1 Corinthians 16:13 "Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong." The apostle’s exhortation summons the elect Church of Christ to readiness for Spiritual warfare by a few commanding words. Here is not the call of human courage, but of Spirit-born steadfastness. Those who stand fast do so only because they have been made to stand in Christ, the Captain of their salvation. To “watch” is to live in wakefulness to the subtlety of sin, the deceit of the flesh, and the adversary’s assaults—knowing that our sufficiency is of Christ alone. To “stand fast in the Faith” is to rest upon that finished redemption which Christ has accomplished for His elect, unmoved by the shifting winds of human opinion, or the subtle lusts of the flesh. This text then bids us to Strength—not our own, but that which flows from union with the risen LORD, Who alone enables His people to endure unto the end. “Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.” These are not words of human resolution or moral grit; they are the language of Divine Grace. The apostle closes his letter to a troubled church with a command that is full of comfort for every believer who knows the weakness of the flesh. It is not us keeping the Faith—it is the Faith keeping us. To “stand fast in the faith” is to be settled, grounded, and anchored in Christ Himself. This faith is not our personal believing, not the energy of our decision or emotion, but “the Faith once delivered unto the saints.”  It is the Gospel of Christ crucified, risen, and reigning—The Faith that reveals the righteousness of God. Salvation is by grace through faith, “and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8–9). True standing fast is resting in the finished work of Christ, trusting the One Who has accomplished all things for His people. “Watch ye.” The child of God is called to spiritual alertness. We are not of the night, nor of darkness, but of the day. The Spirit awakens the believer to discern truth from error, to be sober and vigilant because our adversary, the devil walketh about seeking whom he may devour. This watchfulness is not the restless striving of the flesh but the quiet awareness that comes from walking in the Spirit. “My sheep hear My voice,” says the Shepherd, “and a stranger will they not follow.” The believer stands watch not by self-discipline but by grace—listening, discerning, and clinging to Christ alone. “Stand fast in the faith.” The Faith is Christ Himself revealed in the heart. To stand fast is to remain unmoved from Him Who is our foundation. “Other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” When the storms of false doctrine blow, when the world mocks, when the flesh trembles, and the enemy rages, the believer’s safety is found in being rooted and grounded in Him. We stand because He stands for us as our advocate (1John 2:1). We endure because He endured the cross. We hold because He first holds us. As Jude writes, "to Him Who is able to keep you from falling.”  The strength of the believer is not found in resolve but in redemption—in the covenant faithfulness of the Son of God Who loved us and gave Himself for us. “Quit you like men.” Be courageous, not in self, but in Christ. The strength of the believer is in “the LORD, and in the power of His might” (Ephesians 6:10). The armor of God is not a list of duties but the very person of Christ—our Righteousness, our Salvation, our Truth. He is the Man Who has gone before us, the Captain of our salvation. To act as men is to act as those who belong to the Man Christ Jesus, who fought the good fight and won the victory for His people. “Be strong.” Strength is not drawn from human will but from Divine indwelling. The Spirit of God strengthens the inner man so that Christ may dwell in our hearts by His Faith revealed. The power that raised Jesus from the dead now works in those who by Him do believe (1 Peter 1:21). Therefore, we do not trust in our grip upon Him but in His eternal hold on us . (John 10:28-30) “When I am weak,” said Paul, “then am I strong.” And all must be done with charity, love for Christ and His brethren because of His Love for us (1 John 4:19). Faith without love becomes cold, proud, and mechanical. True standing fast in The Faith always produces love— “the love of God shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit " (Romans 5:5). Charity suffers long and is kind. It humbles, forgives, and seeks the good of others. It is the Spirit of Christ in the believer, working all things to the glory of God. So the charge remains: Watch. Stand fast. Be strong. But do so in Christ, Who alone is our Watchman, our Foundation, our Strength, and our Love. To stand fast in The Faith is to stand in Him Who is faithful— “Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever.”

Song of Solomon 2:1 "I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys." In these tender words, the voice of the Beloved, the LORD Jesus Christ, reveals Himself in the beauty and fragrance of His saving, redeeming grace. The Song of Solomon, though clothed in the language of love between bride and bridegroom, is the Spirit’s inspired picture of the union between Christ and His church. Every line breathes of Him Who loved His people and gave Himself for them. When Christ calls Himself “the rose of Sharon,”  He speaks of His surpassing excellence, the fullness of His grace, and the sweetness of His presence to those whom the Father has chosen and redeemed. He is not one among many, but the One altogether lovely, set forth by God's sovereign election and mercy as the only Savior of sinners (Isaiah 42:1). To the believing heart, He is both the glory and the delight of the soul—the Rose that never fades, the Lily that grows only in the valleys of humility and grace. Here then, we behold Christ in His lowliness and glory, tracing how the beauty of His person and the excellency of His salvation spring forth from the eternal purpose of God, ordained before the foundation of the world. Here, the Bridegroom speaks—Christ Himself, revealing His own beauty, His humility, and His nearness to His redeemed bride. These are not the words of the bride but the voice of our LORD Jesus Christ, Who says, “I AM.” The same “I AM” Who spoke to Moses out of the burning bush (Exodus 3:14) now declares Himself to be the Rose of Sharon. This is a love song of Christ for His people, the Song of songs. Beneath the surface of Solomon’s poetry lies the Spirit’s revelation of Christ’s love for His church. It is not an oriental love poem, nor a treatise on marriage. It is the testimony of the heavenly Bridegroom declaring His affection for His redeemed bride. “So is my love among the daughters,” He says. This is Christ’s own description of Himself, the expression of His beauty and grace to those who are His. The rose speaks of beauty, fragrance, and value. The Rose of Sharon—Christ—is all this and infinitely more. Many pass Him by and see no beauty in Him. Isaiah said, “There is no beauty that we should desire Him.” Yet to those who are the LORD’s, He is altogether lovely. To the elect, He is the fairest among ten thousand. When God's Spirit of Grace opens the eyes, the soul sees in Christ what others cannot: beauty hidden from the world but revealed to His people (Matthew 11:25). The “rose” here may not be the modern rose we imagine. The Hebrew term could mean any flowering plant of pleasing fragrance—perhaps the hibiscus or crocus. But the point is not the botany; it is the beauty. The Rose of Sharon grew in the fertile plain of Sharon, near the Mediterranean coast—a common, accessible place, not a royal garden. It grew where ordinary people lived. So Christ came, not in royal splendor, but in lowliness. “He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground” (Isaiah 53:2). Not planted by man, but by God. The Rose of Sharon, then, is a picture of Christ’s Divine beauty and His condescending humility. He is the flower of heaven, blooming in the barren plain of this fallen world. He came to the low place, to be near to sinners whom He came to save. “Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant” (Philippians 2:6–7). There was nothing artificial about this Rose. He was not grown in a greenhouse of worldly honor. He appeared among the thorns. Yet His fragrance filled the air. The Rose of Sharon is beautiful not because He is exalted by men, but because He is appointed and anointed by God. He is the planting of the LORD, that He might be glorified (Isaiah 61:3). But that Rose had to be crushed to release its fragrance. “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5). The word “bruised” means “crushed.” The fragrance of His saving work arose only through His suffering. At Calvary, the Rose was crushed that its perfume might fill heaven itself. “Christ also hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor” (Ephesians 5:2). This is the fragrance of redemption—the aroma of righteousness. Men may boast in their own righteousness, but before God, it is a stench. Only the Righteousness of God earned, established, and imputed to the elect in Christ, the crucified and risen Savior, is a sweet-smelling savor unto God. His death was not a martyrdom but a substitution. He was made sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. Christ is the sovereign Gift of God to His bride. “I am the rose of Sharon,” He says—not a rose among many, but THE Rose—unique, particular, and precious. He is God’s chosen delight, the Beloved given for His people. “Unto you therefore who believe He is precious.” Precious, because priceless. Precious, because appointed for us. This Rose of Sharon still blooms for all who have eyes to see and hearts to love Him. But only the Spirit can make us see His beauty and smell His fragrance. Some have no sense of smell—they cannot perceive His loveliness. But to those whom the Spirit quickens, He is irresistible. They come near, drawn by His sweetness, and say, “This is my beloved, and this is my friend” (Song of Solomon 5:16). Oh, that we might pause to “smell the rose”—to behold the glory of Christ in His humility, His nearness, and His redeeming love! He is fairer than the children of men, grace is poured into His lips, and God hath blessed Him forever (Psalm 45:2). Stop and behold the Rose of Sharon. See His beauty, feel His nearness, breathe in the fragrance of His redeeming grace. This is the glory of the Gospel—the beauty of Christ crucified, risen, reigning, and altogether lovely.

James 2:1-7 "My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons. For if there come unto your assembly a man with a gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor man in vile raiment; And ye have respect to him that weareth the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good place; and say to the poor, Stand thou there, or sit here under my footstool: Are ye not then partial in yourselves, and are become judges of evil thoughts? Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him? But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? Do not they blaspheme that worthy name by the which ye are called?" The epistle of James is a powerful and practical letter written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It is concerned not merely with theory, but with the reality of God-given faith—a faith that bears fruit, that shows itself in the life where the LORD Jesus Christ has been revealed in truth. This is not a faith that the sinner produces, but a faith that God by His grace reveals in the hearts of those whom He gave to His Son before the foundation of the world, for whom the LORD Jesus Christ came into this world to pay their sin debt. James speaks to elect sinners, redeemed by Christ and called by the Spirit, who are scattered and suffering, and he exhorts them to live as those who know Christ, the LORD of Glory. He calls them to bridle the tongue, to care for the needy, and not to show respect for persons. The Faith of our LORD Jesus Christ, the LORD of Glory, cannot be joined with partiality. God Himself is no respecter of persons. The Gospel of free Grace leaves no room for distinction among men, for all men—rich and poor alike—are sinners and equally guilty before God, equally in need of God's mercy and the redemption accomplished by the death of the LORD Jesus. When James says, “My brethren, have not the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with respect of persons,” he directs our hearts to the nature of that faith—rooted in Christ crucified, revealed by God, grounded in righteousness that He earned and established in His life and that God the Father imputed to all of the elect upon completion of His death. It is The Faith once delivered unto the saints, The Faith by which the LORD Jesus Christ is made known in the hearts of sinners. God does not regard man’s wealth, status, race, or morality—we have none. When He saves, it is always by grace alone through Christ alone. As Peter declared in Acts 10:34–35, “Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons.” In His sovereign dealings with sinners, He passes by the proud and powerful and chooses the weak, the base, and the foolish, that no flesh should glory in His presence (1 Corinthians 1:26–29). This is the humbling glory of sovereign grace: salvation rests not in the worth of the sinner but in the will and purpose of God alone. James presses this truth further: “Hath not God chosen the poor of this world, rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which He hath promised to them that love Him?” Here is the heart of the Gospel—God has chosen. Not based on merit, but on mercy. The poor of this world, those rejected, those who have nothing but Christ as their Hope, are made rich in Faith. True riches are not silver and gold, but the unsearchable riches of Christ (Ephesians 3:8). Christ came and earned and established God's perfect righteousness to satisfy His law and justice. He laid down His life to pay the entire sin debt for those whom the Father gave Him. The Sovereign Grace of God in Christ alone is the foundation of salvation—it humbles the proud and raises the poor. Christ did not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance. In His obedience unto death, His resurrection, and His ascension into glory, He effectually saved every soul given to Him by the Father ( John 6:37; Romans 5:8). To despise the poor, as James warns, is to deny the Gospel itself. The church is not a society for the elite; it is a hospital for sinners where Christ is the great Physician. Whether they come from palaces or prisons, it is by His Grace alone that they are saved. “God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us… hath quickened us together with Christ.”(Ephesians 2:4–5) . When Christ rose, His people rose with Him; when He ascended, they were seated in Him in the heavenlies. Christ, our High Priest, has entered the heavenly sanctuary with the names of His people upon His heart. Everyone that the Father gave Him is represented before the throne, and He ever lives to intercede for them. He came for the poor in spirit—for those who know they have nothing to commend themselves to God (Matthew 5:3). Salvation is not a cooperation between God and man—it is entirely the work of the sovereign God saving those who do not deserve it. None is too far gone, none too sinful, for the grace of God in Christ. All of our righteousnesses are filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6) , but the work of Christ satisfies the Father. When He cried, “It is finished,” the debt was paid, righteousness established, and God fully satisfied. God said of His Son, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” Our Peace and Joy rest not in our works but in His. He lived the life we could not live, died the death we deserved, and rose again, having justified each sinner chosen by the Father in Him. Though we are the neediest of sinners, yet He is the greatest and only Savior.

Hebrews 2:3 "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;" "How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation?"    Salvation is the greatest subject in all the world. It is a matter of life or death, heaven or hell, eternity with Christ or everlasting destruction. It is "so great salvation"  because it comes from a great God, through a great Savior, by a great Sacrifice, and brings to sinners a great deliverance. First, This salvation is great in its planning . It was no afterthought. Before Adam was formed of the dust, before sin entered the world, before time began, there was a covenant of grace ordered in all things and sure. Christ was the Lamb slain from (since) the foundation of the world   (Revelation 13:8). God chose us in Him before the foundation of the world  (Ephesians 1:3-6). It was purposed by the Father, purchased by the Son, and revealed by the Spirit. Salvation is not the result of man’s decision, not something arranged by chance, but a work conceived in the heart of God's eternal Love in Christ. It is according to His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began  (2 Timothy 1:9). Second, this salvation is great in its purchase . It is not cheap. The price was the precious blood of Christ  (1 Peter 1:18-19). He Who is God the Son took on a sinless human nature, lived under the law, fulfilled all righteousness, and purchased the church with His own blood  (Acts 20:28). It cost Him His life, His suffering, His obedience unto death. "The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin" (1 John 1:7). And yet it is free. "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come, buy and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price" (Isaiah 55:1). Christ paid the full price so that His people might receive His salvation without cost. The debt is canceled, the ransom paid, justice satisfied, and peace made through the blood of His cross (Colossians 1:20-22). Third, this salvation is great in its accomplishment . It is not an offer waiting to be completed by the sinner; it is a finished work. "He shall not fail nor be discouraged" (Isaiah 42:4). " He shall see of the travail of His soul, and shall be satisfied"  (Isaiah 53:11). Christ fulfilled every demand of the law, magnified it, and made it honorable (Isaiah 42:21). He cried from the cross, "It is finished."   There is nothing left for man to add, nothing for us to improve. He "by His own blood entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us" (Hebrews 9:12). The covenant is fulfilled, righteousness is established, and every believer stands complete in Him. Salvation is performed by the Captain of our salvation Who was made perfect through sufferings  (Hebrews 2:10). God "performeth all things for me" (Psalm 57:2). What He purposed He performed; what He promised He accomplished. Fourth, this salvation is great in its power . It is not a weak attempt or an uncertain call. The Gospel is "the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth" (Romans 1:16). Man cannot save himself. The will of the flesh, the effort of religion, the works of the law—all fail. But Christ "hath power over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as the Father hath given Him"  (John 17:2). The same power that raised Christ from the dead quickens those who were dead in trespasses and sins. He opens blind eyes, unstops deaf ears, softens hard hearts, and gives faith to believe. His Word is living and powerful; His Spirit effectually calls; His grace cannot fail. " By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God"  (Ephesians 2:8). Fifth, this salvation is great in its purpose . The end of it all is the glory of God. "That no flesh should glory in His presence… But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: that, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 1:29-31). Salvation is designed to magnify Christ, to exalt His name, to display His mercy, and to bring everlasting praise to the riches of His grace. From beginning to end, it is of the LORD. How shall we escape if we neglect this? There is no other way, no other name, no other refuge. To neglect so great salvation is to despise the only Savior, to turn away from the only Hope. But those who look to Christ, who rest in His finished work, are safe forever. God's eternal purpose to save sinners by the death of His Son cannot fail; the purchase cannot be undone; the power cannot be broken; the purpose cannot change. Salvation is great because Christ is great . All glory to Him Who loved us and gave Himself for us. "He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him" (John 3:36).

Habakkuk 2:4 "Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith." These words   stand as a timeless revelation of God’s sovereign grace in Christ. In the midst of impending judgment and national upheaval, the prophet is taught that life and righteousness do not spring from human pride, effort, or merit, but from God-given Faith—the Faith once delivered unto the saints, sanctified and justified by the blood shed unto death of the LORD Jesus. “I will stand upon my watch,” said the prophet, “and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what He will say unto me” (Habakkuk 2:1). In perplexity and wonder about God’s ways, Habakkuk waited. The LORD graciously answered, saying, “Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it” (Habakkuk 2:2). Though the vision spoke of judgment and of an appointed time, it revealed something greater — that the LORD is sovereign, acting according to His will and not according to man’s reasoning. “Though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry” (Habakkuk 2:3). All things are on God’s timetable, ever unfolding in time through His unchanging purpose, and it cannot fail. Then comes the heart of this chapter, the great contrast that divides all mankind: “Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him, but the just shall live by His faith.” It rests entirely upon the righteousness of Another. This verse, echoed throughout Scripture is brought to full light in the Person of the LORD Jesus, God manifest in the flesh (1 Timothy 3:16) . It unveils the divine mystery that the just live, not by works of the law, but by The Faith (faithfulness) of the LORD Jesus Christ, Who alone is the Author and Finisher of the Faith and the Surety of His people’s eternal standing before God. Here, the Spirit reveals the heart of one humbled by the Grace of God in Christ, who lives by that Faith revealed in Him, whose Object is the exclusive work of the LORD Jesus, trusting wholly in the finished work of Christ. This verse opens before us both the pride of the unregenerate sinner in contrast with the life of the elect child of God. “His soul, which is lifted up,” describes that proud and self-sufficient heart, that nature of sin found in Nebuchadnezzar and in every man apart from the grace of God. Pride exalts itself and says, “I will ascend.” But the soul lifted up is not upright, not righteous, not standing before God in truth. Then, in blessed contrast, “the just shall live by His faith.” This is not speaking of one’s personal strength of belief, but of Him Who is the object of that faith , none other than the LORD Jesus Christ. Even here, in the Old Testament, the Spirit of Christ was revealed in those who were the LORD’s. The justified live because their life is hidden in Christ, the foundation upon which all hope rests. From the beginning, the promise of that life was given. In Genesis 3:15 , God declared that the Seed of the woman would come. Centuries passed, and the vision seemed to tarry, but in the fullness of the time Christ came, “made of a woman,” to crush the serpent’s head (Galatians 4:4). And even now, as 2 Peter 3:4 says, there are mockers who ask, “Where is the promise of His coming?” Yet the Word still stands: “Though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come.” The same God Who appointed the coming of Christ has appointed His return, and all is moving according to His sovereign will. “The just shall live by His faith.” This word is echoed throughout the New Testament — in Romans 1:17 , Galatians 3:11 , and Hebrews 10:38 — each time unfolding the same truth: that the righteous live not by works, not by their own will or strength, but by the faith of the LORD Jesus Christ alone. Not their faith in Him, but His Faith (Faithfulness) in having earned and established their righteousness, and then paid for it with His shed blood unto death, whereby God has then justified forever each one for whom He worked out that Righteousness that answers to every demand of God the Father's law and justice. It is His righteousness, His obedience, His blood that makes a sinner just before God. All other ground is sinking sand. The proud soul trusts in himself; he builds his own refuge, lays his nest on high, and thinks he will be delivered from the power of evil. But woe to that man, for judgment is coming. There is no safety, no salvation apart from Christ the Rock. Every false refuge, every self-made righteousness, every idol of man’s will is nothing more than a dumb stump, for there is no breath at all in the midst of it. It is only when the LORD breathes life into the sinner that he is made alive and turns to Christ, in repentance and faith. How blessed, then, to rest in Him Who is our Life. The LORD is in His holy temple; He reigns in all wisdom and righteousness. The kingdoms of men rise and fall, but His kingdom is everlasting. Every purpose of God moved toward that appointed day “when the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea” ( Habakkuk 2:14 ). This promise finds its full accomplishment in the redeeming work of the LORD Jesus at the cross and its ongoing fulfillment through the preaching of the gospel to all nations. At Calvary, the glory of the LORD was most perfectly revealed—not in wrath or might, but in " grace and truth ," where " righteousness and peace kissed each other"   (Psalm 85:10). There, the eternal purpose of God was manifested: His justice satisfied, His mercy magnified, and His elect redeemed. The knowledge of that glory—the revelation of who God truly is in His holiness, justice, love, and mercy—is seen nowhere more clearly than in the crucified Christ. As Paul writes, “God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ”  (2 Corinthians 4:6). Through the preaching of the Gospel, this same glory spreads throughout the earth. The message of Christ crucified and risen is the divine means by which the Spirit makes elected, redeemed sinners see and know the LORD. Wherever the Gospel is proclaimed and believed, the earth is being filled with that “knowledge of the glory of the LORD.” Thus, Habakkuk’s prophecy is not merely a poetic hope, but the sovereign decree of God—fulfilled in Christ’s finished work and advancing irresistibly through His Gospel—until the whole world resounds with the praise of His grace. Christ is our Refuge, our Righteousness, our Life. The soul lifted up will fall, but the soul resting in Him will live forever.

Ezekiel 37:3 "And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O LORD God , thou knowest." Ezekiel 37 is part of the prophet’s visions given during the Babylonian exile (circa 593–571 B.C.) . Ezekiel ministered to the Jewish exiles in Babylon after Jerusalem was destroyed in 586 B.C. by King Nebuchadnezzar. The people of Judah had lost their homeland, their temple, and their national identity. They were spiritually desolate and without hope , much like the “very dry bones” Ezekiel sees in the vision. The valley of dry bones  symbolizes the utter hopelessness of Israel’s condition —politically scattered, spiritually dead, and cut off from God’s covenant blessings. When God asks, “Can these bones live?”  He confronts Ezekiel (and through him, Israel) with a question about divine power and faith. Humanly speaking, the situation was beyond recovery. Yet the question directs the prophet to affirm that God alone can restore life to what is dead. The LORD brings His servant into the valley — a place full of bones, very many, and very dry. There is no sign of movement, no trace of life, no sound but silence. This is the picture of man without God, a nation without the Spirit, a soul without Christ. Ezekiel looks upon the bones and sees death everywhere, yet he does not answer according to sight. He does not reason, nor does he presume. He lifts his eyes to the LORD and says, “ O LORD God, Thou knowest.” That confession is faith bowing before divine sovereignty. It is the acknowledgment that only God can make the dead live again. What Ezekiel cannot do, what no preacher, no nation, no power of man can accomplish, God alone can perform. We were the dry bones, scattered, lifeless, and without hope (Ephesians 2:1–5). Sin had stripped us bare, and death reigned over us (Romans 5:12). Yet God, Who commanded the light to shine out of darkness (2 Corinthians 4:6), still speaks life where there is none. The same LORD Who asked, “Can these bones live?” now says, “Live.” His Word is creative and powerful. When He speaks, the bones come together, bone to his bone; flesh covers them, breath enters them, and they stand upon their feet, an exceeding great army. Here we see Christ, the Word made flesh (John 1:14), the very breath of God come into the world. He is the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25). In Him is the answer to the question. Can these bones live? Yes — through Christ Who died and rose again (Romans 6:9–10) . In His death He entered the valley for us; in His resurrection He filled it with life. He spoke to the tomb and said, “Lazarus, come forth” (John 11:43), and the dead man lived. He spoke peace to the thief on the cross, and a condemned sinner entered paradise (Luke 23:43). When the Son of God speaks, the dead hear His voice and live (John 5:24–25). The LORD asked the question not because He did not know the answer, but to bring Ezekiel to see that the hope of life does not rest in the bones, nor in the prophet, but in God Himself. “O Lord God, Thou knowest.” This is the language of trust. The LORD knows how to make the dead live. He knows how to revive His people. He knows those He has chosen in Christ, for whom Christ paid their sin debt and does, in time, give them life, by His Spirit to raise them from spiritual deadness into newness of life in Christ. This He did already when Christ died and rose again (Ephesians 2:6) , and now from glory He is calling out each one for whom He died. The Word and the Spirit always work together. The LORD said, “Prophesy unto these bones” (Ezekiel 37:4). The Word went forth, and then came the breath — the Spirit of God moving where He wills (John 3:8). So it is in the Gospel. The Word of Christ is preached, and the Spirit brings that Word to life in the hearts of the hearers. Flesh cannot create life, but the Spirit gives life through the Word (2 Corinthians 3:6). That is why Christ said, “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). The question still echoes across every valley of despair and unbelief: “Can these bones live?” The answer is not found in man’s strength, in religion, or in resolve. It is found in CHRIST ALONE. When He breathes upon the slain, they live. When He speaks, the grave yields. When He commands, the heart of stone becomes a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26). “ Son of man, can these bones live? ” Yes — because the LORD Jesus ever lives to intercede for each one for whom He paid the debt (Revelation 1:18).

Mark 14:61 "But he held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?" In the hour of our LORD’s deepest humiliation, when cruel mockings surrounded Him and false witnesses rose against Him, He stood in silence. He held His peace. As Isaiah wrote, “He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He openeth not His mouth” (Isaiah 53:7). Yet when the high priest asked, “Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” —He did not deny it. He said, “I am” (Mark 14:62). In that simple confession, the veil is lifted on the glorious identity of our Redeemer. He is not merely a prophet or a man of God, but the Christ—the Anointed One—God’s appointed Savior. He is the Son of the Blessed, one with the Father, co-eternal and co-equal. The fullness of the Godhead dwelt in Him bodily (Colossians 2:9). The high priest meant his words as an accusation, but God purposed them for the revelation of His Person. From the mouth of unbelief came the very testimony of God the Father concerning His Son. As the Christ, He is God’s divinely appointed Mediator, sent to earn and establish righteousness on behalf of a people who could not do it for themselves. Before the foundation of the world, the Father chose sinners from every tribe, nation and tongue in Him, “that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will” (Ephesians 1:4-5). Christ did not come seeking votes or approval; He came as the approved and appointed Savior by eternal decree. “Thou shalt call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). He did not come to try to save but to save—to accomplish redemption, by satisfying God’s law and justice in His life, and then laying down His life to pay the penalty for their sin. Daniel 9:24 declares that He “brought in everlasting righteousness.” The blood of bulls and goats could not redeem; God’s decree alone could not justify until the righteousness was earned and brought in. The LORD Jesus Christ, the Son of the Blessed, did this—He brought in that everlasting righteousness by His obedience unto death, ( Philippians 2:8). The high priest’s question contained two truths: “Art thou the Christ?” —Yes, the Anointed One foretold in all the Scriptures; and “Art thou the Son of the Blessed?” —Yes, the eternal Son of God. “My Father worketh hitherto, and I work. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill Him… because He said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God” (John 5:17,18). To be the Son of the Blessed is to be one with the Father in divine essence. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). He is the express image of His person (Hebrews 1:3). Whoever has seen the Son has seen the Father. This is the bedrock of our hope: that the One Who laid down His life for His sheep is God manifest in the flesh. “Great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh” (1 Timothy 3:16). He laid down His life not as a victim of men, but in willing obedience to His Father’s will. “No man taketh it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again” (John 10:18). His silence before His accusers was submission, not weakness. The Lamb of God was led to the slaughter, fulfilling God's covenant of redemption (John 17:1-5). And now, risen and exalted, “He ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25). All that the Father gave Him shall come to Him, and He will lose none (John 6:37-39). This is our confession with Peter: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). Flesh and blood did not reveal this, but the Father Who is in heaven. Upon this Rock—the truth of Who Christ is—He builds His church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Every time we open the Scriptures, the question still echoes: “Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” And still He answers, “I am.” This is the LORD Jesus Christ of the Scriptures—the Son of the Blessed, Who obtained eternal redemption for His people by His shed blood unto death. This is the Faith that rests in Him alone, rejoicing that “he that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life” (John 3:36). Jesus Christ, the Son of the Blessed—our appointed Savior, our everlasting righteousness, our Emmanuel—God with us.

Psalm 116:1-10 "I love the LORD, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications. Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I live. The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow. Then called I upon the name of the LORD; O LORD, I beseech thee, deliver my soul. Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful. The LORD preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me. Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee. For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling. I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living. I believed, therefore have I spoken: I was greatly afflicted:" “I love the LORD, because He hath heard my voice and my supplications.” These are the words of Christ, the voice of our Redeemer praying to His Father. Psalm 116 is the song and prayer of the Son of God, the Mediator, the Surety of His people. It is the thanksgiving of the One Who, having borne sin and wrath, was delivered and heard in His hour of anguish. When He says, “I love the LORD,” it is the perfect love of the Son to the Father—love displayed in obedience and submission, love that endured the cross and despised the shame. “He hath heard My voice” points us to Gethsemane and to Calvary, to the cry that rose from the garden and from the tree: “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” (Psalm 22:1). The psalm unfolds as Christ praying through suffering into victory, through death into life. “The sorrows of death compassed Me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon Me.” None could ever speak those words as He could. The curse of the law fell upon Him; justice demanded satisfaction, and He found trouble and sorrow. In His agony He cried, “O LORD, I beseech Thee, deliver My soul.” That prayer was heard. As Hebrews 5:7 declares, He “was heard in that He feared.” The Father received the cry of His obedient Son and brought Him up out of death, for grace and righteousness met together. “Gracious is the LORD, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful.” (Psalm 116:5) In that one verse stands the wonder of redemption—how God can be both gracious and righteous. Romans 3:25–26 declares, “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood… to declare His righteousness… that He might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” At the cross, mercy and truth met together; righteousness and peace kissed each other (Psalm 85:10). God remained just, even while justifying the ungodly, because His Son bore the judgment due to sin. “Return unto thy rest, O My soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee.” This is the voice of the risen Redeemer, Who, after the travail of His soul, was satisfied (Isaiah 53:11). The work is finished, the ransom paid, the rest obtained. The Father has raised Him from the dead, declaring Him to be the Son of God with power. “Thou hast delivered My soul from death, Mine eyes from tears, and My feet from falling.” Death could not hold Him. The sorrow and tears of the Man of Sorrows are forever gone. His feet stand firm in resurrection glory on behalf of His people (Ephesians 2:6). This psalm is therefore the song of Christ, Who once was compassed by death but now lives forevermore. It is the voice of the Shepherd Who walked through the valley for His sheep and brought them safely out with Him. Because He was heard, we are heard. Because He lives, we shall live also. “I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.” These are the words of triumph, the confession of the Redeemer and of all who are in Him. The Father heard His cry and accepted His offering. Now all who are united to Him by faith walk in the light of His life. Gracious is the LORD and righteous; yea, our God is merciful. He heard His Son, and in His Son He hears us. This is, in essence, a Resurrection Hymn of the LORD Jesus in His successful work on behalf of His people that the Father gave Him to save. In this psalm, we see Christ's agonizing prayer in death, but also His deliverance through resurrection, His rest and joy in the Father's presence, and now His eternal intercession and constant communion with the Father and His saved ones. The LORD heard  Him — not by sparing Him from the cross, but by raising Him from the dead , vindicating His righteousness, and glorifying Him with the glory He had before the world was (John 17:1-5).

1 Peter 4:1-4 "Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin; That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God. For the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine, revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries: Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you:" Peter begins this exhortation by pointing to the historical, incarnate suffering of Christ. "Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh..." Jesus Who did not merely suffer abstractly; He suffered “in the flesh,” fully human, yet without sin. His suffering was substitutionary—He bore the wrath and judgment due for the sins of His people. This is the very heart of the redeeming, justifying work of the LORD Jesus. Christ suffered for us , sinners chosen by God the Father for whom He paid the debt, meaning He experienced the penalty and the trials of sin on behalf of those given to Him by the Father (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21; Isaiah 53:4–6). In His suffering, Jesus was completely subject to the Father’s will , enduring temptation, rejection, and death on the cross without yielding to sin. He lived the life of perfect obedience that sinners could never live themselves, and in doing so, He bore their sin and guilt. Therefore, the apostle Peter points us to the finished work of Christ: He suffered in the flesh  for His people, bearing their sin. Through His suffering, He ceased from sin, that is as the sin-Bearer , having fully satisfied God’s law and justice, and therefore has ceased from bearing that sin, because it was completely put away in His death. He lived not according to human lusts, the evil desires of those who pursued Him to death but was perfectly submitted to the Father’s will . Therefore, as believers, we are called to " arm ourselves with this same mind" —to reckon ourselves dead to sin, alive to God, and to follow Christ in spirit, submission, and obedience. This is the call to arm ourselves with the same mind that was in Christ—a solemn preparation for spiritual battle. Just as He suffered, so must we be willing to suffer, not for wrongdoing, but for the sake of His righteousness. When others regard as strange the Faith revealed in us by God's Spirit —strange in whom we worship, strange in how we live in obedience to Christ alone—we must not be discouraged. Both the world and those who claim religion will take notice. Yet, if the LORD has truly taught us the Gospel of His dear Son through His Word and the inward revelation of His Spirit, our lives will bear a marked difference. Here, Peter’s exhortation rings clear: “Arm yourselves.”  Let us take up this call with steadfast hearts, counting the cost, trusting wholly in Christ. There is preparation. There is combat. We cannot live as we did in the past, for as it says, "the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles when we walked in lasciviousness, lust, excess of wine, revelings, banqueting, and abominable idolatry." Notice the phrase, “wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riots, speaking evil of you.” The world, both secular and religious, will speak evil. They will poke at you and attempt to ensnare you just as they did our LORD Jesus (Matthew 22:15-18). They will try to cause you to stumble. They will shake their heads. They will look upon you as a foreigner, as an alien. But we are called to be distinct. There is a difference because of what Christ has accomplished for us. The life, suffering, and death of Christ is not merely a story to learn, nor merely a doctrine to believe, although we must believe it. It is the very foundation of our salvation (Acts 4:12). The cross is where salvation was wrought. God dealt with the sin of His people through the Person of His Son. God did not merely overlook sin. God put the sin of His people to the account of His Son, and He put the Righteousness that His Son earned and established, in His obedience unto death, to the account of His people. That is why we look to Christ and Him crucified. That is where our hope is. 2 Corinthians 5:21 reminds us, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” "He no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God." It is nauseating to even consider returning to the excesses of the past. Whether it was lasciviousness, idolatry, or false worship, it is all corruption, evil, and condemnation. We have been delivered. We are to live soberly and watchfully, even as Philippians 1:28-29 instructs: “And nothing’s terrified by your adversaries…for unto you it is given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for his sake.” Yes, others will find it strange, and that they ought. The LORD Himself has made a difference. We are to bear no grudges, but to stand firm, to live unto the will of God, and that the Gospel motivate us in all we say and do. Just as Peter writes, we no longer live for the lusts of men, but to the glory of Christ. We are a people distinct and separate, called to walk in the light of the Truth, as it is in Christ, guided by His Spirit, and motivated by grace, not works. Because of Christ's great redemption accomplished on behalf of those elect sinners that the Father sent Him to save, by His obedience unto death, we arm ourselves with the same mind as Christ, knowing that others will think it strange. Let us rejoice that the time past of our life is behind us, and that we now live by the will of God, for the glory of His Son, standing justified by Christ in His death, and looking only to Him who has suffered for us, so that we might live and walk in His Righteousness and Holiness imputed to our spiritual account at the cross. "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's." 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20.

Ephesians 1:1,2 "Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the LORD Jesus Christ." Paul begins this letter to the Ephesian church by identifying himself simply as “Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ.”   Not “Dr. Paul,” not “Reverend,” but a man sent by Christ. The word "apostle"  means  'one sent' . He was sent as an eyewitness of the resurrected LORD. That’s why there are no apostles today. They had to be witnesses of His resurrection. In Acts 1:21–22 ,  we see that qualification— “to be a witness with us of His resurrection.” Paul, too, was such a witness. In 1 Corinthians 15:8   he said, “Last of all He was seen of me also.”  On that road to Damascus (Acts 9), the risen LORD met him and said, “I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.” Why was this so vital? Because if Christ be not raised, then your faith is vain (1 Corinthians 15). There’s no hope, no proof of satisfaction. But the fact that God raised His Son from the dead is evidence that Christ finished the work, that He did all that the Father sent Him to do. As it says in Romans 10:9 , “If thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Paul says that he was an apostle “ by the will of God.”   God’s will is absolute. Salvation is not by the will of man but by the will of God. Paul said in Galatians 1:15–16 , “When it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me by His grace, to reveal His Son in me.”   That’s conversion—to reveal His Son in me. Paul was sent to preach Christ and Him crucified. The Gospel is not a plan; it’s the Person of the LORD Jesus Christ. To preach Christ is to preach Him: the God-Man, the Substitute, the Intercessor, the Sacrifice, the Lamb. To preach Christ and Him crucified is to preach His finished, effectual work on the cross. As Ephesians 1 says, “In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.” We have it now as sinners elected by His grace—through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. That’s the only means of acceptance before a holy God. Beware of making forgiveness and justification contingent upon faith. Those whom the LORD has redeemed, He will cause to know His Son. Faith follows redemption. It looks to Christ as the Object, the Author, and Finisher of salvation (Isaiah 43:1). To preach Christ and Him crucified is to preach Him as the fulfillment of all Scripture. All the types, pictures, and prophecies point to Him. The Bible is a biography, or better yet, an autobiography—because Christ wrote it. It’s all about Him. From Genesis 1 onward to Revelation 22, look for Him. Doctrine divorced from Christ is only a deadly philosophy. Duty without Christ is self-righteous legalism. Devotion not motivated by love for Christ is mere ritualism. Christ is the subject of all biblical truth, the fulfillment of all prophecy, the end of all law, the motive of all precepts, the basis of all hope, and the reward of all faith. The LORD established a congregation in Ephesus, a great metropolis filled with idolatry, yet it pleased the LORD to have a people there. The Gospel was preached in that city, and it stirred confusion. Paul preached Christ, and men cried out, “Great is Diana of the Ephesians”    (Acts 19:34).  Wherever the LORD gives liberty to proclaim the Gospel, there is often confusion. It stirs men up. Some get glad, by God's grace. Some get mad, and others are simply confused because of the blindness and darkness of their heart. But in that very place God was pleased to give His grace to some, calling them out of darkness into His glorious light, by His good pleasure, for the glory of Christ. " But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1 Peter 2:9). Christ redeemed them and justified them, making them worthy to be called saints. Before God, He looks upon them just as holy as He is. So complete is the work of Christ that every sin of His people has been put away from an all-knowing God. He sees it no more (Hebrews 8:12).  More than that, the very righteousness of Christ is put to their account, so that when God looks upon His people, all He sees is righteousness—perfect righteousness. Paul continues by writing, "Grace be to you, and peace, from God... " Grace and peace—one is the effect of the other. There’s not going to be any true peace apart from the grace of God. It must be founded upon a just grace, upon a God Who is satisfied, and the only way He is satisfied is in Christ's obedience unto death, (Philippians 2:8). That’s where grace and peace are to be found—from God our Father, even from the LORD Jesus Christ. This is God’s free grace in Christ. It’s free to His people, though it wasn’t free to Christ. Christ paid the great price, the great price that God might be just and the justifier of His people. But as far as His people are concerned, it’s free. Like Isaiah said, “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come to the waters... come, buy and eat without money and without price” (Isaiah 55:1) . What kind of marketplace is that? It’s the marketplace of free grace. Grace and peace—free grace and true peace—come only from God our Father through the LORD Jesus Christ. This is the Gospel of God’s free grace in Christ. All of it is of Him, through Him, and to Him. To Him be all the glory forever, (Romans 11:36).

Lamentations 3:1-23 "I Am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. He hath led me, and brought me into darkness, but not into light. Surely against me is he turned; he turneth his hand against me all the day. My flesh and my skin hath he made old; he hath broken my bones. He hath builded against me, and compassed me with gall and travail. He hath set me in dark places, as they that be dead of old. He hath hedged me about, that I cannot get out: he hath made my chain heavy. Also when I cry and shout, he shutteth out my prayer. He hath inclosed my ways with hewn stone, he hath made my paths crooked. He was unto me as a bear lying in wait, and as a lion in secret places. He hath turned aside my ways, and pulled me in pieces: he hath made me desolate. He hath bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow. He hath caused the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reins. I was a derision to all my people; and their song all the day. He hath filled me with bitterness, he hath made me drunken with wormwood. He hath also broken my teeth with gravel stones, he hath covered me with ashes. And thou hast removed my soul far off from peace: I forgat prosperity. And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the LORD: Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. My soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me. This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the LORD's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness." “I Am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of His wrath” ( v.1 ). In these opening words of Lamentations 3, the prophet speaks not only of himself but gives a shadow picture of Christ Jesus, the true Man of Sorrows, and acquainted with grief ( Isaiah 53:3 ) . Jeremiah, under the hand of Divine judgment, stands as a type of the LORD Jesus Who was sent to bear the wrath of His Father on behalf of His people ( Romans 8:32 ). Through his suffering, Jeremiah foreshadowed that greater affliction by which the salvation of the elect of God was accomplished. He was afflicted for the sins of Judah, the very tribe from which Christ should come ( Genesis 49:10 , Hebrews 7:14 ). So we behold in these verses a man afflicted of the LORD, and yet through him, the prefiguring of the Savior Who would bear all the grief, all the travail, and all the darkness that God's law and justice required for the sin of His people. “He hath led me and brought me into darkness, but not into light” ( v.2 ). How this pictures the hour of our LORD’s suffering—the darkness that covered the land ( Matthew 27:45 ) , the night of betrayal in the garden ( Luke 22:53 ) , the hour when they came to arrest Him. He endured the darkness that we might walk in His light ( John 8:12 ). Jeremiah says, “Surely against me is He turned” ( v.3 ). Even so, it was written, “He spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all” ( Romans 8:32 ). It was not hatred, but justice. Wrath means justice. God never hated His Son, but His justice had to be satisfied ( Isaiah 53:10–11 ). The law stood against Christ as the Substitute, and therefore He endured the sword, the bow, and the arrows of God the Father's purpose, until all was fulfilled to His satisfaction. The prophet says, “He hath broken my bones” ( v.4 ) , and though no bone of our LORD was broken ( John 19:36 ), yet His soul was poured out unto death ( Isaiah 53:12 ). He speaks of “bitterness” and of being “filled with wormwood and gall ” ( Lamentations 3:5,15 ). Is that not what they gave our LORD to drink? ( Matthew 27:34 ) The travail of His soul is here pictured—the bitter cup of God’s wrath drunk down to the last drop ( Matthew 26:39 ) . “He hath hedged me about, that I cannot get out” ( v.7 ). Christ never sought to be removed from under that heavy hand, for He came to fulfill all righteousness ( John 18:11 , Matthew 3:15 ) . “He hath made my chain heavy.” The heaviest chain was the debt of sin He bore ( 2 Corinthians 5:21 ). Every step of affliction was by Divine purpose, and in that, Jeremiah’s suffering mirrors Christ’s willing submission. In verse ten, he says, “He was unto me as a bear lying in wait, and as a lion in secret places” ( v.10 ). So it was with the sword of Divine justice that the LORD struck His Son ( Zechariah 13:7 ). “He hath bent His bow and set me as a mark for the arrow” ( v.12 ) . The arrows of His quiver entered into His reins ( v.13 ). Nothing missed its mark; every stroke was according to God’s perfect will ( Acts 2:23, 4.28 ) . He became “a derision to all my people, and their song all the day” ( v.14 ). They mocked Him, wagging their heads, saying, “ He saved others; Himself He cannot save” ( Mark 15:29–31 ). “He hath filled me with bitterness,” the prophet says, and we hear in that the echo of Calvary, where the Judge of all the earth condemned sin in the flesh of His own Son ( Romans 8:3 ). Then comes the turning: “Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall, my soul hath them still in remembrance, and is humbled in me” ( v.19,20 ) . Through the affliction, humility was wrought. Jeremiah bowed beneath the hand of God, acknowledging His justice and righteousness. Christ, though equal with God, humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross ( Philippians 2:6–8 ). Out of that humility rises hope. “This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope” ( v.21 ). Here is the Gospel dawn: “It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is Thy faithfulness” ( v.22,23 ) . Christ was consumed by the fire of God’s wrath as the burnt offering ( Leviticus 6:12–13 , Hebrews 10:10 ) , yet as the Altar—Divine and Eternal—He was not consumed ( Hebrews 7:24–25 ). Out of the darkness of judgment came the morning of resurrection ( Matthew 28:1–6 ). Every morning ends the night. Every morning declares that His mercies are new, that His compassions fail not. The dawn that broke over the empty tomb declares, “Great is Thy faithfulness” (Deuteronomy 7:9, 1 Thessalonians 5:24). Thankfully, what was a lament becomes a song of Hope. In the affliction of Jeremiah, we see the shadow; in Christ crucified and risen, the Substance ( Colossians 2:17 ). Through His sorrow, peace is established ( Isaiah 53:5 , Ephesians 2:14–16 ); through His death, life eternal ( John 11:25–26 ). We give praise and glory to the Father Who, through His faithful Son, has brought forth mercy that is new every morning. Great indeed is HIS faithfulness.

Galatians 4:16-19 "Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth? They zealously affect you, but not well; yea, they would exclude you, that ye might affect them. But it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing, and not only when I am present with you. My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you," “ Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you the truth? ” Paul speaks as one who loves the souls of men. He is not their adversary, but their friend. He will not flatter nor deceive; he tells them the truth, even when the truth cuts deep. True love speaks plainly. It is never cruelty to tell men the truth about themselves, about sin, about righteousness, and about judgment. The man who loves Christ and loves His people must speak what God says. “ Faithful are the wounds of a friend ” (Proverbs 27:6). Paul’s heart is heavy. He has preached Christ crucified among them, and they received him as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. They once rejoiced in the Gospel, but now they have turned cold, drawn away by those who “zealously affect you, but not well.” These false teachers make much of them, not for their souls’ good, but to shut them out — to isolate them from the truth, that they might glory in their flesh. Yet Paul will not compete for their affection. He only desires that Christ be formed in them. The Truth he proclaims is not a system, not a form, not a ceremony, but a Person — Christ Jesus the LORD. “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me” (Galatians 2:20). This is the essence of the Gospel. The believer’s life is Christ. To have Him formed within is the great work of Grace. It is not merely to hear of Him, nor to attempt to imitate Him, but to have His life, His mind, His Spirit within. “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). “My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you.” What language of tenderness! He had once travailed in the pains of spiritual birth when he preached the Gospel to them at first. Now he labors again, not for their conversion, but for their conformity — that Christ may be inwardly revealed and fully formed in them. This is the labor of a true shepherd. He feels their coldness, he mourns their instability, he weeps over their spiritual decline. Yet he does not despair. He travails again, in prayer and in preaching, until Christ is formed in them. This travail is not fleshly striving, but the burden of love for the glory of Christ and the good of their souls. It is the heart of Christ Himself beating in His servant. The Good Shepherd laid down His life for the sheep, and His ministers share His heart. The apostle’s concern is not for his reputation, not for numbers, nor for outward success, but for the reality of Christ in the heart. He desires that they live no longer unto themselves, but unto Him Who died for them and rose again. Truth has enemies. The carnal mind is enmity against God. When the Gospel exposes pride and self-righteousness, men turn away. They once rejoiced, but when the cross cuts across their flesh, they count the preacher an enemy. Yet the servant of Christ cannot soften the message. He tells the truth — that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. No law, no ritual, no human merit can form Christ within. Only the Spirit of God gives life. “ The flesh profiteth nothing” (John 6:63). Those who are born of the Spirit know this travail. They hunger for the reality of Christ, not merely for religion. They are not content with outward forms; they long for inward life. And where Christ is formed, there is humility, love, peace, and faith. There is rest in His finished work. There is joy in the knowledge that “ He that hath the Son hath life ” (1 John 5:12). Paul’s words echo the voice of the Savior Himself. Christ travailed in Gethsemane; He labored upon the cross; He bore the curse for His people that they might be born again. Every pang of Paul’s heart for these Galatians flows from that greater travail of the Son of God. It is Christ laboring through His servant, Christ forming His own image in His own redeemed. And when Christ is formed in a soul, there is no question of enemy or friend. There is only love — love for the truth, love for the brethren, love for the Savior Who gave Himself for us. To know Him is life eternal (John 17:3). To have Him formed within is glory begun. To be conformed to His image is the purpose of God’s eternal grace (Romans 8:29). So the cry of every true minister, every true believer, is this: that Christ be formed in our mind, heart, and soul, where the heart and soul are His temple, and that His abiding presence be ALL our Hope of glory, and Christ's Person and work as all their salvation. Though the world counts the Gospel an offense, though men turn away, still Christ must be preached as the only Hope of Glory of His chosen ones. When He is fully formed in the heart of His children, they see Him as He is, and are satisfied. These words of Paul pierce with both tenderness and truth. This travail, as Paul describes, is not the labor of the flesh but the deep groaning of grace that longs to see Christ’s image renewed in His redeemed ones. Sovereign grace alone can accomplish this work; no law, no human effort, no self-righteous zeal can bring it forth. It is the Spirit of adoption, working through the Truth of the Gospel, that conforms the hearts and minds of God's elect unto the likeness of the Son. Therefore, though the faithful preacher is misunderstood, maligned, or rejected, he must continue to proclaim Christ crucified — for only in Him do sinners die to the law and live unto God. And when Christ is formed within, all reproach is turned to rejoicing, for the travail of grace ends in the triumph of life.