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"'I have set the Lord always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.'" Psalms 16:8 Happy New Year! The calendar has shifted from 2025 to 2026, a new year has began, and new opportunities are ahead of us. While life won't simply change because the calendar year has changed, perhaps you have already noticed by this second week, yet from the bible we know that time and seasons have been defined by God, and that God's dealings with men are time bound. For instance, the deliverance of Israel from Egypt had a timing associated with it (Genesis 15:13); the deliverance of Israel from Babylonian captivity was bound in time (Daniel 9:1-2); the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ had was set in time (Galatians 4:4). Moreover, the return of our Lord Jesus Christ is allocated at a specific time again (Act 1:7), and etc. Thus, time and seasons belong to God. While things don't automatically change and there is nothing mystical about the change in year per say, yet it is not a trivial matter either, rather it's a process established by God, and He uses it for His glory. The bible says, "'Then God said, “Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years;'" Genesis 1:14. Moreover, the bible says, "'“While the earth remains, Seedtime and harvest, Cold and heat, Winter and summer, And day and night Shall not cease.”' Genesis 8:22. Could it be that God desires specific things to be settled in your life this year? Remember, in God's doing with us timing is important, and we need to be aware of it. The bible says in Ecclesiastes 8:6, "'for there is a time and a way for everything, even when a person is in trouble.'". So, time is important - there is a proper time for everything. Nevertheless, time alone is not everything, as the text above says besides a time, there is also "a way for everything...", thus the proper actions done at the right time are equally important to see the right outcome. Therefore, we have a call for you in this new season [or timing], the most important of all action that can be take is: to set the Lord before you, just like David said in the Psalm above. It's written, "'I have set the Lord always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.'". Psalm 16:8 In all your doings this year, set the Lord before you, in all your plannings and strategizing, acknowledge Him. This is what King David is saying in Psalm 16:8, and that's even what he said in Psalm 37:5 as well. The bible says, "'Commit your way to the Lord , Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass.'" Psalm 37:5 . This is David again calling us to set the Lord before us, to put Him in front of every single thing we will be doing this year. Commit all your plans, or your desires to God, have confidence in Him, and God will certainly fulfill it provided it's according to His will, this is what King David is saying; therefore, in the verses before 5 still in Psalm 37, he said, "'Delight yourself also in the Lord , And He shall give you the desires of your heart.'" Psalms 37:4. Seek to take pleasure in your God, delight yourself in Him, enjoy His person and His will until you desire His desires and consequently God Himself will satisfies the desires of your heart because they will be in agreement with His - or better yet, they will be His. More than new year's resolution seek the will of God for your life, particularly for this year: is there prophecies or things that according to God's calendar they need to be fulfilled in your life this year? Remember, time and seasons belong to God and he bound many things in time. Set the Lord before you, put Him in front of everything you do, prioritize Him, His will, His kingdom and its righteousness and everything else will be added to you (Matthew 6:33). David said, "'I have set the Lord always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.'", Therefore, if you always [not sometimes] set the Lord before you, despite of the uncertainties of what lays ahead you can be sure that He will be at your right hand, and you shall not be moved. Remember, while the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, winter and summer, and day and night shall not cease, meaning there is always an opportunity to sow seeds and to reap a harvest. Moreover, Paul said, "'For if the firstfruit is holy, the lump is also holy; and if the root is holy, so are the branches.'" Romans 11:16. If you sow holy seeds in the beginning of this year, or even later, you will get get holy roots, consequently, holy branches, and then holy fruits. If you set your heart to seek the Lord your God and set Him before you, your year will pay off, even if or when trouble comes, you won't be alone (John 16:33), The Lord will be at your right hand, He will be with you in trouble. God Himself said it to those who set his love upon Him, "'“Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him, And show him My salvation.”' Psalms 91:14-16 Just like you, we have many desires and dreams, and we want to see many of them - if not all come to pass this year, nevertheless more than our wills, we want to live out God's will, we want to see the will of God come to pass in our lives (Matthew 26:39). First things must come first, and all must start with God always. The book of beginnings says, "' In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.'" Genesis 1:1. Notice, In the beginning God first, not men, not you or us, not anyone else, but God must be in the beginning. In the beginning of any of your endeavors this year seek God, talk to God, search His Word, consult His will through godly counsel, and etc., and God will answer you (Jeremiah 33:3). So, even as you have began this new year, it's never late to set the right priorities, therefore, this is our charge for you: set the tone for the months ahead by setting The Lord before you. More than simply doing new year's resolutions, which studies shows as early as two weeks people leave them behind, seek the will of God, make plans consistent with His desires for you, beginning by setting Him before you and God Himself will grant you grace to stay at them (1 Corinthians 15:10) if you humble yourself before Him. A Messianic Psalm - Learning from Christ The Psalm we just shared is a Messianic psalm. Just like many others in the book of psalm, besides containing words immediately applicable to the situation of the writer, the people of Israel, to anyone prophetically, the focal point of the Messianic Psalms are events that would be exclusively fulfilled by or take place only in the life of the Messiah, Jesus Christ, and with Psalm 16 is not different. After starting as a "normal" Psalm, in verses 10 of Psalm 16, we have a phrase that later on will be interpreted by the apostle Peter as fulfilled by Jesus, it says, "'For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption.'" Psalms 16:10. After Jesus resurrection, ascension to heaven, and the empowerment of the early church with the Holy Spirit, Peter addressed the crowds and made mention of this Psalm by saying, "''“Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses.'" Acts 2:29-32. Praise God, so Psalm 16:10 was fulfilled by Jesus Christ, it was a prophecy of what God would do concerning His resurrection from the grave on the third day, not allowing His body to see corruption, and neither leaving His soul in Hades, but rather He went only to preach to the spirits in prison (1 Peter 3:19), and take the keys of hades and death (Revelation 1:18) and destroying "him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.'" Hebrews 2:14b-15. Hallelujah. Thus, we can then safely see that all of Psalm 16 is Messianic, or at least be more certain of verses 8-11. With this in mind, it's of Jesus that King David is prophetically speaking that would always set the Lord before Him, and because God would be at His right hand, He would not be moved, but be preserved even in death and with a mighty resurrection from the grave - hope that we believers have: on that day when the trumpet sounds, just like Jesus was mightily raised, we shall be raised or be transformed, if we are in the body, and gloried bodies we shall have. However, God was not with Jesus only in His death and resurrection, but God was always with Jesus because He always set the Lord before Him, Jesus never did anything on His own (John 5:19), therefore, He was never moved. The bible says, "'how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.'" Acts 10:38. Praise God, Jesus went about doing all these things mentioned because He was anointed with the Holy Spirit and power and because " God was with Him ", and the reason God was with Him was because Jesus always set The Lord before Him - sought His will, His ways, His timings, His Kingdom and its righteousness. Jesus said, "[...], “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.'" John 4:34. Likewise, for you and for me, besides what is guaranteed for that day, concerning our resurrection like it was with Jesus, if we set the Lord before us, He will be with us. If we set the Lord before us in this year that is only starting, specially in this initial month, or whenever we do so, despite all the hardships that might be ahead - just like Jesus faced hardships (Hebrews 4:15, 12:3-4), one thing we can be certain is that The Lord will be at our right hand, and consequently we shall not be moved - we shall reap the harvest of His presence, God will be with us, He gives grace to the humble. Let's us humble ourselves before the might hand of God by setting Him before us, that He may exalt us at due time this year (1 Peter 5:5-6), let us learn with the example of Christ. "'I have set the Lord always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.'"  Psalm 16:8. May God help you by His Spirit, may you love Him more this year; May God grant you grace to pray more, to study the bible more, to serve more, to seek after Him More. May you grow in intimacy with God, may you delight yourself in Him, may your be transformed into the image of Christ, may you go from grace to grace. May you take the proper steps at the right timing, may you set the Lord before you always, and may God bless you! In Christ, Happy New year Knowing-God family Like - Comment - Share - Subscribe Knowing-God.com Love . Grace . Intimacy

Lyrics There's only One strong enough to save There's only One who overcame the grave There's only One whose worthy of all praise In His hands, the keys of death and hell And in His name, a power that can heal And by His blood, our sins are washed away His name is Jesus... His name is Jesus... His name is Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God! Oh nations kneel! And glorify the Lord Let all the earth Tremble for He comes! And He will judge the living and the dead The Son of Man coming on the clouds With trumpet sound and every knee will bow And tongue confess, the Name above all names! His name is Jesus... His name is Jesus... His name is Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God! His name is Jesus... His name is Jesus... His name is Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God! He is counselor He is mighty God He's the prince of peace The omnipotent He is wonderful He is radiant The almighty God His name is Jesus... His name is Jesus... His name is Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God! His name is Jesus... His name is Jesus... His name is Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God! Praise Praise Your holy holy holy name The name truly above every other name The name high and exalted The name over power and authority Over sickness, darkness, disease Over all ailment Over suicide All hail the name of Jesus All bow before the name of Jesus All hail the name of Jesus We worship You We give our lives to You Yes, we sing out Oh, yes we cry out Oh, yes we worship You We give our lives to You Oh, we sing out Oh, we cry out His name is Jesus... His name is Jesus... His name is Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God! His name is Jesus... Jesus... Wonderful... Counselor... Almighty God Source: azlyrics.com Like - Share - Subscribe _____________________ Knowing-God.com Love . Grace . Intimacy

In this series of articles we are expanding upon the truth that God can be known through the different means of revelation, which are: Natural Revelation, Specific Revelation, and Special Revelation. We have already seen that while natural revelation gives us some details of who God is based on the things He created, only the specific revelation, that is the bible gives us the specifics about Him. In another words, the bible is God's authorized "biography" on earth. On Part 3: Knowing God Through His Word , we have specifically learned about God's Acts and Attributes . The bible records the various acts of God. Our God acts on earth, He is actively involved in governing, and ruling in our affairs. God delivered, healed, blessed, judged, spoke to people, and etc. However, God ultimately acted by setting in motion the plan to redeem the whole world from sin and its consequences through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. However, God did not stop intervene in our affairs, He continues to do so and will continue until things are made new. Jesus said, " '[...], “My Father has been working until now, and I have been working.”' John 5:17. In addition, we have also learned about God's attributes which are characteristics or qualities of Him. The bible mentions many attributes of God and the sum of them all is who God is, not just one or two. While depending on the action of God one attribute may be more emphasized or evident, yet it doesn't contradict or minimize the others. God is equally all the attributes, even when He prefers to act on the basis of one over another. God said, " '[...]“ I AM WHO I AM.” [...]’ ” ' Exodus 3:14a. Many of these attributes are exclusive to God, and others He shared with us since we are made in His image. Refer to Part 3 for more details. In this article, we will proceed further on the subject of knowing God through His Word, and learn specifically about The names of God. ​Names in The Bible According to what the bible reveals, names are far beyond a mere label like it's in many cultures, simply to distinguish one person from another. Names in the bible speaks of one's origins, character, identity, destiny, and/or authority. Strong's says, "In ancient Near Eastern culture, names were often reflective of personal characteristics or life events." This is fact is true of most of biblical characters if you study their names. Adam means man, human, mankind, because he is the father of all mankind. His name is related to the Hebrew word, "'adamah" which means earth or ground, referring to his origin. Whereas, the name Eve is related to "live and/or breath", and was given to her by Adam because, " because she was the mother of all living" (Genesis 3:20). Moses name is derived from the Hebrew "mashah", meaning "to draw out. because from the waters he was taken. Same can be said of many other biblical characters if we study their names. Let's go down through history and look at some biblical names more closely, starting with Jacob. In Genesis 27:36, Esau said the following concerning his brother Jacob, "'[...], “Is he not rightly named Jacob? For he has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing!” [....]”' Genesis 27:36. According to Strong's Hebrew concordance, the verb translated "supplanted" is the Hebrew verb "aqab" which primarily conveys the idea of supplanting or taking the place of another, often through deceptive or cunning means. Indeed Jacob took the place of his brother through deceptive or cunning means, even with his own father he acted deceptively (Genesis 27:35). Therefore, Esau said, "Is he not rightly name Jacob?" In another words Esau was saying that Jacob's name suit him very well. This is not mere consequence but who Jacob was until he later on meets God have his name [and character] changed by God, he goes from Jacob to Israel. Another example is of Nabal, a rich man yet of harsh and evil doings. 1 Samuel 25 tells us the story that one day David sent men to him with the following word, "'And thus you shall say to him who lives in prosperity: ‘Peace be to you, peace to your house, and peace to all that you have! Now I have heard that you have shearers. Your shepherds were with us, and we did not hurt them, nor was there anything missing from them all the while they were in Carmel. Ask your young men, and they will tell you. Therefore let my young men find favor in your eyes, for we come on a feast day. Please give whatever comes to your hand to your servants and to your son David.’ ”' I Samuel 25:6-8 Nabal on the other hand, repaid the goodness of David and his men with evil by saying, "[...] “Who is David, and who is the son of Jesse? There are many servants nowadays who break away each one from his master. Shall I then take my bread and my water and my meat that I have killed for my shearers, and give it to men when I do not know where they are from?”' I Samuel 25:10-11. David was displeased with Nabal's answer and was ready to destroy him with his household. To make long story short, Abigail finds out, and she run to meet David and his men with food, and she said, "'Please, let not my lord regard this scoundrel Nabal. For as his name is, so is he: Nabal is his name, and folly is with him! But I, your maidservant, did not see the young men of my lord whom you sent.'" I Samuel 25:25. Notice what Abigai said, "... For as his name is, so is he: Nabal is his name and folly is with him..." As we can see also in the case of Nabal, his name reflected his character. His name meant "foolish" and he acted foolishly. Thus, names in the bible are of great significance to get insights about the bearer of the name. However, as a last example, let's now look at the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The name Jesus, is the Greek name Iēsoús , which is a transliteration from The Hebrew name Yehoshua"/Jehoshua  and it means "Yahweh is salvation." Indeed Jesus is the Savior of the world, and this name is totally suitable to Him. When announcing His birth, the angel told Joseph, "'And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus , for He will save His people from their sins.” ' Matthew 1:21 Many more examples we could have considered but these three should suffice to understand that names are means to have insights about one's character, identity, destiny and circumstances of birth, and etc. Conversely, to speak on one's name means to speak on that person's character or authority, it's to have that person's backing to the extent that his authority goes. i.e., to speak in the name of Jesus is much more than placing "in Jesus name" at the end of a prayer line or s scriptural commands. Back to the main point. If such is the case of the names of men, what about the name's of God?! Regarding the names of God, this biblical truth finds its perfect application since He is the source of all things and first to name things. When the bible reveals a name of God, it is essentially giving us insight on His nature and character, which is then reflected on His actions. Thus, knowing the names of God is a mean to know more about God Himself. This is the point of knowing the names, and this is what we are after in this article. God Reveals His Names Throughout the bible God refers to Himself through various names, and in many occasions names are given to Him by people based upon the things God did or the revelation they had of Him. Let's look at a situation when God revealed some of His names to us. The story is found in the book of Exodus when God met with Moses. The Lord appeared to Him and was persuading Him to go to Egypt before Pharaoh and deliver Israel from bondage, but Moses was hesitant to go. He considered himself to be a nobody to go before Pharaoh; however, God assured Moses that He would be with him; however, Moses was still hesitant. The bible says, "'Then Moses said to God, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?”' Exodus 3:13. After Moses uttered these words, God then revealed His Self-existent nature and supremacy through two unique names. The bible says, "'And God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” Moreover God said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’ ' Exodus 3:14-15. "I AM WHO I AM" is the Hebraic phrase "’eh·yeh ’ă·šer ’eh·yeh" word for word. "’eh·yeh" is a verb in Hebrew and means, "To be, become, come to pass, exist, happen." Thus when God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM", he was revealing His eternal, transcendent, always-being, and self-existing nature. God IS WHO HE IS, He always IS and always WILL BE. Then continued by telling Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, ‘I AM [ ’eh·yeh] has sent me to you.’ ” Yes, God again referred to Himself as "’eh·yeh", but it's only when we go to verses 15 that God reveals His name to Moses. It's written, "'Moreover God [Elohim] said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: ‘ The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever , and this is My memorial to all generations .’'" (Exodus 3:15). The word translated Lord is in this particular verse is the Hebrew word, "YHVH (or YHWH)" , this is the true, proper, and personal name of God, hence, he told Moses, "This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.’'". This is how God was to be distinguished from other god's among His people and among other people. The word translated God in the verse above is the Hebraic term, "Elohim", which is also one of the names of God. It's a plural word most specifically used in the Hebrew scriptures to refer to The One and True God. However, the term was also generic and was used to refer to other deities, angels, or human authorities. Elohim is indeed just like the word god is a generic word in English, and the distinction comes only when capital G is used, then God refers to the One and true God. However, YHVH (or YHWH) is unique; every time this is used it refers only and exclusively only to One and True God, the God of Israel. This is His name forever. YHVH (or YHWH), known as tetragrammaton, God's special and unique 4-letters name . In English the name YHVH is commonly translated as YAHWEH or JEHOVAH; however, in most English bibles, even the name YAHWEH from the original is instead translated LORD all caps or simply Lord. Some writers point out that translators do so for various reasons including keeping scriptures familiar to readers. Since for many years people have been using scriptural translations that don't use YAHWEH, translators continue not to YAHWEH to keep the scriptures "familiar" to people and sell their work of translation or bible versions (1) . Other writers also point out that another reason why many translators do not use the proper name of God, YAHWEH, and instead use LORD or Lord is because of a tradition that began in ancient Israel. The Jews over the years created many laws called Fence Laws, in addition to the laws given by Moses, as a way to keep them from breaking the actual laws of Moses. Thus, these laws as the name suggest were a fence for them. One of the fences they put up was against using the proper name of God because they considered it too sacred to be uttered by humans, and if used wrong, God '“[...] will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain.'" (Exodus 20:7). Although no one really knows how to properly pronounce the true original name YHVH, they created this hybrid name, or a visual code made of the consonants of the name YHVH and the vows from the name ADONAI, which is another name of God and means, Master, someone with power and authority, one who rules. This is name is commonly translated as Lord only in most English bibles. Some differentiate YHVH from ADONAI by translating YHVH as LORD all caps, while others don't they simply use Lord for both. So, their goal was not to cause readers to say the hybrid name, instead it was just a hint for them to say ADONAI while still knowing that YHVH is the proper name there (2) . With the above in mind, the use of the personal name of God was lost even in the Hebrew scriptures, and instead, the artificial name was popularized. Christians unintentionally or unknowingly inherited this man-made tradition. By the time Christians started their work of translation, they began already from Hebrew scriptures that had this hybrid name, causing the personal name of God to be further lost. It's from this hybrid name that we get the name YAHWEH or JEHOVAH which contains vows, YHVH doesn't. In spite of all the man-caused issues, glories be to God, He made a way for us to be aware of His proper name. Later on in Exodus 6, God reveals another name of His to us when He said, "'I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name Lord I was not known to them.'" Exodus 6:3. The name God Almighty is the Hebrew name, "El SHADDAI", which speaks of God's ultimate power over all. Again, the name translated Lord is the Hebrew name "ADONAI", as we have already alluded to. However, in revealing His nature and character through names, God didn't stop here, He continued then in Exodus 15:26 by calling Himself, "YAHWEH-RAPHA", that is The Lord who heals us. Exodus 15:26 says, "'and said, “If you diligently heed the voice of the Lord your God and do what is right in His sight, give ear to His commandments and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have brought on the Egyptians. For I am the Lord who heals you.”' . Glories to God! You can see that God Himself reveals some of His names to us. The names aforementioned are only a snapshot of the names He revealed to us, and to know them all is to be invited to meditate and study the whole scriptures. However, as we stated earlier some names of God if not most were given to Him by people based upon the revelation they got of Him. Let's now proceed by looking closely at a remarkable event when God was named by a man. God's Revelation to Abraham In Genesis 22 the bible narrates for us the story of Abraham and his son Isaac. God appeared to Abraham and asked him to sacrifice his son to Him. It's written,  "'Then He said, “Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.”'  Genesis 22:2. The following verses reveal to us that Abraham in the very next day, early in the morning, prepared everything and made his way to a mountain in the land of Mariah. Abraham arranged the altar for the sacrifice, and the bible says, "'But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?”' Genesis 22:7. Abraham replied to him saying, "'[...] “My son, God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering.” So the two of them went together.'"  Genesis 22:8. Many suggest that in that very moment Abraham went beyond in time and saw the day that God provided for Himself, His spotless Lamb, Jesus as atonement for the sins of the whole world because in John 8:56 Jesus said, "'Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.”' Back to the story. Abraham comforted Isaac and proceeded to sacrifice him as God had asked. The bible says, "'And Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the Angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” So he said, “Here I am.” And He said, “Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” Then Abraham lifted his eyes and looked, and there behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by its horns. So Abraham went and took the ram, and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son. And Abraham called the name of the place, The- Lord -Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”' Genesis 22:10-14. Of course God never wanted Isaac to be sacrificed, human sacrifice is abomination for God (Deuteronomy 12:31) because He made men in His image. God wanted to test the faith of Abraham only. Abraham was approved, God saw that he feared Him, and therefore, He would bring to pass the promise He made to Abraham. Verses 15-18 says, "'Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord , because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son — blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies. In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”'. Praise God for His faithfulness. One of the main points is that when Abraham saw that God intervened for Isaac and instead provided a ham, Abraham rejoiced, and the bible says, " Abraham called the name of the place, The- Lord -Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of the Lord it shall be provided.”' Notice Abraham called that the name of the place not the name of God, although in saying, Yah-way-ji-reh, He also gave a name to God. Among His people, God became known as "The Lord Will Provide" or "The Lord Provider", Our God who provides, commonly pronounced in Hebrew, "YAHWEH-JIREH [yah-way-ji-reh]" or in English, "JEHOVAH-JIREH". We know that God indeed is a provider, from Genesis to revelation God is constantly providing for all His creation, and He ultimately provided Christ for the whole world. Knowing that God is "Yahweh-Jireh", we can interact with Him on the basis of it and be confident that He provides for all our needs. David said, "'The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.'" Psalms 23:1-3. Praise God. However, JEHOVAH-JIREH is just one of the many names of God that people gave in order to capture the revelation they had of Him. The Names of God The bible in several passages presents us with many more names of God, many of which are better captured when we look up a concordance or a translation that preserves the names in the original language, and etc. As a summary, below it is given some of the names of God found in the bible: (3). EL, ELOAH [el, el-oh-ah]: God "mighty, strong, prominent" (Nehemiah 9:17; Psalm 139:19) – etymologically, El appears to mean “power” and “might” (Genesis 31:29). El is associated with other qualities, such as integrity (Numbers 23:19), jealousy (Deuteronomy 5:9), and compassion (Nehemiah 9:31), but the root idea of “might” remains. ELOHIM [el-oh-heem]: God “Creator, Mighty and Strong” (Genesis 17:7; Jeremiah 31:33) – the plural form of Eloah. Being plural, Elohim which accommodates the doctrine of the Trinity. From the Bible’s first sentence, the superlative nature of God’s power is evident as God (Elohim) speaks the world into existence (Genesis 1:1). EL SHADDAI [el-shah-dahy]: “God Almighty,” “The Mighty One of Jacob” (Genesis 49:24; Psalm 132:2,5) – speaks to God’s ultimate power over all. ADONAI [ˌædɒˈnaɪ; ah-daw-nahy]: “Lord” (Genesis 15:2; Judges 6:15) – used in place of YHWH, which was thought by the Jews to be too sacred to be uttered by sinful men. In the Old Testament, YHWH is more often used in God’s dealings with His people, while Adonai is used more when He deals with the Gentiles. YHWH / YAHWEH / JEHOVAH [yah-way / ji-hoh-veh]: “LORD” (Deuteronomy 6:4; Daniel 9:14) – strictly speaking, the only proper name for God. Translated in English Bibles “LORD” (all capitals) to distinguish it from Adonai, “Lord.” The revelation of the name is given to Moses “I Am who I Am” (Exodus 3:14). This name specifies an immediacy, a presence. Yahweh is present, accessible, near to those who call on Him for deliverance (Psalm 107:13), forgiveness (Psalm 25:11) and guidance (Psalm 31:3). YAHWEH-JIREH [yah-way-ji-reh]: "The Lord Will Provide" (Genesis 22:14) – the name memorialized by Abraham when God provided the ram to be sacrificed in place of Isaac. YAHWEH-RAPHA [yah-way-raw-faw]: "The Lord Who Heals" (Exodus 15:26) – “I am Jehovah who heals you” both in body and soul. In body, by preserving from and curing diseases, and in soul, by pardoning iniquities. YAHWEH-NISSI [yah-way-nee-see]: "The Lord Our Banner" (Exodus 17:15), where banner is understood to be a rallying place. This name commemorates the desert victory over the Amalekites in Exodus 17. YAHWEH-M'KADDESH [yah-way-meh-kad-esh]: "The Lord Who Sanctifies, Makes Holy" (Leviticus 20:8; Ezekiel 37:28) – God makes it clear that He alone, not the law, can cleanse His people and make them holy. YAHWEH-SHALOM [yah-way-shah-lohm]: "The Lord Our Peace" (Judges 6:24) – the name given by Gideon to the altar he built after the Angel of the Lord assured him he would not die as he thought he would after seeing Him. YAHWEH-ELOHIM [yah-way-el-oh-him]: "LORD God" (Genesis 2:4; Psalm 59:5) – a combination of God’s unique name YHWH and the generic word for “God” signifying that He is the Lord who is God. YAHWEH-TSIDKENU [yah-way-tzid-kay-noo]: "The Lord Our Righteousness” (Jeremiah 33:16) – As with YHWH-M’Kaddesh, it is God alone who provides righteousness (from the Hebrew word tsidkenu) to man, ultimately in the person of His Son, Jesus Christ, who became sin for us “that we might become the Righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21). YAHWEH-ROHI [yah-way-roh-hee]: "The Lord Our Shepherd" (Psalm 23:1) – After David pondered his relationship as a shepherd to his sheep, he realized that was exactly the relationship God had with him, and so he declares, “The Lord is my shepherd [Yahweh-Rohi]; I shall not want” (Psalm 23:1, ESV). YAHWEH-SHAMMAH [yah-way-sham-mahw]: "The Lord Is There” (Ezekiel 48:35) – the name ascribed to Jerusalem and the Temple there, indicating that the once-departed glory of the Lord (Ezekiel 8—11) had returned (Ezekiel 44:1-4). YAHWEH-SABAOTH [yah-way-sah-bah-ohth]: "The Lord of Hosts" (Isaiah 1:24; Psalm 46:7) – Hosts means “hordes,” both of angels and of men. He is Lord of the host of heaven and of the inhabitants of the earth, of Jews and Gentiles, of rich and poor, master and slave. The name is expressive of the majesty, power, and authority of God and shows that He is able to accomplish what He determines to do. EL ELYON [el-el-yohn]: “Most High" (Deuteronomy 26:19) – derived from the Hebrew root for “go up” or “ascend,” so the implication is of that which is the very highest. El Elyon denotes exaltation and speaks of absolute right to lordship. EL ROI [el-roh-ee]: "God of Seeing" (Genesis 16:13) – the name ascribed to God by Hagar, alone and desperate in the wilderness after being driven out by Sarah (Genesis 16:1-14). When Hagar met the Angel of the Lord, she realized she had seen God Himself in a theophany. She also realized that El Roi saw her in her distress and testified that He is a God who lives and sees all. EL-OLAM [el-oh-lahm]: "Everlasting God" (Psalm 90:1-3) – God’s nature is without beginning or end, free from all constraints of time, and He contains within Himself the very cause of time itself. “From everlasting to everlasting, You are God” (Psalm 90:2). EL-GIBHOR [el-ghee-bohr]: “Mighty God” (Isaiah 9:6) – the name describing the Messiah, Christ Jesus, in this prophetic portion of Isaiah. As a powerful and mighty warrior, the Messiah, the Mighty God, will accomplish the destruction of God’s enemies and rule with a rod of iron (Revelation 19:15). THEOS [theh'-os]: It is one of the names by which the one true God, the Creator and Sustainer of the universe, is called in the New Testament. It is used to denote the divine nature and attributes of God, including His omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence. "Theos" can also refer to false gods or deities in a polytheistic context, but in the Christian Scriptures, it predominantly signifies the God of Israel, the Father of Jesus Christ. Its Hebrew equivalent are Elohim, El, and YHWH. KURIOS [koo'-ree-os] : It is another name by which God is called in the New Testament. "kurios" is used to denote someone who possesses authority, control, or power. It is often translated as "Lord" and is used to refer to God, Jesus Christ, and sometimes human masters. The term signifies respect, reverence, and acknowledgment of authority. In the context of Jesus, it underscores His divine nature and authority as the Son of God. Its Hebrew equivalent are ADONAI and YHWH. Implications of Knowing The list above is not exhaustive but a starter; there are many more names of God in the bible. As mentioned in the first section of this article, in biblical thought name means character, authority, origin, and in the case of God nature. Thus, having learned about the names of God, you should know Him better. like we have been emphasizing throughout this series of articles, knowing God is far beyond a simple mental knowledge or awareness, but it is intimately knowing, spiritually and truthfully worshipping, and strongly, soulfully, and wholeheartedly loving Him (Jn 4:24, 17:3; Mt 22:37-40). The implications of knowing God is that it compels us to trust and to love Him; we get to know that He is and inevitably relate and approach Him with faith. It's written, " " 'But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.'"  Hebrews 11:6. Praises be to God! God is everlasting (He is EL-OLAM), sees you and your circumstances (He is El ROI), cares for you and for all you care about (He is YAHWEH-ROHI), provides for all your needs (He is YAHWEH-JIREH), changes your circumstances (He is EL SHADDAI), commands His hosts on your behalf (He is YAHWEH-SABAOTH), sanctifies you (He is YAHWEH-M'KADDESH), keeps you in peace (He is YAHWEH-SHALOM), delivers you from sicknesses and diseases (YAHWEH-RAPHA), commands your life and order your steps (He is ADONAI), ..., God is (He is YHVH). The more we know the names of God, the more we can know His character, and the greater will be our faith on Him and our love for Him. This is the point of knowing the names of God. A Word of Caution The point of knowing the names of God is not necessarily to bring up a specific name in prayer depending on our need; we can do it if we have the understanding of the name, but bear in mind that Jesus didn't do it and neither the apostles. The point is not to lead us to become proud for knowing the true name of God either, like Jehovah Witnesses tend to do when they give an exaggerated emphasis on the name JEHOVAH, which as we have already discussed above is not even the true name of God, it's a hybrid or artificial name created by man. Certainly, we appreciate the story behind it and take it as a pronounceable approximation of the true name which is YHVH or YHWH. So, these are not the points. The point is relationship by understanding the revelation of God behind the names. God is an infinite being, knowing Him is an eternal task (John 17:3); thus, to make an infinite task possible, He revealed Himself through certain means such us names and figures, which we will see in the next article, aside from the direct descriptions of His attributes which we have already seen in the previous article. Thus, the names were meant to capture a revelation of God or crystalize an understanding people had about Him; hence, understanding the character or attributes of God through the names is more important than repeating the names over and over again if we have no understanding. For instance, Abraham who called God Jehovah-Jireh, never once in scripture is shown calling God such in prayer when he wanted provision. We don't see him doing it at all after the experience he had with Isaac. however, we can be confident that the revelation behind the name was always alive in Abraham's heart as he waited upon the Lord to fulfill His promises or provide again. Thus, if someone goes to prayer calling God "Jehovah-Jireh", he does no wrong, but if he supposes that by doing so provision will come more rapidly, he is certainly not walking in the steps of Abraham. If you do call God "Jehovah-Jireh" while praying or praising, you do nothing wrong, after all, it is His name. By all means to do it, we often do it and will continue to do so; however, if you call Him "Jehovah-Jireh" with understanding, knowing what it means, bringing to mind and to God's remembrance all He said about provision, and how He would be glorified through that provision, you do much better (1 John 5:14-15, Isaiah 43:26). Jesus, Our Lord, when teaching on provision didn't say call God "Jehovah-Jireh", rather he taught us to, again, understand the character and nature of God through a figure of a "Father". He said, "'Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?'" Matthew 6:26. What was said above about the use of "Jehovah-Jireh" in prayer or praise is applicable to using any other name of God in any other spiritual discipline. If we say the names in prayer, meditation, proclamation, praise or else we do well, but if we don't understand God through them, we can mentioned them all day long in Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic, or else and nothing will happen. The apostles when teaching the gentiles did not make a law that they should call God by Hebraic names. They themselves, despite being Jews, in their writings addressed to gentiles, referred to God by Greek names such as Theos and Kurios, and led the people to know, understand, and trust The God behind these names. Again, the goal of knowing the names of God is far beyond proving our soundness of Hebrew or Greek, or show that we have some sort of "esoteric" knowledge, no! The goal is knowing God Himself and grow in our relationship with Him. Glories be to God for making things so simple and accessible for people in all nations! Thus, to call God simply God in English is not a sin neither a disrespect as long we regard God highly in our hearts, know truly who He is: His majesty, transcendency, authority, supremacy ... , in another words, understand the revelation behind each name of God. If you do so, my brother and my sister, you will see signs, wonders, and interventions on earth as simple as calling God God may seem. With the above said by all means, sing the names of God, praise Him with and through them, bring them up in prayer, proclaim them, speak them out, meditate on them, preach them, and etc., but in all things do so with understanding and God will be glorified. Of course just knowing the names themselves is a good thing and a good start, but don't stop there, seek to understand them and put your trust in God. David said, "''And those who know Your name [character, identity, reputation] will put their trust in You; For You, Lord , have not forsaken those who seek You.'"  Psalms 9:10. God is accessible to all who call upon Him with a sincere heart and understand his reputation or character, no matter the language or location. A Personal Revelation This God whose names we are studying, The God of Israel, YHVH, who aforetime revealed His personal name to us, became further accessible by revealing Himself to us in a personal manner. This same God has came down from heaven, manifested Himself in the flesh, in the person of Jesus Christ and lived among us (John 1:14). Jesus said, "[...] “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”" . Today, we can not only know the personal name of the One and True God, our maker, but also know Him personally through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Hallelujah! It's written, "'And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the Spirit, Seen by angels, Preached among the Gentiles, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory.'" I Timothy 3:16. Praises be to God! May you know God more through His names, may you know Him more and more personally through Christ, and may your love for Him grow more and more in all wisdom and spiritual understanding in Jesus name. God bless you. Like - Comment - Share - Subscribe Knowing-God.com Love . Grace . Intimacy References: (1) "Why is YHWH, the name of the God, replaced by a title, "the LORD", ..." hermeneutics.stackexchange.com (2) "God's Name has Changed? (Learn It's Interesting Biblical Story," Bibleproject.com (3) "What are the different names of God, and what do they mean?" www.gotquestions.org

Welcome to Knowing-GOD, a practical teaching ministry aiming to serve the body of Christ in the advancement of the Kingdom of God by diffusing the knowledge of God to all people​​. Welcome again, may you know God, and grow in love, grace and intimacy with Him. God bless you! Jesus said, '[...], “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”' Matthew 4:10 Welcome Welcome to Knowing-GOD, a practical teaching ministry and a growing hub for discipleship, aiming to serve the body of Christ in the advancement of the Kingdom of God by diffusing the fragrance of the knowledge of God to people in every nation, tribe, and tongues through the preaching of the Gospel and the making of disciples, in obedience to Christ, Our Lord, by the power of the Holy Spirit. For Jesus said, " 'And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.'" John 17:3 Welcome again. God bless you! Read More Anchor 1 January 15th, 2025 Do Not Worr It's Written, '“Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?' Matthew 6:25-27 May God Bless You Devotional Anchor 2 Recent Articles Setting The Lord Before You Christian Walk - 31 minutes ago 8 min read His Name Is Jesus by Jeremy Riddle Singing to The Lord - Dec 26, 2025 2 min read Who is Jesus? The Knowledge of God - Dec 3, 2025 2 min read 1 2 3 4 5 Jesus, The Way, The Truth, and The Life... "'Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off—for all whom the Lord our God will call.” '" Acts 2:38-39 Read More Helder & Rebeca "We are Christ's disciples called to make disciples from all the nations. Glad you are here!" Read More Stay Updated Language Gender Join Thanks for subscribing! Address United States Email info@knowing-god.com Connect

Knowing or not knowing God is what determines how people live their lives. It is written, “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” 1 John 2:3-6. If someone doesn’t know God, he will leave his life anyway he wants. Knowing God is the basis for righteous living Knowing or not knowing God is what determines how people live their lives. It is written, “Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” 1 John 2:3-6. God is righteous and Holy and He calls on all of His creatures to be holy and righteous, not to pervert justice and walk blamelessly before Him. 1 Peter 1:16 says " 'but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; '" I Peter 1:15-17. No one is entitle to do as he pleases, God will hold all accountable. However, if someone does not know God he may think he can do as he wishes. Psalm 10:11-13 says, "'He has said in his heart, “God has forgotten; He hides His face; He will never see.” Arise, O Lord ! O God, lift up Your hand! Do not forget the humble. Why do the wicked renounce God? He has said in his heart, “You will not require an account. ”' Notice this person says in his heart "God has forgotten, He Hides His face, He will never see, God will not repay me for my sins." It's obvious from these words that this person doesn't know God and he has been living his life lawlessly; hence, the Psalmist called him, "wicked". If someone doesn’t know God, he will leave his life anyway he wants; however, if someone knows God, he ought to obey God’s commandments, live as Christ lived. If someone doesn’t do it, yet claims to know God, he is a liar. Jesus said, “... by their fruits you will know them,” (Matthew 7:20). People’s lives are a reflection of what they know or what they believe. For instance, Psalm 53:1 says, “The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, and have done abominable iniquity; There is none who does good.” Psalms 53:1 NKJV. Because this person whom the bible calls a fool believes there is no God, he committed all sorts of abominable iniquity or sins. Likewise, Psalm 94, 7 describes the actions of a man that believes that God does not see; therefore, He also commits all kinds of sin. it is written, “They utter speech, and speak insolent things; All the workers of iniquity boast in themselves. They break in pieces Your people, O Lord , And afflict Your heritage. They slay the widow and the stranger, And murder the fatherless. Yet they say, “The Lord does not see, Nor does the God of Jacob understand.” Psalms 94:4-7. In addition, concerning people who ignore the knowledge of God, the bible says in the book of Romans, “because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.” Romans 1:21-27. What people know about God matters. It determines their lifestyle. Again, someone who does not regard God is doomed to commit all sorts of iniquity and eat of the fruit of his sin because God will let them have the sinful lives they want, will give them to their desires. Look around you, how many things were prohibited before and the government thought by legalizing it would incentivize people to consume, use, or do less? Instead the opposite scenario became the norm, people sought for more and more. For God to let you do as you wish to believe, it’s not a good thing, neither for you nor for your neighbor. Know God and be changed. Having in mind that the lives of people affect the society they live in, thus, knowing or not knowing God is also what determines how a society will be. It’s written, “For a long time Israel has been without the true God, without a teaching priest, and without law; but when in their trouble they turned to the Lord God of Israel, and sought Him, He was found by them. And in those times there was no peace to the one who went out, nor to the one who came in, but great turmoil was on all the inhabitants of the lands. So nation was destroyed by nation, and city by city, for God troubled them with every adversity.” II Chronicles 15:3-6. Notice that Israel was without the The true God because they did not have a teaching priest to teach them the law, which they ended also being without. Hosea 4:6 says, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also will reject you from being priest for Me; Because you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.” Again, Pay attention to the progression found in II Chronicles 15:3-6, the lack of someone to teach the law, led the people not to have the knowledge of The True God, and led them to be without Him, and to be without the law, therefore, everyone did as they pleased. As a consequence, they were troubled in everything, society was in turmoil, because God who was able to protect them, did not protect them since they did not seek Him; hence, adversity was their portion. However, in their affliction they sought the Lord, and He answered them. So, there is hope for any society provided they repent and go back to God and keep His laws. Any society will only rise to the degree of their knowledge of God, for good or bad. In Judges 2:8-12,14-15 it’s written, “Now Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord , died when he was one hundred and ten years old. And they buried him within the border of his inheritance at Timnath Heres, in the mountains of Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gaash. When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel. Then the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord , and served the Baals; and they forsook the Lord God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt; and they followed other gods from among the gods of the people who were all around them, and they bowed down to them; and they provoked the Lord to anger. And the anger of the Lord was hot against Israel. So He delivered them into the hands of plunderers who despoiled them; and He sold them into the hands of their enemies all around, so that they could no longer stand before their enemies. Wherever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for calamity, as the Lord had said, and as the Lord had sworn to them. And they were greatly distressed.” The reason the people of Israel did evil and caused the society to be in turmoil and have God as their enemy is because, the generation that came after the generation of Joshua did not know God, neither His works. Look at the society around you; the only reason it is full of hatred, murder, robbery, scandals, uncertainties, and etc., is because its inhabitants don’t know God. Every society who doesn’t know God pays the price for their ignorance, on the other hand, of a nation that fears God the bible says they are blessed. It’s written “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord , The people He has chosen as His own inheritance.” Psalms 33:12. Knowing God is important and crucial for societal advancement and wellbeing. It matters if God is known in a society or not. Chapter 1 4 of 6 Chapter 3

The Gospel is the Power of God to Salvation​. Paul said, " [...] for it [The Gospel] is the power of God to salvation to salvation [...] " The word translated power is the Greek word, dunamis, and means: (a) physical power, force, might, ability, efficacy, energy, meaning, (b) plur: powerful deeds, deeds showing (physical) power, marvelous works. This word dunamis is the root of the word dynamite. Third, The Gospel is the Power of God to Salvation Paul said, " [...] for it [The Gospel] is the power of God to salvation to salvation [...] " The word translated power is the Greek word, dunamis, and means: (a) physical power, force, might, ability, efficacy, energy, meaning, (b) plur: powerful deeds, deeds showing (physical) power, marvelous works. This word dunamis is the root of the word dynamite. The word translated salvation is the is the Greek word, sōtēría (from 4982 /sṓzō, "to save, rescue") – salvation, i.e. God's rescue which delivers believers out of destruction and into His safety. This word sōtēría in the "technical" biblical sense means the Messianic salvation or rescue from eternal death [condemnation] to eternal life that God offers through Christ sacrifice. Thus, connecting the two words, the bottom line is that takes strength, might, power, energy, marvelous work to get someone saved, and such power only comes from God. The bible says, "Salvation belongs to the Lord . Your blessing is upon Your people." Psalms 3:8. Note that Paul doesn't says the gospel is one of the aspects of the power of God, and neither says the gospel is how the power of God is released; instead, he says "It is the power of God". We ought to understand that the gospel itself is the power of God, with a specific goal in mind: salvation of anyone who believes. Thus, we can clearly see that if anyone doesn't believe the gospel he cannot be saved because God has already committed Himself in eternity past to allocate the power to save in a message - the gospel, committed to save sinners only through the preaching of the gospel and nothing else. The bible says, "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.” Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men." I Corinthians 1:18-25. The gospel message may seem too simple - we are sinners, Christ died for us, so if we repent and believe Him we can be saved - yet it is the only way sinners can be saved for it is the truth. Therefore, the bible says. "But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ." 2 Corinthians 11:3. The gospel message is simple and may seem seems foolish, but those who believed can testify that it is the power of God, the only message that got them saved. Some people like the Jews preferred that the gospel was based on sings, something miraculous, mystic, and etc. However, this is not how God in His wisdom decided to save sinners. God decided to save sinners by the preaching of a simple message. As far signs are concern, God already gave the Jews and everyone else the sign they would need, so the gospel would be so simple and accessible to all. The bible tells us, "Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Matthew 12:38-40. This is the sign, that Christ died for sinners and stayed three days and three nights in the grave and God raised Him up from the dead by His great power defeating death and showing man He has authority over it and can likewise save anyone who is dead in his sins if he believes. This is the sign and only sign that anyone needs to believe to be saved. Romans 10, 9-11 says "that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”. God has already given us a sign, raising Christ from the dead, the question is: do you believe? As far other signs, wonders and miracles like healings, raising the dead, and etc., God did through Christ, did through the apostles, and still does through His servants today, but they are meant to bear witness of Jesus' resurrections and point people to the gospel, which is the power of God for their salvation. Because the truth is that someone can experience miracles, be healed, contemplate wonders from God and yet not be saved because salvation is only through the gospel. For instance, in Matthew 11, 21-24 Jesus said “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you. And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you.” These people saw might works Jesus did yet they did not believe Him as the son of God who came down to save them from their sins, therefore they would be subject of the stricter judgment because the might works Jesus did testified the truthfulness of the gospel yet they did not believe. Thus, one can experience the power of God in other ways - healing, provision, and etc., yet if they don't believe the gospel they will not experience the saving power of God. However, maybe you are not like the Jews but more like the Greeks who sought for wisdom, you don't care about signs, you dwell more in the helm of the abstract, for you things have to make logical sense and be presented in a philosophical manner. This was the case of the Greeks that Paul found in Athens, the bible says "Then certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him. And some said, “What does this babbler want to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods,” because he preached to them Jesus and the resurrection. For you are bringing some strange things to our ears. Therefore we want to know what these things mean.” For all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing." Acts 17:18,20-21. These people were philosophers, liked to reason and occupied themselves in hearing new things, but when heard the gospel the greatest news of all, they didn't respond accordingly because hearing that God ressurected Jesus from the dead seamed too absurd from them, irrational, unreasonable, unsophisticated, overall unwise. However, God in His wisdom decided to save sinners through the preaching of a simple message yet with the power to save. Chapter 1 3 of 6 Chapter 2