The Bible does not contain the words, “Jesus is your personal Savior.” However, this truth is taught in the Bible. The following are very important observations regarding this wonderful truth. 1. Jesus is a divine person or being who came to earth “and was made in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:7). He loves every human being; he is personally interested in every person. He died for every sinner (Hebrews 2:9). 2. Everyone who is saved by Jesus is saved by him personally. But, for one to be saved by Jesus, that one must put his trust in Jesus believing he is the Son of God (John 8:21-24). However, Jesus will not save one who will not repent of his sins. To repent of his sins, one must turn from them. God commands all everywhere to repent (Acts 17:30). When one repents he must confess Christ as the Son of God and be baptized into Christ where he can be saved personally by Christ (Romans 10:9; Acts 8:36-37; Romans 6:3). 3. If one means by “Christ is my personal Savior” that Christ saves him personally without his being in the church for which Christ gave himself (Ephesians 5:25), he is wrong, because Christ is the Savior of his body which is his church (Ephesians 1:22-23; 5:23). The church in the New Testament means the saved. That is why those baptized were added to the church (Acts 2:41, 47). Yes, Christ personally saves, but he saves personally those who are in …

Some estimate that more than half of the more than five billion people on the earth have never heard of Jesus Christ. Many who live in the United States and many other countries probably find this hard to believe, but it is likely that it is true. Probably, most of those who know about Jesus think about his birth at this time of the year. I wonder how many think about both of his births. The First Birth Of Jesus Christ By the first birth of Jesus Christ I mean that he was conceived in the womb of a virgin named Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 1:20; Luke 1:35). The Bible does not tell us the date of the first birth of Jesus. It does tell us that his birth of a virgin was prophesied by Isaiah about seven centuries before he was born (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:22-23). Not long before Jesus was born the first time, his mother Mary and Joseph her husband traveled from their home in Nazareth to Bethlehem. When they arrived in Bethlehem, there was no room for them in the inn. They were lodged in some sort of barn when Jesus was born because after his birth his first bed was a manger which was a feeding trough for animals. Our Lord, the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 17:14) was not born in a regal palace, but in a lowly stable! While the baby Jesus was lying in …

Governor Pilate of Judea was confronted with Jesus of Nazareth! He offered the restless crowd of Jews a choice when he asked, “Whom will ye that I release unto you? Barabbas, or Jesus which is called Christ?” (Matthew 27:17). The religious leaders of the Jews persuaded them to ask that Barabbas, a murder, be released, and that Jesus be destroyed. When they announced their choice to Pilate, he asked, “What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ?” (Matthew 27:22). The Creator of all things, the Lord of glory, the Son of God, the Judge of all stood on trial in a court of mortals! Jesus was a defendant in the court of judge Pilate, and that judge did not know what to do with that defendant. It is ironic that at the last day all those who put Jesus on trial will stand before the judgment seat of that same Jesus (Romans 14:10). All who study history are confronted with so-called great people when they study history; such as Alexander, Caesar, Napoleon and Churchill. But what we do with these, or what we think about these will not likely effect our eternal destiny. But, we cannot pass off Jesus that easily! You may say, “I’m glad I do not have to stand where Pilate stood. But, in a sense each of us stands where Pilate stood! We are confronted with Jesus. What shall we do with him? Pilate Tried To Be Neutral Pilate knew Jesus was innocent, and that …

Jesus has been sentenced to death. In company with two rough outlaws He makes His way to that skull-shaped hill called Calvary. (This paragraph is roughly based on the imagination of Clarence chapel in Faces About the Cross (c. 1925).) Evidently about the same time this procession was marching from Herod’s palace, a man named Simon started toward the feast at Jerusalem. He must have encountered the large crowd going out of the city, and perhaps even heard someone say, “We’re going to Calvary to execute some prisoners!” His curiosity must have gotten the best of him as he elbowed his way through the crowd till he had a ring-side seat. As he watched, one Prisoner staggered and fell. He must have grimaced as the cross crushed the battered Man into the cobblestone street. At that sight, perhaps, having satisfied his curiosity, he decided to lose himself in the crowd and continue toward the festivities. But it was not to be. Though he did not know it, he had a part to play in the world’s history. The centurion’s eye had already lighted on him as a replacement back on which to put the cross. Having been drafted, he carried the cross the rest of the way to Calvary. Life did not go according to script. As Simon went his carefree way, suddenly his day’s plans were knocked to pieces. He was forced to go the opposite direction from what he had chosen. He was on his way into the city to enjoy the …

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Hebrews 13:8). This passage cannot mean that Jesus Christ is always the same in the sense that since he was in a fleshly body when he was on earth (yesterday), therefore he is now in a fleshly body (today) and he will always be in a fleshly body (forever). Paul wrote that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God (1 Corinthians 15:50). Therefore, Christ who is in heaven is not in a fleshly body as he was while he was on the earth, but he is in his glorious body (Philippians 3:20-21). So-called faith healers who claim Jesus works miracles through them, often quote Hebrews 13:8 and say it means that because Jesus performed miracles when he was on earth (yesterday), he is performing miracles (today), and they say if he is not doing so, he is not the same today as he was when he was on earth. To be consistent these “faith healers” should say Jesus is not the same today as he was yesterday unless he is not performing all the types of miracles which he performed when he was on earth, and which he performed through the apostles about which we read in the New Testament. The New Testament says he healed the sick, and often states he did so “immediately.” Some were struck dead (Acts 5); he raised some from the dead; and a child of the devil was blinded (Acts 13). Jesus walked …

What is there that could be written about Jesus that has not been written about Him? As we sing, “He is my everything!” When it comes to our atonement, He is our High Priest, our Sacrificial Lamb, and, even the Altar on which sacrifices are made. Jesus, my High Priest, makes intercession to God for me (Heb. 7:25). A priest is one who is duly authorized to minister in sacred things, particularly to offer sacrifices at the altar, and who acts as mediator between men and God (Exod. 28:29) (ISB). More specifically, a priest’s job consisted in offering gifts and sacrifices (Heb. 5:1), making atonement (Lev. 16:1-34), inquiring of God (1 Sam. 23:9-12), leading in the selection and ordaining of religious and civil leaders (Num. 8:11-21; 1 Kings 1:34), blessing the people (Num. 6:22-27), and teaching the law (Neh. 8:1-8). Jesus offered a sacrifice to God, made atonement for sinners, revealed God to men (John 14:7), selected the apostles who still serve as leaders in His church (Eph. 2:20), blessed mankind with an opportunity of salvation (Matt. 11:28-30), and taught men the Law of God (John 6:44-45). There were two priesthoods in the Old Testament: Melchisedec’s and Aaron’s. Jesus is a Priest after the order of Melchisedec because he will never be replaced (Heb. 6:20). Jesus is a compassionate High Priest. “For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without …

The Bible does not tell the date of the birth of Jesus, but it does tell us he was born. It also tells us he was born of a virgin. No man was involved to cause Mary to conceive and give birth to Jesus. The Holy Spirit worked a miracle that caused her to do this. According to the Bible, the first bed Jesus had was a manger, which was a feeding trough for livestock. This implies he was born in a barn. Dr. Luke wrote that the reason for this was “because there was no room for them in the inn.” Think of it! The first bed for him through whom the Father created all things (Ephesians 3:9; Colossians 1:16) and who came into this world from the Father (John 16:28) was a feed trough for livestock! Indeed, this holy being from heaven “make himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men: and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:7-8). What Is Obvious It should be obvious to all that Jesus should be viewed by the masses as more than just a baby in a barn! Our nation and the world in general is caught up in sin and its horrible consequences. If Jesus had been taken seriously by all people, this lamentable plight could have been avoided. If Jesus …

Of all the nights in the world’s history, the night they arrested Jesus was the darkest. Treachery, intrigue, betrayal, deceit, hypocrisy, and disappointment followed one on the heels of the other. Think again of the dark night that led up to the afternoon the sun refused to shine. Betrayal and Arrest (Matt. 26:47-56; John 18:1-14) After some private time with His disciples, and prayer time with His Father, Jesus was arrested, probably sometime after midnight (Matt. 26:47-57). Of all the faces about the cross, none is quite so tragic as Judas’. Having heard all Jesus’ sermons, seen as many miracles as any man alive (except maybe the inner circle), having been privy to personal talks with God’s Son, and having carefully watched the life of the world’s only sinless human, he still was able to sell out his Master for the price of a wounded slave (Zech. 11:12)! Remarkable! Better to have never been born than to have betrayed the Son of God into the hands of sinners (Matt. 26:24). Beating and Trials Jewish Trials (Matt. 26:57-75). Following arrest, Jesus was taken first to Annas (John 18:13). He in turn sent Him to Caiphas (18:24), his son-in-law. Between 1 a.m. and daybreak, Jesus endured hours of cross-examination before the political Sanhedrin. He was lied about, threatened, abused, and eventually, condemned. Further, He was kept up all night (Matt. 27:1), deprived of food (nothing since supper), taunted (Luke 22:63), spit upon (Matt. 26:67), buffeted (bruised), slapped (margin, “hit with rods”) (Matt. …

The Eternal Lord A baby boy was born to a virgin mother in the town of Bethlehem. The child had no earthly father for He was the only begotten Son of God. Baby Jesus grew into a man, who worked miracles, taught like no other and lived a perfect life. He set a great example for all of humanity to follow. The example included compassion, love and obedience. God’s Son established His church and gave his life for the redemption of mankind. In an attempt to understand the depth of the Lord’s sacrifice, we must understand what He was, what He became, and what He is. “Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?’ that is, ‘My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Some of those who stood there, when they heard that, said, ‘This Man is calling for Elijah!’ Immediately one of them ran and took a sponge, filled it with sour wine and put it on a reed, and offered it to Him to drink. The rest said, ‘Let Him alone; let us see if Elijah will come to save Him.’ And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; and the earth quaked, and the rocks were split, and the …

Choices Regarding Christ’s Deity When Jesus was put on trial before the Sanhedrin, the Jewish high priest asked: “Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed?” To that question Christ replied simply, “I am” (Mark 14:62).  In view of the exalted nature of such a claim, and its ultimate end results, there are but three possible views one may entertain in reference to Christ’s claim of being deity: (1) He was a liar and con-artist; (2) He was a madman; or (3) He was exactly Who He said He was. In his book, Evidence that Demands a Verdict, Josh McDowell titled one chapter: “The Trilemma–Lord, Liar, or Lunatic?” His purpose was to point out that, considering the grandiose nature of Christ’s claims, He was either a liar, a lunatic, or the Lord.  McDowell introduced his chapter on Christ’s deity with a quotation from the famous British apologist of Cambridge University C.S. Lewis, who wrote:I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: “I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.” That is the one thing we must not say.  A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher.  He would either be a lunatic–on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg–or else he would be the Devil of.  You must make your …

Jesus endured a merciless emotional and physical ordeal as He made His way from Pilate’s courtroom to God’s throne room via a gate marked death. He faced a trial of grief before Pilate and a trail of tears as He was led through the city gates to the place of the skull where worthless men were disposed of. It is interesting to contrast Jesus’ divine strength and perfect character with what He put Himself through for us on His last day. Christ, whose yoke is easy, struggled beneath the weight of the cross. It was customary for the condemned man to carry his own cross to the site of crucifixion outside the city walls. Since the weight of the entire cross was probably well over three hundred pounds, only the cross bar (patibulum) of perhaps one hundred pounds was carried. (The vertical part, called stipes, was kept on site at Golgotha.) Jesus evidently carried His cross for a time, but under its weight, and in His weakened condition, His strength gave out and He fell beneath the load (John 19:17; Luke 23:26). It is interesting that Jesus struggled with that weight. He who made the world (John 1:10) and keeps it together by “the word of his power” (Heb. 1:3) struggled to carry a tiny part of it. He whose curse could wither a live fig tree (Matt. 21:19, withered beneath Calvary’s dead tree. This simply points to His humanity–He set aside His divine strength to die as a man. Consider …

One of the worst snow storms to hit Washington, D.C. in decades buffeted the city on January 13, 1982. A considerable accumulation of snow brought automobile traffic to a halt. For instance, there was a giant traffic jam on the 12-lane 14th Street Bridge complex. This bridge spans the Potomac River and connects the District of Columbia to Arlington County, Virginia. The moderate to heavy snowfall temporarily closed the Washington National Airport, three-quarters of a mile away. Among the affected aircraft was a Boeing 737-222 bound for Fort Lauderdale, Florida. This was Air Florida Flight 90, comprised of 74 passengers including three infants and a crew of 5. About an hour and forty-five minutes after the scheduled departure time, the plane took off from runway 36 at 3:59 p.m. The two-engine blue and green jetliner headed north and made a shallow left turn. The path of Air Florida Flight 90 presumed a 700 foot clearance over the 14th Street Bridge. However, at 4:01 p.m., a mere two minutes after leaving the runway, and unable to stay aloft, nose raised and tail down, the ill-fated 737 crashed into the 14th Street Bridge. The aircraft struck seven occupied vehicles, shearing the roof from one automobile and crushing four other cars. It also ripped out 180 feet of railing before plunging between the bridge spans, through the ice to the bottom of the river, 30 feet deep. The plane vanished except for the tail section which had separated from the body of the …