Talk

BRO. TONY VALENZUELA:

We are in Talk 4 of our series, No Longer Strangers. We’re going to go through the second half of St. Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians: Ephesians 4-6.

From receiving God’s grace,

Paul is telling us what to do now. What is next? How do we live this out? How do we live our identity?

To give a title to each part:

Part one is The Calling. We’re all called. You’re called by Jesus to be son or daughter of God.

Part 2 is telling us how to walk as sons and daughters of God.

How do we live the life of being a Christian? It’s not easy being a follower of Jesus– but it is not impossible.

We dive into God’s Word as we raise our hands…

Thy Word is a Lamp unto my feet And a Light unto my path.

What Brings Us Together

Let’s read Ephesians 4:4-8, 11-13:

1 I, then, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, 3 striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace: 4 one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all. 7 But grace was given to each of us according to the measure of Christ’s gift. 8 Therefore, it says: “He ascended on high and took prisoners captive; he gave gifts to men.” 9 What does “he ascended” mean except that he also descended into the lower [regions] of the earth? 10 The one who descended is also the one who ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things. 11 And he gave some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers, 12 to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the extent of the full stature of Christ.

We’re meant to mature. We’re meant to grow. We’re meant to be one. We’re meant to be whole. But that can only be achieved by loving, serving, and obeying Jesus Christ. He is the center. He is the highest. He is the apex. He is the whole. He is what brings all things together.

God is love.

Grace Is Free

Grace is undeserved. It is given freely.

I have a little story to share. It’s about a young boy who happens to be the eldest child.

I can relate to this story because I’m the eldest. Usually, the eldest is the one next in line when it comes to the duties and responsibilities.

In this story, after the boy was done with his chores, he approached his mom and he handed to her a list of payments>

The mom, smiling at him, took the paper, read it, then wrote on the back of the paper>

When the eldest read it again, he tore his piece of paper, as he realized that his mom loves him for free.

Sometimes, whoever is at the receiving end is the most demanding. When we truly understand what God has done and continues to do for us, we cannot help responding out of gratitude.

That is our one big message for today: Without sacrifice, there is no real unity.

But real unity came with a cost.

That is why St. Paul is telling us that our identity in Christ is what gives us that real unity, that oneness.

Christ came and died for a cause so that we could have this unity.

Two Messages

 Message One: Spiritual Change

Will Be Manifested in Your Relationships      

                                                                            

Spiritual change is not easy. It takes time. Sometimes, God takes time because He is working in you. God is doing something wonderful behind the scenes.

Spiritual change takes time, but it’s supposed to manifest not just when you come to The Feast, not just when you come and worship. It’s supposed to manifest in your relationships.

Real talk: Even preachers struggle with this. We may be onstage preaching, but there’s always a challenge for us when it comes to the home, kids, wives, spouses, and parents.

So, Paul tells us: “Live and walk worthy of the calling with which you were called as a follower of Jesus.”

We’re all unworthy. But by grace, God calls us and makes us worthy. We don’t walk worthily with God to be loved and blessed because we are already loved and blessed. But do you accept that? Do you embrace that?

I believe you are here today because you heard God’s calling. It’s not just because we invited you here– but God called you by His grace, and that makes you worthy of being here.

But even when you’re not here, but you choose to see God in your life, He makes you worthy.

That was my fault in the past. I thought that if I went to Mass every day, if I went to Confession every week, if I read the Bible every night, I would be holier than others. I would be closer to God.

But how wrong I was! I was already judging others.

How To Walk Worthily with God

So, how do we walk worthily with God? St. Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:2-3:

This verse has many adjectives and values.

I’ll share with you three ways…

1. Walking worthily with God is marked by humility and gentleness.

Humility may also be called lowliness– which means you’re thinking of others first before yourself. Even when you’re on the losing end of the argument, you’re willing to let go.

Bro. Bo Sanchez said something that really struck me: “It is better to be loving than it is to be right.”

Even if you believe that you’re 10% wrong and 90% correct, you’re willing to sacrifice your pride and ego so that the relationship will survive. If it’s going to compromise the relationship, is your being right worth it?

Remember that our purpose in serving others is not to prove that we’re right or perfect. We’re not perfect.

Humility says: “Hey, I’m willing to let go of my ego and pride so I can love you more. I’m willing to sacrifice for you so we can have unity in our relationship.”

2.   Walking worthily with God is marked by long-suffering and compassion.

Long-suffering means having the patience that endures pain, frustration, and difficulty– without giving up or becoming bitter.

Some priests would say in jest that there are three kinds of rings. The first one is engagement ring. The second is marriage ring. The third is suffering.

But I believe that there’s a fourth one which is stronger and better than the first three. It’s called enduring. Our relationship with God is just like that. It is suffering, and because of that, it’s enduring.

St. John Chrysostom says that long-suffering is the character that, even if you have the power to take revenge, you will not do it. Even when you know that you can get even against the person who hurt you, you will not take revenge because you’re willing to suffer long– so that your relationship will grow.

The second word is compassion. I love talking about compassion because I believe that

I’m a passionate person when it comes to serving and loving life. But when you say compassion, it connotes two words. It means to suffer and endure. So, it’s not just enough that you’re able to suffer long– but you’re able to suffer with others. Don’t just experience long-suffering.

Suffer with others because you’re meant to also carry the cross that others are carrying.

You must die to your selfishness so that others may live. Choose others first before yourself.

We dive into God’s Word as we raise our hands…

Thy Word is a Lamp unto my feet And a Light unto my path.

3.Walking worthily with God is walking with unity and peace.

Do you have peace right now? Even if you’re not at peace, God wants to meet you there. That’s what’s powerful about God’s grace. He will meet you where you are. He desires to give you peace. It is not enough that God meets you where you are.

He wants to lift you where He is. As Ephesians 4:2 puts it:

So, you strive to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace– which can only be given because of Jesus. We don’t just receive what God gives. We strive and we aspire to what God calls us to become.

Striving means hard work. Maybe some of us don’t want to go that extra mile.

I used to be that way. I used to be that kind of person who would just attend Mass and receive blessings.

But when you keep on receiving blessings, you’ll come to a point where God’s love is so overflowing that you can’t help exploding.

Do you know that feeling? You want to explode in serving, obeying, and making things happen– because God calls you to make things happen for His Kingdom.

Without sacrifice, there is no real unity. You’re willing to take that extra mile

Peace is not just silence. It is not just absence of war or chaos. Peace can happen in you even in the middle of the storm.

For example: I was driving home yesterday. Flocks of people were going to the cemetery. Some roads were closed. The traffic was so stressful.

But then I said to myself: “Breathe in. Breathe out.”

That traffic was for a purpose. So that people will enjoy being with their loved ones. At the same time, I was safe because I was in no hurry.

When you realize that God blesses you for a reason, you have peace.

You will realize that it is beyond you that God blesses you.

When God blesses a person, it is always to bless a people, to bless those around you, to bless the Church, to bless the country. Because God’s covenant is not just for an individual, but it’s for the entire Creation.

Let’s say you’ve got that love life or that promotion you’ve been praying for. It has a ripple effect that blesses others. When you’re blessed, you’re happy. That happiness is meant to be shared with others.So, when God blesses you, His endgame is that others are ultimately blessed through you. When you want to bless others, God sees that– and He will bless you because great relationships can only happen with great sacrifice.

I believe that at one point, we all want to make that sacrifice so that the relationship survives. At the end of the day, real spiritual growth is not just seen when you worship or when you come to The Feast– rather, it is manifested especially in your relationships.

Who are you when you go home? Who are you that people don’t see when in your relationships?

BRO. AUDEE VILLARAZA:

Message Two: Spiritual Change Will Be Manifested in Your Relationships

We continue with the book of Ephesians. It says

If you read that verse, you’ll simply notice that Paul mentioned the word one seven times– which is not an accident. Because seven (7) is God’s number. It’s a number that signifies completion.

Paul is trying to make a connection. In ancient civilizations, people practiced polytheism–which is having many gods.

For instance, in Egypt, they had over 2,000 gods. They had Rah, Isis, Osiris, Anubis, and Horus. In Babylon, they had over 1,000 gods such as Marduk, Ishtar, Nabu, Enki, Shamash. Some of these names you don’t even know.

Some of the famous gods that we know come from Greece. The Greek gods were about 12 strong gods such as Zeus, Apollo, Athena, Poseidon, and Hades.

Did you know that even Filipinos were once polytheistic? In our ancient civilization, we worshiped a god named Bathala. You probably know him from your class before: Tala, the god of the stars. Apolloaki, the god of war.

There was also a God named Kanlaon. I know the mountain Kanlaon but I didn’t know that it was named after a god.

Paul is saying that there is only one God, one Father, one faith, and one family.

Here’s where it gets real: When we allow division to tear us apart, we’re no better than the people before who worshiped other gods. When we allow disunity to happen in our own hearts, we’re worshiping other gods.

Who’s In Charge…

Let me prove it to you…

You don’t have to bow to statues or idols these days. You don’t have to worship Baal, or Marduk, or Rah to understand what I’m trying to say.

But think of how life is lived today. We live

in a world called social media. People are always worshiping one thing every single day in your office, in your gym, even in your own home.

You want to know what you’re worshiping?

You’re worshiping yourself. Whenever you admire yourself, when you’re at work, whenever you admire your success and all your achievements, you’re worshiping the blessed trinity called Me, Myself, and I.

So, whenever you go around and say: “I don’t like that person so much.

I don’t think I’m ever going to forgive that group. I don’t like hanging around with these people…” you know what you’re really saying?

You’re saying: “My pride is more important than people. My comfort is greater than God’s calling.”

You don’t notice it, but little by little, you’re creating a false idol: You are the one. It’s always about you.

I wonder how many of us God is going to correct today by simply telling us that there is only one God– and that’s Him.

When I was young, I would always fight with my brother. How many of you still fight with your siblings right now? Now that you’re an adult, what was your weapon of choice? Boxing, wrestling, Mixed Martial Arts (MMA)?

My brother and I fought physically. My brother’s style of fighting was that he would lie down on the ground and start kicking me endlessly. I remember that every single time there would be a conflict between my brother and me, my dad would say something that I still cannot forget to this day.

Our dad would tell both of us: “If you both continue to fight, you will find out exactly who is in charge. Me.”

That’s a great line. Parents, that’s a line that you can tell your kids.

What if God is also telling us the same thing whenever we fight with one another: “Stop worshiping your way or else you’re going to find out that I’m still in charge.”

God is still sovereign above all our chaos and disunity. Unity is such a challenging concept. What is so good about unity and oneness is that you don’t have to give up your uniqueness.

Message Three: God’s Oneness Is Not Based on Sameness

Paul is saying that all of us have been given a gift.

Being united doesn’t mean that we have

to look, talk, or act alike. We have different personalities.

How many of you here are talkative? How many of you here are a bit shy? How many of you here are a bit weird? How many of you here love meeting people?

Guess what: That thing that makes you you. That’s your personality trait. That’s your personality, minus your sin and all of these other shortcomings. They’re your gift to the world.

Paul says that we are the body of Christ. Just like the body of Christ, all of us have different parts with different roles. We all play like in an orchestra– different instruments, different sounds, different styles, but coming together to produce one music with Jesus as the conductor.

How many of you here serve at The Feast, or in your parish? You’re the hands because you love to work.

How many of you here love doing outreach for the Lord to faraway places? You’re the feet because you go to places where others won’t.

How many of you here love to pray for other people? You’re the heart. You have the compassion to pray for people.

How many of you here love to talk just like the preacher onstage?

You’re the mouth.

How many of you here love to read the Bible every day as much as you can?

You’re the stomach. You’re the gut. You like to digest. You like to bring it in. Each part works together as one body.

When One Part Breaks Down…

Imagine, however, that one day, your organs and your limbs meet and congregate.

The Brain is the one holding the meeting because it’s the brain behind it.

The Brain is like: “We have to get it together.

We need coordination. We need cooperation.

How many of you here have suggestions and comments?”

Usually, the first one to raise hand is the Hand because that’s all that one can do.

The Hands are like: “We’re so tired of doing all the work. All we do is text and type and cook and prepare and do all of these things. We’re done. We’re tired. We’re going to take a break.”

The next thing you know, the Feet are also saying: “We’re tired of bringing you to places. You’re so lazy. If not for us, you’re not going to get from one point to the other.”

By this time, the Eyes are rolling around and saying: “All we do is just look at you. Nobody really sees us.”

Then the Stomach says: “We’ve got to cooperate. We just don’t have the stomach for this anymore.”

The Heart starts to slowly give up…

That’s what happens when one part breaks down eventually. If it goes untreated, the whole body starts to break down.

When you have a virus and you don’t treat that virus, it starts first somewhere in your body– and before long, it starts to infect others.

That’s what happens in the Church and even in our nation.

When we do not treat the small sins, they eventually find their way to our hearts.

The worst part is that they destroy your own soul– usually starting in small ways. How?

Through the Hands that take what isn’t theirs. Through the Eyes that overlook the abuse. Through the Mind that justifies the wrongdoing. It starts in small ways.

Challenge

What Jesus is trying to teach us today through Paul is that the human body has many parts and each part has a special function.

So it is with Christ’s Body:

We need to be united because of one truth– because that’s what God wants for us. That’s God’s design.

You want to know the cool thing about unity?

How many of you miss loved ones who have already passed away?

Sometimes you still feel their presence. Sometimes, you see things that remind you of them– like a chair that’s no longer being sat on, or a piece of clothing that’s no longer being worn, or sometimes a perfume that drifts through the air and reminds you of a particular person. Or maybe, it’s even a memory that still leaves you crying and laughing at the same time.

I had this reflection a few days ago as we’re celebrating All Souls Day.

What you’ll realize is that when you’re united in Christ, nobody is really ever truly gone. They’re still there even though we don’t see them. The body might have been buried, but the bond is still there.

I’ll prove it to you.

Hebrews says that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. It means that in Heaven, people are looking down at us. Whenever we pray, worship, thank God, or gather, the saints, the angels, and our loved ones are doing the same thing.

Whether we’re up in Heaven or whether we’re down on Earth, we’re all under the same God. We’re all worshiping Jesus. Whenever we praise, whenever we thank, whenever we gather, we’re all united in spirit through the Name of Jesus. Until one day, we get to see our dear departed again in that other place.

But in the meantime, whenever you gather as a family, whenever you go to church, whenever you worship the Lord, your loved ones and all the saints are also doing the same thing.

The more that we study the book of Ephesians, the more I realize that unity is not a 21st-century invention. Unity has been something that people have struggled with since time immemorial.

Ever since Adam and Eve got disunited from God, unity has been challenging for all of us to this day.

Building… Or Burning?

Look around. We are so divided as a people. We’re so divided as a race. We’re so divided as humans. I’ve realized that it’s because of this:

There is a spirit in unity. But sometimes it’s not always the Holy Spirit. Sometimes, it’s the other “spirit.”

You’ll know this based on the fruit produced by the spirit.

Sometimes, people can get united with one another. Then suddenly, you realize that it’s not really coming from the Holy Spirit. The reason for the unity comes from the other spirit– when the only reason you gather is that you’ve got an assignment to tear apart a common enemy. You’ll know that it’s not really coming from the spirit of God if when you group is done throwing that stone, you promptly disband.

Real unity is when your group no longer has an enemy, yet you remain holding hands.

The message that I’m trying to preach is that we have to be aware of what kind of spirit drives us to come together.

Real unity comes from Heaven. It’s divine when it’s used to build.

But it becomes demonic when it’s used to burn.

Does your unity build relationships– or does it burn bridges?

Real unity is when we gather together, even if we’ve got differences.

I believe this: There is nothing more thrilling in the human heart than when we band together to bash other people. We feel so alive. When a post goes viral, it’s usually because people like jumping on issues that attract them.

I’m preaching this completely to myself. Some people are so silent on social media.

But the moment an issue drops, they’re alive. They’re keyboard warriors. They’re just like the Avengers, but of a different kind. They’re not fighting the Endgame nor the Infinity War. They’re fighting the Gossip Wars with none other than Captain Chica and Iron Tita.–with special guest: Thor for thoroughly updated.

We tear down people because we think: “Hey, we’re uniting because we’re united against one enemy.” That’s not real unity.

Surrender

You know what Jesus did?

I pray that this is going to make you fall in love with Jesus so much more.

I said that we are the Body of Christ through what Paul says about us. Through the Body of Christ, we center on Jesus Himself. He allowed His Body to be bruised, to be broken, to be beaten up, so that His Church, His nation, could be one and whole.

When we are not whole, this simply tells us that we’re not worshiping Jesus.

Jesus bled so that you don’t have to. He united the Church by sacrificing His own life.

That tells me only one thing: If we don’t rally ourselves around Jesus, we’ll fall apart. But if we make a decision every day to be united with Him, we can overcome the sins in the world.

How? Through the life of Jesus.

The goal is not just unity. It’s unity in Jesus. It’s unity in the Son of God who came down to this world so that we can call ourselves brother, sister, and friend.

That’s who you are.

But we’ve got to set aside our differences. Too long have we allowed the enemy to infiltrate us. Today, it ends because we’re ready to rally ourselves around Jesus.

Raise your hands. We’re going to worship the Lord today, and we’re going to claim that this is His Church. We are his Church. The Church is not a structure. It’s not a building that you go to.

The Church is a group of people gathering and saying: “This is who we are because we gather around You, Jesus. This is Your Church. We are Your Church.”

God is calling you just like He called the saints. All of us are saints as well.

How do you all become saints? You are set apart. That means that your uniqueness, what makes you a bit weird to some people, what makes you a bit crazy to some people– that’s what makes you a saint.

When you say: “Lord, take all that I have. Take all that I am, all that I will be, and I give everything to you. Use everything for your glory. Amen.”

“Thank You, Jesus. Thank You for this Word. Thank You for this message.

Your Spirit is amongst us. As we worship You, we pray that You remove our pride. Obliterate it with the snap of Your Spirit. Take Your seat and take Your throne. This is Your Church. We are Your people. We love You. We worship You.

We give our lives entirely to You. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”

 

This story was first published in the Feast Family Online News Magazine
Published by THE FEAST (November 09, 2025)