I have never looked at my McDonald’s App to see how many points I have. We checked it this morning and I had 27,000 points! I have never used any points in the past. They expire periodically and I had lost thousands that I had never used. Of course it takes 5,000 points to get a Egg McMuffin, so it’s not like I lost a lot of money from unused points, but I’m cheap and it still irritated me to find out all that!

So, what’s the cute little blog spiritual comparison to this? Probably not much, but I’ll give it a go. A saved believer in Jesus can know that he is saved. He can go to McDonald’s (church) and pay for his breakfast (give money, maybe even tithe) and kinda “earn” his way to heaven by going to church and doing good works. But he can miss out on the extra “free” blessings that come with the “abundant life”. John 10:10 “I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly.”

So how can we describe this abundant life? AI: “An abundant life in Christ, from John 10:10, means a spiritually rich, full life, not necessarily material wealth, characterized by God’s love, joy, peace, purpose, and fellowship, found through a restored relationship with Jesus, daily reliance on the Holy Spirit, obedience, prayer, and living to glorify God, even amidst life’s trials. It’s a life “beyond measure,” filled with divine blessings, not worldly possessions.” So how many Christians, even church going Christians, punch the clock but don’t have the joy, peace, love, prayer life, Spirit led life, or “purpose driven life” (Rick Warren’s book)? In other words, they have all those extra spiritual points that they never use. And if you don’t use them, you lose them. Past missed opportunities expire and you can’t get them back.

Probably a stretch with the McDonald’s points comparison but I gave it a try. BTW I’m going to use some of those 27,000 points at my next visit to McDonald’s before they expire! Maybe I will use my spiritual points to enjoy the abundant life in Jesus more!

The Gospel of Philip says that Jesus loved Mary Magdelene more than the other disciples and that Mary was a “companion” of Jesus and that he kissed her on the (and the rest is missing from the text). The word “companion” does not necessariy mean “spouse” but even if it did, why would we believe that the Gospel of Phiilip was an authentic inspired gospel just like our 4 gospel (Mt, Mk, Lk, Jn)? The Gospel of Mary Magdelene also says that Jesus loved Mary more than the others, but was it an authentic inspired gospel? When were these 2 gospels (Philip and Mary) written? Most scholars think they were written in the laste 2nd century. The Gospel of Philip was in the Coptic Nag Hammadi books found in Egyypt in 1945 and the Gospel of Mary was also found in Egypt in the late 19th century.

They probably were around in the late 2nd century because the church father Irenaeus “fiercely condemned them, along with other Gnostic writings, in his work Against Heresies, arguing they were heretical, illegitimate, and contrary to the four canonical Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John), which he championed as the only true witnesses to Jesus, established by apostolic tradition and reflecting creation’s order. He saw these Gnostic books as undermining the true Church’s faith, promoting secret knowledge, and challenging the apostolic succession, viewing them as dangerous fabrications.” Irenaeus lived in the 2nd century AD.

Now we can’t trust everything Irenaeus said. He believed in chiliasm (that Jesus was going to come set up an earthly kingdom), which I disagree with. Jesus said that his kingdom was not of this world (John 13:36) and that some of those he was speaking to would be alive to see Him coming back in His kingdom (Matthew 16:27-28). He also said that Jesus’ ministry lasted 20 years and that he died at age 50. But his comments about the gospels are compelling: “In his central work, Adversus Haereses Irenaeus denounced various Christian groups that used only one gospel…as well as groups that embraced the texts of new revelations.…Irenaeus declared that the four he espoused were the four pillars of the Church: ‘it is not possible that there can be either more or fewer than four’ he stated, presenting as logic the analogy of the four corners of the earth and the four winds (1.11.8).”  

So was this an isolated opinion of just one of the early church fathers? No. The following chart shows how many times the early church father (2nd-4th centuries AD) quoted or cited the gospels (and the rest of the New Testament).

Justin Martyr lived from 100-165 AD; Clement was 150-215 AD; Irenaeus was 125-202 AD; Origen was 185-254 AD; Tertullian was 155-220 AD; and Eusebius was 260-339 AD. So we have almost 19,000 quotes of the 4 gospels by the early church fathers by the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD. So around the 2nd century AD (about 100 years after the original gospel were written) we have all the church fathers quoting the 4 gospels as inspired writings of the apostles. I believe that these early church fathers living in the 2nd century knew very well which gospels that had been passed down by the church were authentic inspired writings.

In contrast to that, the early church fathers never quotred from the gospels of Philip, Mary, or Thomas (the gospel of Thomas was another gospel found in the Nag Hammadi books. Irenaeus’ comment about the gospels of Philip and Mary shows that those books were around by the late 2nd century but that they were clearly considered to be uninspired, heretical gospels. Therefore, it doesn’t matter if the gospel of Philip suggested that Jesus was married (his “companion”) to Mary or not. It wasn’t an inspired gospel so it just doesn’t matter what it says. The Dan Brown Da Vinci Code book and movie throws in a comment that the gospel of Philip said that Mary was the wife of Jesus, but, again, that is taken from an uninspired gospel that the early church rejected. A great movie with Tom Hanks, but entirely fiction.

Maybe this article is more about the trustworthiness of the 4 gospels (Mt, Mk, Lk, Jn) that we do have in our Bibles than it is about the gospels of Philip and Mary. The early church father quotes should give us confidence that we can trust the 4 gospels as being written early and written by those 4 men. If we can’t trust our 4 gospels, then we can’t trust the miracles and resurrection of Jesus that they record.

AI: “Bart Ehrman says the four Gospels (Mark, Matthew, Luke, John) were written anonymously, with names added later, but generally dates them as: Mark (c. 70 CE), Matthew & Luke (c. 80-85 CE), and John (c. 90-95 CE), acknowledging the consensus among critical scholars that they weren’t eyewitness accounts but emerged decades after Jesus, long after the apostles’ deaths, to gain authority.” I believe that all the gospels were written before 70 AD. How do we know that? Because all 4 gospels quote Jesus predicting the destruction of Jerusalem that he said would happen within the generation of those he was speaking to (Matthew 24:34) and yet none of the 4 state that the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD had already happened at the time of writing. What if we found an old, old book about persecution of the Jews in history but we didn’t know when it was written? What if that book told about many events where the Jews were persecuted but stopped without mentioning the holocaust? When would you say that book was written, before or after the holocaust? It was written before the holocaust. It is the same with the 4 gospels and the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. If that event had already happened at the time of writing the gospels then the gospel writers would surely have used that fulfilled prediction to show that Jesus was truly a Prophet. If the gospels were written before 70 AD, then early Chrisitans would have been able to verify that the writers really were Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Also, if the gospels were written before 70 AD, then that would be within about 30 years of the resurrection of Jesus and people could be able to check out the veracity of the gospel claims. If someone claimed a resurrection from a local cemetary 30 years ago, then we are living close enough in time to check out that claim. The early church rejected many spurious gospels and other books, so they knew which books were authentic that had been passed down to the early church.

I hope this article has been beneficial.

My last blog laid the groundwork for the special collection for the poor saints in Jerusalem that Paul was taking up from the mainly Gentile churches on his 3rd missionary journey, so please read that before you get into this blog. I intended to send this tomorrow but couldn’t wait.

I want to summarize what he told the church in Corinth about that special collection. AI: “Paul wrote 2 Corinthians around AD 55-57, most likely from Macedonia, possibly Philippi or Thessalonica, during his third missionary journey, shortly after a difficult visit to Corinth that prompted a more painful, lost letter before the 2 Corinthian letter which expresses relief and defends his apostolic authority.” Paul had been in Ephesus for 3 years, from where he made that difficult visit and from where he wrote 1 Corinthians. “After the 3 years he left Ephesus for Troas, grew anxious waiting for Titus (who was bringing news from Corinth and was supposed to meet him in Troas but was late), and then traveled to Macedonia where he finally met Titus, receiving good news about the Corinthian church’s repentance after receiving Paul’s letters (the severe lost letter and the 1 Corinthians letter).” Titus probably delivered both these letters to the Corinthians, but for sure he delivered the 1 Corinthians letter.

2 Cor 8:¹⁶ But thanks be to God who puts the same earnestness in your behalf in the heart of Titus. ¹⁷ For he not only accepted our appeal, but being himself very earnest, he has gone to you of his own accord. ¹⁸ We have sent along with him the brother (some early church fathers thought that this “brother” was Luke but we really don’t know who it was),whose fame in the things of the gospel has spread through all the churches; ¹⁹ and not only that, but he has also been appointed by the churches to travel with us in this gracious work, which is being administered by us for the glory of the Lord Himself, and to show our readiness, ²⁰ taking precaution so that no one will discredit us in our administration of this generous gift; ²¹ for we have regard for what is honorable, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of other people. ²² We have sent with them our brother (some think this was a 2nd unnamed brother; Trophimus has been mentioned as a possibility) whom we have often tested and found diligent in many things, but now even more diligent because of his great confidence in you. ²³ As for Titus, he is my partner and fellow worker among you; as for our brothers, they are messengers of the churches, a glory to Christ.” What a great compliment to Titus. We know that Timothy was Paul’s special “child in the faith” but Titus is highly praised by Paul here. Later Paul will trust Titus as an evangelist to stay in Crete and correct false teachers there and to teach sound doctrine.

There are so many lessons about giving in 2 Cor 8 and 9. I really enjoyed re-studying those 2 chapters.

1) The Macedonian churches had already given liberally out of their poverty, according to their ability and beyond their ability, toward this special collection. They gave voluntarily and begged Paul for the favor of participating in this collection. Reminds you of the widow’s 2 mites, doesn’t it? They even first “gave of themselves” before they gave their contributions. I imagine there a lot of church goers that still give out of guilt without giving themselves to the Lord.

2) Paul encouraged the Corinthians to fulfill their pledge they had made toward this special collection one year earlier. They were the first to make such a pledge and now they needed to finish what they pledged. Titus had apparently helped them make that pledge a year earlier and he would take this 2 Corinthian letter to Corinth (while Paul was still in Macedonia waiting to go visit Corinth one last time) to make sure the Corinthians fulfilled their pledge. Paul said that their pledge should be a proof of the sincerity of their love and according to their ability.

3) Paul had boasted about the Corinthian pledge to the Macedonian churches (Philippi, etc.) and about the Corinthian zeal from a year earlier that had stirred up the Macedonian churches to give liberally (which they did). So he sent Titus and 2 other brothers to make sure that the Corinthians fulfilled their pledge lest his boasting be in vain. He sent them from Macedonia ahead of his last visit to Corinth to arrange for the Corinthian collection to be ready for him to pick up when he would visit (1 Corinthians 16:1-4). But Paul is quick to point out that he did not want this generous gift they had pledged to be reluctant or under compulsion (one made by a greedy person but who feels compels to make the contribution under force almost or out of guilt or even to grudgingly fulfill their pledge). He wants them to be cheerful givers. It is interesting to note that Paul used the example of the churches in Galatia giving toward this collection to motivate the church in Corinth (1 Cor 16:1-4), and then he used the Corinthian generosity to motivate the churches in Macedonia. The power of the example of sacrificial giving. Quite often I read of someone basically donating all his/her assets to a great work of the Lord somewhere, usually in some poor country overseas. That inspires me to look at my assets and make generous donations. Still working on that!

4) Paul then gave a great principle on giving. God will supply “seed for the sower” is he/she gives liberally, generously, and cheerfully. He will supply more “seed money” for the one who gives like that. God will multiply your seed money for sowing. If you sow sparingly, you will reap sparingly, but if you sow generously, you will reap generously. God will be glorified by generous, cheerful giving. I don’t believe this giving has to be to a church budget fund. Churches spend about 75% of the money they collect on buildings and staff. I like the giving habits of the early church. The only collections they took up were for benevolence and the spreading of the gospel. They did not have buildings to pay for and staff salaries, etc. They met in house churches. Acts 2:⁴⁴ And all the believers were together and had all things in common; ⁴⁵ and they would sell their property and possessions and share them with all, to the extent that anyone had need. Acts 4:³⁴ For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales ³⁵ and lay them at the apostles’ feet, and they would be distributed to each to the extent that any had need.” AI: “Justin Martyr, in his First Apology (c. 155 AD), describes 2nd-century Christian communities collecting voluntary offerings during Sunday meetings, managed by the church president (bishop) for communal welfare, specifically helping orphans, widows, the sick, imprisoned, and needy strangers, showing a system of communal care funded by voluntary, generous giving from the wealthy and willing.” Why are churches not using all that money they collect to feed the poor, drill clean water wells, and print Bibles to spread the gospel?

4) Paul says that the motivation for all our giving is what God has given us by sending His Son to die and save us from our sins. 2 Cor 8:⁹ For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich (i.e. rich spiritually). There is no “prosperity gospel” that if you give liberally you will be blessed materially for your own selfish use although it is true that you might be blessed with more money to share with others if you give liberally but there is not guarantee of even that. 2 Cor 9:¹⁵ Thanks be to God for His indescribable (anekdiégétos: Indescribable, inexpressible: properly, inexpressible (beyond words); indescribable (inexplicable), impossible to estimate (used only in 2 Cor 9:15) ) gift!”  

One of my favorite movies is “The Ultimate Gift”. Great movie. Jason, the protagonist, is a spoiled young adult who never had to work. HIs grandad, whom he resents, dies and gives him a list of gifts which are actually chores and lessons for him to learn in order to get finally “the ultimate gift” and he has no clue what that ultimate gift. I won’t spoil the movie for you if you haven’t seen it, but in the end he truly receives the ultimate gift. God blesses us with so many physcial blessings and spiritual blessings every day. It is my 76th today and I sat with my 3 grown children (no spouses or grandchildren present) at my favorite breakfast place, McDonalds for my usual egg McMuffin and Sr Coffee and I sat as they laughed and laughed and made fun of each other and told stories about their kids and some of our trips. For about 45 minutes, non stop laughing and fun and memories. I thought, I could not get a better material present on my birthday than that! Thank you Lord. That will be a memory I cherish till the day that I die. I wish many such happy memories for you.

Every day thank God his His indescribable, inexpressible, words that cannot express gift in sending His Son to die for us. Imagine a situation where someone in on death row and you are told that if you swap your son to die instead that the death row inmate can go free. Could you give such a gift?

I don’t know what troubles you will face today, but that gift makes it all bearable as you wait for the day when you can leave this trouble filled life and start enjoying eternal life with Jesus, and hopefully with your loved ones someday.

A very important part of Paul’s 3rd missionary journey was collecting money from the churches to take to the poor saints in Jerusalem. He said that this was a way for the mainly Gentile churches that he had established (Corinth, Philippi, Galatia, etc.) to show their appreciation for the role of the Jerusalem church in spreading the gospel to the Gentiles. Paul’s base of operation for his 3 missionary journeys was Antioch of Syria, but that church in Antioch was started by Jewish Christians fleeing persecution in Jerusalem (Acts 11:19-26). The persecution of Christians in Jerusalem first started in Acts 8:1-3 and they spread through Judea and Samaria, but in Acts 11 they had spread north to Antioch, establishing a mainly Gentile church there. Acts 11:¹⁹ So then those who were scattered because of the persecution that occurred in connection with Stephen made their way to Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except to Jews alone. ²⁰ But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who came to Antioch and began speaking to the Greeks as well, preaching the good news of the Lord Jesus. ²¹ And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a large number who believed turned to the Lord. ²² The ^[q]news about them reached the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas off ^[s]to Antioch. ²³ Then when he arrived and witnessed the grace of God, he rejoiced and began to encourage them all with resolute heart to remain true to the Lord; ²⁴ for he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and faith. And considerable numbers were added to the Lord. ²⁵ And he left for Tarsus to look for Saul; ²⁶ and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. And for an entire year they ^[w]met with the church and taught considerable numbers of people; and the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.” So the Jewish Jerusalem church was considered the “mother church” of the Gentile churches.

Paul, in his Romans letter written from Corinth during his 3rd journey, comments on this 3rd journey collection in Romans 15:²² For this reason I have often been prevented from coming to you (i.e. to the Christians in Rome); ²³ but now, with no further place for me in these regions, and since I have had for many years a longing to come to you ²⁴ whenever I go to Spain—(tradition and the Muratorian Canon said that he did make a visit to Spain after his release from 2 years of house arrest in Acts 28) for I hope to see you in passing (he did get to go to Rome but as a prisoner Acts 27-28), and to be helped on my way there by you, when I have first enjoyed your company for a while— ²⁵ but now, I am going to Jerusalem, serving the saints. ²⁶ For Macedonia and Achaia have been pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. ²⁷ For they were pleased to do so, and they are indebted to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are indebted to do them a service also in material things. ²⁸ Therefore, when I have finished this, and have put my seal on this fruit of theirs, I will go on by way of you to Spain. ²⁹ I know that when I come to you, I will come in the fullness of the blessing of Christ.” Perhaps the Jewish saints in Jerusalem were still suffering from an earlier famine, predicted by the prophet Agabus, in the reign of Claudius for which the church in Antioch had taken up a collection and sent it via Paul and Barnabas (Acts 11:27-30).

Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians written during his 3 year stay in Ephesus while on his 3rd journey, spoke of this collection: 1 Corinthians 16:1 Now concerning the collection for the saints (i.e. the poor saints in Jerusalem), as I directed the churches of Galatia (no actual record of this in his letter to the Galatians), so you are to do as well. ² On the first day of every week, each of you is to put aside and save as he may prosper, so that no collections need to be made when I come. ³ When I arrive, whomever you approve, I will send them with letters to take your gift to Jerusalem; ⁴ and if it is appropriate for me to go also, they will go with me.” There were several delegates from the different churches who traveled with Paul toward the end of his 3rd journey all the way to Jerusalem carrying the contributions from their respective churches. AI: “When Paul traveled to Jerusalem with church contributions (the “collection”) for the poor saints, he was accompanied by several delegates representing the Gentile churches, including Luke, Sopater (son of Pyrrhus) of Berea, Aristarchus and Secundus (both from Thessalonica), Gaius (from Derbe), Timothy, Tychicus, and Trophimus (from Asia/Ephesus). These men served as witnesses to ensure the funds from churches in Macedonia, Achaia (Greece), and Asia were delivered faithfully, building unity and preventing suspicion.”

AI: “The early church in Corinth, like many New Testament churches, met in various homes (house churches) but had a regular, collective assembly on the first day of the week (Sunday), primarily for worship, fellowship, and to take collections for the needy in Jerusalem, as described in Paul’s letters, particularly 1 Corinthians. This Sunday gathering was a significant, unified event for the whole congregation, even as daily fellowship occurred in smaller home groups, emphasizing both intimate community and broader unity. Evidence suggests that early Christians, including those in the Corinthian era, met on Sunday mornings before dawn specifically because Sunday was a regular work day in the Roman world. Sunday became a non-work day in the Roman world on March 7, 321 AD, when Emperor Constantine issued a civil law decreeing that all judges, city dwellers, and craftsmen should rest on “the venerable day of the sun,” though agricultural labor was still permitted. This decree, reflecting both Christian and pagan sun-worship influences (like Mithraism), marked the first national legal recognition of Sunday as a day of rest, establishing it as a public holiday alongside existing festival days. Seventh-day Adventists (SDAs) teach that Sunday worship originated from pagan sun worship and was later adopted by the Catholic Church, eventually becoming the standard Christian practice, which they see as a deviation from the biblical Saturday Sabbath. They argue that early Christians, influenced by Roman culture and the “apostate” church, shifted worship from Saturday (the biblical Sabbath) to Sunday (the pagan “Lord’s Day” or “Sun’s Day”), a change solidified by Roman Emperor Constantine in 321 AD.”

A couple of points here. It is obvious from 1 Corinthians 16:1 and Acts 20:7 that the early Christians had already (by around 55 AD) had begun to have their main assembly on Sundays, the first day of the week. No doubt the Jewish Christians, during the transition period from AD 30 to AD 70, still observed the Sabbath and gathered in their synagogues for Saturday worship and instruction. But the Gentile Christians were never commanded to keep the Sabbath. The Sabbath keeping was a special sign and command for the Jewish (Exodus 31:16-17) and Gentiles were never commanded to observe the Sabbath. Some protestants taught that “Sunday was the Christian sabbath” but that is not true. The Sabbath was and still is Saturday, but Gentile Christians do not have to “remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy” as commanded in the 10 commandments. So saying that Sunday is the Christian Sabbath in order to say that one is keeping the 4th commandment (of the 10) is not accurate.

In the 2nd century, “historical accounts, particularly from Pliny the Younger (c. 110 AD) and writings from early Church Fathers, confirm that 2nd-century Christians regularly met on the first day of the week (Sunday) before dawn to worship Christ, sing hymns, and share a meal, celebrating Jesus’ resurrection and new creation, even as some continued Jewish practices while shifting focus to this “Lord’s Day”. The Didache (Early 2nd Century): An early Christian manual that speaks of gathering to break bread on the Lord’s Day. Justin Martyr (Mid-2nd Century): Described Christians meeting on Sunday (the “Lord’s Day”) for worship, scripture, and the Eucharist, noting the shift from the Jewish Sabbath.” (AI)

BTW, the church I was raised in used 1 Cor 16:1-4 as the basis for a command for Christians today to give every Sunday as part of the “5 acts of acceptable worship” but that it obviously a misuse of Scripture. The command in 1 Cor 16 was a special contribution that would end when Paul made his visit to Corinth and took the money from them to carry to Jerusalem. How can that be a command for us today? Of course it’s permissible to give when we assembe on Sundays, but not a command taken from 1 Cor 16.

I have digressed from the 3rd journey collection for the poor saints in Jerusalem, but I find the AI research on the early Christian assemblies to be interesting, accurate, and helpful. I know that AI is copying from articles and I can’t give their sources b/c they don’t give them, but I usually find the AI info to be great. In my next blog I want to go into Paul’s comments on this collection in 2 Corinthians 8,9.

Until tomorrow, Lord willing.

I teach Bible to Gen Z’s every day. Most say Gen Z’s were born 1997 to 2012, making them 13 to 28 as of 2025. I teach 15-17 year old Gen Z’s. AI: “Gen Z’s biggest concerns revolve around ** economic, financial insecurity (cost of living, job security, housing, home ownership), climate change, and mental health (stress, loneliness, anxiety from tech/future uncertainty), alongside significant worries about social justice, gun violence, and AI’s impact on jobs, showing deep engagement with global and personal futures. Generation Z is often cited as the most stressed generation, reporting higher rates of mental health concerns like anxiety and depression. This is linked to growing up with constant exposure to social media, academic and economic pressures, and global uncertainties like climate change and political turmoil.” About 25% of Gen Z identify as LGBQT. About 70% of Gen Z approve of homosexuality.  Gen z make up about 20% of the population.

Having stated all those alarming stats (i.e. alarming if you believe the Bible to be the word of God), about 38% of Gen Z identify as Christians. 48% are religiously unaffiliated (which could mean atheist, agnostic, or “no religion in particular”. Gen z is the most secular generation yet and is the first generation ever to have a higher non Christian percentage than Christian. There is hope with all the TPUSA rallies on Christian campuses. What this means, though, is that the moral gap among younger Christians is wider than ever. If 70% of Gen Z approve of homosexuality, that only leaves 30% of Gen Z who might possibly believe that the Bible is the word of God and that the Bible clearly condemns homosexuality. That is a wide gulf that is hard to cross. The Christian rallies on college campuses are wonderful, but probably involve a relatively small % of Gen Z.

So what’s the point? Just concern. How can we convince that 70% (i.e. those who accept homosexuality) that the writings of the apostle Paul are the word of God and that his condemnation of homosexuality is from God and not from some homophobic whose opinions mean nothing? We can only keep sowing the seed of the word of God, but the liberal trends are very concerning for the future of the U.S. in my opinion. There are many minor doctrines that Christians can disagree on, but the homosexual issue is the litmus test for whether someone accepts the Bible as the word of God or not.

Where do we start to try to change this trend? I think we need to go back to the same method that Paul used in his letters to defend his apostleship. Paul’s enemies tried to convince his followers that he was not an apostle equal to the other apostles. They said that his teaching of not circumcising of Gentile converts was wrong and that they must be circumcised. Paul defended his apostleship often, showing that his teachings were the word of God. He said the “distinguishing marks of a true apostle” were signs, wonders and miracles that they did, and then said that he did those same miraculous proofs showing that he was a true apostle, equal in authority to the other apostles (2 Corinthians 12:¹¹ I have become foolish; you yourselves compelled me. Actually I should have been commended by you, since I was in no respect inferior to the most eminent apostles, even though I am a nobody. ¹² The distinguishing marks of a true apostle were performed among you with all perseverance, by signs, wonders, and miracles).”

In the Galatian letter, he wrote: Galatians 1:¹¹ For I would have you know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel which was preached by me is not of human invention. ¹² For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.” He is thus claiming that his teachings were directly from Jesus Himself. His enemies were claiming that he got his teachings from the other apostles but that he didn’t get it correctly on the issues of circumcision of Gentiles.

After giving instructions on how to use miraculous gifts to the church at Corinth, Paul said this: 1 Corinthians 14:³⁷ If anyone thinks that he is a prophet or spiritual, let him recognize that the things which I write to you are the Lord’s commandment. ³⁸ But if anyone does not recognize this, he is not recognized.” He is claiming that his teachings are the commands of the Lord.

He had already told the Corinthians that his words were from the Spirit of God. 1 Corinthians 2:¹² Now we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God. ¹³ We also speak these things, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit, combining spiritual thoughts with spiritual words.”

Paul said this to the Thessalonians that he converted to Jesus: 1 Thessalonians 2:¹³ For this reason we also constantly thank God that when you received the word of God which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of mere men, but as what it really is, the word of God, which also is at work in you who believe.” That’s a bold claim that the words he spoke to them were the words of God and not mere men.

Then there is the account of Paul’s conversion to Christianity. He had been persecuting, torturing, imprisoning, even killing Christians (he was known as Saul at that time) until the risen Jesus appeared to him on road to Damascus where he was going to persecute more believers. That changed him to become a witness of the resurrection, later being beheaded for his testimony. One of the qualifications for being an apostle was that the person had to have seen the risen Jesus, so this was essential for Paul becoming an apostle. He made that point in 1 Corinthians 9:1 Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? ” He obviously is referring to seeing the risen Jesus on the road to Damascus. In 1 Corinthians 15:8 he claimed that Jesus appeared to him as He did to the other apostles (and to many others). What could have changed this enemy of Christianity to become a martyr for Jesus? He lost power, fame, and money to become a Christian. His conversion is a great proof of the resurrection of Jssus.

Now if this is not enough to convince someone that Paul’s teachings against homosexuality are the words of God, then I don’t know what to show them. The belief that Paul was an apostle and that his teaching was the word of God is not just some brainwashing that some Christian parents gave their children. This belief is backed by the conversion story of Paul himself.

Just some somber thoughts about Gen Z and the future of America. In the meantime, I will continue to sow the seed of the word of God. Please pray for Gen Z (and all generations) and for America!

I was listening to “You’ve lost that lovin’ feelin”, “Unchained melody”, and “(You’re My) Soul and inspiration” by The Righteous Brothers. Maybe my favorite songs of the 60’s as I was in high school (graduated in 67). So many other great songs in the 60’s.

But then I saw a video of the 12 “rebellion songs” of the 60’s, like Bob Dylan’s “Blowin’ in the wind”, Barry McGuire’s “Eve of destruction”, and the Beatles “Revolution”. These songs were often banned by radio stations but very popular among youth. The 60’s were troublesome times in the United States.

AI: “Yes, the 1960s were incredibly turbulent in the U.S., marked by intense social upheaval, political violence, and cultural clashes (Woodstock), driven by the Civil Rights Movement, the divisive Vietnam War, countercultural shifts challenging sexual norms (hippies, free love), drug use of LSD, marijuana, and others, “duck and cover nuclear drills”, and shocking political assassinations (JFK, MLK Jr., RFK), all against a backdrop of Cold War fear and growing generational divides.” There were a lot of good things in the 60’s (color TV sets introduced to homes; the Civil Rights Act of 1964; Beatlemania (their early songs like “I want to hold your hand” were great); Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind); Motown Magic with the Supremes and the Temptations; drive-in movie theaters. But the troubles of the 60’s overshadowed the good for the most part.

It was a weird time for religious movements to begin in the 60’s (we would expect nothing less). AI: “The 1960s in America sparked diverse religious movements, including the countercultural Jesus Movement (evangelical Christian response to hippies), the rise of Eastern traditions (Hare Krishna, Buddhism, Transendental Meditation), the emergence of the New Age Movement (yoga, astrology, spiritual transformation), and new spiritual paths like Satanism (Church of Satan and Anton LaVey),  and Wicca. Supreme Court rulings in the early ’60s ended mandatory prayer and Bible reading in public schools. Billy Graham crusades thrived, and new evangelical institutions formed, though debates over theology (Calvinism vs. Arminianism) continued.

So what do we have today? The cultural clashes are at a new heighth (or depth). Gay marriage and the LGBQT movement, and the steep rise of the nones, those who say they have no religious affiliation, are probably the two main cultural shifts that affect and have split religious fundamentalists and denominations.

There is hope. AI: “Gen Z Is Hungry for Spiritual Growth. A staggering 74% of Gen Z seeks to deepen their spiritual lives. This isn’t merely about religion; it’s about genuine encounters with Jesus. Campus revivals are Igniting all over. Students are leading worship nights, prayer gatherings, and baptisms worldwide, and they are making a tremendous impact.” Many non-profit organizations are feeding and providing medical care for the poor worldwide, drilling clean water wells in Africa, providing disaster relief, and supporting persecuted Christians.

So, might we have a nationwide revival like the 1st and 2nd Great Awakenings, or the “prayer revival” of the 1850’s in major U.S. cities? Maybe. But to do so we wll need to get back to the belief that the Bible is the inspired word of God and that homosexuality is condemned by God in the Bible. The homosexual issue is perhaps the “litmus test” for fundamentalists today. We can disagree over many Christian issues and minor doctrines, but there are some basic doctrines that fundamentalist Christians cannot reject, like the Deity of Jesus Christ, salvation by grace through faith in Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, and not “practicing sin” that God defines as damnable (like the LGBQT doctrines). AI: “About 64% of U.S. adults in 2023/2024 considered same-sex relations morally acceptable (Gallup). 67% of Americans support same-sex marriage (PRRI, 2024).” What’s even more disturbing is that Pew Research shows broad acceptance of homosexuality of 59% among religious people in 2023-24). “In 2015, 51% of Millennial evangelicals felt homosexuality should be accepted by society, a significant shift from older generations.”

The bottom line is that you can’t have a revival if you disagree on what sin is. People are not going to repent of sin if they don’t even think it is sin that needs to be repented of. What can we do? We can pray for our nation. Pray that God will do whatever it takes to humble us back to a full belief in the inspiration of Scriptures. We must defend the apostleship of Pau just as he had to defend his apostleship in the New Testament. After all, it is the inspired writings of Paul that condemn homosexuality (Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9; 1 Timothy 1:10). Many want to accept the teachings of Jesus but not the teachings of Paul, but we can’t do that. The apostle Peter, whom almost every Christian would accept as an inspired apostle, said that Paul’s writings were on the same level of inspiration and authority as those of the Old Testament Scriptures (2 Peter 3:15-16).

Again, pray and preach. 2 Timothy 4:² preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and exhort, with great patience and instruction. ³ For the time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires, ⁴ and they will turn their ears away from the truth and will turn aside to myths.”

Thanks for reading.

What is this image about? On the left is the original book (scroll) of Isaiah written in Hebrew about 700 BC. We do not have the original. On the far right is the Aleppo Codex copy of Isaiah in 930 AD. This Aleppo Codex copy of Isaiah is the oldest surviving Hebrew copy of Isaiah (there are older ones in different languages) and was done by the Masoretes. The Masoretes were Jewish scribes who from the 6th to the 10th century AD standardized previous Hebrew copies of Scripture for accuracy. The Masoretic text is used as the basis for most of our modern translations.

As you can see, that is i 1630 year gap between the original Isaiah copy in 700 BC and the oldest surviving Hebrew Isaiah copy in 930 AD. That means that we are relying on 1630 years of copies of Isaiah. How can we be sure that it was copied accurately in all those copies? The skeptics often bring up this issue. Well that is where the middle image of the Dead Sea Scrolls “Great Isaiah” scroll comes in. The Dead Sea Scrolls were found in the Qumran caves near the Dead Sea in 1947 by a Bedouin shepherd boy looking for his straying goat. He found pottery and clay jars that contained 2,000 year old scrolls. Later over 900 scrolls were found. Among them was a complete Hebrew copy of Isaiah called the “Great Isaiah Scroll”. It was dated 125 BC using a combination of radiocarbon dating and paleography (handwriting analysis). That’s over 100 years before the birth of Jesus. That DSS copy of Isaiah is over 1,000 years earlier than the 930 AD Aleppo Codex copy. So how do the two copies compare? That will tell us how accurately copies were made during that 1,000 year gap. Without going into detail, the two copies are almost identical with only small, insignificant variations. That means that the Hebrew copies during that 1,000 year gap were done very accurately. We knew the scribes took great care to copy Hebrew Scripture accurately, but this gives hard evidence that they actually did so. Now we don’t have evidence of accuracy of copying during the gap between the original Isaiah in 700 BC and the DSS Isaiah in 125 BC, but I think we can safely assume that the same accurate copying methods were used during that time gap. Needless to say, this is a great discovery that gives us great confidence in the accuracy of the Old Testament Scriptures and helps us answer the skeptics.

This brings up another question concerning the Messianic predictions in Isaiah, especially in Isaiah 53. Isaiah is known as the “Messianic prophet” because he has more predictions about the Messiah than any other prophet. Isaiah 53 predicts that the Messiah will be despised and rejected and that he will die to bear the punishment for our sins and to justify us. But it also makes several very specific predictions. 1) Being “pierced” (NASB), bruised, and wounded for our offenses. This prediction would include all the suffering from Jesus’ scourging, being beaten, and crucifixion. 2). Not opening his mouth to defend himself but was led like a lamb silently to his slaughter. Jesus did not defend himself before Pilate, which astounded Pilate. 3) His grave was with wicked men. Jesus was crucified between two criminals. Most thought that he was just another criminal worthy of death. 4) Yet he was with a rich man in his death. Joseph took Jesus’ body and put it in a rich man’s unused tomb. Normally, Jesus’ body would have been thrown in an open pit for the dogs to tear apart. 5) He will see his offspring (spiritual offspring) and prolong his days. Jesus would be raised and his life on earth prolonged another 50 days before he ascended to heaven.

There is a video of a man reading the Hebrew copy of Isaiah 53 to non Christian Jews in Israel, asking them who it sound like Isaiah 53 is referring to. They all say “Jesus” even though they don’t believe in Jesus. He then asks where that passage is found, and they all say that it must be in the Christian New Testament, which they also reject. They are shocked when the tells them that he is reading from their Jewish Hebrew Old Testament copy of Isaiah, which would mean that their own Scriptures predicted Jesus’ suffering and dying for our sins. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cGz9BVJ_k6s

But that brings up the skeptic objection that these predictions (and other OT Messianic predictions were put in “after the fact”, after the death of Jesus, to make it look like the OT prophets predicted these things about the future Messiah when they really didn’t. Again, the DSS Isaiah answers that objection. The DSS Isaiah scroll has all the predictions listed above and it dates 125 BC, so the predictions were made over 100 years before Jesus was born. They were not added “after the fact”.

The same could be said for the rest of the OT Messianic predictions. Here is a list of the main ones.

Some of these are quite amazing. 1) He would be born in Bethlehem but his growing up years ministry would be in Galilee (not where you would expect him to minster which would be in Jerusalem and Judea). 2) He would be betrayed for 30 pieces of silver and then that money would be used to buy a potter’s field (Zechariah 11). 3) Zechariah 12:10 says that he would be pierced (daqar: To pierce, to thrust through, to stab). The OT predicted that he would be rejected by the Jews and that would normally mean stoning to death as they did with Stephen in Acts 7. So it is unusual that Isiah 53 would predict that he would be pierced, which he was pierced in his crucifixion with nails in his hands and feet. Then the spear was thrust into his side to make sure that he was dead. The first recorded crucifixion was in 519 BC by the Persian king Darius, so there was no practice of crucifixion around when Isaiah wrote his book. 4) His bones would not be broken. Again, if he were stoned to death many bones would be broken but since he was crucified, his bones were not broken. Even his legs were not broken b/c the Romans declared him dead with no need to break his legs to hasten his death. 5) They cast lots for his clothes at the foot of the cross while he was hanging. 6) He was raised from the dead and his body would not undergo normal decay (shachath: pit, undergo decay, destruction). 6) He would ascend to heaven after his resurrection. 7) He would make his triumphal entry on a donkey (Zechariah 9). 8) Isaiah 35 predicts that the Messiah would make the blind to see, the deaf to hear, the lame to walk, and the mute to speak. In Matthew 11 John, when in prison awaiting his beheading by Herod, sent messengers to ask if Jesus was the “Coming One” or should they expect someone else. While the messengers were watching, Jesus did a few healings and told them to go tell John what they saw. In other words, he was fulfilling the Isaiah 35 prediction of miracles that would prove that he was the Messiah. 9) We could add Daniel 9:24-27 where Daniel predicted the “cutting off” (death) of the coming Messiah and the destruction of the temple in 70 AD.

Imagine us doing a time capsule, putting specific predictions about whoever will be the president of the U.S. in 500 years from now, sealing up the capsule until someone opens it 500 years later. We might predict male or female (1 in 2 odds), where he/she will be born (1 in 36,000 towns and cities in the U.S.), how he/she will die (natural death, assassination, car wreck, plane crash, etc: 1 in hundreds odds); how many children, etc. What would be the odds of let’s say 10 such specific predictions coming true 500 years later exactly as we predicted in our time capsule? Very, very infinitesimally small. Beyond the capability of any human to predict the future. Yet God, by the Holy Spirit through the prophets, predicted at least these 26 and more specific prophecies about the Messiah, all made 400-1000 years before Jesus was born, and all of them came true exactly as predicted.

Let’s add this skeptic objection. Maybe Jesus read these OT Messianic predictions and did various things to make it look like he was fulfilling them. For example, he sent his disciples to get a donkey so he could ride it into Jerusalem and fulfill Zechariah 9:9. That might seem to be a plausible objection, but notice all the predictions that Jesus fulfilled in which he could not have manipulated them. He could not manipulate being born in Bethlehem, or Judas betraying him for 30 pieces of silver, or being crucified instead of being stoned, or being hung between 2 thieves, or being buried in a rich man’s tomb, or not having any of his bones broken, etc. That objection can be easily answered.

Jesus said that everything written about Him in the Law and the prophets had to come true, including his suffering, death, and resurection. They did not expect the Messiah to die before he would defeat the Romans and give Israel independence, so his death was a big obstacle to them believing that he was the Messiah. Jesus told the 2 men on the road to Emmaus the very day he was raised, Luke 24:²⁵ And then He said to them, “You foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! ²⁶ Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to come into His glory?” ²⁷ Then beginning with Moses and with all the Prophets, He explained to them the things written about Himself in all the Scriptures.” Again in Luke 18:31 – Jesus took the Twelve aside and told them, “We are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. 32 He will be delivered over to the Gentiles. They will mock him, insult him and spit on him; 33 they will flog him and kill him. On the third day he will rise again.”

This comparison of the OT Messianic predictions and the facts about the birth, life, miracles, death, and resurrection of Jesus is the method Paul used to convert Jews to believe that Jesus was the Messiah. Acts 17:1 Acts 17 Now when they had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews. ² And according to Paul’s custom, he visited them, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, ³ explaining and giving evidence that the Christ had to suffer and rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is the Christ.” ⁴ And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, along with a large number of the God-fearing Greeks and a significant number of the leading women.”

This is the method used by Philip to convert the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8. The eunuch was reading in Isaiah 53:6-7 about someone who would be led like a lamb to the slaughter. He asked Philip if Isaiah was talking about himself or someone else. Philip began at the verse in Isaiah 53 and preached Jesus to him, no doubt showing that Jesus fulfilled the predictions of Isaiah 53 (and other OT Messianic predictions) and was therefore the predicted Messiah. The eunuch believed and asked to be baptized. Apparently Philip also told him about being baptized for the forgiveness of sins (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38).

I know this is long but I hope it is edifying to your faith. You never know when you present evidences like this who might be reading or listening who has been dealing with skepticism about the fulfilled prophecies. I did this presentation in my Bible classes and right when I thought, “Most of these students are not even interested in this”, two of my students asked the two main questions addressed in this blog. 1) How do we know if the Isaiah 53 predictions were put in after the fact? 2) How do we know that Isaiah 53 has been copied accurately ? I left class thinking, “Lord I just hope that the seen has been sown that will bring these 2 students to a deeper faith in Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God, their Savior.

Amen.
 

I found this “short” on youtube of a man with cerebral palsy who said that God called him to preach. Watch: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/IKFdBuInVII That got me thinking about this blog. 1 Corinthians 2:1 And when I came to you, brothers and sisters, I did not come as someone superior in speaking ability or wisdom, as I proclaimed to you the testimony of God. ² For I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. ³ I also was with you in weakness and fear, and in great trembling, ⁴ and my message and my preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, ⁵ so that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of mankind, but on the power of God.”

The Greek word for preaching in verse 4 is kérugma: Proclamation, preaching, message: properly, proclamation, the preaching (heralding) of the Gospel – especially its fundamentals (like Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, etc.). It is used in 1 Corinthians 1:²¹ For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.”

There is another similar word: euaggelizó: To proclaim good news, to evangelize, to preach the gospel: euaggelízō (from 2095 /eú, “good, well” and angellō, “announce, herald”) – properly, proclaim “the good message” (good news). In the NT, 2097 (euaggelízō) refers to sharing the full Gospel of Christ – literally, “gospelizing” that announces the complete message of “the good news” (the Lord’s glad tidings). This is the word Paul used in 1 Corinthians 1:¹⁷ For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made of no effect.” The Greek word εὐαγγέλιον (euangelion), translated as “Gospel,” is used in the New Testament, provided in the English Standard Version (ESV). It occurs 89 times in the Greek New Testament.

They basically refer to the same thing. Euaggelizo and euangelion convey the idea of the “good news” aspect of the gospel message. All these Greek words remind us that the 1st century preaching was the announcing of the good news of the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus that can free us from sin. It’s like the announcement of the birth of a baby. You do that right when the baby is born, when you want to share the good news. It’s like “breaking news” on the TV news channels, news that just happened. The death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus had just been finished and the apostles went about announcing that good news for the first time. They continued to do that in different places to different people all over the Roman Empire in the next 40 years after the resurrection, but it always involved sinners hearing the basics for the first time (at least for them the first time).

Back to 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 and 1:17. Paul emphasized that his preaching of the gospel was not with “persuasive words of wisdom” or “cleverness of speech”. Why? “So that your faith would not rest on the wisdom of mankind, but on the power of God.”

One thing that comes to mind is that most of our “preaching” in churches is not really 1st century gospel preaching to non-Christians (evangelizing). It may be centered on the death, burial, and resurrection but mostly it is just teaching or encouraging Christians and is not focused on converting non Christians. That teaching of Christians (discipling) is needed but it can possibly hinder us from seeing the need to preach the gospel worldwide to those who have never heard the gospel, or at least never heard it explained correctly to them, which would be 1st century preaching. We have a couple of my school’s graduates (and their mates) who are preaching the gospel in Muslim countries where they are proclaiming the gospel to people for the first time. Churches spend a lot of they budget on “preaching” to ourselves, which is really teaching and not preaching, although we call it preaching and those who do it preachers.. Usually there are several very good teachers in each congregation that could do the teaching of the flock in the assemblies or maybe in classes and skip the preaching, but churches seem to rely on the preacher who is more skilled at speech making. Those more skilled speaker preachers bring in all kind of interesting or even funny things to enhance their message. But are we getting people to put their faith in the “wisdom of man” or the “cleverness of the speech makers”? If we have qualified teachers, why don’t we just use them in churches (at no charge) and use our money to actually send missionaries to preach the gospel to people worldwide who have never heard the gospel or seen it in action? Of use that money to print and distribute Bibles all over the world. Of course, that would probably not work in bigger churches since the preacher is so important in the church business since most of church growth is not baptizing sinners but is proselyting members from other churches who like a particular preacher’s preaching.

That is why I encourage people to look into organizations like Eastern European Missions (EEM) who print and distribute Bibles in 30 countries and 20 foreign languages. That organization started back in the 60’s with a few people smuggling Bibles behind the iron curtain. 2 million Bibles and Bible-based materials distributed in 2024 across 36 nations and 32 languages. 570,000 children and teens received Bibles through the Bibles for Kids campaign in 2024. 3,000 trusted field partners in 35+ countries. That’s one of the main organizations that I give my tithes to. Check it out at EEM.org. They also have a new book “The Impossible Dream” that just came out. True stories from 60+ years of God opening “impossible” doors for Scripture across Europe and Central Asia. Those stories will inspire and motivate you to give toward organizations like EEM.

Remember: the Word of God that contains the written gospel message has the power to save. The Holy Spirit works through that word. Give people the Bible so they can read it for themselves and they can become Christians without the aid of some missionary or preacher, although certainly the missionary can explain Scripture to them just as Philip did to the enuch in Acts 8. But we must focus on getting the Word to them.

That’s it for today. I didn’t want to sound cynical about our paid preacher system and the way we do church in America, but I guess I am. Agree or disagree, though, I hope you will consider giving to EEM.

Thanks for reading.