Believers Are Not Exempt from Suffering

Is it possible to suffer and yet be content? At first would seem impossible. Surprisingly Apostle Paul experienced that contentment is a learned trait. He suffered wrongfully yet was able to write, “I have learned in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need” (Phil. 11,12). The only way he endured was to look past temporal adversity and remain focused on the goal of life eternal.

The People See a Great Light

After being baptized in the river Jordan and overcoming the devil’s temptations in the wilderness, Jesus began His early ministry. Of the four gospel writers only John (chapters 1–4) details this period of Jesus’ life. He stayed mostly in Judea, an area west of the Dead Sea, but also traveled to Capernaum of Galilee and  to Jerusalem.

The Power of the Gospel in Our Homes

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth (Rom. 1:15,16).

Common to all believers is the experience of the battle of faith. We often say that we fight against a threefold enemy—the devil, the world, and our own flesh. A child of God feels that faith is small and weak. We want to believe, and we want to reach heaven. We also want to be obedient to God and His Word and Spirit. How does a weak believer receive the strength to battle against such a powerful enemy?