“For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified.” 1 Corinthians 2:2
There has been so much added to the gospel over the years. People want something more than “just Jesus.” It seems like it might not be enough. There must be more. Maybe some rues to follow. Maybe some secret knowledge needed to be really spiritual. “For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness;” 1 Corinthians 1:22-23.
Paul could have spoken about all of these things. He knew the law better than most. He certainly knew a lot about Greek philosophy and Roman mythology. He certainly could have made up some good rules. He could have made himself to be important. “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14
Paul’s only concern was to preach Jesus Christ crucified. His purpose was always to make sure the gospel rested solely on Jesus’ finished work on the cross. Wisdom cannot be found in the many words of men. The wisdom of God is found only in Jesus.
Salvation is found only in Jesus. No religion of men or effort of any sort can save a man’s soul. Only Jesus. “And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” John 17:3
Paul warned Timothy about all of the other things that would try to creep in. “Neither give heed to fables and endless genealogies, which minister questions, rather than godly edifying which is in faith: so do.” 1Timothy 1:4. “O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called:” 1 Timothy 6:20. The desire for something additional from man has always been a problem.
There are many “different” ideas about the “gospel.” Again, Paul warns about this in Galatians 1:6-9 “I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ. But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed.”
Joseph Smith claimed an angel came and gave him the “correct” gospel. However, it is a “gospel” of works with a lot of supposedly new knowledge. It is exactly what Paul warned about. That is easy to see. But there are many in Christianity that also are preaching a “different gospel.”
If the gospel you are listening to is not about Jesus crucified and risen, it is another gospel. If it gets something from you, it is another gospel. The “gospel” is “good news.” My effort is not good news. My effort is iffy at best.
Paul helps us understand the true gospel which is: Jesus paid the price for our sins, Jesus lives in us, and Jesus sanctifies us. “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” Galatians 2:20.
This removes all self righteousness and all self glorying. We cannot take credit for any part of our spiritual maturity. “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.” Galatians 6:14. It is all about Jesus, and it is all from Jesus. “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.” Romans 7:18
We need to heed Paul and realize that we should be preaching Jesus, and Him crucified. We do not need additional worldly wisdom to guide us. We do not need special prophesies of our lives. We do not need secret revelations from the Bible. We only need Jesus. He is enough, because He is all and in all; the fulness of the Godhead.
To some, this will seem silly and weak. To others, it is not enough. But, for those that want to know God and have full fellowship with Him, it is enough. “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:18. “But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:” 1Corinthians 1:30.
Psalm 22 is a prophetic messianic Psalm referring to Jesus, and is descriptive of death by crucifixion, especially verse 16 which states, “…they pierced my hands and my feet.” Crucifixion did not ever exist at the time that this Psalm was written.
Jesus had to be born at a time in history when crucifixion was used for execution in order that He would be crucified and “hanged on a tree,” signifying that He was cursed and became sin for us. Paul tells us in Gal. 3:13: “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.”
Not only was the time of Jesus birth planned, but so was the time of His death. Jesus came into the world for the purpose of dying for our sins. The amount of time that He spent on this earth, up to and including the day and time of His death.
It had been planned by God that Jesus would die at the time of Passover and become the final Passover Lamb. He told His disciples as they ate the Passover supper that He was going to be betrayed and die, and that the wine and the bread represented His own blood and body. He knew that it was His time to die. After praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, Judas came and betrayed Him with a kiss, and they arrested Him and then crucified Him according to God’s time table.
He died on the cross at the time appointed by God, before evening, so that the soldiers would not have to break His legs. The Passover lamb was not allowed to have any of its bones broken, and so the Scripture was fulfilled regarding Jesus, who was the Lamb of God. We find this recorded in John 19:33-34, 36-37: “But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs, But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side…For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken. And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.”
Now I would like to discuss things from a medical standpoint. The cause of death from crucifixion is from asphyxiation (lack of oxygen), not from blood loss. So that means that Jesus did not shed His blood simply from the act of crucifixion.
A person being crucified eventually becomes so weak that he cannot hold himself up long enough with his legs to take a breath, and so he died from lack of oxygen to the brain. The soldiers would sometimes have to break the legs of the criminals to cause them to die sooner so that their bodies could be taken down off the cross in a timely manner.
How, then, did Jesus shed His blood if He died by suffocation? Jesus needed to be able to shed His blood in order to atone for our sins, as we read in Heb. 9:22: “and without shedding of blood is no remission [of sin].”
When a person dies, the heart stops beating, and the blood vessel’s collapse, causing the blood to back up into the heart and pool there. As a coroner I have had to obtain blood samples for postmortem toxicology, but since people don’t bleed after they die, how was that possible for me to do that? I would do that by inserting a long needle through the bottom part of the chest up into the main cavity of the heart, the left ventricle, and drawing out some of the blood that was there. So, God planned for the soldier to pierce Jesus’ heart with a spear, allowing all of His pooled blood to flow out. All of this was possible and happened because He died at the exact time that He did, according to God’s time clock, and did not need to have His legs broken. Thus, redemption was accomplished according to God’s purpose and according to His time.
When a cancer diagnosis comes, your life changes. The possibility of death is no longer a far-away abstraction, it’s real and very possible, and possibly imminent. I was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2012, and it was stage 3, so I was in trouble. I had surgery to put a port in my chest for chemo, then surgery to remove the tumor and resect my colon, then a few weeks later, I started the 12 rounds of chemotherapy every other week for 6 months. I wasn’t afraid of dying, Jesus is my Saviour, I know I’m going to heaven. What I did fear was pain and suffering and worry for my family. So, I set out to try to get well from this cancer, and felt a sense of peace and positivity from the start that all would be well.
Chemo is poison. It kills the cancer cells along with healthy ones, and does awful things to many parts of the body. Still, I was grateful to be able to take the needed chemo. Every week I got weaker and the side effects worsened, but I made it through. By God’s grace and healing, I survived, along with the guidance of my Oncologist who was a man of faith, and the love, strength, & prayers from my family, my church, and co-workers. Then after all the chemo, I began the long recovery to my new normal self, after cancer.
It’s now been 13 years since my last chemo. To the medical world, I’m not “cured”, I’m in remission. I have had a great life these years after cancer. I do my check-ups and preventive care, and the Lord keeps blessing me with health and happiness. I used to be a workaholic; cancer changed my outlook. It made me realize my job wasn’t the only thing in my life and helped me re-evaluate priorities. When I was offered the chance to retire early, I jumped at it. I am grateful for these extra years I’ve been given and try to truly enjoy life, and I look for joy on a daily basis. It can be the beauty of a sunset, my doggie doing something cute, travelling to a new destination, beautiful music; little things that add joy and meaning if you take the time to let them. The Lord healed me and has given me these bonus years, and I’m grateful every day.
I encourage you also to look for joy each day.
Psalm 118:24 “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.”
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A short meditation I hope will be a blessing. Our faith is being tested every day in every way. But God is faithful and by His grace we are faithful. Lord Bless!
I was meditating on the phrase “from faith to faith” in Romans 1:17. When I look at the phrase “from faith to faith” I see the completeness and fullness of faith in our lives. The word “from” denotes origin, it looks back to the beginning. We begin our lives with faith. The word “to” indicates a point reached, it looks forward to the destination. We begin our lives by faith and end our lives by faith and in-between we live our lives by faith. Faith is the link between the beginning and the end and is also the foundation. Faith is the “persuasion, conviction, assurance, and reliance” we have in all the promises in the gospel. It is how we live our lives each day. We go from one degree of faith to another. We grow in faith. We go from faith in salvation to faith in sanctification.
Ryrie Bible: “from faith to faith.” Faith from start to finish.
John Phillips: “from faith to faith.” The righteousness of God is received by faith and reproduced by faith.
David Franklin: (Romans study) “from faith to faith.” From faithful God to faithful messengers. From faithful messengers to faithful listeners.
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We thank God for His unfailing love, sustaining grace and His countless mercies that have carried us thus far. Each new month is a fresh reminder of God’s faithfulness and His goodness. Let us make use of this opportunity to grow deeper in our walk with Him.
We live in a crucial time. All over the world, there is a drastic change in the climate. Many western countries experience severe heat waves never known in history. In India, because of the El-Nino effect, longer and more intense heat is prevailing in many States with deficit of rainfall. Besides, we hear increasing incident about violence, hatred, war, bloodshed. All these clearly are the signs that we are living in the last days. There is an important thing that we, as God’s people, need to do at this time - that is to pray. II Chronicles 7:14, the Lord said to Israel, “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear them from heaven, and forgive their sin and will heal their land.”
Let us humble ourselves as “a little child” in the sight of the Lord, seeking God’s favor. As Christians we should be models of God’s righteousness - “salt” and “light” for a sinful and hurting society. Let us take inventory of our own personal lives. As we humbly seek God in prayer, changes take place in our lives. Our prayer is that we may encourage you to trust the Lord wholeheartedly, remain steadfast in prayer and experience His abiding presence in every circumstance.
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Dear Sister, Just wanted to let you know how much your last letter meant to me. We were in II Corinthians 7 and I had been reading verse 6 “Nevertheless God, that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus.”
I remember being a little “Cast Down” and was thinking I really need a “Titus.” At that moment, someone brought in the Church mail and there was your letter. Your letter was a great comfort to me.
I had to laugh at how good our God is. I guess you could say your letter was “The Coming Of Titus.” Praying for you all.
Every day there is a battle,
A struggle in my soul.
Spirit and flesh in conflict,
Fighting for control.
Sometimes I am so weary,
I long to see Your face.
To gaze upon Your glory.
To rest upon Your grace.
The days seem long and endless,
The battles never cease.
But when Your arm is my defense,
Then I have Your peace.
My flesh would like to rest in ease,
But conflict makes me fight.
To win the battle I must stand,
Depending on your Might.
Some days I’ve felt the fiery darts,
And fallen, wounded sore.
But Grace has picked me up again,
And Love my strength restored.
Debra Isenbletter
Springfield, Missouri
“Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.” Ephesians 3:20-21
These verses that closeout chapter three tell us something we need to know about what Jesus can do for us and through us.
We often are trying so hard to do something for the Lord. Or maybe we are trying to become something we think is what God wants from us. This personal effort always results in something that falls short. Not because we had bad intentions, or are just too dumb to do it right.
We really need to come to the place where we recognize that anything worth anything in our lives is the result of God’s personal work in us. HE is able to do ABOVE all that we ask or think. Why are we so reluctant to let Him work in our lives. When we do, He will get the glory and we will be better off for it.
“I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; One Lord, one faith, one baptism, One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.” Ephesians 4:1-7
Notice the “therefore.” It is telling us that what is coming is related to what just was written. How are we going to “walk worthy”? It is only because of Him that is “able to do exceeding abundantly above.” Paul begs believers to recognize that they can walk worthy because of the life of Christ. He empowers us.
Notice that the worthy walk includes “lowliness” and “meekness.” These two characteristics are not much desired in much of Christianity today. They are equated with weakness, and many believe that Christians should never be weak because the world will beat you down if you are weak.
Jesus taught us something different. “Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth” Matthew 5:5. “Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls” Matthew 11:29. “Learn from me.” There is only fear of meekness if we think that the world has something we want. Jesus was clear that we have nothing in this word.
“Longsuffering” – “Bearing troubles patiently.” Also very contrary to the old creation. We do not like to suffer fools. We are too strong for that. However, this characteristic is throughout Paul’s epistles. It is part of the fruit of the Spirit. That means that it is not something you have to grit your teeth and learn to do. If you are yielding to the Holy Spirit, it will be worked in you.
“Forbearing one another” – Forbear means to hold up or to sustain. Are we willing to hold up our brother and sister? Do we feel like we need to just leave them to fend for themselves? This is not the love of Christ. Imagine if Jesus decided to just leave you to fend for yourself? If there is any spiritual maturity in your life, it is because of Jesus and it will lead you to care about your brother and sister.
“Endeavouring” – “Being diligent or quick.” This means that this is of utmost importance to us. “Keep” – “guard or watch.” This is NOT saying that we maintain the unity of the Spirit, but rather we are to be constantly on guard to recognize that unity. We often forget that Jesus is the key to unity and we want to create our own little group thing. I am not proposing that we should compromise doctrine for the sake of unity, but we must recognize that all believers are part of the body of Christ. There should be peace in the body of Christ.
Paul reminds us that there is only “ONE” body. Only “ONE” Lord, “ONE” God who is above all of us. None of us gets to claim we are something more or different than others. The same life is in every believer. We certainly realize that each individual has a personal responsibility and a personal relationship with Jesus, but together we are the body of Jesus. He is the head, not us.
Verse 7 reminds us that this spiritual life is an individual relationship. Jesus is dealing with each individual that comes to Him. The grace that you receive is not more or less than the grace I receive. We may sometimes view it as different, but the grace available to you is the same grace available to others.
The measure of grace is based on Jesus. He paid the price. He bought your redemption. The measure is not based on what I might have done, or not done. My sin did not require less grace than yours.
I am so glad grace is given according to His measure. We would want to restrict to some based on our idea of who deserves it. I cannot say that I have not received enough grace. I may not have allowed His grace in all of its fulness in my life, but it has certainly been made available to me. I pray that you are enjoying the fulness of God’s grace in your life. It is able to sanctify you completely and prepare you for His soon coming.
“We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain” 2 Corinthians 6:1. “But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.” 1 Corinthians 15:10
“And it came to pass, when Pharaoh had let the people go, that God led them not through the way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, ‘Lest peradventure the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt.’ But God led the people about, through the way of the wilderness of the Red Sea: and the children of Israel went up harnessed out of the land of Egypt” (Exodus 13:17–18).
There are moments in life when we arrive at a crossroads—a place where important decisions must be made that will shape our future, whether in our careers, relationships, or spiritual walk. In these pivotal times, Scripture teaches us not to rely on our own understanding but to seek God’s direction. Proverbs 3:5–6 reminds us, “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.”
The children of Israel experienced such a crossroads. In Numbers 20:14–22, Moses sent messengers to the king of Edom, requesting passage through his land—a shorter and easier route—but permission was denied. Instead, they were led the longer way around by the Red Sea. Frustrated, the people spoke against God and Moses, questioning why they had been brought out of Egypt only to face hardship in the wilderness.
This account teaches us the importance of following the leading of the Spirit, even when it doesn’t make sense to us. God’s direction may not always align with human logic or what appears easiest, but His way leads to His best for our lives. Often, the flesh urges us toward the path that seems simpler or more convenient, tempting us to rely on our own strength and leave God out of the equation.
Yet Scripture reminds us that the flesh and the Spirit are in conflict. No matter our age or how long we have walked with the Lord, this struggle remains. If we walk according to the flesh, we become consumed with temporary, carnal things. But as Paul instructs in Galatians 5:16, “Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Choosing to follow the Spirit—even when the path is longer or harder—keeps us aligned with God’s purpose and leads us exactly where He intends for us to be.