Paul the apostle of the gentiles

Ephesians 3: 1 - 4 1) For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, 2) If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: 3) How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, 4) Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)   There are two types of people in the bible, Jew & Gentile.  Here Paul states that he has been given a revelation of the grace of God, and that God has given Paul charge to dispense this revelation to the gentiles.  Through revelation God gave Paul knowledge about the mystery of Christ, and Paul explains these things to us gentiles through out all his epistles.

We are no longer under law but grace

Romans 6: 9 - 14  9) Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. 10) For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. 11) Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12) Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lust thereof. 13) Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14) For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law but under grace.

Your Body is God's Temple

I Corinthians 6:14 – 20  14) And God hath both raised up the Lord, and will also raise up us by his own power. 15) Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. 16) What? Know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? For two, saith he shall be one flesh. 17) But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. 18) Flee fornication.  Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. 19) What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20) For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit which are God’s.

The Gospel of Jesus Christ

St. John 6:53 – 57  53) Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. 54) Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. 55) For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.  56) He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. 57) As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. 

We know from St. John 1: 14 that the word of God was made flesh and dwelt among us. The food we feed our Spirit is the word of God. All scripture is meat for us, and to be believed.  Make daily bible reading part of your life.  Claim the shed blood of Christ as is our gospel per the apostle Paul.  Where he states in I Corinthians 15: 1 – 4  1) Moreover,  brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand: 2) By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.  3) For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4) And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

Religious Traditions nullify Gods Word

St. Matthew 18: 1 – 9  1) Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, 2) Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they wash not their hands when they eat bread. 3) But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? 4) for God commanded, saying, honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. 5) But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me: 6) and honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. 7) Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, 8) This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. 9) But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. 10) And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand: 11) Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.

Jesus Christ the Light of the World

St. John 8: 1 -12  1) Jesus went unto the mount of Olives. 2) And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him: and he sat down, and taught them. 3) And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto him a woman taken in adultery: and when they had set her in the midst, 4) They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. 5) Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou? 6) This they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him.  But Jesus stooped down and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not. 7) So when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. 8) And again he stooped down, and wrote on the ground. 9) And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst. 10) When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman, where are those thine accusers? Hath no man condemned thee? 11) She said, No man, Lord.  And Jesus said unto her, Neither do I condemn thee: go and sin no more. 12) Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.

Considering ourselves dead in Christ

Ephesians 5: 14 - 21  14) Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light. 15) See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, 16) redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17) Wherefore be ye not un-wise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is, 18) And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; 19) Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; 20) Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; 21) Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.  One of the Best things you can do as a starting out Christian, would be to learn how to be content with everything.  Be content with little, and be content with a lot, and never stop giving thanks unto God for all things.

Christ: the mediator between us and God

I Timothy 2: 5-7  5) For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; 6) Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time. 7) Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.   Here Paul testifies of the only way to enter into everlasting life, is through Jesus Christ.  Who taught him a new gospel to give to us Gentiles in faith and in truth.  God never reveal these truths to anyone else, but Paul.  Even Peter, as great a man of God as he was, shortly before his death, had this to say about Paul.  II Peter 3: 15 - 16  15) And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; 16) As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.  This scripture by Peter fits perfectly with I Corinthians 1:18  For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.

Daily living as a Christian

Understanding our daily walk with Christ entails understanding his word sent to us by his prophets.  In II Corinthians 5: 14 - 15 were told:  14) For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:  15) And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again. 

This text was written by Paul by inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  Paul always writes to people who already believe.  All his letters to the churches are written to the believers.  Verse 14 Paul states that if we believe that Christ died for us, then we also should believe that we are also dead in him.  Verse 15 goes on to say that we no longer should we go on living for ourselves, but living to please the one that took away our judgement of death.  For when he died, he took upon himself our punishment, and our sin put him in the grave on our behalf.  But he overcame death and the grave and rose again.  That is our beloved hope, that we also shall rise after our body dies, and forever live with the Lord.

And the icing on the cake is in verse 17.  Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.    Please take time today to meditate on this verse.  Praise be to Jesus Christ our Lord.