RLCC Podcast

Traveling the Road to Forever is not a solo sport. You do it together with the person or persons who you want to experience lasting relationships with. All parties must do their part, otherwise, the journey will fail. As we have learned, it takes a Spirit-filled person to navigate the Road to Forever. But, we must add, that it takes two or more Spirit-filled companions to make that journey possibl...

The solution to every problem depends on the nature of that problem. If a problem is medical in nature, we will seek a medical solution. If the problem is financial, we will find ways to come up with financial solutions. When it comes to relationships, we often assume it's a natural problem. So, we look for natural solutions. But this is wrong. The problem, as we have seen, is that relationships i...

The failure of relationships is mainly because of the nature of those who are in those relationships. In other words, the problem is you and me. The road to forever is froth with all kinds of dangers because it involves people. Without God's help, relationships will fail eventually. Whenever relationships do succeed, it is simply because of God's grace and mercy. But, even if we are good people (i...

We all want lasting relationships. But very few actually experience it. Why? Sometimes people imagine that their good intentions are sufficient to create the kind of life that they want for themselves and for those they care about. They also assume that good Bible-believing Christians will never fail in fulfilling their good intentions as far as relationships are concerned. If they will just work...

What is our purpose when we pray? Is it simply to ask God for the things that we need? Is it just to intercede for the needs of others? If we don't understand the real purpose of prayer, we will either do it or not do it for the wrong reasons. If we're doing it for the wrong reasons, we will become self-righteous. If we're not doing it for the wrong reasons, we will only feel guilty and ashamed. E...

Even if we overcome all the hindrances to prayer, there is one that almost always discourages people from praying -- unanswered prayers! How do we deal with that problem? Let us assume that someone prays sincerely and fervently, but God does not answer. Or, it takes a long time. Sometimes the answer is even different or it's totally opposite to what he or she prayed for. What then? This experience...

It is not easy to pray. All of us struggle in this area. We know we need to pray but something or someone always hinders us. Sometimes, it's even us! The apostle Peter says, "The end of all things is near. Therefore be alert and of sober mind so that you may pray." (1 Peter 4:7) It's important to understand these hindrances so that by God's grace we can overcome them.

Many changes are going on all around us. Most of them are beyond our control. Such changes bring with them certain challenges. But how we will be affected and how we will respond is still our choice. In addition, these changes create opportunities for us to partner with God in bringing about His purposes in our lives and in the lives of others. This partnership can only happen in and through praye...

We may know someone who has slowly drifted away from sincere faith in Jesus. Maybe he or she has chosen to disconnect himself or herself from the community of faith. Maybe they think they have valid reasons. Others may have chosen to go back to their previous lifestyle of sin and disobedience together with their unbelieving friends. A few may have hardened their hearts already. How do we help them...

People who still have faith but have become lukewarm or discouraged want to know how to go back to Jesus. People who have completely lost their faith don't think they can ever go back. But everyone needs to know that there is a way to go back if only they are willing to seek and find Jesus again by God's grace. It's not an impossibility. Jesus, Himself, is calling them, and us, to go back to Him a...

It's crucial to always remember the death of Christ on the cross. Thankfully, because we are predominantly a Christian nation, we are reminded of this once a year. But through the years, many people, even Christians, are no longer interested to remember this very important event. They would rather use this occasion to do other things. Of course, there is nothing wrong with doing other things. But...

The pandemic has revealed the shallowness of faith of many people. Consequently, many have either become lukewarm or have backslidden altogether. Now that the health situation is beginning to allow people to go back to their previous activities, although under the new normal (i.e. with the virus still being present but less threatening), we need to ask, "What are we going back to?" Or, better yet,...

As the election draws near, emotions are running high. There are a lot of disagreements. Even Christians are drawn to this and, sadly, some reveal the worldly state of their hearts as they disagree with others in social media. Disagreements are inevitable. But how we express our disagreements is a choice. We don't have to resort to worldly tactics to promote our candidate. We are Christians and we...

Politics can be dirty. This is why some Christians don't want to be involved in politics. They say that the church should only be concerned with evangelism or discipleship, not with politics. But others argue that we must be involved. In fact, some are too involved already to the point that they forget they are Christians. How can we be involved in politics without losing our identity as Christian...

Politics is a hot topic these days. Should we even talk about it in church? Some believe that politics is of the world and the church should not waste its time talking about it. Others are very zealous about politics. They are very engaged and vocal about it. We can see it all over social media. But where do we strike the balance? We believe God is present everywhere. Politics is not off-limits to...

Obedience is not the only barometer for knowing whether a person has a heart after God's own heart. Like David, worship is another way we can show our devotion to God. Unfortunately, many today are not interested in prioritizing the worship of God in their lives. Worship is not merely singing or listening to worship songs. It has to do with a heart that is fully devoted to God. How can we develop...

We all sin in many different ways and at different times. Perhaps this is the reason why most of us cannot really claim that our hearts are after the Lord's heart. We are very much aware of our frailty. But, like David, we must all acknowledge that our moral failures are also occasions where our hearts are tested. How should we respond when we fail morally? When God rebukes us of our sins, whether...

Character is not the basis of our calling. We are called because of God's grace and mercy alone. But our character is important in fulfilling God's purpose for our lives. We can shipwreck our faith if we do not take care of our character. It's possible that we will not finish well in the race called life if we do not pursue a heart after God's own heart. In this second sermon in our series, we wan...

Recently, the church has been shaken by several scandals. From church leaders who commit immoral acts to well-known Christian artists who turn their backs from the Christian faith to become atheists. It is only right for the world to question our integrity. How can we speak about God's truth and His salvation when our lives do not align with what we are saying? What is needed today are Christians...

It's often hard to wait, especially when we are waiting for God's promises to be fulfilled. We experience disappointment, confusion, and discouragement when we are doing our best to trust and obey God but nothing seems to be happening for a long time. Waiting is difficult because we are not in control of our desired results or expectations. Unless we understand that God is doing "behind the scenes...

We all have weaknesses. Some of them we can easily accept because they are part of our nature or we consider them normal. But some weaknesses are difficult to accept. We hate ourselves for having them. We feel that we are disadvantaged or disabled. We try so hard to overcome them, and when they persist, we become disillusioned with ourselves. We feel there is no future for us. But how can we stand...

The rising number of COVID-19 cases is making a lot of people anxious. There’s a very good chance you are one of them. Although COVID-19 is definitely a cause for concern, this is just one of the many things that we worry about. There are a lot of uncertainties that can make us worry and this can distract us away from God and bring unrest to our souls. But God has promised to give us peace during...

No one really knows what the future holds. That can easily create insecurity in our hearts. But insecurity is not just about the future. Sometimes we can be paralyzed by so many uncertainties in life that we fail to move forward according to God's will. We often say "No" when we can in fact say "Yes" because we are so insecure about ourselves. Only by standing on the promises of God can we overcom...

The year 2022 is just around the corner. Some are excited, hoping for the best. Others are anxious, not sure of what would happen. Although many are wishing for a better new year, in reality, no one can really be sure. The only thing we can do is to stand on the promises of God. But which of the promises? And how do we stand on those promises?

Resurrection? Why talk about the resurrection at this time? It’s Christmas time, right? The reason why most of us are probably wondering is that we believe Christmas is just a holiday season. Because it’s just a holiday season, we expect food, fellowship, family reunions, festivities, and fun times. Nothing less, and nothing more. To talk about the resurrection seems out of sync with this general...