Monthly Archives: July 2026

The Philippine Church: The Lay of the Land. Echoes of Faithfulness, Seeds for the Future

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The following is the text of a talk I gave at the 2026 Biennial Conference for the Baptist Conference of the Philippines, 30 July 2026. There is a video version. A PDF version can be found at the end of this article.

1. Introduction

Good morning. My name is Dr. Michael Fast, and I’ve been asked to give the opening presentation for our sessions over the next two days: The State of the Philippine Church: The Lay of the Land – Echoes of Faithfulness, Seeds for the Future.

This morning I’d like us to zoom in together. We’ll begin with the Philippines as a whole. Then we’ll focus on evangelicals. Finally, we’ll look at our own family – the Baptist Conference of the Philippines.

2. Religion in the Philippines

I’d like to begin by looking at religion in the Philippines. The following statistics are drawn primarily from the Pew Research Center and Social Weather Stations.

Christianity continues to dominate religious life in the Philippines. Approximately 92% of Filipino adults identify as Christian, including Roman Catholics, Protestants, and members of other Christian traditions.

The Philippines is also home to the third-largest Roman Catholic population in the world, so it is no surprise that religion remains central to Filipino society.

According to Pew Research, 99% of Filipinos believe in God, and 79% pray every day. These are among the highest levels of religious belief and daily prayer measured anywhere in the world.

Faith also shapes public life. Eighty-two percent of Filipinos say that the Bible should have either a great deal or a fair amount of influence on the laws of the Philippines.

When biblical teaching and public opinion come into conflict, 63% of Protestants say that the Bible should have greater influence than the will of the people, while 49% of Roman Catholics say that the will of the people should prevail.

In practice, however, weekly worship attendance has declined over the past several decades. During the early 1990s, approximately 60% of Filipino adults attended weekly worship services. By 2017, that figure had declined to 46%. Among Roman Catholics, weekly attendance fell from 56% to approximately 40% over the same period.

Even so, personal devotion remains remarkably strong. Approximately 69% of Catholics pray every day, 93% reported attending an in-person worship service during the previous three months, and only 3% said they never attend religious services at all.

These statistics provide a broad picture of Christianity in the Philippines. At this point, I am not addressing other religious communities, such as Islam or Indigenous religions. Instead, I’d like us to narrow our focus.

3. Evangelicals in the Philippines

So, what about evangelicals?

Some of you may already be thinking,” Yes – but we’re not Roman Catholics. We’re evangelicals!”

That’s true. So, what does the state of the evangelical church in the Philippines look like?

According to Philippine Challenge (2018), the Philippines had a population of approximately 101 million people. Today, that figure is closer to 120 million.

The country has roughly 42,000 barangays. Just under half of them remain unreached, meaning there is no evangelical church present in those communities.

At that time there were approximately 65,000 evangelical churches, serving about 7.8 million evangelicals – roughly 7.8% of the population.

The average evangelical church had approximately 121 members.

We’ll return to that figure in a few moments.

So, we’ve moved from looking at the Philippine population as a whole to evangelicals. Now let’s narrow the focus even further.

4. How Large is the Baptist Conference of the Philippines?

What about the Baptist Conference of the Philippines (BCP)?

Here we find some interesting statistics.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), approximately 274,000 people identify themselves as members of the Baptist Conference of the Philippines.

These are self-identification statistics. In other words, when census workers ask,” What is your religion?” these individuals respond,” Baptist Conference of the Philippines.”

These figures differ somewhat from the membership statistics available through denominational sources.

The membership figures reported by the Baptist World Alliance and cited on Converge materials reflect data collected during the tenure of General Secretary Boy Alfafara. Those reports indicate approximately 35,000 members worshipping in 430 to 450 churches.

I’m not certain where those numbers stand today. Perhaps, as a result of this Biennial, we’ll have an even clearer statistical picture.

These two sources are measuring different things.

One measures identity – how people identify themselves.

The other measures church membership.

Taken together, however, they portray a denomination with broad national recognition, thousands of committed members, and a church-planting movement that has faithfully served communities across the Philippines for generations.

5. The State of the Local PHP Church

So, what about the local church?

We’ve moved from looking at the Philippines as a whole, to evangelicals, to the Baptist Conference of the Philippines. Now let’s consider our local churches.

When we think about churches, we often focus on numbers. We ask questions like: How many? How much? How large?

Sometimes we even assume that a healthy church is a large church, and a large church is a healthy church.

But the evidence suggests otherwise.

According to Philippine Challenge, the average evangelical church in the Philippines has approximately 121 members. Internationally, the average evangelical church often falls somewhere between 60 and 120 weekly attenders, depending on the country and denomination.

If our estimate of about 80 members per BCP church is reasonably accurate, then we are well within the range of what is typical for evangelical churches around the world.

In other words, our churches are not unusually small.

More importantly, church health cannot be measured by attendance alone.

Healthy churches are measured by something much deeper than size.

That brings us to an important transition.

Rather than continuing to focus on statistics, I’d like us to turn our attention to stories. Our Biennial theme, after all, is Harvest Echoes: Voices from the Field. So, what do these stories tell us about the health of the Philippine church?

I would suggest that they tell us something very encouraging: Filipino churches are healthy churches.

Why do I say that? Because, in my experience serving and visiting churches around the world, Filipino believers consistently strengthen and revitalize churches by faithfully practicing what I call the Four Marks of the Church.

First, Worship. We gather together to exalt God in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).

Second, the Word. We are shaped by God’s Word and by the gospel (2 Timothy 3:16–17).

Third, the Ordinances. Through baptism and the Lord’s Supper, we remember and proclaim the saving work of Christ (Matthew 28:19–20; 1 Corinthians 11:23–26).

Finally, Governance. The church is led through godly oversight, accountability, and spiritual discernment (Hebrews 13:17; Acts 20:28).

These four marks help form healthy churches. They prepare and equip the church so that we can then be scattered into the world as God’s people.

We’ll return to that idea later.

As we listen to the stories shared throughout this Biennial, I believe we’ll hear repeated evidence of churches faithfully living out these four marks.

Now, I know some of you may already be thinking, “But what about our weaknesses? What about the challenges we face?” Those are important questions. We’ll acknowledge them in due course. But before we talk about what we still lack, I think it’s important that we first recognize who God has already made us to be.

6. Transmission & Appropriation Framework

As we reflect on the stories we’ll hear throughout this Biennial, it’s helpful to step back and consider the larger story of the Baptist Conference of the Philippines.

When we look at the history of Christian mission—not only in the Philippines, but around the world—we often see a similar pattern unfolding.

I describe that pattern in three movements: Transmission. Appropriation. Participation.

Together, these describe the journey of the gospel within the Baptist Conference of the Philippines.

First, the gospel is received.

Then, the gospel becomes our own.

Finally, the gospel is shared with the world.

The first movement is Transmission.

This is the season in which the gospel is proclaimed by missionaries. Churches are planted. Scripture is taught. Leaders are trained. Bible translation, theological education, leadership development, and church planting all become part of establishing the church.

We’re honoured that Ma’am Joyce is with us today. She represents many missionaries who faithfully served the church in the Philippines over many decades. Their work laid important foundations upon which we continue to build today.

The second movement is Appropriation.

In many ways, this begins almost immediately. As Filipinos hear the gospel, they naturally begin asking, “How does this become our story?”

The question is no longer simply, “What have we received?” but “How do we faithfully embody the gospel within our own culture and communities?”

Years ago, while teaching in Vietnam, I asked a group of students how people in their country perceived Jesus. One student replied, “Jesus is a foreigner.”

I’ve often reflected on that conversation. I don’t believe most Filipinos think of Jesus as a foreigner. Rather, Filipino believers recognize that Christ identifies with them, speaks into their lives, and calls them within their own culture.

Appropriation is never a one-sided process. It involves dialogue between missionaries and Filipino believers. It involves learning from one another. It requires mutual respect.

At times, it also involves misunderstanding and tension. That is a normal part of every missionary movement. Yet through God’s grace, those tensions can give way to reconciliation, healing, and deeper partnership. The gospel becomes embodied through Filipino pastors, Indigenous expressions of worship, church planting, community transformation, and ongoing theological education.

The third movement is Participation.

Now the gospel is not merely received. It is shared. Filipinos become not only recipients of mission but participants in God’s global mission. Those who once received the gospel now become those who send others.

According to the Baptist World Alliance, the Baptist Conference of the Philippines has commissioned more than forty missionaries serving in various parts of the world. While I may not know every country where they serve, we know of ministry taking place in places such as Thailand, Cambodia, Japan, Canada, and the United States, along with many other contexts. Filipinos are planting churches internationally, serving immigrant communities, and participating in God’s mission far beyond the Philippines.

This Biennial also marks an important milestone. It is our first Biennial in this new era of participation. At our previous Biennial, Dr. Jenkins, representing Converge, formally recognized the Baptist Conference of the Philippines as a sister organization – an equal ministry partner, serving together in God’s global mission.

That recognition symbolizes something much larger. It reminds us that the Baptist Conference of the Philippines has matured from being primarily a mission field into becoming a missionary movement.

That is something worth celebrating.

7. Stories of Transmission by Early Missionaries

So, what does this look like in practice?

One way to answer that question is to look back at the stories of those who came before us.

As I worked through the missionary prayer letters preserved in the BTC Archives, I was struck by how familiar many of those stories felt. Some of the missionaries represented there are connected with families who are with us today—the Esplands, the Chalmers, the Osbrons, the Nelsons, and many others. Their names remind us that the story of the Baptist Conference of the Philippines has always been a shared story.

Those prayer letters tell stories of churches being planted, lives being transformed, and communities encountering the hope of the gospel.

Those are wonderful stories. They’re also our stories. Over the next two days, we’ll hear many similar testimonies from churches across the Philippines.

But those missionary letters tell another story as well. They speak honestly about struggle. They describe cultural misunderstandings, natural disasters, disappointments in ministry, conflict within churches, and seasons when hearts were not yet ready for what God was doing.

Those are our stories too.

Every generation of God’s people experiences both joy and difficulty. Yet despite those challenges, the missionaries left an extraordinary legacy. They helped establish churches. They invested in leadership development. They modelled partnership. And perhaps most importantly, they helped nurture a movement that became increasingly Filipino-led, Filipino-governed, and Filipino-supported, while continuing to enjoy healthy international partnerships.

That is a remarkable testimony to God’s faithfulness.

8. Appropriation In the Baptist Conference of the Philippines

Our work of appropriation did not end with the first generation. It continues today. The gospel continues to take deeper root as Filipino churches faithfully live out their calling within their own communities.

I see at least five enduring expressions of that legacy.

Church planting continues to be one of the defining strengths of the Baptist Conference of the Philippines. SEATS, where I serve as Academic Dean, has partnered with districts and local churches for many years. Through these partnerships, participating churches have developed intentional church-planting strategies. In that one sub-district alone, the number of churches doubled as a result of that initiative. That is only one example among many. Throughout the Baptist Conference of the Philippines, God continues to raise up new churches.

Leadership development also remains central. Baptist Theological College continues preparing pastors, teachers, and Christian leaders for ministry across the Philippines. BTC extends theological education through modular and distance-learning programs, making training accessible to pastors serving throughout the country. Local churches continue identifying and developing leaders from among their own members.

Together, these ministries demonstrate that leadership development remains one of the great strengths of our movement.

The gospel is also demonstrated through compassionate ministry during crises. BCP churches faithfully respond to typhoons, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and other crises. Relief ministries have increasingly developed into long-term community ministries, showing that compassion is not merely an emergency response but an ongoing expression of the love of Christ.

Leadership multiplication continues at every level. Many pastors are trained within their local churches, while seminars, mentoring relationships, and ministry training continue to equip believers for service. Older and younger generations serve together, ensuring that leadership is reproduced from one generation to the next.

Finally, our movement continues to value partnership. Di naman tayo madamot sa ating faith. Training opportunities are often shared with churches beyond the Baptist Conference of the Philippines. Relationships across denominations strengthen the witness of the gospel throughout the nation. The gospel is never diminished by partnership. It is multiplied.

9. Filipinos by Nature: Redefining what it means to be Religious, Relation, Restorative, and Present.

As we think about the future, I believe God has uniquely prepared Filipino believers for ministry. The gospel has not simply been translated into Filipino culture. It has been deeply appropriated. I see this reflected in four cultural strengths that continue to shape the health of the Philippine church.

First, maka-Diyos. Filipinos have a deep desire to live in right relationship with God. Maka-Diyos is much richer than simply being religious. It is more than attending church. More than believing certain doctrines. More than following moral principles. It reflects a holistic orientation toward God that is expressed through loving one’s family, caring for one’s neighbour, and faithfully serving the Lord.

Second, kapwa. Mission grows naturally from a shared identity. Kapwa reminds us that we are not isolated individuals. We belong to one another. Relationships matter more than transactions. We are called to care, to share, and to stand together. Because of this, compassion and mission often flow naturally within Filipino communities.

Third, pagbabalik-loob. A return to our authentic self. The gospel restores what sin has broken. Filipino culture places great value on restoring relationships, and this resonates deeply with the biblical story. Genesis reminds us that humanity was created in God’s image, living in harmony with God, one another, and creation. Through Christ, God begins restoring that wholeness. The church becomes a community where reconciliation is not merely preached – it is practiced.

Finally, kairos. We often joke about “Filipino time.” Yet beneath those jokes lies a deeper cultural insight. Filipinos often live with an awareness that not every important moment can be scheduled. Alongside Chronos – clock time – we also recognize Kairos – God’s appointed time or ang takdang panahon. Chronos teaches planning, organization, and stewardship. Kairos teaches discernment, presence, and responsiveness to the Holy Spirit. Healthy ministry requires both. Planning without discernment becomes mechanical. Discernment without planning becomes ineffective. The healthiest churches learn to hold both together.

How does each of these redefine church?

Maka-Diyos defines how to have a Holistic relationship with God. This is a deeper, more holistic understanding of God and our lives. It flows from love of family, neighbour, and faithful obedience to God.

Kapwa defines how mission grows from shared identity. This is one reason why mission is so important to Philippine churches. We naturally reach out because we see others as fellow persons, not strangers.

Pagbabalik-loob defines reconciliation restores relationships. This emphasizes the relational aspect of culture and connects it with God—He is not a stranger, but we are reconciled to Him.

Chronos and Kairos times define how planning meets discernment. We balance careful planning (Chronos) with sensitivity to God’s leading (Kairos). This allows Philippine ministry to be both intentional and responsive.

So where do we go from here?

10. The Way Forward

Why does the Philippine church matter—not only to the Philippines, but to the world? I believe there are several reasons.

First, the Philippines is a growing nation. By the middle of this century, the Philippines is expected to be one of the countries contributing most significantly to global population growth.

Second, Filipinos are a global people. More than 10 million Filipinos live and work outside the Philippines, forming one of the largest diaspora communities in the world. That means the Philippine church is already present in nearly every region of the globe.

Third, Filipinos are becoming a global missionary force. Whether serving as pastors, professionals, overseas workers, or students, Filipino believers are faithfully bearing witness to Christ wherever God has placed them. We’ve seen this throughout the Middle East, across Asia, in Europe, in North America, and in many other parts of the world.

In Canada, for example, Filipino believers have played a significant role in revitalizing existing churches and planting new ones. As Pastor June Torres has observed, among BGC Canada churches, Filipino congregations are among those most consistently planting and sustaining new churches. Those are remarkable gifts that God has entrusted to us.

The question is: Ano ba pang pangangailangan natin para sa kinabukasan? [What do we need for the future?]

11. Functional Church Scorecard

We need to begin by looking Beyond the Four Walls of the church. Perhaps one of the greatest opportunities before us is to remember that the church exists for more than what happens on Sunday morning. Sunday worship is essential. But worship also prepares us to be sent into the world.

Rather than asking only, “How large is our church?” or “How many people attended?” perhaps we should also ask, “Is our church faithfully fulfilling God’s purposes in our community?” That question changes everything.

A healthy church is not simply one that gathers well. It is a church that is faithfully scattered.

We are called to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ. We are called to reveal the joys of God’s Kingdom. We are called to demonstrate God’s love through mercy, relief, rehabilitation, community development, and compassionate service. And we are called to speak prophetically into society with biblical truth, humility, and courage. Those are the functions of a church living faithfully in God’s mission.

12. Reflections for this Week

That brings us to a very personal question: “Where does my story begin?”

Throughout these next two days, you’ll hear many stories – stories of faithfulness, sacrifice, perseverance, and hope. Listen carefully. Listen for what God has done. Listen for what God is doing. And perhaps most importantly, listen for what God may be saying to you.

As you listen, reflect on the story God is writing in your own church. Where have you seen His faithfulness? Where is He calling you to grow? What new chapter might He be inviting you to write?

Because today’s reflections become tomorrow’s harvest. The stories we celebrate during this Biennial are not the conclusion of God’s work. They are an invitation to participate in what He is doing next. May God give us ears to hear, hearts to respond, and the courage to write the next chapter of the Baptist Conference of the Philippines together.

Thank you.

Good morning. Magandang umaga, and may God bless us all.

13. References

Bakhtin, M. M. (1981). The dialogical imagination (M. Holquist, Ed.; C. Emerson & M. Holquist, Trans.). University of Texas Press.

Bakhtin, M. M. (1984). Problems of Dostoevsky’s poetics (C. Emerson, Ed. & Trans.). University of Minnesota Press.

Bakhtin, M. M. (1986). Speech genres and other late essays (V. W. McGee, Trans.). University of Texas Press.

Baptist World Alliance. (n.d.). Baptist Conference of the Philippines, Inc. Retrieved June 24, 2026, from https://baptistworld.org/member/baptist-conference-of-the-philippines-inc/

Chalmers, G. W. (1969, November 22). Tell it like it is… [Missionary prayer letter from Cataingan, Masbate, Philippines]. Board of Foreign Missions, Baptist General Conference.

Chalmers, G. W. (1985, July). Turning from Fear [Missionary prayer letter from Calbayog City, Western Samar, Philippines]. World Missions, Baptist General Conference.

de Mesa, J. M. (1988). Re-thinking the faith with indigenous categories. Inter-Religio, 13(Summer), 18-29.

de Mesa, J. M. (2003). Why theology is never far from home. De La Salle University Press.

de Mesa, J. M. (2004). Mga aral sa daan: Dulog at paraang kultural sa kristolohiya. De La Salle University Press.

Espland, H. W. (n.d., May 22). Day of Rejoicing [Missionary prayer letter from Tagbilaran, Bohol, Philippines]. World Missions, Baptist General Conference.

Espland, H. W. (1982, July 10). Dear Prayer Partners [Missionary prayer letter from Tagbilaran, Bohol, Philippines]. World Missions, Baptist General Conference.

Evans, J., & Lesage, K. (2026, June 30). 5 facts about religion in the Philippines. Spring 2024 Global Attitudes Survey, PEW Research Center. Retrieved July 24, 2026, from https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2026/06/30/5-facts-about-religion-in-the-philippines/

Pew Research Center (2011). Global Christianity: A report on the size and distribution of the World’s Christian Population. https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2011/12/Christianity-fullreport-web.pdf

Maggay, M. P. (2013). A religion of guilt encounters a religion of power: Missiological implications and consequences. In M. P. Maggay (Ed.), The gospel in culture: Contextualization through Asian eyes. OMF Literature Inc.

Marshall, A. (2014). Bayanihan and belonging: Filipinos in Manitoba. Manitoba History, 76, 2-12.

Marshall, A. (2015). Stories of bayanihan and belonging: Filipinos in Manitoba, Part 2. Manitoba History, 77, 2-12.

Nelson, R. K. (1968, December 9). Typhoon Sinyang correspondence [Missionary prayer letter from San Remigio, Cebu, Philippines]. Board of Foreign Missions, Baptist General Conference.

Osbron, J. (1981, December 28). Dear friends: The taming of Mike Escalante [Missionary prayer letter from Bacolod City, Negros Occidental, Philippines]. World Missions, Baptist General Conference.

Philippine Statistics Authority. (2020). Household Population by Religious Affiliation, Region, Province, and Highly Urbanized City: Philippines, 2020. 2020 Census of Population and Housing.

van Engen, C. (1991). God’s missionary people: Rethinking the purpose of the local church. Baker Academic.

Varberg, R. (2009). Why didn’t you come sooner? Stories from My Life as a Missionary in the Philippines. William Carey Library.

Vencer, A. B. (2004). Towards a functional church in society. DNA Discipling a Whole Nation, n.p.

Vencer, A., Punzalan, C. V. P. III, & Fast, M. J. (Eds.). (2020). The functional church (Faculty Working Paper, Discipling a Whole Nation). South East Asian Theological Schools, Inc.

Walls, A. F. (2002). The cross-cultural process in Christian history: Studies in the transmission and appropriation of faith. Orbis Books.

Zurlo, G. A. (2026). How many evangelicals in the world? A new assessment from the World Christian Database. Review of Religious Research. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/0034673X261447046

Fast – 2026 – The Philippine Church- The Lay of the Land Echoes of Faithfulness, Seeds for the FutureDownload

Just Talking To Me

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Tight?
Stiff?
Churning? Not so much. 

Something is definitely going on. 
It’s not something I ate. I had a normal breakfast this morning. Had my coffee, did whatever I need to do. 
But yet still, my stomach is making itself known. 

It’s interesting how our brain is connected to our stomach, isn’t it? Not so much to tell us when we’re hungry, but…

I suspect it’s stress. 
Pressures from work. 
Lists of things to do. 
Reports to fill out at the beginning of the year — even though we’re already in the end of the first quarter. 

It’s been busy. Lots of guests. 
It’s been wonderful. Lots of guests. 
But not a lot of time to do the administrative work that I need to do. 

So today,

Tight. 
Stiff. 
Churning? Not so much. 

But …

Maybe it’s more than that. 

Maybe it’s my upcoming doctor’s visit. Not too serious. I don’t think. A ‘plumbing’ issue — But not, seemingly, something a plumber can fix or I’d go see a plumber. Probably cost the same. I don’t live in a universal healthcare country so it’s pay as you go. 

Don’t think a plumber could help me. 

But a urologist definitely can. 

Nervous? Perhaps. 
Wondering? Perhaps. 

My mind doesn’t seem too distressed, although in the back of it is my high school classmate, Isaac, who’s spent the last month in the hospital, dealing with a serious health issue. 

I just turned 59. And apparently with that age comes a whole host of things that never seemed to bother me before. 

I saw kids running in the street today …
Carrying heavy stuff.
Going along as if there’s no tomorrow. 
Energy. 
Exuberance.
Joy. 

None of the worries of the life ahead have reached them, yet. 

Me …

I don’t run down the street carrying my garbage. 
I carry it carefully, so the bag doesn’t break, hoping that by the time I get to the end of my street, I’m not huffing and puffing too much. 

It’s interesting how ‘athletics’ happen in our life. 
They happen when we’re younger. I was a track star after all. The fastest in any of the schools that I attended. 
Haven’t done that for a while. Turns out those schools were High Schools!

But yet it seems that athletics needs to reenter my life. 

I need to return to a love of …
running … ?
jogging … ?
walking … ?
pedalling … ?

Something. 

Because without that, I won’t be prepared to enter the next phase of my life. 

And maybe with that, will come an ease to 
the tightness …
the stiffness … 
the churning. 

Is my stomach letting me know things need to change?

My stomach talks to me a lot. In fact that’s one of the ways I know if I’m making the right or wrong decision.

My stomach’s never wrong. 
It talks to me all the time. 
‘You don’t want to go tree planting? Well, I think that you need to!’
‘You don’t know if you love her or not? Well I think that you do!’
‘You don’t want to be vulnerable worshipping with strangers? Well I think that you need to!’
Always talking.
Always right.

How does my stomach know when my brain doesn’t?

So, what if my stomach isn’t telling me about my stress level or my upcoming checkup?
What if it’s trying to help me make a decision?
What is it? I wonder.

Stand up? Sit down?
Enter? Do not enter? 
Go faster? Go slower? 
Stop doing this? Start doing that?

Tight?
Stiff?
Churning? Not so much. 

Just talking to me. 

I wrote the first draft of this spoken-word poem on March 11, 2026, shortly after one of my first check ups. It turns out it wasn’t just a plumbing issue. You can read more about that here.

Photo is mine.

Jesus, the only real hope for the future of Canada & the World

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At the Baptist General Conference of Canada’s Celebration 2024, I made the statement — in the context of challenging Canadian churches and church leaders to reach out to their neighbours —

“There is no ultimate Canadian. But if there were, it would be Jesus!”

Of course, the quintessential Canadian does not exist. People have been trying to define what a Canadian is for generations but all definitions seem to come up short.

Perhaps the best explanation for our inability to do so comes from Pierre Elliott Trudeau who made the statement:

“What could be more absurd than the concept of an ‘all-Canadian’ boy or girl? A society which emphasizes uniformity is one which creates intolerance and hate. A society which eulogizes the average citizen is one which breeds mediocrity. What the world should be seeking, and what in Canada we must continue to cherish, are not concepts of uniformity but human values: compassion, love, and understanding.”

This Canada Day, let’s talk about Jesus as the only real hope for the future of Canada & the World.

Jesus Identifies as the Great “I AM”

Exodus 3:13-14 — “Then Moses replied to God, ‘Suppose I go to the people of Israel and say to them, “The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,” and they ask me, “What is his name?” What should I tell them?’ “God answered Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM.’”

Guess what? Jesus himself also used this same name to describe himself. We see this in John 8:12, 18, 24, 28, and 58. We know that that is exactly what Jesus was claiming because immediately after Jesus makes this statement they want to try to stone him to death for blasphemy.

Why is this important to Canada? Since the Scripture elsewhere describes Jesus as the light of the world and the King of kings, it makes sense that included within the world, and the other kings, is every other nation that has existed, exists today, and will exist in the future. If we’re looking for true leadership, if we’re looking for a true representation of what it means to live out the life of a citizen of our nations, we need to look no further than Jesus Christ. Jesus is the only real hope for the future of Canada and the world.

Jesus Knows When to Arrive — At Just the Right Time

The Bible is clear that Jesus arrival to the Earth was at exactly the right time. There are two ways we can look at time. One of them is Kronos time which is time as it flows from one minute to the next, from one hour to the next, from one day to the next, from one week to the next, from one year to the next, and so on. It flows inexorably towards the end. But there’s also a different kind of time that’s spoken of in the Bible and that is Kairos time. This means the right time.

Where this plays out in the Philippines is that I promise that I’m going to go to your birthday party and you’ve invited me several times and I’ve said, “Yes I’ll be there.” But then just as I’m about to leave for your birthday party, one of my relatives from the province arrives at my house and I need to entertain them. My plan to go to your birthday party is Kronos time. My plan to entertain my all-of-a-sudden houseguest is Kairos time.

Romans 5:6-8 — “When the time was right, while we were still weak human beings following our bad hearts and broken ways, the Chosen One died for us.”

2 Corinthians 6:2 — “At the right time I heard your cry…”

Galatians 4:4 — “But when the time was right, Creator sent his Son…”

Just as Jesus came at the right time for the people living in first century Palestine, living under the thumb of the Roman empire, Jesus also came for those who live today in Canada. Right from the beginning, it was God’s plan for the entire world to be saved. Jesus himself testifies to this in John 3:16-17, when he converses with Nicodemus in the middle of the night and he clarifies to Nicodemus that God sent his son to the entire world because of his love for that entire world. Guess what that world includes Canada!

Canada Needs Jesus

That means, as we extrapolate from Jesus, statement of God’s love for the world to our existence today that Canada needs Jesus just as much as the first century Palestinians needed Jesus. 

Canada needs Jesus because we as Canadians are enslaved by sin. Humanity was created with original righteousness, which then became slavery to sin after the incident in the Garden of Eden. This action affected all of Adam and Eve’s descendants — including present-day Canadians — their cultures, and even the physical world around them [I have written about that here]

Humanity’s story is one of repeated rebellion. From Adam and Eve to Noah, from Abraham’s family to Israel’s kings, Scripture records God’s faithfulness alongside humanity’s repeated failure. Canada is not unique in this respect. Like every nation, we need a Saviour.

It doesn’t get much better in the New Testament. Everyone trying to get it right whether it’s Jesus’ disciples, or the early churches — in whatever city you would like to choose. 

Canadians aren’t much better. In fact, in a recent survey, Evangelicalism was sometimes perceived to be more damaging than beneficial. Coupled with that is the church’s active participation in the Indian Residential School System and implications for us today. And looking inside the church itself we face questions such as How do we hang on to the next generation?

Christ Is the Quintessential Human

Oxford defines quintessential as: “representing the most perfect or typical example of a quality or class.”

the Scriptures are pretty clear that Jesus is a representative of humanity. This is clearly discussed in Paul’s epistle to the Romans. In chapter 5, he talks about these two atoms. He talks about Adam from the garden of Eden as being the first atom. And it’s because of this atom that sin came into the world and that laid to everyone having to die. Because while we were in Adam, we send. But then we also read about the second ad which is Christ. And it’s this Christ that brings salvation to the world — “If humanity died as the result of one person’s failure it is certainly true that God’s kindness and the gift given to the kindness of one person Jesus Christ have been showered on humanity.”

The first Adam represented humanity in the fall into slavery to sin and the second Adam, or Christ, represents humanity in their freedom from that slavery and their restoration back into a right relationship with God.

In some ways, this may be even saying that there are two quintessential humans both of them, Adams in somewhere and other. Adam being the first Representative of humanity at Christ being the second Representative of humanity, but the one who transforms that humanity into a redeemed and saved humanity.

As the Quintessential Human, Jesus Connects with Every Culture

If it’s indeed true that Jesus is the quintessential human that means that Jesus, as that quintessential human has something to say to every culture of the world. This means that just as Christ was able to enter the world of the Jewish man in the first century so too Christ can enter the world of the twenty-first century Canadian human. To be a representative of this quintessential person—to be the second Adam for us as Canadians.

And of course, this applies to every other culture of the world as well—

Filipino,

Vietnamese,

Georgian,

Russian,

Ukrainian,

Kurdish,

Azerbaijani,

and Iranian.

Jesus Clearly Connects the Here and Now with the Not Yet

If Jesus, as the quintessential human, can connect with every culture of the world, that means that he actively connect the hero now with the not yet. Philippians chapter 2 famously speaks about Jesus, leaving his life as a rumour of the universe, taking the form of the servant becoming obedient and showing us what it’s like to be a true human. But in that action, he also connects this world with the world to come.

When I was growing up, my primary understanding of salvation was, will I go to heaven when I die or will I go to hell? It was a primarily future post death scenario. I didn’t expect to experience the joys of salvation until after I had died.

The reality is that Salvation isn’t just something to wait for until after we die. In John 8:1–11, Jesus meets the accusers and the woman where they are and tries to connect them to the gospel through the things that he says. He encourages the accusers to reflect upon their own lives and sinfulness. He encourages the woman by reminding her that she no longer needs to be a slave to sin, but that she can find a new way of living.

In John 9:1–12, people assume the man is blind because of personal sin. Jesus says that’s not the way to look at this man’s problems. Rather blindness serves as a reminder that we too may be blind but it’s OK for us to approach the light of the world who can illuminate us and who can give us sight.

How can we move beyond the question “If you were to die tonight, do you know where you would go?” because I would suspect that this is no longer the primary relevant question for Canadians. People are more concerned about daily needs. How can the church move beyond merely presenting hope for the future by providing hope in the here and now?

A question instead is what does Jesus offer to Canadians in the hero now even as we wait for the not yet?

Jesus Offers Illumination

If Jesus is the quintessential human can connect with every culture of the world, and if he can connect the here and now with not yet, it also reveals that Jesus can offer illumination for us to see the path we must follow in our life. This illumination is not nearly offered to those who are Jesus followers. It’s also an offer that Jesus himself makes to everyone in the world who is seeking illumination. Who is seeking enlightenment. Who is seeking direction for the path set before them.

In John 8:12, Jesus says, “I AM the light shining on this dark world. The ones who walk with me will not stumble in the darkness but will have the light that gives them life.”

I think it’s significant that here is one of the instances in the New Testament when Jesus directly identifies himself with Yahweh, the God of the people of Israel, who first revealed himself by this name when he offered to freedom from Egypt. When Jesus said those words, I am, he was signalling to his listeners that that God of salvation from your history is here with you today and is offering you salvation here and now.

In the context of Canada, it leads us to ask some questions: 

How does Jesus illuminate Canada?

Is the church illuminating Canada too?

Does the church live out the values of the kingdom?

What happens if the church hasn’t been successful? Can reconciliation happen?

Jesus Speaks Truth in Culturally Relevant Ways

If Jesus is the quintessential human, if Jesus can connect with every culture in the world, if Jesus can connect the hear and now with the not yet, and if he offers illumination to the world, that means he also speaks truth in culturally relevant ways. Is able to take this universal truth and reality that God loves the world and to distil that down into ways that understandable applicable, relevant in each culture of the world.

John 8:17–18 — “Your tribal law tells you it takes the word of two people to know the truth. So then, I speak for MYSELF, and the Father speaks for me also.”

John 8:28–29 — “When you lift up the True Human Being on the cross, then you will know that I AM who I say I am…”

I’m sure Jesus could see his listeners getting agitated as he kept referring to himself with that name I am. But Jesus continues with that because he knows that those that that name is culturally significant to his listeners. He wants to get his message across. He wants to speak as the one with ultimate authority into the lives of those people living in Palestine in those early days. So we continue using this name I am. Of course we know that it’s true. We know that Jesus himself is the great I am.

Which leads to the next questions on Canada Day: 

How do Canadians determine the truth?

What truth does Jesus represent?

Does the church understand how to determine the truth?

For example, in the Philippines we:

  • Consult the Bible.
  • Negotiate with family.
  • Ask advice from experts.
  • Follow the teachings of various religious congregations.
  • Reflect on matters and draw our own conclusions.

Is this the same process that Canadians would follow or would there be something different from this? What’s clear is that determining truth is not always the easiest thing to do is it?

Jesus Says He Is the Only Option

If all the previous things are true. If Jesus is the quintessential human, if Jesus can connect with every culture in the world, if Jesus can connect the here and now with the not yet, if Jesus offers illumination to the world, and if Jesus speaks the truth and culturally relevant ways, that means that Jesus is pretty unique. Jesus stands alone. Jesus stands apart from all of the other people saying they have the answer.

And Canadians are looking for the answers aren’t they? In some ways there’s a vast divide perhaps not even one divide but several divides as people think about the best path forward for Canada. What’s the best way is it to look back at some of the values we remember from when we are child and try to return to those? Is it to question everything that we’ve experienced in the past to see the injustice that have happened and so come up with a new path moving forward? Is it a combination of the two? Is it something completely different? It’s complex isn’t it?

Jesus understood the complexity of this and embrace it. His claim was that he was the only option. We see this in John 8:23–24 — “You are from below and belong to the ways of this world. I am from above…”

That’s a rather cryptic way of him saying I’m the one you people need.

And this touches on a truth that we see through the whole length breath and depth of scripture. That is that the Gospel is political. God wants no rivals. He wants to be the one to rule. And that’s not because of some ego trip that God is on. No it simply because he rules with love he has our best interest at heart. He doesn’t want to condemn us, but wants to save us. Therefore, he is the only logical choice for who we want to rule our lives, our nation, and the physical world around us.

More questions than answers:

How does Jesus serve as the way for Canadians?

Does the church point a clear way to that Jesus?

Jesus Says He Is Ultimate Reality

In John 8:58, Jesus States is true identity in a way that was immediately understood by those who were listening to him, and in a way that clearly declared who he was claiming to be. His statement “I was there before Father of Many Nations was born—for I AM” so infuriated his listeners that they wanted to kill him because Jesus was claiming to be ultimate reality. His earlier uses of the phrase I am were just circling around the concept without coming out and stating explicitly who he felt he was.

There is no ultimate Canadian.

But if there were, it would be Jesus.

Questions for the Canadian Church

Why did God rescue Israel from Egypt? Exodus 2:23–25 gives us the exact reason — “After a long time passed, the king of Egypt died. The Israelites still groaned because they were slaves. So they cried out, and their cries for help went up to God. God heard their groaning, and he remembered his promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God saw the Israelites being oppressed and was concerned about them.”

Did you noticed those four concepts? God heard their calls for help, God remembered his promises, God saw the oppression, and God was concerned about them. 

I think we can say the same thing about Canada. God hears, God remembers his promise, God sees oppression, and God is concerned about Canadians.

How does Jesus exemplify this for Canada?

What is Jesus hearing from Canadians?

What is Jesus remembering about his promises to Canadians?

What oppression does Jesus see in Canada?

What is Jesus concerned about for Canadians?

How do we—as Christ’s body—exemplify this for Canada?

For some reason, God and his wisdom shows humans to be the messengers, bearing the good news of Jesus Christ as a ruler, two live out and teach the values of his kingdom, to love him, and love their neighbors, and to testify to the truth. That means these actions of God in hearing, remembering, seeing, and being concerned are also our actions towards the world around us.

What are we hearing from Canadians?

What are we remembering about Jesus’ promises to Canadians?

What oppression are we seeing in Canada?

What are we concerned about for Canadians?

The Right Choice for Reaching Canada

At the end of all of this, we are forced to make a choice about who we think Jesus is. After Jesus made his claim to be the great I am the people listening to him had two choices. One choice was to pick up rocks and start throwing them at him. The other choice was to submit to him as the great I am.

I always love Mark 8 where Jesus conducts a poll among his disciples as to who they think he is. I don’t think Jesus was surprised by any of their answers, so perhaps he’s asking the question so that it’s a catalyst for their them to think about it.

Here is the account from Mark 8:29–30:

“‘But who do you say I am?’ he asked.

‘You are the Chosen One!’ Peter answered.”

From this point on we see something different in scripture I think. Whereas prior to this Jesus was always saying don’t tell a whole lot of people about what’s going on. But after this, he no longer warns them to be silent. In fact, he commands them to be noisy!

Acts 1:8 “Instead, set your hearts and minds on the Holy Spirit, who will give you strong medicine when he comes. You will then tell my story in Village of Peace, in all the Land of Promise and High Place, and then to the farthest parts of the earth—to all languages, tribes, and nations.”

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is not a line of identity but a line of how far the good news extends. Can we say the message Jesus brings is good news for Canadians or not? Does Jesus have something to say to twenty-first-century Canadian lives? If Jesus brought God’s presence into a first-century Jewish community; If Jesus drew near to those in first-century Jewish society who were on the fringes; If Jesus was able to show his humility in a way that was understandable to first-century Jewish society; And if Jesus was able to proclaim good news to first-century Jewish society; 

That means that we can be God’s presence in twenty-first-century Canadian society. That means that we too can draw near to those in twenty-first-century Canadian society who are far from him. We too can show humility in twenty-first-century Canadian society. We too can proclaim good news in ways understandable to twenty-first-century Canadian society.

As a flawed human who is a slave to sin, I cannot be all that is needed for Canadians or any other national churches. I need to look to Jesus for that because only Jesus can truly be a human in any of these contexts.

So, when I say that Jesus is the quintessential Canadian, this is what I’m talking about: Jesus has a voice that Canadians need to hear today.

The one who is the Ultimate Reality is also the one who emptied himself. This is why Jesus can make himself known, be present, be powerless, and proclaim the good news in a way that is understandable to Canadians.

Photo by Hermes Rivera on Unsplash