Somewhere in the desert between Jerusalem and Gaza, Philip the evangelist met a man who did not understand what he was reading. This man said to him, “How can I, except some man should guide me?” (Acts 8:31).
Sadly, in this world, filled with so much confusion and darkness, many do not dare to ask questions or seek answers about what to do to be at peace with God. How can we know? How do we know where we should go? Our Savior Jesus Christ simply responded to this question made by Thomas, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6).
Interestingly, the Word of God, just a few lines after the meeting between the evangelist and the Ethiopian is recorded, tells us about a man, who is an opposer to Jesus Christ’s teachings, and how this man, on his way to Damascus, heard these words, “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?” (Acts 9:4). Many times, we follow paths that are not the right ones, they do not agree with the will of God, and it is God who gives us the opportunity to find the right path through His word. This time, it was our Savior who spoke directly to Saul, but, today, God does it to each of us through His Word, which is written in these little books that we refer to as the Bible, which literally means “books”. These books are not the product of the imagination of a supposedly famous “writer”. They are the result of the verbal and plenary inspiration that God gave to approximately 40 men of diverse backgrounds over the course of 1500 years. We do not have them by chance or accident, but by the will of our Almighty Father.
It was the same Saul, once converted and later known as Paul, who wrote,
“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works”
2 Timothy 3:16-17.
And he was the same man who wrote to the Christians in Rome,
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith”
Romans 1:16-17.
The word that we know today as “dynamite” in our English language, has its origin from the same word that is translated in the previous passage as “power”. Does not the Word of God have an explosive power? Let us read what the Psalmist wrote,
“For he spake, and it was done; he commanded, and it stood fast”
Psalm 33:9.
In the first book of the Bible, in the first chapter, in that beautiful book written by the inspired Moses, the book of Genesis, we are told over and over again, “… God said … “ (Genesis 1:3, 6, 9, 11, 14, 20, 24, 26, 28,29).
The Gospel is the good news, the message of salvation, which consists of the death, burial, and resurrection of our Savior. A message that a persecutor of Christians who after he was repented and converted was not ashamed to preach, because he himself recognized it is the power of God to save everyone who believes. Christ came to the Jews, grew up with them, lived with them, preached to them, but they rejected Him. The chosen people of God, whose main purpose was that the Messiah would be born among them and would come into the world, did not recognize the Messiah when they had Him with them. By Greeks, the Apostle Paul simply refers to everyone who was not a Jew. So the gospel, that power of God unto salvation, does not exclude anyone. Each one of us has the opportunity to listen to it and make a decision based on what we hear. We can follow God’s will or follow the path of doom in which we walk without Him. Let us Remember, Jesus Christ was the one who affirms us that He is the way, the truth, and the life.
“The just shall live by faith.” Not for what he thinks is right, not for what he likes best, not for what the majority thinks, not by what this servant says, writes, or thinks, but by faith. Only in Christ we are justified. Only in Him we are saved. Only in Him we know how to worship God in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).
I want to conclude with the words of the apostle Paul to the Christians in Corinth, about that day when we will all have to give an account of ourselves,
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad”
2 Corinthians 5:10.
Everyone, without exception, will go to that judgment seat. Pope John Paul II, Muhammad, Mother Teresa, Billy Graham, Stephen Hawking, and many others already know that the gospel is not a fairy tale or fantasy, but it is the true Word of God. Today they wait for their judgment, and we will do it too, either when we part from this life, or if our Lord decides to come sooner. It is in each of us to make the decision to do what is right in the eyes of God, and that is to obey the gospel. Would you want to do it? We will gladly help you, study with you, and answer any questions you may have. The day is today, tomorrow can be too late.
God bless you.