Living By The Word

  Tested by Trials ( April 23, 2025) Jesus said, “ These things I have spoken to you, that   in Me you may have peace.   In the world you   will have tribulation; but be of good cheer,   I have overcome the world. ” (John 16:33) We all face troubles, trials, and temptations in our lives! Personal hardships are an integral part of living in an imperfect world corrupted by sin. No one looks forward to these trying seasons, but we know they will come. Christians are certainly not exempt from painful afflictions. In fact, Jesus told His disciples to expect tribulation. In a worldly society where God’s Word is increasingly compromised and Christianity marginalized, followers of Jesus Christ are also confronted with ridicule, injustice, and in many parts of the world, extreme persecution. Hardships are an inevitable test of our faith, but believers must claim the promise of a faithful God to work even the most difficult circumstances we face to our ultimate benefi...

The Symbolism of the Cross ( April 18, 2025) “ For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:18) Representing the hope of everlasting life that is offered to all who trust in Jesus Christ, the cross is the most prominent symbol of Easter and Christianity. First, the Cross of Christ is a symbol of our Savior’s suffering. We cannot comprehend the excruciating pain and shame that Jesus endured at Calvary for you and me. He was brutally beaten, whipped, spat upon, scourged, insulted, mocked, and disfigured. Our L ORD ’s body was pierced for our sake—a crown of thorns was thrust into His head, penetrating flesh to the skull, and iron spikes nailed Him and our sins to that tree, causing Christ unbearable agony. Jesus’ suffering on that rugged cross was unimaginable. He did it for us; He did it out of love for you and me! “ But He  was  wounded for our transgression...

  The Name that Saves! ( April 11, 2025) “ Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,   that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and  that  every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ  is  Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Philippians 2:9-11) It is the most precious, priceless, prominent, and powerful name ever spoken! It is the sweetest name that can grace human lips and warm our hearts. It is the most honorable and glorious name ever conceived. Indescribably beautiful, it is the name above all names—Jesus Christ! This magnificent name is all-encompassing. The matchless name of Jesus signifies the gentleness of an autumn breeze caressing the petals of a lovely flower kissed by the rays of a radian sun. Yet this most exalted of names speaks of the awesome power that created the universe, laid the foun...

Persevere When Persecuted ( April 8, 2025) “ Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution. ” (2 Timothy 3:12) Walking by faith in Jesus Christ is the only route to abundant and eternal life, but the Christian lifestyle is far from a cakewalk. We live in an age when moral standards are rapidly plummeting; God’s Word is being compromised, if not altogether rejected ; and the multitudes are pursuing the pleasures and passions of the material world rather than laying up heavenly treasures by building spiritually life-saving personal relationships with Christ. In a nation founded on Christian principles and godly values, the followers of Christ in America are increasingly ridiculed, derided, and scorned. Far worse off than us, practitioners of the Christian faith in many other parts of the world are severely persecuted, ostracized, and brutally murdered. “ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, an...

The Software of the Soul ( April 3, 2025) “ For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? ” (Matthew 16:26) When we look at another person that we know, we immediately recognize them by their external physical features with which we have become familiar. But do we see them for who they really are? Certainly not! The real you cannot be seen or touched because it is not physical. The real you and I are not characterized by mass (in my case, a few pounds too heavy) nor mortality. The real you is what is loosely referred to as the soul or spirit which has no mass and is immortal. When we view someone, we see only their physical body or the outer s tructure , in which their soul is temporarily housed. To use computer terminology, the human body serves as our temporal hardware. The soul, on the other hand, is the software that continues to exist after our body dies. “ And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rat...

“ Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7) An Almighty God of grace and goodness has promised to answer according to His providential will and perfect timing the prayerful petitions of those who trust and rely upon Him. But we must pray in faith with confident expectation, persistence, and patience. In His heralded Sermon on the Mount Jesus commanded His followers to pray continuously, asking, seeking, and knocking while awaiting God’s response expecting to receive, find, and enter. First, we must humbly “ask” God, expecting to receive the desired outcome of our prayer. Jesus’ brother James, a leader of the early church at Jerusalem, said, “ you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend  it  on your pleasures. ” (James 4:2-3) Christians must ask God for what we want, repeatedly if necessary. In making our requests, we must ask th...

   “ Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.” (Hebrews 9:12) A cornerstone of Christian doctrine is the necessity of bloodshed for the release from the guilt and penalty of sin. “W ithout shedding of blood there is no remission. ” (Hebrews 9:22) This biblical principle dates back to the dawn of creation when an innocent animal’s shed blood, in which is the life, was required to obtain skins that God fashioned into garments for Adam and Eve when they became aware of their nakedness after sinfully eating the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden. God’s act of mercy and love despite mankind’s rebelliousness against Him predated the system of animal sacrifices for the temporary atonement of sin that was deeply ingrained in the culture of ancient Israel, pointing to the cross and the ultimate, sinless sacrifice of Jesus Christ! The crucifixion of Christ was ...