2 Corinthians 2:15-17 "For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: to the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things? For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of God: but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight of God speak we in Christ." Here is a sobering mystery in the Gospel of Christ: the same message that brings life to some brings death to others. Paul, directed by the Spirit, declares that the apostles of Christ are the aroma of Christ in the world—a fragrance that carries a twofold effect. To those who perish, it is the stench of death; to those who are saved, by God's electing and redeeming grace in Christ, it is the sweet scent of life. This is not a result of man's choosing, but God's determining. The will or works of man do not draw the dividing line, but by the eternal counsel of God’s sovereign grace. Those who are “the savour of life unto life” are those who have been chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4), called by His Spirit, and made willing in the day of His power (Psalm 110:3) . The same Christ, preached with the same words and the same clarity and persuasion, brings forth two opposite reactions. Some are hardened. Some are humbled. One walks away scoffing; another bows in worship. This Gospel is not a mere offer. It is God's declaration concerning His Son and His work accomplished for the satisfaction of His law and justice on behalf of those that the Father chose from before the foundation of the world. It does not beg the sinner to let Christ in. Rather, it proclaims what Christ has done for His elect and declares His finished work, His complete satisfaction, and His infallible power to save. And where the Spirit applies that word to the heart, life springs forth. But where the Spirit does not move, the Gospel becomes the savor of death unto death. Not because there is death in the message, but because the dead heart resists the only source of life. " But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned," (1 Corinthians 2:14). Here is the weight of Paul’s question: “And who is sufficient for these things?” Who is sufficient to preach such a Gospel? Who can carry such a fragrance, knowing that it will both attract and repel? No man in himself. But Christ is sufficient. Christ sends His ambassadors. Christ speaks through them. Christ draws His sheep. And Christ passes by the rest in righteous judgment (John 10:3-16). This humbles the preacher and silences the proud. It is not by eloquence, emotional persuasion, or man-centered strategies that sinners are drawn to Christ. It is through the foolishness of preaching—preaching Christ and Him crucified (1 Corinthians 1:23) . To those who are the called, Christ is the Power of God and the Wisdom of God (1 Corinthians 1:24). But to others, He is a Rock of offense and a stumbling Stone (Romans 9:33). We are never to alter the message to try to win the world. Christ did not come to save every sinner in the world, but only those that the Father gave Him from eternity (John 17:9). The Gospel will do what God has purposed it to do. His Word will not return unto Him void. It will accomplish what He pleases and prosper in the thing whereunto He sends it (Isaiah 55:11). And in all of it, Christ will be glorified—in the salvation of His people, and in the just condemnation of those who continue to reject Him, having been left to their depraved will (John 6:44,66). Who is sufficient for these things? Not us as human instruments, no matter how gifted to preach. Our sufficiency is of God (2 Corinthians 3:5). Christ alone must be preached in clarity and truth. In so doing, the sweet savor of His name is spread abroad, knowing it is the fragrance of life to His sheep. In Him we rest and find our sufficiency! He knows those that are His and of all that the Father has given Him, He will lose nothing (John 6:39).

1 Corinthians 8:3 "But if any man love God, the same is known of Him." What a profound and humbling truth is declared in this brief verse. In a chapter where Paul addresses knowledge and liberty, he draws our attention from mere intellectualism to what is the true knowledge of God. He does not say, “If any man knows God,” but “if any man love God, the same is known of Him.” This distinction reveals the sovereign origin and grace-filled nature of our love to God: it is not man’s knowledge of God that secures salvation, but God's eternal knowledge of man in Christ. Love to God is not natural to fallen men. By nature, “ there is none that seeketh after God” (Romans 3:11). The heart of man is enmity against God (Romans 8:7). So how then can a man come to love God? The answer does not lie in man’s "free will", which is a myth, but in God’s sovereign grace. “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). If any man loves God, it is the sure evidence that God has first set His love upon him in eternity, chosen him in Christ, and quickened him by the Holy Spirit. To be “known of God” is not mere awareness. God, being omniscient, knows all men in the sense of awareness. But this knowledge is a special, relational, covenantal knowing. It is the same word that the scriptures use of the most intimate relation between husband and wife, so the bride of Christ is known of Him in the most intimate way, even to the point of laying down His life for her. It is the same kind of knowledge Christ spoke of when He said, “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine”  (John 10:14). It is the knowledge of love, of union, and of sovereign everlasting purpose. This knowledge is founded in Christ exclusively. God knows His people in Christ. Christ is the federal Head and Surety of the elect, the One in whom God has loved them with an everlasting love. “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world”  (Ephesians 1:4). To be “known of God” is to have been eternally joined to Christ by the Father’s decree, justified by His obedience and blood shed unto death at the cross, and preserved by His intercession (Hebrews 7:24-28). When Paul writes that the one who loves God is “known of him,” he is not exalting man’s love, but magnifying God’s work in Christ. Any true love to God is the fruit of being in Christ, for “no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Ghost” (1 Corinthians 12:3). Christ, the Eternal Son, came to make known the Father to His elect. He came, not to make men savable, but to save His people from their sins   (Matthew 1:21). His death was not a general offering, but a definite redemption and reconciliation, a covenant fulfillment. “I lay down my life for the sheep” (John 10:15). To be “known of God” is to be kept. Paul writes later in Galatians 4:9, “But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God…”  He corrects himself, shifting the focus from our weak apprehension of God to God's eternal embrace of His people. It is God’s knowledge of us in Christ that assures our salvation, not our knowledge of Him (John 17:3). “The Lord knoweth them that are his”  (2 Timothy 2:19). That knowledge is bound up in the Person and work of Christ, sealed in His blood, and revealed by His Spirit. What comfort this brings to trembling believers! When our love falters, when our understanding fails, our hope does not rest in our grasp of Him, but in His eternal, unchanging grasp of us in Christ. Therefore, child of God, if there is in your heart even the faintest love for the Lord, know this—it is because He has known you. Christ has redeemed you, the Spirit has called you, and the Father has accepted you in the Belived (Ephesians 1:6) . You are “known of God.” And this knowledge is unto salvation, unto eternal life, unto everlasting communion. Let us then rejoice, not in ourselves, but in Christ, “in whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:14). Let us love Him because He first loved us. And let us rest in the unspeakable assurance that we are, by sovereign grace, eternally known of God  in His Son.

Jonah 4:1,2 " But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was very angry. And he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest thee of the evil." Jonah’s anger in these verses is shocking. One would think a prophet of God would rejoice at the repentance of a city and the sparing of thousands from destruction. But here he is—sulking, seething, and praying in frustration. Why? Because God was gracious. Because God was merciful. Because God spared a people Jonah thought deserved wrath. And indeed they did deserve it. But what Jonah forgot is that he  did too. This moment exposes more than Jonah’s personal prejudice or national pride. It reveals a deeper human offense: the offence of God’s sovereign grace toward sinners that we may think unworthy of that grace. Such is the depravity of our hearts to acknowledge His right to show mercy to those He wills, and yet to find fault with those to whom He does show mercy. Much like the disciples of Christ when He was showing mercy to the Samaritan woman (John 4:27). Jonah could not reconcile God’s mercy with his sense of justice, especially when that mercy was shown to his enemies. He confesses that this was his reason for fleeing from God’s call in the first place. “I knew that thou art a gracious God…” (v. 2 ). In other words, “I knew You’d forgive them. And I don't approve." Put that way, the shock should be that he could even think that way, knowing how merciful the LORD had been to him. What a painful mirror this holds up to our hearts. How often do we, like Jonah, resist the truth of divine grace when it offends our sense of who should receive it? It’s easy to love grace when it reaches us. It’s harder when it reaches them —those we think are too wicked, too foreign, too undeserving. But here is the truth: if grace must be deserved, it is no longer grace. Jonah knew God’s character. He even quotes from Exodus 34—the Lord’s own Self-revelation to Moses—as the grounds for his protest. God had revealed Himself as “gracious,” “merciful,” “slow to anger,” and “of great kindness.” And Jonah hated it— not because it wasn’t true,  but because it was. He couldn’t bear to see grace poured out on those outside his borders, those outside his category of people worthy of mercy. But this is the very Glory of sovereign grace: it flows not where man wills, but where God wills (Rom. 9:15–16). Only the depravity of the heart would ever consider God’s grace as odious in how, where, and for whom He is pleased to show it. And yet, God is sovereign and will show grace to whom He wills, without ever consulting man. " And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy ," Exodus 33:19. Where God purposes to show grace it humbles the proud. It levels all ground beneath the cross of the LORD Jesus Christ, where God purposed to justify every sinner that He chose from eternity, and for whom Christ paid the debt, regardless of their sin, and no matter how undeserving. Nineveh was a cruel city, full of violence and idolatry. But Jonah was just as undeserving as a rebellious prophet who ran from the Lord, and yet God showed him mercy, too. Grace is not withheld because of the depth of sin, nor is it given in exchange for merit. Grace is free. And it is sovereign. God in sovereign grace chooses whom He wills, not based on worthiness, but because of the good pleasure of God alone (Ephesians 1:5,6) What Jonah could not yet see is what we see clearly in Christ: the ultimate demonstration of God’s sovereign grace toward sinners. The same Savior Who declared judgment on sin also took that judgment upon Himself. He died not for the righteous, but for the ungodly (Romans 5:6). He gave Himself not for the deserving, but for the elect, chosen in Him before the foundation of the world—not for what they were, but despite it. Even as typified in the nation of Israel, the LORD declared: "The Lord did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people: But because the Lord loved you, and because he would keep the oath which he had sworn unto your fathers, hath the Lord brought you out with a mighty hand, and redeemed you out of the house of bondmen, from the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt. Know therefore that the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations"(Deuteronomy 7:7-9). We must ask ourselves: are we offended by the wideness of God’s mercy? Do we rejoice when grace abounds to the worst of sinners? Or do we secretly harbor Jonah’s resentment, nursing pride in our perceived righteousness, forgetting that we, too, were once alienated and enemies in our minds by wicked works (Colossians 1:21) ? Sovereign grace is offensive only to the self-righteous. But to the poor in spirit, to the soul who knows its sin, there is no sweeter truth. If God had not been gracious to Nineveh, Jonah would have rejoiced. But if God were not gracious to us , we would be lost. Praise God that He is Who He is—not only to undeserving wretched Ninevites, but to sinners such as we are, just as wicked and undeserving. Thankfully, He is a gracious God, merciful, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy and grace to redeem by the LORD Jesus' shed blood unto death. Let us bow in humility before the Sovereign Lord Who has mercy on whom He will have mercy, and rejoice that salvation is of the Lord—freely given, and perfectly obtained by Christ's death on the cross, although gloriously undeserved.

Luke 5:4-9 " Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net. And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake. And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink. When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken:" How different we find Peter's confession in this portion. It highlights Peter's Spirit-wrought obedience ( "At thy word I will let down the net") and the miraculous abundance that followed. Contrast this to what the LORD prophesied later—of him denying Him three times before the cock crowed—on the eve of His judgment hall experience by the Jewish rabbis. In either case, Peter would experience the authority of Christ and the revelation of His divine power. In this fishing instance, Christ's word brought Peter to a deep sense of his unworthiness. In the latter instance, before the judgment hall, the LORD didn't say a word, but simply looked at him, and he melted into tears. This gives us pause to consider how at one moment we can boastfully say, like Peter, that he would never deny the LORD, and then deny Him: "Peter said unto him, Though I should die with thee, yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples" (Matthew 26:35). Note that it wasn't just Peter who said it, but all of the disciples—showing that we are all of the same nature. As the hymn writer expressed it: "Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the One I love." That's when the LORD told Peter that before the cock crowed, he would deny Him thrice (Matthew 26:34). And he did—even down to a little girl who said, "You're one of those." Such was his denial of our Lord. When you weigh Peter's denial with that of Judas, you may ask, "What's the difference?" The LORD was his Representative. And the Lord said, " Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren" (Luke 22:31–32). The Lord would not let him go. The Lord had already identified Judas from the beginning as the son of perdition (John 17:12). That could have been any one of us. But that's where we read that when Christ came out of that judgment hall—after Peter had denied Him—the Lord didn't say one word in harshness: "And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And Peter went out, and wept bitterly" (Luke 22:61–62). The narrative here in Luke 5 is not so much about fishing as it is about Christ, and how HE will build His Church, and nothing can inhibit or prohibit Him where He has purposed to draw sinners to Himself. Luke 5:11 tells us, "And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him."   It's a reminder that God is not limited to the four walls of a church building to do His work. The LORD brought Peter to his knees in a boat on the water. The Lord has given us means today through the internet. This Gospel net is being cast throughout the world, and the LORD is drawing in those that He purposed to save from all eternity, and for whom He sent His Son to save by His death, and has saved at the cross (John 6:39). How is it that the Lord draws sinners? First, is through His Word. It's not men's commentary on the Word. It's His Word: "And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret"  (Luke 5:1). They didn't have Bibles. So, how is it they were hearing the Word of God? Christ was speaking. They pressed upon Him Who is the Word of God: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God"  (John 1:1). There was a time when we who are the LORD's were in darkness, ignorance, and blindness—walking around, busy in our dead works—like the demoniac of Gadara (Matthew 8:28–34) . We were like these disciples, endeavoring to just live an industrious life, busy about making a living as these fishermen. And yet, as with the apostle Paul, when it pleased God to reveal Christ in him, he wasn’t even looking (Galatians 1:15). These disciples weren’t looking. They were simply focused on making their living when Christ found them. They didn’t find Him. There’s no way they were going to identify with this One who later would be crucified. But the Lord never leaves His own alone. It's not the sheep finding the Shepherd; it's always the Shepherd finding the sheep (John 10:1–16) . It’s got to be this One who tenderly, continually goes before His sheep and brings them again and again—because we are prone to wander. If we are His elected sheep, we are drawn and kept by His Word—or better yet, Him who is  the Word. Second, the idea of catching is that the gospel net is cast, but Christ determines the result. There were other fish in the sea when this was all said and done that weren't brought in, but exactly the number that the Lord purposed were brought in. It's not only preaching the Word, but God's providence in grace. Providence is God causing to come to pass at a particular point exactly what He has purposed. There was a meeting that took place here, and it wasn't organized by men. The Scripture says, "I am sought of them that asked not for me; I am found of them that sought me not: I said, Behold me, behold me, unto a nation that was not called by my name" (Isaiah 65:1). They were about their business, but here was the Lord—providentially causing each person to be there exactly at that time that He so purposed. Third, there is a physical hearing of the Word, but then there's a spiritual hearing. This is clearly what took place when the LORD was pleased to do this mighty work. He even made Peter willing. You can see this in Luke 5:5: "Master, we've toiled all the night and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net."   He wasn’t trying to justify himself or explain this to the Lord. He just said, "Nevertheless, at Thy Word, I will let down the net." The Lord will draw in those that He's purposed by this special revelation—by Him revealing Himself in them—no matter how sinful. When Peter saw, his eyes were opened. What did he see? It wasn’t just the fish, but Who he saw! He saw the Lord. Just like any blind person, when the Lord opened their eyes, the first Person they saw was the LORD (Matthew 9:27–31) . When the LORD touched the eyes of the blind man in Mark 8:24, he said, " I see men as trees, walking."  And the LORD touched his eyes again and made him whole. He's going to cause His own to see, just like He did Peter here. But when Peter saw what happened, he fell at Jesus’ knees, and worshiped Christ as God, the Word made flesh (John 1:14). Those who have truly seen Christ, they do bow. Such is the work of the Spirit. It takes the Word, it takes the providence of God bringing them to that point—but then there's that bowing in seeing Him once the LORD opens their eyes. Try explaining sight to a blind man. If the Lord has never done a work of grace in their heart, you can talk till you're blue in the face to explain it, but they'll never see. Let him explain what it means to be lost. Let him explain what it means to be found—and they're still just as blind. People today are religious, but lost. When you proclaim to them how God must open their eyes to see, they give you the deer-in-the-headlights look. They are blinded by the light. They'll often say, "What are you talking about? I grew up in church. I was baptized, and such and such. My grandparents and all my family—they've always believed the Bible to be the Word of God. Don't tell me that isn't enough." And yet the question remains: “Do you believe the God of the Bible—not just that the Bible is God’s Word?” You cannot explain Him to a blind person in a way that causes him to see. However, when you find somebody that God has caused to see, and you run into them, it's like you've known each other all your life. You embrace them, and there’s immediate fellowship—because the same Spirit of Christ in you is in them (Ephesians 4:3) . You begin to talk of Christ. Read every instance in Scripture where the Lord ever opened the eyes of a lost sinner, and it’s going to be the same position: bowing at His feet along with others that He has taught. How do we follow Christ? "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day"  (John 6:37–39). Here's where we bow to the Sovereign LORD God. We may not understand it, but we bow—just like Peter—acknowledging ourselves as nothing but unworthy, and Christ alone as worthy of all the glory. Many argue that if we agree with the Scriptures that Christ did not die for every single sinner, we are somehow limiting Him in the salvation of sinners. But it’s just the opposite. If Christ died to save sinners who end up in hell anyway, then His power would be limited, because it couldn’t save them. However, declaring that He has saved everyone that God the Father purposed to save, then although His death is limited in its extent and design by God’s purpose, it is NOT limited in its power. Just like in the case of the disciples putting down the net after having labored all night, every fish that God purposed should be drawn in, while many others were left. What is it that God has accepted on behalf of the sinner so that each one should be drawn? It is the death of His Son. That’s it. When Christ the Word is revealed in us, then, like Peter, we say, “Nevertheless, at Thy Word.” No matter how long we may have vainly toiled and labored to no effect, yet at His Word, our net is cast on Christ and His finished work at the cross. And there we see the wonderment of God's grace in having done for us—in paying our sin debt—that we never could have done to satisfy Him. It had to have been done for  us. It was , if we are one of those for whom Christ has done the complete work—and thereby, at His Word, we follow Him. Like Peter, we wonder, "Why me, LORD?" It’s only by His grace alone.

1 Peter 5:9 "Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world." The Apostle Peter calls believers to resist the devil—not by strength of will or moral resolve, but “ steadfast in the Faith (Christ) .”  This is not faith in ourselves, nor in our spiritual performance, but faith in the finished work of the Lord Jesus Christ , Who has conquered sin, Satan, and death for His people. To resist the enemy is to rest in the victory Christ has already won , trusting that the same LORD Who preserves all His elect will preserve us also. Our afflictions, trials, and spiritual warfare are not unique, but are part of the common experience of the elect of God—yet through it all, the grace of God reigns , and Christ is our Shield and Sure Defense . Why do the Scriptures call upon the children of God to resist the devil when we are told in the Word of God that the LORD Jesus defeated Satan by His life, death, burial, resurrection and ascension into glory?  [ Genesis 3:15,   John 12:31, Hebrews 2:14-15] Yes, Satan has been defeated by Christ’s death for God’s elect, yet, according to God’s purpose, he goes about like a roaring lion seeking whom He may destroy, " Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:" (1 Peter 5:8).  Knowing this to be so, we are then exhorted in 1 Peter 5:9  to resist him. How? In two ways.      1).   Being steadfast in the FAITH.   Wherever you see those two words, THE FAITH, you can substitute the name of the LORD Jesus Who is the Object of True Faith and is revealed in the hearts of those for whom Christ died by the Spirit of God. This is not a call for us to pump up some personal belief with which to defend ourselves against the wiles of the devil but rather to remain steadfast in THE FAITH (Christ) and His complete work accomplished for God’s children, for whom He has been made Wisdom, Righteousness, Sanctification and Redemption, " But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:" (1 Corinthians 1:30).  The devil can certainly trouble and afflict God’s children in any way that the LORD may ordain but He cannot possess or draw away into condemnation anyone for whom Christ paid the debt.        2).   Taking consolation   in  “ knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren, that are in the world.”  Our Consolation is Christ and His finished work  (2 Corinthians 1:5) but there is also comfort in knowing that: “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” (1 Corinthians 10:13) Whatever the trial or affliction, we can rest assured in knowing that such has been the same that others have endured by the Grace of God and that THE WAY of escape is always CHRIST THE WAY. He ever lives to intercede on behalf of those for whom He paid their sin debt, " Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25).  By the Spirit of Grace, our eyes are fixed on HIM, " Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2).      Satan desired to sift Peter as wheat (toss him to and fro as wheat is in a sieve). However, he was wheat and not a tare and therefore safe by the intercession of the LORD Jesus for him, Luke 22:31 . His betrayal of the LORD was just as evil as that of Judas but Christ was his Redeemer and Judas was a son of perdition,   "While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled." (John 17:12).  Satan might accuse, "" And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night"  (Revelation 12:10), and yes, we rightly deserve nothing but hell and damnation. Yet, in THE FAITH (faithfulness) of Jesus, not our own, we are saved, justified and sanctified sinners by Christ’s shed blood unto death. There is therefore now no condemnation against an adopted son of God, " Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us"  (Romans 8:34).  In HIM we stand fast, or rather HE Who is our FAITH holds us fast!

John 19:18 "Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst." This scripture stands as one of the most sobering and yet glorious declarations in all of Scripture: "Where they crucified him, and two other with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst."   In this brief verse, the apostle John encapsulates the essence of the Gospel message succinctly yet profoundly. Here is the eternal Son of God, the spotless Lamb, crucified between two malefactors, numbered with the transgressors as foretold by the prophets. He is not merely the victim of injustice but the willing Substitute, bearing the sins of His people under the wrath of God. This is where divine justice and mercy meet—in the shame and agony of the cross, where Jesus Christ accomplished redemption once for those elected sinners given to Him by the Father (John 17:9-19). Every word of this verse directs our hearts to the heart of God's redemptive purpose: “they crucified him.”   It is here that the glory of God's sovereign grace in saving sinners by Christ alone shines brightest.   1. The manner of Christ's death is significant :  It was the death of the cross. This form of execution was chosen to vividly illustrate the weight of sin that Jesus our LORD willingly bore for His people. In Galatians 3:10-13 we read, " For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith. And the law is not of faith: but, The man that doeth them shall live in them. 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:" These verses emphasize the curse of sin, which Jesus took upon Himself. He was bound to the cross as a Sacrificial Offering, fulfilling His role as the Savior appointed for this purpose by God. His crucifixion, suspended between Heaven and earth, served to reconcile and justify elect sinners to God through His shed blood, " Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement" ( Romans 5:9-11) . This brutal death underscores the severity of our sin before a Holy God, highlighting the depth of God's love as expressed in Romans 8:32  where He spared not His own Son for our redemption, " He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?" 2.   Christ's companions in death were not incidental : They were intentionally chosen by God. Two others were crucified alongside Him, fulfilling the prophecy in Isaiah 53:12, " Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors."  Among them was a malefactor who, though initially reviling our LORD Jesus, yet was chosen by God for salvation. This illustrates the sovereign grace of God, Who chooses whom He will save while ensuring that all whom He chooses will indeed turn to Christ. Despite both being guilty sinners only one was elected by the LORD, to whom Jesus declared, "Today, thou shalt be with me in paradise."   (Luke 23:43)   3. Jesus bore the reproach of sinners, taking upon Himself the sins of many,   Hebrews 9:28 :  “ So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second timewithout sin unto salvation .” He endured the shame and disgrace of being crucified among criminals so that those chosen by God would not bear it themselves. His death was not among sacrificial animals in the temple but among condemned individuals, signifying His role as the Just for the unjust, " For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:" ( 1 Peter 3:18) . It was by His sacrificial death that He once and forever, fully, freely and finally redeemed, reconciled and justified those that the Father gave Him before the foundation of the world, " By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified" (Hebrews 10:10-14) .       In summary, the crucifixion of Jesus Christ exemplifies the depth of God's love, the extent of His Grace and the magnitude of His Sacrifice for sinners that He purposed to save from before time and did save in time in the death of His Son, " But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons. And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father" (Galatians 4:4-6).

Titus 2:12 “Teaching us, that, denying all ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world.” We often hear some speaking of others as being such Godly people. The question is, ‘Who is truly Godly or what is Godly living according to God’s Word’?       1. What Godly living isn’t.  We know that it does not mean sinless living or even ‘sinning-less’ living. The apostle Paul declared in Romans 7:18, “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.” Our depraved flesh cannot ever be sinless, nor can it be anything less than sinful. The apostle John stated in 1 John 1:8, “ If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”       2. What Godly living is.  There are four elements to consider. The first put negatively is described as ‘denying all ungodliness and worldly lusts.’  This is the work of the Spirit in God’s chosen, redeemed children that causes them to stand against anything that opposes God’s glory and honor (Godliness), Anything or anyone that contradicts God’s revelation of Himself in His Word and the glory that He has purposed to honor and exalt His Son exclusively, is to be renounced. Positively, the other three elements of godly living are to live soberly, righteously, and Godly, in this present evil world . In these three terms we have all that describes the Grace of God in His children and how they are distinguished from the rest of the condemned (ungodly) world, "to execute judgement upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him" (Jude 1:15).        The first, “soberly ,” means living by the wisdom of God in Christ, “...wise as serpents and harmless as doves.” (Matthew 10:16)  It means that, by the Grace of God, we exercise restraint in our passions and propensities toward anything other than the glory of Christ alone , "that the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;" (Titus 2:2-4).       The second, “righteously”  means to live to the honor and glory of God’s justice satisfied in the death of the LORD Jesus alone. We have no other righteousness than that, nor do we acknowledge any other but Him, as children of Grace who have no justice of their own but glorify the righteousness of God imputed to them at the cross.       The third, “Godly”,  being ever mindful that our only ‘Godlikeness’ is in Christ alone as our Hope of eternal life through the redemption by His blood, "looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works" (Titus 2:13-14).   Godly living is to live wholly under God’s Grace, by His free and unmerited favor in Christ. Nothing we do entitles us to God’s favor but everything we do is by His free grace in Christ alone, having been perfectly reconciled to God the Father by His death and thereby declared Godly (God-like) by imputed righteousness, "For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life" (Romans 5:10).  This Grace of God not only affects how we deal with others in this world, but how we live before God, acknowledging Him in thought. word, and deed, to the glory of His Son alone!  This Scripture reveals that the Grace of God that brings salvation not only redeems but also teaches and enables the believer to live a life that manifests the transforming power of His sovereign grace. It is not by human will, effort, or decision that one attains to godliness, but by God’s effectual and irresistible grace, which instructs His elect to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts—everything contrary to the glory of God revealed in Christ Jesus. This Grace works true repentance and a godly walk, not as a means to earn salvation, or even maintain it, but as the fruit and evidence of it, flowing entirely from the One Righteousness that the Lord Jesus Christ established on behalf of His people. That righteousness, earned by His obedience unto death, is imputed by God to every chosen sinner for whom Christ laid down His life and paid the full ransom. The ungodly are they for whom no redemption was made, who remain under the bondage of self-righteousness, trusting in their works—works which can never satisfy the demands of God’s holy law or divine justice. But the godly are those whom God hath justified by the death of His Son (Romans 5:8-11). They rest wholly in Christ’s righteousness as their sole standing before God and as the sum of all true Godliness. Therefore, being taught by the Grace of God (Christ), they live soberly (concerning themselves), righteously (concerning others), and Godly (toward God) in this present evil world—all through Christ who died for them and now lives in them (Romans 10:1–4).

Luke 1:46,47 "And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour." In these inspired words, the young virgin Mary pours out a song of worship flowing from the depths of her soul to that Seed, conceived by the Spirit of God in her womb, Who would lay down His life as her Redeemer. This passage, often called The Magnificat , is more than poetic praise—it is the Gospel confession, produced in her by the Spirit of God. Mary, a chosen vessel of grace, magnifies the LORD not for what she had done, but for what God had done for her and would do for her through the righteous obedience unto death of God's Son, Whom she would bear into this fallen world. Note her language: “My soul... my spirit... my Saviour.” This is not a cold, borrowed confession of faith. It is the heart of one who has been taught the grace of God, personally and experientially. Mary is not venerating herself or attributing merit to her womb; she exalts the God of her Salvation. This is a striking confession. Though she was chosen to bear the Christ, she declares her need of God as her Saviour. She knew herself to be a sinner, and she rejoiced that salvation is of the LORD Mary’s praise is not rooted in a so-called "free-will" decision, but in God's sovereign will. She did not say, “My soul hath chosen the Lord,” but “My soul doth magnify the LORD.” It was the LORD Who looked upon her in grace. As verse 48 says, “He hath regarded the low estate of his handmaiden.” God did not choose Mary because of her worthiness or any supposed sinlessness. He chose her in her lowliness, to show forth the riches of His grace (Ephesians 2:7). This is the God of sovereign grace, as He reveals Himself throughout Scripture. God has chosen the weak, the base, the undeserving, that His glory might shine (1 Corinthians 1: 26–29). When the Lord comes to a sinner in saving grace—when He makes Christ known to their soul—they respond as Mary did: “My spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.” This is not a mere doctrinal confession, as might be found in a catechism, but a confession in God Himself—and particularly in God as Saviour. This is the great Gospel of the God of the Bible: that the LORD of glory has become the Saviour of elected sinners, that God has provided His Lamb (Genesis 22:8), and that salvation is entirely His work, received by Spirit-given faith, and never earned by the sinner. Mary’s joy was not momentary—it was rooted in God’s eternal purpose. The Child in her womb was the Fulfillment of every promise God had made, from Genesis to Malachi. Her soul rejoiced because the Christ had come. And so must ours. Our joy is not in what we feel, or what we do, or what we hope to become, but in Who Christ is and what He has accomplished through His obedience unto death (Philippians 2:8). We do not magnify ourselves. We do not even magnify our faith or our obedience. We magnify the LORD, for He alone is the Author and Finisher of our salvation. Like Mary, we lift our voices in humble adoration, knowing that we were nothing, and He has done great things for us. Let us then ask ourselves: Does our soul magnify the LORD? Do I rejoice in God as my Saviour? Not merely as a distant God, or a theoretical Saviour, but as my God, my Saviour —the One Who loved me and gave Himself for me? This is the joy of every true believer: not in self, but in Christ; not in merit, but in mercy. “For he that is mighty hath done to me great things; and holy is his name” (Luke 1:49). May our prayer ever be that of praise and glory to the LORD for His great Salvation. Like Mary, may we rejoice in the LORD, our Saviour, and thank Him for His sovereign grace that chose us, sought us, saved us, and keeps us. May our souls ever magnify and exalt Him, and may our spirits continually rejoice in Him, for He hath done great things for us, for Jesus Christ's sake.

Revelation 21:4 "And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away." Consider how this is a word of comfort and consolation to those sinners that the LORD Jesus has redeemed, and God the Father justified. Here, in the closing visions of the Revelation, John beholds the beauty of the New Jerusalem — the church of Jesus Christ, fully adorned and glorified by His grace. This is no mere fantasy of some distant future; it is the triumphant announcement that in Christ, through His finished work, the former things — the law, sin, curse, and condemnation-have truly and forever passed away (Romans 8:1) . The sovereign grace of God shines bright in this promise. It is God   Who shall wipe away all tears. Man cannot wipe away his grief. Religion cannot cleanse away guilt. Moral reformation cannot undo death’s sting. It is God Himself, in Christ, by sovereign mercy, Who personally wipes the tears from the eyes of His chosen. What tender, personal care this reveals! Our God is not afar off. The cross of Calvary was not some cold transaction; it was the outpouring of divine love upon a people foreknown, predestinated, redeemed, justified, and called. At this time, the apostle John was writing this book, to a people on the brink of terrible upheaval: the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70, the final collapse of the old covenant order. Death, sorrow, and crying abounded in the judgments that fell. Yet amid the shaking of heaven and earth, there was a kingdom which could not be moved (Hebrews 12:28) . Christ, by His death and resurrection, had already obtained eternal life for His elect. The “former things” — the age of law, shadow, temple, and sacrifice — had given way to the everlasting Gospel, the true reign of Christ as King and Priest over His house forever. Even now, in this Gospel era, the believer walks in this glorious reality. For the child of God, death is no more — for Christ is the Resurrection and the Life (John 11:25) . Sorrow is swallowed up in His joy (John 16:22). Pain yields to the healing balm of His presence. Though the outward man perish, the inward man is renewed day by day (2 Corinthians 4:16). And even the tears we shed in this pilgrim journey are not tears of despair, but are wiped away with Hope, for we know our full redemption draws near (Romans 8:15-25). This precious promise points not merely to some future heaven, but to the present victory of Christ’s kingdom. The old things — sin’s condemnation, Satan’s tyranny, the fear of death — are forever gone for those who are in Christ. The Lamb reigns. The New Jerusalem — His blood-bought bride — shines with His glory now. And the final consummation, when we shall be glorified fully in His presence, is but the unfolding of what He has already accomplished. Here then is our comfort and joy as we live out our God-ordained days in our earthly pilgrimage, here and now. God Himself has wiped away our tears. The work is done. The war is won. The former things have passed away. Rejoice and be glad in Him Who sits upon the throne, Who says, " Behold, I make all things new"  (Revelation 21:5).

Romans 8:30 "Moreover whom He did predestinate, them He also called: and whom He called, them He also justified, and whom He justified, them He also glorified." In a world filled with confusion about salvation, we need to turn to the sure Word of God and rejoice in the Gospel of God's free and sovereign grace. Salvation is not the result of man’s will, works, or worth, but solely according to God’s eternal purpose in Christ Jesus our Lord. The Scriptures declare that every aspect of the sinner’s salvation — election, redemption, justification, calling, and glorification — is ordered by God’s sovereign decree and accomplished by Christ's finished work. Let us prayerfully consider these truths to the praise of the glory of His grace, what may be called “The Golden Chain of Salvation.” We learn from the Word of God that the salvation of sinners is by God’s sovereign order and decree. If any sinner is saved, it is because God the Father decreed it and named that one in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain, as it is written: "And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world"   (Revelation 13:8) . God purposed that, in time, His elect ones should be declared justified by the blood and righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ, imputed to their account at the cross: "Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life"  ( Romans 5:9–10). When Christ died, rose again, and ascended on high, all chosen sinners whose names were written on His breastplate as the Great High Priest were then and there glorified with Him: "Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus"   (Ephesians 2:5–6) . This is exactly the order of salvation set forth by the apostle Paul in Romans 8:30 . Some attempt to use this verse to teach the sinner’s justification merely upon God's decree as though it were accomplished before Christ died, or after the Spirit’s work of regeneration, saying that justification is listed after “whom he called.” Yet, a careful study of the context clearly shows that justification was accomplished at the cross for three reasons: 1.)  The word used for “called” ( kaléō ) does not refer here to the spiritual calling of the Spirit of God unto Christ, but rather to the naming of sinners in election according to God’s predestinating grace. We see this usage in Matthew 1:21 : "And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins." Therefore, the proper order of the sinner’s justification — legal acquittal from all guilt and a declaration of righteousness — follows his predestination and election (or naming) in the Lamb’s Book of Life. 2.)  The context of Romans 8:30 shows that the sinner’s full, complete, and final justification before God was accomplished when Christ died at Calvary, not before or after. Verses 31–34 make this abundantly clear: "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us"   (Romans 8:32–34). 3.)  In the same context, we see that those whom God the Father predestined and called (or named) in their election, He not only justified when Christ died, but glorified them as well. The redeemed indeed await their final glorification — their deliverance from the very presence of sin — yet, it may just as truly be stated that they are now glorified in their standing before God, being seated with Christ their Representative, Who was glorified by the Father when He rose and ascended on high: "Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in him"   (John 13:31 ); "And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them"   (John 17:10). Oh, what a glorious and sovereign order of salvation this is, giving God and His Christ all the glory! From election before the foundation of the world, to justification at the cross, to glorification with Christ our Surety — it is all grace, all of Christ, all to the praise of the glory of His sovereign, saving name. May the LORD cause our hearts to bow in worship and adoration before the Lamb Who was slain, for He alone is worthy! "Salvation is of the LORD"   (Jonah 2:9) .

1 Timothy 6:6 "But godliness with contentment is great gain." This verse teaches that true spiritual profit is not found in earthly riches but in the gracious work of God in Christ for the sinner, and in the sinner. “Godliness” here refers to the life of Christ formed in the believer by sovereign grace, producing true reverence for God and trust in His Son the LORD Jesus, when the Spirit of God produces life in the sinner. “Contentment” flows from resting in Christ and His finished work, knowing that all things are ordered by God’s sovereign will on behalf of those chosen by God the Father and given to His Son from eternity. The sinner who has been justified by the LORD Jesus in His death on the cross is kept in Him and therefore lacks nothing in Him. This union of godliness and contentment, wrought by the grace of God, is the believer’s true treasure, far surpassing worldly gain (Matthew 6:19). This being so, why is it that we, as professing believers, are still so discontented with who we are and what we have? Have you ever asked yourself what it would take for you to be truly contented? Contentment, much like happiness, fluctuates like temperature—you sit there one minute, and you're hot, then after a while, you think, now I’m too cold. That’s just the way we live our lives. And really, it all boils down to being finite creatures. The only One Who is truly immutable is God Himself. Everything that is created is finite, and that’s why there’s a fall. Man in his best state is altogether vanity, as the Scriptures teach (Psalm 39:5,6) . Not only are we finite creatures, but also depraved in our fallen flesh. Therefore, even being regenerated by the Spirit of God, this still does not remove our depravity (Galatians 5:17). God has purposed that we still live in this flesh, day in and day out, and therefore we experience these changes, the ebbs and flows between hot and cold, contentment and discontentment, depending on our circumstances. Because we are finite and fallible, God's Word calls us not to build our lives around the tides and seasons of the whims of our flesh, but rather to rest. And where is that resting place? It is in the Lord Jesus Christ—the Rock—resting by God’s Grace in what He has accomplished on our behalf at Calvary. Each day, we need to have our eyes turned, and our hearts tuned to sing God's praise, rather than murmuring and complaining about His providential dealings in our lives. Our hearts are depraved, and therefore naturally discontented. How much we need the reminder of God's Word: "What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?"  (Romans 8:31–32) . That is where our minds must be turned again and again, especially as we get caught up in daily living and find our thoughts torn by the turmoil of circumstances, which God has ordained for our good and His glory. We must be brought to look again to the God Who does not change, and Who, by His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, has given all things to those that He has redeemed. What, then, is godliness with contentment? By definition, godliness  means reverence toward God—therefore, being God-fearing. The word contentment is the word sufficient, and it indicates the state of one having all they need, not necessarily all they want. First , it begins with the very revelation of God's character by the Spirit through His Word and attributes: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding”  (Proverbs 9:10). Until we have been taught the knowledge of Who God is as a holy God, we have never truly learned to fear Him. We must deal with a holy God—that is where the Spirit begins to teach sinners, when the Lord is pleased to begin a work in their hearts concerning His holiness. We are brought to understand that there is nothing we can do that could ever satisfy Him. Second , this godliness continues with the revelation that God's mercy and justice are met together. It is not about us trying to satisfy Him. Much of the discontentment people experience stems from their refusal to bow to the One Righteousness that God has already established in His Son and imputed to the account of His people. They reject that Righteousness, and in their discontentment, they continue trying to work out their own righteousness (Romans 10:1–2). But there is nothing other than the satisfaction that Christ has made that will ever satisfy a holy God. When the Scripture speaks of godliness with contentment , we are not to understand it as contentment being something added to godliness, as though they were two separate virtues joined together. Rather, the sense is that contentment is the fruit —the effect—of godliness. It flows from being God-fearing, from being taught of God, Who He is and how He has already been satisfied on our behalf by the blood and righteousness of Christ. Therefore, we are content and at rest in His finished work. There is a resting in Him, full satisfaction in Who He is and in all that we possess in Him. We desire nothing more and will receive nothing beyond Him, for He is ALL. Where contentment is lacking, it is a sure sign that we need again to cry out for mercy—to look afresh to Christ alone, to His blood and Righteousness. He alone is our Peace and Satisfaction before a holy God (Colossians 1:20).

Acts 14:22 “Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God" The Apostle Paul made it a practice to return repeatedly to those whom the LORD drew to Christ through his preaching, encouraging and exhorting them to continue in THE FAITH (Jude 1:3). These follow-up visits were not mere religious pep rallies, but a continuation of the same message of preaching that the LORD used to convert them in the first place. Their turning to Christ was not the result of an orchestrated production of singers and testimonies followed by a public invitation, as many do today. No! It was the clear, simple, and exclusive declaration of the LORD Jesus Christ—His Person and work, accomplished and imputed to the account of elected sinners, completed at Calvary and now made known through the preaching of men like Paul, whom the LORD raised up: "But hath in due times manifested his word through preaching, which is committed unto me according to the commandment of God our Saviour;"   (Titus 1:3). Paul needed to return, encourage, and ‘confirm’ (literally to strengthen) the disciples' souls because their identification with THE TRUTH  engendered opposition. Paul himself had just been stoned for declaring the LORD Jesus as the Son of God, equal with God, and for proclaiming salvation purposed, accomplished, and revealed exclusively in, by, and through Him: " And there came thither certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium, who persuaded the people, and, having stoned Paul, drew him out of the city, supposing he had been dead. Howbeit, as the disciples stood round about him, he rose up, and came into the city: and the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe"   (Acts 14:19–20). He did not hesitate to tell his hearers that they were to repent of the vanities of their false worship and turn to the Living God—the Giver, Procurer, Sustainer, and Source of all life, both physical and spiritual: " And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein"   (Acts 14:15). The apostle's charge to these disciples to continue in THE FAITH  was not merely a call to perseverance, but rather to a wholehearted adherence to THE FAITH —that body of truth revealed in the Gospel in connection with Christ and His death, which declares God's only salvation for sinners. It was purposed before the foundation of the world, procured at Calvary, revealed by the Spirit of God, and proclaimed through the Gospel. You can’t continue in what you have never known or heard. On the other hand, if the LORD has been pleased to reveal in you Christ and His righteousness—established, accomplished, and imputed at Calvary ( THE FAITH )—you will not be persuaded otherwise, and hearing it again and again will certainly be a strengthening and comfort to your soul. In addition, Paul declares that “ we must through much tribulation” — or more accurately, “through many tribulations” — enter into the kingdom of God. Paul certainly could attest to this because of the preaching of the cross of Christ, and he adds in writing to Timothy: “ All that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (2 Timothy 3:12). This is the offense of the cross—that it gives no credence to man’s works nor will, but only to the work of Christ, accomplished at the cross for elected sinners and their full, free, final, and forever justification upon the completion of His work on their behalf.