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Israel had spent four hundred-plus years as slaves in Egypt, and then they called out to God, asking him to deliver them. God tells them he will free them from slavery and lead them to the land that was promised to them. Through Moses, God sends plagues on Egypt, but spares the Israelites living in Egypt from being ravaged by them. Finally, Pharaoh is compelled to let the Israelites go. The Israelites begin their journey out of Egypt toward the promised land, but Pharaoh has a change of heart and sends his armies to pursue them. They are hot on the Israelites’ heels, and the Red Sea is looming right in front of the people of Israel. They are trapped. But the people watch as God splits the Red Sea, creating a highway for them to walk through. When the Egyptian army comes after them, the sea collapses on them. As the Israelites continue their journey through the wilderness, God provides for them in undeniably miraculous ways. The Israelites have had front-row seats to see the incredible power and provision of God. Finally they are standing at the precipice of the promised land, the land God promised to them hundreds of years earlier through Abraham . Generation after generation had anticipated this moment, and it has now arrived. They are looking at it right in front of them. The biblical account reads, “The Lord said to Moses, ‘Send some men to explore the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the Israelites. From each ancestral tribe send one of its leaders’” (Numbers 13:1–2). Remember, this is the promised land. God tells Moses to send some men into the promised  land—Not the “ I’m contemplating it  land” or the “ We’ll see  land” or the “ I’ll consider it  land” or the “ We’ll talk about it later  land.” It’s the promised land. God tells Moses that it’s the land “which I am giving to the Israelites.” Like, it’s already been decided. Send some men to explore the land I’ve already determined to give to you. God did not tell them, “I want you to go into the land and see what you think, decide if you feel like I’m capable of giving it to you. I want you to come back and do a SWOT analysis and a risk assessment. Oh, and you should also make a pie chart indicating the likelihood of success. I’ll take all of your information to Jesus and the Holy Spirit. We’ll talk it over, and then we’ll let you know what we decide.” No. The spies are sent to investigate, but the land had already been promised. The twelve spies are chosen, and Moses gives them their assignment, ending with these words: “Do your best to bring back some of the fruit of the land” (Numbers 13:20). Moses tells the spies what to look for when they go in the land—fruit. Fruit is what is good. Fruit is evidence of what God has said. The twelve spies walk off, and everyone is waving—and then everyone waits . . . for forty days. I don’t know, but I would have assumed this reconnaissance mission would take maybe four days. They are gone for forty. The twelve men finally return with their report, and their report provides a great example of perspective . Remember, it’s not what we see; it’s what we think  we see. Our perspective is all-important; it shapes our reality. “They gave Moses this account: ‘We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there’” (Numbers 13:27–28). Their report essentially goes like this: “Just like God said, the land is awesome. And just like you asked, we brought fruit back. But . . .” But  is always a dangerous word when it comes to our perspective. Too often, it’s, “I know what God said, and I know what he promised, but . . .” and that’s exactly what happens here. “But the people are too powerful. The cities are too fortified. We saw descendants of Anak—they’re giants. They’re way too big.” Ten spies give a negative report. Two spies, Caleb and Joshua, have a different perspective. They all saw the same things, but they saw it differently. “Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, ‘We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it’” (Numbers 13:30). They see the same things, but their reality is determined by their perspective. Ten come back reporting, “We can’t. It’s too much.” Two return saying, “It’s ours. Let’s go!” The ten aren’t sure their negative view is going to win the day, so they give what might be the first recorded telling of #fakenews: “But the men who had gone up with him said, ‘We can’t attack those people; they are stronger than we are.’ And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, ‘The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them’” (Numbers 13:31–33). Here we have another problem of perspective. If a grasshopper stands about one inch tall and the average Israelite man was five foot eight, that’s a ratio of 68 to 1. That means the men living in the promised land would have been about four thousand feet tall. When we fail to take our thoughts captive, they shape our perspectives in ways that exaggerate the struggles we are facing and underestimate the power of God. How do the people of Israel respond to the negativity of the ten spies? Do they fight back? Nope. “That night all the members of the community raised their voices and wept aloud. All the Israelites grumbled against Moses and Aaron, and the whole assembly said to them, ‘If only we had died in Egypt! Or in this wilderness! Why is the Lord bringing us to this land only to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and children will be taken as plunder. Wouldn’t it be better for us to go back to Egypt?’ And they said to each other, ‘We should choose a leader and go back to Egypt’” (Numbers 14:1–4). Negativity is like an infection that spreads. Pessimism becomes its own pandemic. Everyone is complaining and critical and ready to book their return trip to slavery in Egypt. But the other two spies, Joshua and Caleb, try to shift their perspective: “Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes and said to the entire Israelite assembly, ‘The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good. If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the Lord. And do not be afraid of the people of the land, because we will devour them. Their protection is gone, but the Lord is with us. Do not be afraid of them’” (Numbers 14:6–9). Do you see how they looked at the same things but saw it completely differently? Ten come back: “We’re like grasshoppers who will get stepped on!” Two return: “They are helpless prey to us. We’ll step on them.” Why do the two spies have so much confidence? Because “the Lord is with us!” Our perspective shapes our lives, and our perspective is shaped by what we think about. What do you think Joshua and Caleb had been thinking about? It seems obvious—the miraculous way God had led them out of slavery . . . and the plagues he had sent upon the Egyptians . . . and the way he parted the Red Sea . . . and the manna he provided for them in the wilderness . . . and the water he made to gush out of the rock when they were thirsty. If God could do all that, how could he not do all this? What do you think the other ten spies had been thinking about? Obviously not all that. The ten see only problems; the two see only the presence and power of a God who had made promises he will always keep. By Kyle Idleman, adapted from Every Thought Captive : Calm the Mental Chaos That Keeps You Stuck, Drains Your Hope, and Holds You Back .

God created you because he wanted to be in relationship with you. He loves you. He wants you to know him personally and intimately, not just know about him.   Choosing to receive Jesus is a once-for-all decision. A process of getting to know God will follow, but you have to begin by inviting him into your life. This seemingly simple decision has huge eternal consequences. You may not recognize it, but your wrong moral choices (called sin) have condemned you to spiritual death (eternal separation from our holy God).   Jesus, who had no sin, chose to die to pay for your sins. When you recognize your sinful condition and accept by faith Jesus’ death as payment, you receive his life, which is eternal. Receiving this free gift of salvation is as simple as saying, “Jesus, I acknowledge my sin and your payment for it on the cross. I now ask you to forgive me and I willingly give my life to you.” At that very moment, he will come into your innermost being through the power of his Holy Spirit and start you on a wonderful journey toward intimacy and eternal life with God.   Here is a brief four-step system explaining why we all need Jesus in our lives, and how we can go about making that decision. It includes key Scripture passages supporting each statement; using the reference, you can look up these verses if you’d like to read more of the context.   First: Realize that everyone needs to be saved. No one is righteous; we are all guilty of breaking God’s law in some way, and therefore already condemned and sentenced. Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin ( Romans 3:19-20 ).   Second: Understand that there is hope in Jesus Christ. Salvation does not come by keeping laws or being good, but only through faith in Christ. All have sinned, but anyone who receives Christ can be forgiven and accepted by God as righteous. But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness is given through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference between Jew and Gentile, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished… ( Romans 3:21-25 ). But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us ( Romans 5:8 ). For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord ( Romans 6:23 ).   Third: Know that God forgives and accepts unconditionally anyone who believes in Christ. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death ( Romans 8:1-2 ).   Finally: Trust Christ in your heart and confess that he is Lord with your words. If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved ( Romans 10:9-10 ). Repeat aloud this prayer or something similar (what you mean is what matters, not the exact words you use): “I thank you, heavenly Father, for sending your own Son, Jesus Christ, to die on the cross and pay the penalty for sin. I now believe in him and accept him as my Lord. Thank you that I am saved in him. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”   Next Steps You may be wondering what kinds of practical steps you might take to guide you as you discover your personal path toward knowing God. Consider some of these ideas: • Ask God to reveal himself to you if you’re not sure he’s there.• Talk to people who display a genuine relationship with God—those who obviously love him and who live by a different set of principles than others you meet.• Spend time enjoying God’s creation.• Listen to the stories of people who have walked with God for a long time.• Follow the leading of the Holy Spirit. You can trust God’s “gentle whisper” to give you direction. If you lack understanding, ask him for it.• Be aware that moments of doubt and questions are normal and legitimate as you discover your personal path.• Be alert to your presuppositions—the things you already believe—and your personal roadblocks. Try not to let them stand in the way of your discovery process.• Determine to spend time each day walking the pathway toward faith, and keep evaluating your progress.• Act on what you decide. Drawn from the NIV Jesus Everywhere Bible .

The ascension of Jesus is often thought of as one of the most pivotal moments in the Christian faith. Following his resurrection, Jesus spent 40 days on earth, teaching and preparing his disciples for what was to come. But everything changed when, Jesus “…was taken up into heaven and he sat at the right hand of God” (Mark 16:19). This event, known as the ascension, not only transformed the lives of those first followers but continues to shape the Christian faith today. What Happened During the Ascension? The ascension took place on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, as Jesus’ disciples looked on ( Luke 24:50-51 ). This marked the moment where Jesus, who had lived physically among them since his birth in Bethlehem, left the earth and returned to heaven. The disciples witnessed as he was taken up into the clouds, an event both awe-inspiring and deeply significant; Jesus’ ascension paved the way for the Holy Spirit and his advocacy for all believers at the right hand of God in heaven. Purpose of the Ascension 1. Coming of the Holy Spirit. The ascension was a moment of transition for Jesus’ disciples. Up until that point, they relied on his physical presence. But now, they were instructed to wait for the Holy Spirit, who would empower them to continue Jesus’ work on earth ( John 16:7-15 ). Jesus assured his disciples that his departure was necessary so the Holy Spirit could come. Unlike his physical presence, which was limited by time and space, the Holy Spirit can be with all believers at all times. At Pentecost, the disciples experienced the Spirit’s arrival, which equipped them with spiritual gifts and boldness to carry out Jesus’ mission. 2. Jesus’ Reign and Heavenly Role . The ascension not only began the era of the Holy Spirit but also marked the start of Jesus’ reign in heaven. Sitting at the right hand of God signifies authority, and this reign will continue until his second coming, when he will return to the earth as the reigning Messiah ( Acts 3:20-21 ). Both Romans 8:34  and Hebrews 7:25  highlight that Jesus intercedes for believers, serving as an active mediator with God. This brings peace and hope to believers today, knowing they have an advocate in the heavenly realm ( 1 John 2:1 3. Preparation for His Return. The ascension also serves as a pledge of Jesus’ return. The angels at the scene declared, “This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11). Just as Jesus ascended in bodily form, Christians believe he will return to earth as the reigning Messiah. What the Ascension Means for Us Today The ascension is not merely an event from history; it holds ongoing significance: Believers are reminded that Jesus is actively advocating for us before God. Through the Holy Spirit, Christians are equipped to face challenges, share their faith, and grow spiritually. It serves as a promise that Jesus will return, offering hope and assurance of his ultimate victory. The ascension of Jesus and the coming of the Holy Spirit transformed the early church and continues to empower believers today. It not only marked the conclusion of Jesus’ earthly ministry but also inaugurated a new phase of God’s work through the Holy Spirit. It offers believers the assurance of Christ’s ongoing intercession, the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit, and the future hope of Jesus’ triumphant return. Based on study content in the NIV Chronological Study Bible .

He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons.  Mark 16:9 How would you feel if you had been brought from death to life? What if you were really sick, at the point of death, and then suddenly you were healed? What would you do with your life after that? Would the experience change you? An outcast from society, Mary Magdalene was tormented by seven demons. But then she met one man who didn’t see her that way. Jesus cast out her demons, healing her from the inside out — bringing her from death to life. So what do you think Mary did with her life after that? Mary must have realized the remarkable chance she had at a new life. So, for the next three years, she chose to spend her days faithfully following and serving Jesus. Even when all but one of the twelve disciples deserted Jesus at his crucifixion, she stood near the cross, mourning the loss of her Savior. Three days later, she was still faithful. She went to the tomb and discovered that Jesus’ body was missing. Confused and upset, she didn’t recognize Jesus when he approached. Then he said her name, “Mary.” She knew that voice. The risen Savior could have appeared first to his twelve disciples, but instead he chose Mary Magdalene, the woman who showed him undying gratitude. Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”). Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her. John 20:11-18 Turning Gratitude into Action Remember the last time you were so thankful you had to shout? Was it good news about a sick relative, a first date or a college acceptance letter? All are reasons to rejoice. But how about being grateful for life in Christ? If you’ve trusted Jesus Christ to save you from your sins, you’ve been given the promise of eternal life in heaven. You’ve been brought from death to life. You are loved by the heavenly Father, who promises you a full life in him. So don’t just stand there! Show your undying gratitude to your Savior by telling others what Jesus has done for you. Prayer Dear Jesus, I am eternally grateful for what you’ve done for me. Help me  to love you more each day and to tell others of my gratitude. Amen.

1. The resurrection is the core of the Christian message and should never be neglected or assumed. Sometimes today, when we hear the gospel preached, the focus is on the cross. The resurrection is often ignored, assumed, or mentioned only in passing. In contrast, the preaching recorded in the book of Acts emphasized the resurrection of Jesus, and barely mentioned his death. The apostles were preoccupied with the resurrection and emphasized it much more than the cross. Sadly, the church only seems to get excited about the resurrection once a year at Easter time. In reality, every Sunday should be Resurrection Sunday. The reason why the early church began to meet on the first day of the week was to celebrate Jesus's defeat of death. Imagine what church would be like if we consciously gathered every  week to celebrate the resurrection? 2. Belief in Jesus's physical resurrection is the defining doctrine of Christianity. It is surely a remarkable thing that every Christian denomination—from the Orthodox to the Catholic, from the Pentecostal to the Reformed Baptist—all believe one simple truth: the tomb was empty. There is very little else we all agree on! Only some liberals deny the physical resurrection of Jesus. Surely they thereby forfeit the right to call themselves Christians at all. In my book, Raised With Christ , I offered the following definition of a Christian: a Christian is someone who believes in the physical resurrection of Jesus Christ, and lives in light of the implications of that event. This is based on Paul’s clear promise: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will  be saved” ( Romans 10:9 , emphasis added). 3. The resurrection demonstrated to the whole universe the deity of Jesus and God’s love for him. Jesus was, “declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead” ( Romans 1:4 ). It is the resurrection of Jesus that reveals his true nature to all who will see: “God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior, to give repentance . . . and forgiveness of sins” ( Acts 5:30-31 ). 4. Without the resurrection, there would have been no church at all. After Jesus's arrest and death, the disciples were lost, helpless, and afraid. Peter denied Jesus, whilst the rest ran away. It is hard to conceive of anything other than the resurrection of Jesus that would have led to this rag-tail bunch of people sharing the message of Jesus in such a way that it grew into the largest religious movement ever known to man. Without their unwavering confidence in Jesus's resurrection, would the disciples have risked everything, and in many cases been killed for their faith? People do die all the time for falsehoods that they themselves genuinely believe to be true. It is, however, impossible to believe that all of the disciples would die for something they knew to be a deliberate deception. The church did not create the resurrection stories; instead, the resurrection stories created the church. 5. Our neglect of Jesus's resurrection may be one of the reasons our gospel preaching is so powerless. Spurgeon examined the preaching of his day and felt the reason for its lack of power was its lack of emphasis on the resurrection. Spurgeon determined to emphasize the message of the resurrection, and saw thousands of conversions as a result. If we choose to neglect the preaching of the resurrection, should we be surprised if we don’t see similar results? When Paul spoke about the gospel, he always meant the announcement of the glorious victory of the risen King. It is this gospel that is "the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes" ( Romans 1:16 ). 6. The resurrection purchased our justification. When you ask most Christians about justification, they move straight to the cross of Jesus paying the price for our sins. But if justification simply means an absence of guilt, then we have a blank slate and have to spend the rest of our lives worrying about if we will mess it up again. Paul tells us in the contrary: "He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification" ( Romans 4:25 ). What this means is that when Jesus rose again he was declared to be righteous—not just lacking any sin, but embodying holiness. The credit of Jesus's perfection outweighed the debt of our sins. And now, the Christian is counted as righteous. Not "just as if I had never sinned" so much as "just as if I had already lived a holy life." Without this wonderful truth, we will not fully grasp the joy of salvation. Jesus was our obedience substitute during his life, our punishment substitute in his death, and our rebirth substitute in his resurrection. 7. The resurrection gives us the joy of knowing that Christ is with us today! He has promised that he will be with us to the end of time. This changes everything. A dead hero in the grave is no help to us. But a risen Savior in heaven gives us great confidence! Because the tomb is empty and Jesus is on the throne, we can know for sure that we will be victorious irrespective of what is happening in today’s world. Jesus said, “I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” ( Matthew 16:18 ). 8. The resurrection gives us hope that goes beyond the grave. We live in a broken world. Every Christian will at some point in their lives know the pain of grieving for a loved one. When Paul told us not to “grieve as others do who have no hope” ( 1 Thess 4:13 ), he did not mean that we would not experience sadness. But because Jesus conquered the grave, we have confidence that one day we too will rise, and so meet both Jesus and our believing loved ones again. This changes everything when we come face to face with death. 9. The resurrection unites every Christian with the life-giving force that raised Jesus from the dead. It is through the resurrection that, "the last Adam became a life-giving spirit" ( 1 Cor 15:45 ). Paul tells us, "the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you" ( Romans 8:11 ). This amazing power is available to transform, equip, and empower us: “What is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead” ( Ephesians 1:19-20 ). 10. Because of the resurrection, we can know that Jesus is personally coming back to judge and rule the world. It is a source of great joy for the Christian that Jesus will return. But it should also cause great concern for those who are living estranged from him. Because of the resurrection, we can be sure that this same Jesus will return again: The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead. ( Acts 17:30-31 ) Jesus was our obedience substitute during his life, our punishment substitute in his death, and our rebirth substitute in his resurrection. This article is part of the 10 Things You Should Know  series.

Proof of the Resurrection How can anyone be confident that the resurrection really happened? The first followers of Jesus didn’t claim their leader rose from the dead because of gullible ignorance or blind faith. They knew dead people stay dead. Especially after they began to be persecuted, they had nothing to gain by persisting in their claim that Jesus had returned to life. Yet some of these women and men had encountered an event so momentous they were ready to die rather than deny they saw a once-dead man alive. These initial eyewitnesses declared what they experienced, and in some cases they died for what they declared. At least a few of their firsthand testimonies eventually found their way into the New Testament. Even if you think the resurrection of Jesus and the existence of a “Flying Spaghetti Monster” are equally preposterous, the testimonies of the first generation of witnesses should not be dismissed lightly. Something upended the lives of these men and women and made them willing to die for what they believed they had seen. After decades of studying the historical aftermath of these events, I still believe the resurrection makes the best sense of the evidence. The resurrection is an event to which we can call witnesses, and these witnesses include reports that are traceable to the people, places, and communities where sightings of a resurrected Jesus were first reported. The more closely I examine these texts, the more plausible it seems to me that the stories started with a series of experiences that the first witnesses could not fit into ordinary categories. One of the Earliest Recorded Creeds One of the most important summaries of the resurrection is a creed the apostle Paul incorporated into one of his letters. A creed  denotes a summation of beliefs that Christians share. Believers in Jesus have repeated many creeds over the centuries, but one of the earliest is recorded in Paul’s first letter to the church in Corinth. Even though Paul penned this summation, he was not the one who created it. Someone had passed the creed to Paul, and Paul had repeated the summary of events and witnesses when he visited the Corinthians three or so years before he wrote this letter. 1.  Here’s the outline of faith Paul recalled in his letter: . . . that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. ( 1 Cor. 15:3–7 ) This summary includes every crucial truth Christians confess about the resurrection of Jesus. According to the creed, the body of Jesus was not abandoned in a pile of cadavers or left on a cross to be consumed by beasts and birds (“he was buried”). Jesus didn’t ascend physically into the heavens from the cross; his resurrection was a bodily transformation that took place after his death and burial (“he was raised on the third day”). 2 .  Perhaps most important, whatever happened to Jesus was not a private occurrence. Numerous people insisted they saw him after his death, and Christians in Paul’s own day could still interview eyewitnesses who said they had seen Jesus alive. But where and how did Paul receive this creed in the first place? The outline Paul recorded in 1 Corinthians almost certainly came from Jerusalem, the very location where Jesus was crucified and where some of his followers later claimed they saw him alive. Not only that, but the creed can also be traced to a time when firsthand witnesses of the life and ministry of Jesus were still alive and leading the Jerusalem church. So why can we be confident that this creed came from when and where the alleged events took place? The only individuals mentioned by name in the creed are Cephas and James. Cephas is the equivalent in the Aramaic language of Peter , and James was a brother of Jesus. These two men, both of whom knew Jesus personally, were “pillars” in the Jerusalem church in AD 30 ( Gal. 2:6–9 ). The creed mentions their names without any modifiers or explanations, suggesting that the words took shape in a context where both were familiar faces. Taken together, everything we see in this summation of faith points to an origin in Jerusalem soon after the events took place. 3. So when could Paul have heard this snippet of summarized testimony? Paul embraced Jesus as his Messiah within a couple of years of Jesus’s execution at most. 4.  Three years after this reorientation of his life, Paul headed to Jerusalem and spent fifteen days talking with Peter there ( Gal. 1:18 ; see also Acts 9:26–30 ). Paul most likely received this outline of faith no later than those weeks he spent with Peter in Jerusalem, which means the creed reached Paul five years or less after Jesus’s death. Of course, it is very possible Paul had heard this summation before his visit to Jerusalem, but it certainly does not seem he would have received these words any later. The next time we encounter Paul after his stopover in Jerusalem, he is already being sent out to share the message of Jesus in Cyprus and Asia Minor ( Acts 13:2–14:28 ). In every place he visited, Paul apparently delivered the same creedal content, and he wasn’t significantly modifying what he received. Even though the Corinthians received this letter three or so years after Paul left their city, the apostle was confident the church would remember what he had told them earlier. If Paul had not been passing on the same outline of faith in every place, he could not have expected the Corinthians to recall what he had said when he was with them in person. Stories from the Land Where Jesus Lived And so, the content of the creed can be traced back to a time and a place where people had firsthand knowledge of Jesus—but it is not only the creed in 1 Corinthians 15:3–7 that originated when and where these witnesses were living. The resurrection stories in the Gospels can also be traced to individuals with firsthand knowledge of Jesus. No one knows for certain where the New Testament Gospels were written, but it is possible to reconstruct certain aspects of where the stories originated. Here is what seems clear based on information inside and outside the Gospels: The stories that were eventually woven into the Gospels originated in locations where the alleged events happened. So why can we be confident when it comes to the regions where these stories originated? The Gospel narratives repeatedly describe very specific topographical trivia that could only have come from people with firsthand knowledge of the regions where the events took place. The author of Mark’s Gospel knew it was possible, for example, to proceed directly from the Sea of Galilee into the Galilean hill country—a detail that, while accurate, would have been virtually unknown outside that region ( Mark 3:7, 13 ; see also Matt. 14:22–23; 15:29 ). John’s Gospel records an even more obscure fact, correctly describing the path from Cana to Capernaum as downhill ( John 2:12 ). All four Gospels repeatedly reference the fact that a journey to Jerusalem required going uphill ( Matt. 20:17–18 ; Mark 10:32–33 ; Luke 2:4, 42 ; Luke 10:30–31 ; Luke 18:31 ; Luke 19:28 ; John 2:13; 5:1; 7:8–14; 11:55; 12:20 ). These are only a tiny sample from hundreds of examples that reveal intimate knowledge of the regional topography as well as typical names of people who resided in these locations. 5.  No one could have known such minutiae without either trekking the terrain in person or writing down detailed testimonies recounted by witnesses who lived in these lands. No maps in this era showed elevations, inclines, or obscure links between locations, and no detailed geographic descriptions of Judea or Galilee survive in any first-century texts. If second-century accounts of the authorship of the Gospels are correct, these details make sense. Early Christian sources describe the author of Mark’s Gospel as the “follower and translator” of Peter who recorded Peter’s retellings of the stories of Jesus after years of hearing them. The Gospels according to Matthew and Luke borrowed much of Mark’s material, but Luke was also a companion of Paul who added information from “eyewitnesses and ministers of the word” to his Gospel ( Luke 1:2 ), while Matthew’s Gospel includes recollections from the apostle Matthew and perhaps other sources as well. Second-century Christian writings repeatedly mention that the Gospel of John originated with a firsthand follower of Jesus whose name was John. 6. If the New Testament Gospels do indeed preserve the words of Peter, John, and others who walked these regions, it is no wonder the texts get so many topographical details correct. The New Testament Gospels may have been composed in Ephesus or Rome or any number of other cities, but those locations were not where the stories started. The testimonies that have been twined together in the Gospels originated among persons with firsthand knowledge of Judea and Galilee. What’s more, their stories were retold so carefully that seemingly trivial details were safeguarded as the testimonies spread. Whatever happened to Jesus happened—in the words of C.S. Lewis—“at a particular date, in a particular place, followed by definable historical consequences,” and early Christians preserved the details of these places as they repeated the stories. 7. These details have profound implications for the question of whether or not the resurrection happened. All four New Testament Gospels agree that the body of Jesus was buried, that his body exited the tomb on the third day, and that witnesses saw him alive. If the other stories in the Gospels originated among people in the places where the alleged events occurred, the resurrection stories most likely did as well. Reports of the risen Jesus were not fabricated decades after his death among people who never knew him. The reports can be traced instead to firsthand experiences in and around the city where Jesus was crucified. Notes:   1.     Gordon D. Fee, The First Epistle to the Corinthians , rev. ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2014), 5–7, 20–23, 802. 2.     Simon Gathercole, The Gospel and the Gospels: Christian Proclamation and Early Jesus Books (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2022), 44, 117. Vanishing into the realm of the gods was not unknown in Roman narratives. See, e.g., Livy, History of Rome: Books 1–2 , trans. B. O. Foster (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1919), 1.16; Diodorus Siculus, Library of History: Books  2.35–4.58, trans. C. H. Oldfather (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1935), 4.38. 3.     Larry W. Hurtado, Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2005), 168–76, 215–16. 4.     Hurtado, 83. 5.     Some portions are adapted from Jones, Why Should I Trust the Bible? , 68–69. For further references, see Richard Bauckham, Jesus and the Eyewitnesses: The Gospels as Eyewitness Testimony, 2nd ed.  (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2017), 39–92, and Peter J. Williams, Can We Trust the Gospels?  (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2018), 51–86. 6.     On the authorship of the Gospels, see Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History: Books 1–5 , trans. Kirsopp Lake (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1926), 5.8.2–4; Irenaeus of Lyon, Libros Quinque Adversus Haereses, vol. 2, ed.  W. W. Harvey (1857; repr., Rochester, NY: St. Irenaeus, 2013), 3.1.1–2; Tertullian, Adversus Marcionem: Books 4–5, ed. and trans. Ernest Evans  (Oxford, UK: Clarendon, 1972), 4.2. See also Charles E. Hill, “What Papias Said about John (and Luke),” Journal of Theological Studies 49  (1998): 582–629. 7.     C. S. Lewis, God in the Dock (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1970), 58–60. See also Lewis, Surprised by Joy (New York: Harcourt Brace, 1955), 228, 274. This article is adapted from   Did the Resurrection Really Happen?   by Timothy Paul Jones.

We need one key quality more than any other for exploring God’s will. This virtue is required to embrace Scripture and to win the wrestling match that often happens in our hearts with God’s will. This quality is humility. The essence of Christian humility is captured in Romans 12:3, where Paul the apostle writes, “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.” This verse comes in the context of the topic of spiritual gifts. We are all a part of the body of Christ, all used by God for his purposes, and we all need to remember that we are not the center of everything. Why is that truth helpful when we study the topic of God’s will? Because we sometimes cross-examine God as though he were a witness in a courtroom and must answer to us. When we seek God’s will, we need to be careful that, deep down, we aren’t just trying to figure out how to get our own will. We need humility to live out our purpose as Christians. We see this warning throughout Scripture. In Romans 9:20, Paul warns us to be careful of pridefully presuming that we know God’s purposes for everything he allows or does: “But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God?” In chapters 38–40 of Job , we find some of the most eye-opening views of God’s character. After Job hits a low point and basically argues that he is righteous and doesn’t deserve the suffering God has allowed, God responds by saying, “Who is this that obscures my plans with words without knowledge?” He then goes on to say, “I will question you, and you shall answer me. Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?” (38:2–4). It’s one of the most humbling moments in Scripture. God challenges someone who thinks he knows better than the Almighty. (We’re guilty of this too!) Job eventually responds by saying, “I am unworthy—how can I reply to you?” (40:4). The picture we get is not of a mean and insensitive God who doesn’t care about our questions. On the contrary! The idea is that we can  express ourselves to God and seek answers, but we must be careful not to indict him or alter theological truths to satisfy our prideful opinions or lower him to a puppet who answers to us as puppeteers. We must maintain reverence when considering his will. We must be in awe of his sovereign power when considering his purposes. We must also be in awe of his loving kindness and tender mercy, because he most certainly understands our struggle to comprehend his will. In all of these things, we must be humble. Adapted from Walking in God’s Will: Demystify God’s Plan for Your Life and Make Decisions with Confidence  by Costi W. Hinn.

Listen and Learn I recently observed a conversation a few Christians were having with a man who has yet to come to faith in Jesus. It was amazing to me, and saddening, to watch the Christians missing the point of this man’s struggle and questions. It seemed those speaking to him were more concerned about convincing him they were right than about listening to his heart. As a result, he walked away without any good news about Jesus, becoming even more convinced that this “religion” wasn’t for him. It’s not for me either—at least, not what I saw in that conversation. We can do better. We must  do better. We’re talking about people’s souls! And we’re representing Jesus. Helping people come to know the love of Jesus is the most important thing there is, and Jesus’s love for us compels us to love people better. If we don’t, the good news that people need gets muffled by our religious pride. Proverbs 20:5  says, “The purpose in a man’s heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out.” We need to become people of understanding—people who seek to understand others before we expect them to understand us and what we believe. We need to learn how to ask more questions and draw out what is deep inside people’s souls. We need to learn to slow down and listen closely to the longings of their hearts. We need to learn their stories. In short, we need to care more about winning people to Jesus than about winning arguments. Gospel fluency isn’t just about talking. It’s about listening as well. This requires love, patience, and wisdom. Drawing Out the Heart Jesus was so good at this. Whenever I consider how I can grow in being a person of understanding who listens well, I think of Jesus with the Samaritan woman at the well. It was high noon, when the sun was at its hottest. There was a reason this woman was getting her water at this time. She chose a time when no one else would be at the well. Nobody went there in the heat of the day. But she probably wanted to avoid running into one of the wives of the men with whom she had been sexually involved. She had had five husbands, and the man she was then involved with was not her husband. However, Jesus didn’t start with where she was wrong. He actually started in a humble posture of receiving from her. He asked her for water, and she poured out her soul. I’ve found that starting with a posture of humility, standing in a place of need and having a heart that is willing not only to give answers but also to receive insight, creates a welcoming place for people to open their hearts. The more open we are to listen and learn, the more likely people are to be open as well. If you look at the story closely, you discover that Jesus continued to make very short, provocative statements that invited more conversation. He was drawing out, little by little, the longing of her soul. He’s a master at drawing out the heart. You notice this if you read the Gospels. Jesus regularly said just enough to invite further probing or create intrigue. He also loved to ask questions so that the overflow of the heart (belief) would spill out of a person’s mouth (words). I’m amazed at how often well-intentioned Christians overwhelm people with a barrage of words. We go on and on about what we believe and what they should believe, assuming we know what others think, believe, or need. I often find that we are giving answers to questions people are not even asking or cramming information into hearts that are longing for love, not just facts. We fail to listen. We fail to draw out the heart. And we miss opportunities to really love people and share the love of God with them. They also miss out on getting to hear what’s going on in their own hearts. I have found that when people, including myself, are invited to say out loud what they believe, they come to realize something is wrong. Jesus slows down, draws out the heart, and listens. Talk Less, Listen More As we are changed by the gospel, we want to share how the gospel has changed us. It’s a great thing to do so. In fact, one of the keys to growing in gospel fluency is to regularly share what Jesus has done or is doing in our lives with others. Our stories are powerful demonstrations of the gospel’s power to save. However, if we don’t also listen, we tend to share the good news of Jesus in a way that applies primarily to our lives, the way it was good news to us , but fails to address the situations others are facing. We can become proclaimers of the good news while remaining ignorant of the ways in which others need to hear it. This doesn’t negate how good the news of Jesus is at all. However, if we read the rest of the story of Jesus’s encounter with the Samaritan woman, we find that while her testimony created intrigue, the people in the village had to meet Jesus for themselves. It wasn’t enough for her just to share her story. They had to get to Jesus as well. So she brought them to him. Our job is to testify to Jesus’s work in our lives while also listening closely to others so we know how to bring the truths of Jesus to bear on the longings of their hearts. We need to bring them to Jesus so he can meet their unique needs and fulfill their personal longings. In order to do this, we have to slow down, quiet our souls, ask good questions to draw out the hearts of others, and listen. Francis Schaeffer said, “If I have only an hour with someone, I will spend the first fifty-five minutes asking them questions and finding out what is troubling their heart and mind, and then in the last five minutes I will share something of the truth.” My regular counsel to Christians these days is to spend more time listening than talking if they want to be able to share the gospel of Jesus in a way that meaningfully speaks to the hearts of others. We were created by God to find our greatest satisfaction and fulfillment in him. Every human is hungry for God. Everyone has eternity written on their hearts, producing a longing for something—someone—better, more significant, and eternal. This is a longing for God ( Eccl. 3:11 ). The cry of every heart— the native tongue of our souls—is for better, not for worse; for the eternal, not for the temporal; for healing, redemption, and restoration. And only Jesus can bring this about. We all long for Jesus Christ. Everyone is seeking him, even if they don’t know it. They are looking for something to fulfill their longings and satisfy their thirst. However, they are looking in the wrong places. They are going to the wrong wells to try to draw soul water. They need to look to Jesus. But they will not come to see how he can quench their thirst if we don’t take the time to listen. And as we listen, with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can discern the longings of their hearts, the brokenness of their souls, and the emptiness of their spirits. And then, we must be prepared to show how Jesus can meet them at the well with soul-quenching water—himself. Our stories are powerful demonstrations of the gospel’s power to save. This article is adapted from   Gospel Fluency: Speaking the Truths of Jesus into the Everyday Stuff of Life   by Jeff Vanderstelt.

1. Ephesians 5:22–27 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands. Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.   Read More The first example of general submission ( Eph. 5:21 ) is illustrated as Paul exhorts wives to submit to their husbands ( Eph. 5:22–24, 33 ). Husbands, on the other hand, are not told to submit to their wives but to love them ( Eph. 5:25–33 ). Paul’s first example of general submission from Eph. 5:21  is the right ordering of the marriage relationship (see also Col. 3:18 ; 1 Pet. 3:1–7 ). The submission of wives is not like the obedience children owe parents, nor does this text command all women to submit to all men (to your own husbands, not to all husbands!). Both genders are equally created in God’s image ( Gen. 1:26–28 ) and heirs together of eternal life ( Gal. 3:28–29 ). This submission is in deference to the ultimate leadership of the husband for the health and harmonious working of the marriage relationship. The focus in these verses is on Christ, for husbands do not “sanctify” their wives or “wash” them of their sins, though they are to do all in their power to promote their wives’ holiness. “Sanctify” here means “to consecrate into the Lord’s service through cleansing, washing of water.” This might be a reference to baptism, since it is common in the Bible to speak of invisible, spiritual things (in this case, spiritual cleansing) by pointing to an outward physical sign of them (see Rom. 6:3–4 ). There may also be a link here to Ezek. 16:1–13 , where the Lord washes infant Israel, raises her, and eventually elevates her to royalty and marries her, which would correspond to presenting the church to himself in splendor at his marriage supper (see also Ezek. 36:25 ; Rev. 19:7–9; 21:2, 9–11 ). without blemish. The church’s utter holiness and moral perfection will be consummated in resurrection glory, but is derived from the consecrating sacrifice of Christ on the cross. 2. Genesis 2:18 Then the LORD God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”   Read More “Not good” is a jarring contrast to Gen. 1:31 ; clearly, the situation here has not yet arrived to “very good.” “I will make him” can also be translated “I will make for him,” which explains Paul’s statement in 1 Cor. 11:9 . In order to find the man a helper fit for him, God brings to him all the livestock, birds, and beasts of the field. None of these, however, proves to be “fit for” the man. “Helper” (Hb. ‘ezer’ ) is one who supplies strength in the area that is lacking in “the helped.” The term does not imply that the helper is either stronger or weaker than the one helped. “Fit for him” or “matching him” (cf. ESV footnote) is not the same as “like him”: a wife is not her husband’s clone but complements him. 3. Matthew 19:4–6 “Have you not read that he who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh’? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”   Read More “What God has joined together” implies that marriage is not merely a human agreement but a relationship in which God changes the status of a man and a woman from being single (they are no longer two) to being married (one flesh). From the moment they are married, they are unified in a mysterious way that belongs to no other human relationship, having all the God-given rights and responsibilities of marriage that they did not have before. Being “one flesh” includes the sexual union of a husband and wife (see Gen. 2:24 ), but it is more than that because it means that they have left their parents’ household (“a man shall leave his father and his mother,” Gen. 2:24 ) and have established a new family, such that their primary human loyalty is now to each other, before anyone else. Jesus avoids the Pharisaic argument about reasons for divorce and goes back to the beginning of creation to demonstrate God’s intention for the institution of marriage. It is to be a permanent bond between a man and a woman that joins them into one new union that is consecrated by physical intercourse ( Gen. 2:24 ). 4. Colossians 3:18 Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.   Read More Instead of telling wives to “obey” (Gk. hypakouō ), as was typical in Roman households, Paul appeals to them to “submit” (Gk. hypotassō ), based on his conviction that men have a God-given leadership role in the family. The term suggests an ordering of society in which wives should align themselves with and respect the leadership of their husbands (see Eph. 5:22–33 ). Paul is not enjoining the wives to follow the prevailing cultural patterns of the day but to live as is fitting in the Lord. Seven times in these nine verses ( Col. 3:18–4:1 ) Paul roots his instructions in “the Lord” or an equivalent term, thus stressing the importance of evaluating everything in light of Christ and his teaching. 5. 1 Peter 3:7 Likewise, husbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker vessel, since they are heirs with you of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.   Read More Peter’s advice to husbands is compressed, perhaps because he addresses at more length those under authority who are more likely to be mistreated (slaves and wives). The word “likewise" is merely a transition (cf. 1 Pet. 3:1; 5:5 ); it does not mean husbands should submit to their wives, since Scripture never teaches this (see Eph. 5:21–33 ). “To live … in an understanding way" probably focuses on living in accord with God’s will, which includes understanding the needs of a wife. Interpreters differ over whether weaker vessel means weaker in terms of delegated authority, emotions, or physical strength. Peter is probably thinking of the general truth that men are physically stronger than women and may be tempted to threaten their wives through physical or verbal abuse. Women and men share an equal destiny as “heirs … of the grace of life." Peter does not think women are inferior to men, for both are equally made in God’s image (cf. Gal. 3:28 ). If husbands do not treat their wives in a godly way, the Lord will pay no heed to their prayers. 6. Hebrews 13:4 Let marriage be held in honor among all, and let the marriage bed be undefiled, for God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.   Read More Marriage is to be held in honor, and chastity in marriage is called for, with the warning that God will judge anyone who is sexually immoral (Gk. pornos , a general term referring to anyone who engages in sexual conduct outside of marriage between a man and a woman) or adulterous (Gk. moichos , referring to anyone who is unfaithful to a spouse). This warning is addressed to members of the church, and if they are genuine Christian believers, this judgment of God would not mean final condemnation to hell (cf. Rom. 8:1 ) but would bring disciplinary judgment in this life (cf. Heb. 12:5–11 ) or loss of reward at the last day, or both. However, in light of the earlier warning passages ( Heb. 3:12–14 ; Heb. 6:4–8 ; Heb. 10:26–31 ; Heb. 12:14–17 ), it is possible that such sexual immorality will be an indication that the person committing it is in fact not a true believer and not born again. 7. Ecclesiastes 4:9–10 Two are better than one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has not another to lift him up!   Read More The wise person will work side by side with another, enjoying a good reward and finding help in times of need. The wise person will pursue cooperative ventures rather than give in to jealous striving to be first (contrast Ecc. 4:8, 10, 11 ), a striving that isolates him from others. 8. Genesis 2:23–24 Then the man said, “This at last is bone of my bonesand flesh of my flesh;she shall be called Woman , because she was taken out of Man.”   Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.   Read More When no suitable companion is found among all the living beings, God fashions a woman from the man’s own flesh. The text highlights the sense of oneness that exists between the man and the woman. Adam joyfully proclaims, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh.” This terminology is used elsewhere of blood relatives ( Gen. 29:14 ). This sentence and the story of Eve’s creation both make the point that marriage creates the closest of all human relationships. It is also important to observe that God creates only one Eve for Adam, not several Eves or another Adam. This points to heterosexual monogamy as the divine pattern for marriage that God established at creation. Moreover, the kinship between husband and wife creates obligations that override even duty to one’s parents (therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, Gen. 2:24 ). In ancient Israel, sons did not move away when they married, but lived near their parents and inherited their father’s land. They “left” their parents in the sense of putting their wife’s welfare before that of their parents. The term “hold fast” is used elsewhere for practicing covenant faithfulness (e.g., Deut. 10:20 ; see how Paul brings these texts together in 1 Cor. 6:16–17 ); thus, other Bible texts can call marriage a “covenant” (e.g., Prov. 2:17 ; Mal. 2:14 ). Paul’s teaching on marriage in Eph. 5:25–32  is founded on this text. The sense of being made for each other is further reflected in a wordplay involving the terms “man” and “woman”; in Hebrew these are, respectively, ’ish  and ’ishshah . As a result of this special affiliation, Gen. 2:24  observes that when a man leaves his parents and takes a wife, they shall become one flesh, i.e., one unit (a union of man and woman, consummated in sexual intercourse). Jesus appeals to this verse and Gen. 1:27  in setting out his view of marriage ( Matt. 19:4–5 ). 9. Isaiah 62:5 For as a young man marries a young woman,so shall your sons marry you,and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,so shall your God rejoice over you.   Read More “Our sons” are the loyal inhabitants of Zion (here, the eternal city of God; cf. Psalm 87 ). A poetic image indicating that the inhabitants of Jerusalem will love and cherish their city: the inhabitants of Zion will forever be committed to and delight in their eternal dwelling place, for the Lord’s people are there, and the Lord himself is there. Isaiah’s poetic imagery leaves an overwhelming impression of joy, delight, righteousness, beauty, safety, and peace. Boldly drawing on a familiar human image of inexpressible joy and delight, God says his delight in his people will be like that of a bridegroom’s delight in his bride. Isaiah explains that in God’s great plan of salvation, he not only forgives his people, protects them, heals them, provides for them, restores them to their home, reconciles them to each other, transforms them so they are righteous, honors them, exalts them above all nations, and makes them a blessing to all nations, as he called them to be—but more than all these things, he actually delights  in his people. 10. 1 Corinthians 7:2–5 But because of the temptation to sexual immorality, each man should have his own wife and each woman her own husband. The husband should give to his wife her conjugal rights, and likewise the wife to her husband. For the wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does. Likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does. Do not deprive one another, except perhaps by agreement for a limited time, that you may devote yourselves to prayer; but then come together again, so that Satan may not tempt you because of your lack of self-control.   Read More The Corinthians are commanded to be faithful in their marriages, to avoid divorce, and to be content in their calling. Paul uses the phrase "now concerning" for the first time here to signal a switch from matters raised in the oral report from Chloe’s people ( 1 Cor. 1:10–11 ) to issues raised in a letter from Corinth. This same phrase is repeated in a number of places throughout the rest of 1 Corinthians (see 1 Cor. 7:25 ; 1 Cor. 8:1 ; 1 Cor. 12:1 ; 1 Cor. 16:1, 12 ) where it introduces additional topics from the Corinthians’ letter. Some Corinthian Christians appear to have adopted the view that sexual relations of any kind, even within marriage, should be avoided. Paul seeks to carefully refute this view throughout this chapter (see 1 Cor. 7:2, 5, 9, 10, 28, 36 ). God designed marriage as the place for the expression of human sexuality. Sex within marriage has both relational and spiritual benefits ( Gen. 2:24 ; Eph. 5:31 ; see also 1 Cor. 6:17 ). It also has the practical benefit of reducing the temptation to engage in sexual sin (see 1 Cor. 7:9 ). by: Crossway;  All commentary sections adapted from the ESV Study Bible .

Speak to God God is not asking for silence. When we suffer and do not understand, he is not demanding the stiff upper lip. He does not object to our groanings, our pleas for help, our desperate whimpers when we can’t even form words. He does not need us to piece ourselves together before we say our Thee’s  and Thou’s  in formal prayer. He invites us to question him. God is not threatened by our questions. Neither should we, then, tell the suffering to silence their complaints. But they must take their accusations straight to God—and listen. Everywhere you look in the Hebrew Bible, you’ll see exchanges between God and the patriarchs, prophets, or kings. God does not shrink before our speech. If anything, as we see amid the calamity of invasion at the outset of the prophet Isaiah’s ministry, God invites this dialogue. Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet,      they shall be as white as snow;though they are red like crimson,      they shall become like wool. ( Isa. 1:18 ) God’s People Cry Out to Him Consider how the prophets speak of Israel’s exile from the promised land. The prophet Habakkuk opens with a complaint against God for his people’s suffering. How could God be silent in the face of such injustice? O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,      and you will not hear?Or cry to you “Violence!”      and you will not save? ( Hab. 1:2 ) God’s answer reminds us that God’s purposes sometimes remain obscure even when we’re looking to understand, even when we hear the reasons. Look among the nations, and see;      wonder and be astounded.For I am doing a work in your days      that you would not believe if told. ( Hab. 1:5 ) Habakkuk can’t understand how God could use the evil of the Chaldeans to accomplish his good plan. In Habakkuk, we see that God is not silent before evil. That’s because he speaks through a prophet made in his image as he demands justice. These words, after all, have been preserved for us in the Scriptures. Moreover, God responds that he’s doing something as Creator that we can’t understand. Psalm 88  might be considered the paradigm. The psalmist opens with an appeal to God: O Lord, God of my salvation,      I cry out day and night before you.Let my prayer come before you;      incline your ear to my cry! ( Ps. 88:1–2 ) He senses that God has gone silent. But I, O Lord, cry to you;      in the morning my prayer comes before you.O Lord, why do you cast my soul away?      Why do you hide your face from me? ( Ps. 88:13–14 ) Unlike so many other Hebrew prayers, including those of Habakkuk and Job, Psalm 88  ends without resolution. It ends, in fact, with night. You have caused my beloved and my friend to shun me;      my companions have become darkness. ( Ps. 88:18 ) For anyone who has suffered depression, God’s word here offers comfort. Even the psalmist felt like darkness was his only friend. We are not alone—even when we cannot seem to hear God. This short article can hardly contain all the examples in Scripture, especially in the Psalms, of people crying out to God and hearing nothing in response. Here’s King David: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?       Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,      and by night, but I find no rest. ( Ps. 22:1–2 ) Now here’s where Scripture really takes a turn. The next time we hear this prayer, it’s from a man whose companions have shunned him. His friends have fled. The world has become shrouded in darkness. From parched lips we hear a loud voice cry out, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” He’s quoting Psalm 22:1 : “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” It’s the prayerful plea of Jesus as he hangs dying on the cross ( Mark 15:34 ). It’s the final cry of a Son for his Father. The crowd watches and waits. They look to the heavens. If the Father recognizes Jesus as his Son, surely he will rescue him. Do not Jesus’s own disciples—indeed, his own mother and brothers and friends—expect deliverance? Surely, this is the moment for truth to prevail. As the Father has spoken blessing on the Son twice earlier, in the presence of Elijah and his successor, surely he will deliver now before it’s too late. The Son gives one last agonized cry. One last labored breath. From the Father we hear nothing. Only silence. Night has never been darker. Quiet has never been quieter. How could this man claim to be the Son of God? Suffering Servant Was Jesus mistaken? Were his disciples? For Jesus, this silence meant violence. Hanging on the Romans’ most notorious method of murder, he received no reprieve from his agony. How should we understand what was happening? How does this experience speak to those who suffer not only physical pain but also the absence of God? For a clue, we need to head back to the great Jewish prophet Isaiah. In Isaiah 53:7–9 , he spoke this word from God about a suffering servant: He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,      yet he opened not his mouth;like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,      and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,      so he opened not his mouth.By oppression and judgment he was taken away;      and as for his generation, who consideredthat he was cut off out of the land of the living,      stricken for the transgression of my people?And they made his grave with the wicked      and with a rich man in his death,although he had done no violence,      and there was no deceit in his mouth. The lamb led to the slaughter. He opened not his mouth. Only silence . Whatever others may have thought about the Father’s silence, Jesus wasn’t surprised. He taught his disciples to expect nothing less. The Son must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things before dying at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes ( Matt. 16:21 ). Such is the fate of prophets who speak the truth in a world that fell with a lie. John had come as Elijah, and his head ended up on a platter ( Matt. 14:1–12 ). Jesus knew the history. He cried, “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!” ( Matt. 23:37 ). Other prophets had died because of  the hard hearts of the people. But this prophet would be different. This prophet died for the hard hearts of the people. Like righteous Job, Jesus interceded with a sacrifice for his loved ones ( Job 1:5 ). As Isaiah had foretold, an innocent servant’s suffering would pardon his people’s transgression. His chastisement brings peace. By his wounds, our world will be healed ( Isa. 53:5 ). Sounds of Salvation The Father may have been silent as Jesus died on the cross. But that’s not because the Son had been abandoned. Jesus told the disciples that he would lay down his life for his sheep ( John 10:15–16 ). He explained how it was all in accordance with the Father’s will. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father. ( John 10:17–18 ) The sounds of salvation that emanated from the hill outside Jerusalem called Golgotha were the cries of the Son of God. For six hours, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe hung on a Roman cross, slowly dying. In solidarity with its Maker, the land descended into the darkness of night ( Mark 15:33 ). This Son offered friendship to all but made enemies of those who claimed to speak for God while they made every follower “twice as much a child of hell” ( Matt. 23:15 ). The Son’s every good deed, his every healing miracle, enraged the self-righteous. In their show trials, they couldn’t find a single transgression by Jesus. Still, these religious and political leaders threatened by Jesus’s innocence silenced his prophetic voice. Then, on the third day, the sun rose. Light shone on Jerusalem. The women who loved Jesus went to his tomb. “An angel of the Lord descended from heaven.” The sound was deafening. The earth shook while he rolled the stone away from the tomb. The light was blinding. “His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow” ( Matt. 28:2–3 ). He came with news of a new creation. The former things had passed way. “In Christ God was reconciling the world to himself” ( 2 Cor. 5:19 ). That serpent of lies? Jesus crushed his power on the cross ( Gen. 3:15 ). “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin,” we read in 2 Corinthians 5:21 , “so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” Theologians call this the great exchange. In our union with Christ, he takes on our sin and dies the death we deserved on the cross. He gives us the righteousness of his sinless life so one day we’ll hear from our Father, “Well done, good and faithful servant” ( Matt. 25:23 ). God Has a Son For now, at least a little while longer, the sounds of slaughter still haunt every corner of the earth. “Never again” gives way to terrorists on paragliders attacking youth during a music festival. Another land war in Europe yields war crimes in familiar Ukrainian cities. The League of Nations couldn’t stop the last major war. The United Nations can’t stop wars today. Over the clanging gong of breaking news, we listen for the first notes from a trumpet that will signal the end of evil ( Matt. 24:31 ). Then, final judgment will be rendered to the butchers of Buchenwald and Berdychiv. No evil word will go unpunished. On that day, every child’s cries will find consolation. For God himself has a Son. Though he did no wrong, that Son suffered. And his suffering availed to our eternal salvation. This sheep may have been silent. But his sacrifice silenced the original accuser. The first enemy can rage. In the end, however, Satan cannot win. God is not threatened by our questions. This article is adapted from   Where Is God in a World with So Much Evil?   by Collin Hansen.

1. HE IS: My Everything Isaiah 9:6–7  Isaiah predicted that a child would be born who would be our everything. The variety of names reveals his character qualities: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Until Christ comes to govern the world, he wants to govern your heart and be your everything. When you’re perplexed, let him be your Wonderful Counselor. When you’re weak and fragile, trust him to be your Mighty God. When you feel that everything around you is changing, remember he is your Everlasting Father. When anxiety knocks, lean on the Prince of Peace. When you’re searching for what completes you, look to your everything. 2. HE IS: Not Angry Isaiah 12:1–3  The prophet predicted the time when the Messiah would come to save his people. When the people turned to the Messiah, God would in turn strengthen and comfort his children, and Israel would praise the Lord because his anger had turned away. He is not angry. While God is angry at your sin, he does not hold on to his anger with you. When you turn to the Messiah for salvation, he turns from his anger over your sin. He loves you, and as his child, you are the recipient of his comfort, not his anger (see also Hosea 14:4–8). 3. He Is: First and Last Isaiah 44:6  The covenant people were going to be taken captive by a nation enmeshed in idolatry. Therefore, God warned them against worshiping idols by reminding them that he alone is God. He proclaimed that he is the first and the last, the only God. We too live in a land where people bow to false gods. Beware! Anything you value above God is an idol. Is he the first thing you consider in the morning and the last on your mind at night? If he’s not first and last in your life, then maybe he’s not your Lord at all. 4. He Is: The Sustainer Isaiah 46:3–4  Even though the people had wandered from God and were destined for punishment, God offered them hope. He promised to sustain them. He didn’t promise a life of ease, but he did promise to be their sustainer. The same God who had carried them thus far would carry them through their trials. Though you may be experiencing hardship and heartache, don’t doubt that God has loved you from the moment you were conceived. Throughout your life, he is the sustainer who will carry you from the cradle to the grave. 5. He Is: A Man of Suffering Isaiah 53:1–6  The prophet foresaw that the Messiah would be a man of suffering. During his life Jesus experienced loss, unfair treatment, rejection, physical pain and spiritual sorrow. On the cross, he took the sin and misery of the world onto his own shoulders. Aren’t you glad that Jesus understands pain? Isn’t it comforting to know that the God-man did not choose an easy, sheltered life? He knows what it feels like to hurt. What sorrows are you carrying? Let him bear them for you (see Matthew 11:28–30). Place your pain on his strong shoulders. He’s familiar with suffering and will carry your pain for you. 6. He Is: The Potter Isaiah 64:8  The prophet Isaiah understood that human beings, like clay, can be shaped and molded for service by surrendering to God the potter. At our best, we are the work of God’s hand. The potter created you for a purpose—to serve him. If you allow it, he will make you into a vessel that pours out his love to others. You must be supple clay in God’s hands, not resistant to his sometimes-painful process of molding your character. Repentance of sin softens your spirit so you can be formed into his divine design. 7. He Is: The Holy Hope Jeremiah 14:7–9  Judah’s drought was a sign of God’s displeasure with his people’s sinfulness. So Jeremiah talked with God, acknowledging the people’s backsliding and sin. God was Judah’s only hope, but the people failed to repent. Are you experiencing a spiritual drought? Has drinking at the wells of pleasure left you thirsting for true fulfillment? If your backsliding is great, know that he is the only hope. Return to God and talk with him. Confess your tendency to wander. He will quench your thirst, save you in times of distress and be your true and lasting hope (see Romans 15:13). 8. He Is: Foreseeing Jeremiah 32:1–25  God instructed Jeremiah to buy his uncle’s field, knowing full well the Babylonians would soon conquer the land. This signified to the people of Israel that God was planning to bring them back to their home. Because God foresees the future, Jeremiah could trust God’s seemingly ill- timed instructions. (Who invests in land right before captivity?!) Nothing is too hard for God—not your housing situation, your health or your happiness. He foresees what will happen before it happens and has a plan to redeem whatever you’re facing. You can trust God to bring his promises to pass in his perfect way and time. 9: He Is: Good Lamentations 3:22–26  The weeping prophet, Jeremiah, grieved over the fall of Jerusalem. Yet he found consolation in the fact that God’s compassions are new every morning. Although the people had sinned and the city was destroyed, Jeremiah knew that God is good to those who hope in him. If you’re grieving over the destruction in your life and you’re longing for a fresh start, seek the Lord. He is good and is able and willing to give you a new beginning. Because he offers a fresh batch of compassion every morning, he’ll help you put the past behind you when you hope in him. 10: He Is: Pleased Ezekiel 18:23–32  Some people portray God as a cruel deity who wants to zap unsuspecting sinners. In Ezekiel’s day, the Israelites accused God of unfairly punishing the people for the sins of their parents. But through Ezekiel, God revealed that people are responsible for their own sin and that he is pleased when people turn to him. God is not begrudging. He doesn’t overcomplicate salvation in the hopes of disqualifying some. He doesn’t enjoy anyone’s death. Rather, he is pleased—thrilled, delighted and satisfied—when you come to him and live (see Luke 15:7). Imagine—the God of the universe, pleased with you! 11: He Is: The Ancient of Days Daniel 7:9–10  Daniel saw a vision of world history where each successive empire was depicted as a fierce beast, culminating in the rule of the antichrist. In the midst of the vision, Daniel saw the Ancient of Days, God himself, regally seated on his throne to judge the nations. He is the Ancient of Days—timeless, enduring, unchanging. How unlike us. While our lives are quick blips on the screen of time, he was, is and is to come. And the Ancient of Days freely offers us eternal life with him—a permanence, security and future we could never earn for ourselves. 12. He Is: Healing Hosea 6:1–3  Hosea recognized that the God who, in justice, chastises his children for turning away from him will also, in mercy, heal them. The Lord rains his refreshing, healing forgiveness on those who acknowledge him. God may allow pain in your life. He may allow you to be torn to pieces and injured by life. Why? So that you will return to him. These afflictions are a severe mercy—though painful, they are the catalyst for you to press on to acknowledge God. He will heal you, bind up your wounds, restore you and invite you to live in his presence. 13. He Is: My Strength Habakkuk 3:16–19  Knowing that the land faced devastation, Habakkuk set his mind on God rather than circumstances. He told himself, I choose to be patient; I choose to rejoice even when (not if) disaster comes. With this perspective on life, he could confidently say that God was his strength. Sometimes faith requires that we make a hard choice that contradicts what we can see. When the circumstances of your life look bad, remind yourself that God is in control. Like Habakkuk, you can choose to trust God. By making the choice to trust, you too can discover that God is your strength. 14. He Is: Stirring Haggai1:13–14  As the Lord’s messenger, Haggai reminded the people that they had put much energy into building their own homes, yet God’s house remained a ruin. God himself stirred up the people to work on his house, the building project he was passionate about. God is also stirring in the hearts of his people today. What is he stirring you to do? Build his house? Reach out to a hurting friend? Witness to your unsaved neighbor? Give? When you are attuned to his stirring in your heart, and open to doing whatever project he is passionate about, he will use you. 15. He Is: A Refiner Malachi 3:3  The people had grown indifferent to the Lord, but Malachi saw that because of their backsliding, God would turn up the heat to bring them back to righteousness. He predicted that God would sit as a refiner. If the heat has been turned up in your life, perhaps God is refining you. He monitors the temperature of your trials so the dross of sin will rise to the surface. He wants to sweep away your iniquities as the silversmith sweeps away the impurities tainting precious metals. Though the heat might feel painful, it’s purifying, making you shine and reflect his glory. Drawn from Flourish: The NIV Bible for Women .

Stay on Track Years ago, when I was serving in high school ministry, we offered this simple plan to our students as they learned how to lead small-group Bible studies with their peers. It consists of the cultivation of six habits that constitute a basic approach to studying any passage of Scripture. Developing these habits will help keep you on track in your study—paying attention to the text, avoiding rabbit trails, and doing everything you can to get the main point and the central application as God intended it. Let’s look at these habits.   1. Read carefully. Our first habit is simply careful reading. So many mistakes are made in hermeneutics (biblical interpretation) because people read too quickly through a passage, assume they understand what it’s saying, and then make a leap to something in their experience that the passage makes them think about. Carefully reading the text several times can be the first and most important step in making sure we are listening to what the Bible is actually saying. Take time to read slowly. Make observations and linger over the text. Read it silently, then out loud. And don’t forget to pray for God’s help as you listen to his word and seek to understand and apply it faithfully.   2. Read in context. It’s important to understand that mistakes in the interpretation and application of the Bible often can be avoided simply by taking time to understand the context of specific verses and passages. A verse that seems to be saying one thing at first glance could actually be understood to mean the opposite when it’s read in its proper context. When we study the Bible, then, we need to pay attention to the verses directly around the passage we’re reading. We need to think about the historical situation of the original audience in order to understand what the biblical author was saying to them before we apply the passage to ourselves. And we need to make sure that we are remembering the context of the entire Bible, which tells the story of God’s creation, humanity’s fall, redemption through Christ, and the promise of resurrected life in God’s new creation. Reading every Bible passage—and every Bible verse—in its proper context is vital for proper understanding and application of God’s word.   3. Identify core terms. Next, we must look for core words or phrases in a passage of Scripture. As we study a Bible passage, we must ask, “What words or phrases are repeated? Are there ideas that keep coming up again and again in the passage? Is there a particular point that the author makes—perhaps at both the beginning and the end of a story or section of Scripture?” This habit is designed to help us get closer to the crux (main point) of the text (see the next habit) by identifying repeated emphases employed by the biblical author. When we tell a story or give a speech, we almost always repeat or emphasize the points that are most important to us. It’s no different with the biblical text, so paying careful attention to repeated words often can be a helpful way to capture what God’s word is saying to us.   4. Identify the main point. This habit can help pinpoint the theme of a passage of Scripture, which can be defined as the timeless theological truth that the passage is teaching. The theme of any biblical passage is just as true today as it was when the passage was written. It may be a truth about the character of God, humanity, sin, salvation, or our fallen world. Whatever it may be, an important discipline in Bible study is to work hard to capture that main point. Try to put this theme into just one sentence—something like “The main point of this passage is _ .” Taking this step in Bible study doesn’t mean you’ll always get the main point exactly right, but it will help you discipline yourself to not only study a passage of Scripture verse by verse, but also to see a chunk of Scripture as a whole, seeking to discern the overall main point that the biblical author, as inspired by God the Holy Spirit, was making to his original audience (and is making to us, God’s people today).   5. See Christ in the text. The simple conviction behind this habit of Bible study is that the Scriptures ultimately are about God’s redemption of sinners—and all of creation—through the life, death, resurrection, and final return of his Son, Jesus Christ. The Bible’s climax is the saving work of God through Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit. So it’s appropriate for us to ask, when studying any passage of Scripture, “How does this passage relate to Jesus and the gospel?” Of course, it’s important to remember that different passages of Scripture point to Jesus and the gospel in different ways. Some Old Testament passages offer direct prophetic words about the coming of Jesus, while others simply display the need for Jesus, the Messiah, to come and save sinners. Some New Testament passages explain Jesus’s work on the cross in detail; others apply his saving work or hold him out as an example for Christians to follow. Whatever the case may be, it’s important—and valid—for Christians to seek to connect every passage in the Bible to the person and work of Jesus Christ, who is the Savior of all who believe.   6. Answer God’s call. This is where the rubber meets the road. Here we ask that all-important question, “What does the truth of this passage mean for the way I think, act, and speak?” We are asking ourselves, “What is the central call of this passage to me as a follower of Jesus Christ?” We’re talking, of course, about application. If the Bible is true—and if Jesus indeed is our Savior and Lord, who invites us to follow and obey him—then every passage of Scripture should have a real impact on our lives. If we do not practice this final habit of Bible study, there is a very real danger that while we may engage in some cerebral or academic study of Scripture, we will not allow the Bible to challenge and change us. God’s word is living and active ( Heb. 4:12 ); our Lord intends for us to obey it and to be constantly changed by it as it calls us to deeper obedience, sanctification, and growth in Christ. When we study the Bible, then, we are trying to discover what it means, but also what it means for the way we live as faithful followers of Jesus Christ. Don’t forget to pray for God’s help as you listen to his word and seek to understand and apply it faithfully. This article is adapted from   Understanding God’s Word: An Introduction to Interpreting the Bible   by Jon Nielson.