Actions, services and the mirror in the Bible

Dear Editor,

 

As has been stated in my previous letter next to this one, I will be focusing mainly on “actions” and “services” as well as the “truth” behind actions and services on a separate discussion in the near future. This is the one that I have prepared for that purpose.

The study about behavior from “words” is already discussed in the previous letter. The outcome as you have already aware about is not good. It is just about misbehaviours such as irresponsible, the violation of the Constitution, ignorance, misleading and inconsistency. It is the main cause of confusion and contradictions with our laws, justice and authorities. That’s the type of governmental environment we are surrounded with. 

However, despite of that environment and all misbehaviors as mentioned above, the Government may still get away from it because they do have a free pass of “actions speak louder than words.” They do have lots of actions and new developments to prove me wrong. Therefore the purpose of this discussion is about finding the hidden truth behind actions and services if whether actions and services reflect misbehaviors as mentioned above.

That brings us to a very important point. While actions speak louder than words according to our common knowledge, the Bible explains something else different that is more powerful than that. The Bible is talking about the totality. That is, the TRUTH speaks louder than actions and words. It takes people and their services to put words into actions and to reveal the truth behind words and actions. 

Accordingly, we have to start from the beginning, from preparation about services through leadership. To begin with, let’s start with the message from the central part of (Matthew 5). It is about the first thing that you should do to the law. Before you open the law and teach others about it, the first thing you must do is educate yourself first about the law until you fully understand about the TRUTH and be honest about it. 

The person who teaches that message about the law in (Matthew 5) is also the same person who teaches a different message about judgment in the beginning of (Matthew 7). It starts from the same thing. It starts from you by looking at you first before you judge others. 

 “And why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye, but do not consider the plank in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me remove the speck from your eye,’ and look, a plank is in your own eye? Hypocrite! First remove the plank from your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.” 

The message is simple but very important as it is the first part and the main part of the preparation process for any professional services about leadership. You are what you eat. You are the first and the best example of words from your mouth. 

Our lives, our services and our freedom are all under the control of the law. That’s why it is so important for the leadership to be well aware about those situations.  We follow the law everyday in order to make things possible for the development of families and our country. There are leaderships in our families and there are leaderships in our Government. The main leadership in our Government is Parliament. 

The Parliament is responsible for the development of the country and the economy. To improve the standard of living of our country, we expect actions, works and developments. We have seen them all in real life such as the brand new Airport, new Hospital, new government buildings, new roads and lots of new projects. Therefore we can only do that if we follow the process of putting words into actions.  

To put words into actions, we use monies from our economy to make it happen. When we don’t have enough monies, we refer to other ideas and opportunities for help. That’s where we got to the point of crossing the line we shouldn’t cross (breaking the law) in order to get more and more monies in. The only way to execute such type of action is by planning first of an absolute regime such as “Cabinet Handbook 2011.”

In my own view, that is the reality of Samoa and the leadership of its Government nowadays. It may not be the real case to some of us depending on what we believe and what we already knew but that is my own view based on the current situation about the unavailability of O.P.C reports and other reports plus tensions between our Government and some of the people of our country such as members of the S.S.I.G. and members of the E.F.K.S. Church. 

For the Government’s defense, our leaders used political correctness and powerful words and messages to persuade the people of our country because they are backing up by their actions and works to prove their points. Some of the people or may be most of the people of our country are buying into that idea because they are not aware about the truth behind actions and works. 

That’s where the central part of (Matthew 7) comes in. “Therefore by their fruits you will know them.” That means it takes time and long processes to produce fruits or to put words into actions. But how do we know the truth behind fruits and actions at the end of any process? 

The answer to that question is in the last part of (Matthew 7). It covers the whole scenario about law and judgment, words and actions, the time to put words into actions or to produce fruits and the truth behind actions and fruits.  

 “Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock.” 

 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”     

Both sides as quoted above have similarities. They are not gods, they can hear and choose, they can put words into actions and their works can be affected by weather conditions. The differences between the two sides can only be defined by foundations they are founded upon which are obedience (hears and does them) and disobedience (hears and does not do them). 

According to the process, the truth about obedience and disobedience can only be revealed when actions and works are being tested at times of tough weather conditions. In other words, the true servants of Christ and the truth about God’s righteousness can only be revealed during tough times. That is the complicated mystery behind actions and services. 

According to the teachings as explained above, the fruits and actions produced from obedience cannot be beaten by strong weather but the fruits and actions produced from disobedience can be beaten by same weather conditions. So the real truth here is just about the servants who produced fruits and actions from obedience. 

Therefore there is bad news and there is also good news. The bad news is that the realization of the truth behind actions and works is complicated as it depends on tough times or tough weather and unpredictable times they occur. In our case, we have been through long periods of time in order to realize the truth. 

Fortunately there is good news. Now we know the truth that all actions and works are not produced only from obedience and God’s righteousness. That signals an important warning. We must never be deceived or misled easily by the powerful of words and messages and by the great looks of all fruits such as actions and works.   

That is the toughest challenge we have been facing for a long time now because actions and works were covering up everything. We have been facing the power of actions and flashing developments as well as the power of the absolute regime. We have faced them at the same time.

On the other hand, the Government was facing two sides. The first side is “actions speak louder than words.” That side is not tough but the other one is tough. That is, the process of putting words into actions is like a boomerang. What goes around comes around and what you sow is what you reap. Therefore the Government cannot escape from any untruth because the absolute regime plus actions and services produced from disobedience cannot control the nature of tough times and tough weather. 

We know about the words of our Government and we know about their actions and developments. We have seen lots of words as described by different laws. Samoa is already promoted and she’s at the top level of developed nations. Samoa is officially declared as a Christian country. We have a brand new Airport, other brand new buildings and lots and lots of other new developments.

However, what we still do not know about are words and figures in O.P.C reports and financial reports of our country because they are still hidden. Those hidden informations are facts and truth. Those hidden informations have the answer for two big questions of why the Government has been so desperate for more revenue and why the Government allow mortgages on our customary lands without a referendum plus the taxing of Church Ministers’ earnings by force. In the mean time, there are unrest tensions in our country about those situations.

Those situations flatly contradict the words and actions of our Government. That shows, our economy was really affected by tough times and tough weather but the Government could not cope. That situation to me is a shocking revelation of our economy’s instability. We don’t have O.P.C reports and financial reports to tell us about that situation and we can’t have them anymore because of the absolute regime. However, the tough times and tough weather always exist because it’s nature. Without tough times and tough weather, we won’t be able to find out about the real truth behind words and actions.

Therefore no matter how hard a person tried to prove his / her points with actions and no matter how hard a person tried to hide the truth behind actions, the truth and facts never go away. Also, no matter how unfair a person has become like the inconsistent treatment of the people of our country, the truth and facts never go away. Tough times and tough weather conditions will always follow in pursuit in order to reveal the truth. 

It’s not about words and actions but it’s about the truth. Just like proving of the real gold in fire. From the very beginning of (1 Corinthians 13) “Though I speak with tongues of men and of angels; but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.”  

Later on at the final part of (1 Corinthians 13), the Apostle Paul raised an important message about the “mirror” as a conclusion of his messages as quoted above. “For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known. And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.”  

If we as a Christian nation check out our current look in the mirror, the result is very clear as crystal. We can find right infront of the mirror, there are lots and lots of words already transformed into actions and works. We abide faith to get things we have hoped for and we also have things that we have hoped for but still, we are not really free because there is something still not right. That thing is dishonesty. True love is missing because of dishonesty. If our works and new developments are all blessings from God then what is the point of hiding O.P.C reports and other reports?

What is the point of the leadership’s attack on others when the leadership is still hiding facts and truth behind their words and actions? Why did the leadership blame others about the big mess that leadership created? The solution for that situation is in the mirror.  

What that means is that before you send a powerful message to others about the law and judgment or about facts and truth for whatever reason, look at you first in the mirror like the Apostle Paul. Take a hard look in the mirror and figure it out if who the real God is, who the real hypocrite is and if who was the real person who has been fooling God for so many years through leadership. If you can figure out that situation and learn obedience from it then you can also figure out anything appropriate to be a consistent solution for any problem. 

Ma le faaaloalo lava lau Susuga i le Faatonu,

 

Nanai Malonuu Lealaiauloto Nofoaiga

Samoa Observer

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