, and disease epidemics were also mentioned by the Savior (Matt. 24:3, 33, 6–8 and footnote, Last Days Bible).
The servant commissioned to bring God’s saving message during the time “ends of the earth” is attested by Him as a “man who executes My counsel” whose work is likened to that of a “bird of prey” from a distant country in the east (Isa. 46:11–13 nkjv). The Hebrew term used in that passage is mizrach, which is literally the “far east” (Smith’s Bible Dictionary, p. 154).
Brother Felix Y. Manalo began preaching about the Church Of Christ in the Philippines, a country in the Far East (International Security and the United States: An Encyclopedia, p. 614). On July 27, 1914, he had the Iglesia Ni Cristo registered with the government. That was the same day that fighting in Europe erupted that eventually became the First World War (The Story Of The Great War, Volume III, History of European War From Official Sources, p. 923; Lord Riddell’s War Diary 1914-1918, p. 1). On that day, the true Church Of Christ once again emerged.
Related biblical prophecy further describes the work given to God’s messenger who would arise from the east” that of sealing God’s servants (Rev. 7:2–3; Luke 1:19; Rev. 2:1 Douay, fn.). The seal is the Holy Spirit. Sealing is done through the preaching of the words of truth with the power of the Holy Spirit. Those who listen to and firmly believe in the gospel preached by God’s messenger are sealed. Those sealed are counted by God as His chosen ones who will receive the salvation He promised (Eph. 1:13–14). The Church Of Christ is the result of the labors of God’s Messenger in the last days who carried out His holy mission.
We are humbled that God accepts and values our worship and services as members of the Church Of Christ. We have the divine election. We have the right to serve God. We are humbled at the certainty that we will inherit the great promises of God to His chosen people—salvation and eternal life.
And so, whatever happens, let us “conduct [our]selves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ” (Phil. 1:27–28 New International Version). As members of the Church Of Christ, it is only right that we obey the teachings of the Bible taught by Brother Felix Manalo, whom we firmly believe to be the Messenger of God in the last days. These same biblical doctrines are continuously being taught to us by the Church Administration.
Wherever life might take us, no matter what difficulty may come, let us remain steadfast and continue to fight on for our faith. Whatever happens, let us strive to fulfill what God expects of His chosen people: “They are my people. They will not turn against me” (Isa. 63:7–8 New International Reader’s Version). Let us remain faithful to God. Let us never betray Him. Let us follow the good example given to us by God’s Messenger in these last days. If we remain faithful to God, He will surely save us from all troubles and hardship. ❑
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