God gave a covenant to Israel when He had delivered them from Egyptian bondage, but through their unfaithfulness they broke the covenant (Jer. 31:32). However, God in His mercy and forbearance made a new covenant (Heb. 8:6-12 cf. Jer. 31:31). Though sins were remembered every year in the Levitical sacrifices of the old covenant (Heb. 10:3), under the new covenant God no more remembers sins (Jer. 31:34; Heb. 8:12; 10:17). What is remembered now is Christ’s death. This remembrance is made by means of the Lord’s Supper every week (Mt. 26:26; 1 Cor. 11:24, 25). Here are some reasons that this death, which brought our deliverance, should be remembered as a focal point in the entire history of God’s dealings with man:

The blood of Christ shed on the cross cleanses the conscience in a complete way that could not be achieved merely through old covenant rituals (Heb. 9:9, 14). The sacrifices under the old covenant were an illustration of the cost of sin that pointed toward the perfect sacrifice of Christ for the remission of sins (Heb. 9:22, 23). The blood of Christ not only cleanses us today who live after His death, but also covered those who lived before His death. Hebrews 9:15 speaks of Jesus as the Mediator of the new covenant; however, it also acknowledges His death was for “the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant.” In the mind of God—Who sees all human history at once—forgiveness and salvation could be extended in every age based upon the death of Christ. Even though Jesus lived and died in a particular historical moment that occurred after centuries of human history had already transpired, Jesus is the one “whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed” (Rom. 3:25). While the particulars of obedience varied from the old covenant to the new, God’s grace—extended through Christ’s death on the cross to those who would respond in faith and obedience—has always been the means of salvation.

Not only should the cross be a focal point of human existence collectively, it also should be the focal point of the life of each individual. Life is often tragic. Suffering comes our way. If we are not prepared for it in our mindset, then we can really be thrown off course. Peter was a witness of the sufferings of Christ (1 Pet. 5:1); moreover, he was with the Lord when the Supper was established. Consider the inspired reminders the apostle Peter had for those who are suffering. Christ suffered for us, leaving us an example, that we should follow in His steps (1 Pet. 2:21). Christ suffered for our sins; He suffered even though He is just and we are unjust. Why? To bring us to God (1 Pet. 3:18). Remember this when you are suffering. And when you are tempted to sin, remember since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, we should arm ourselves with the same mind and cease from sinning (1 Pet. 4:1). Remembering Christ’s suffering gives meaning to my life, helps me to be grateful, and deters me from sin. This is why I should continually remember Christ’s death on the cross.

One of the joys of traveling is meeting New Testament Christians in different places. To attend another congregation and to see the “like precious faith” in the lives and worship of others is indeed a blessing to my soul. It reminds me that Jesus Christ is head of the church, King over the kingdom, and that His last will and testament is understandable and can be followed.

Religious division, however, shrouds those truths from many. Paul addressed this when he wrote, “Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (1 Cor. 1:10). Paul was pleading with those in Corinth to have unity. He had heard from reliable sources that Corinth was divided in following different preachers (1 Cor. 1:11-13) and these fractions had disrupted proper worship (1 Cor. 11:18-20; 14:33).

Paul’s pleading was “by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,” in other words by the authority of the Lord. Paul words were the Lord’s commandments (1 Cor. 14:37). Some have attempted to contradict this truth by misusing the phrase “But to the rest speak I, not the Lord…” (1 Cor 7:12). But what Paul was saying is that the Lord had addressed the previous principles of 1 Corinthians 7:10-11 with His teaching while on earth (cf. Mt. 5:32; 19:9). Paul was pointing out in verse 12 that he was giving God’s inspired instructions regarding matters not explicitly stated by Jesus during His earthly ministry. Jesus indeed had many more instructions to impart that the Holy Spirit would guide the apostle in after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension (Jn. 16:12, 13). Paul taught the words the Holy Spirit gave (1 Cor. 2:13).

When we stay with the word of God, we will all speak the same thing. Some religious groups try to enforce uniformity in their doctrines, but that is not what Paul means. The Watchtower has its curriculum that each Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses receives and studies so that all are being taught the same exact lesson. Many religious groups follow a liturgical calendar where certain passages and topics are covered on given dates throughout the year. These are not what Paul is referring to. That one can travel to another congregation of Christ’s church in another area of the world and hear the pure word of God is a testament to this truth Paul emphasized in 1 Corinthians 1:10. The churches of Christ do not have some earthly headquarters that controls what each congregation studies every single week. There is no human hierarchy to enforce conformity. The headquarters is in heaven with Jesus Christ ruling over His people (Eph. 1:20-23).

We are not only to speak the same things and have no divisions, but also to “be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (1 Cor. 1:10). As the church, we are a people joined together for a purpose greater than ourselves; the church is greater than the sum of its parts. As Paul explained, “Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.” (Eph. 2:19-22). Think of the way that different pieces of wood are fitly framed together in mortise and tenon joints. The unity of which we speak then does not mean that we are clones of one another. As Paul later explained to the Corinthians, we each as members of the body have unique attributes that we bring together to serve the whole (1 Cor. 12). Let us be perfectly joined together by God’s word.

Zephaniah prophesied against the sins of Judah early in the reign of Josiah around 640-620 BC (Zeph. 1:1). Because of the idolatry and moral corruption prevalent among the people, Zephaniah proclaimed, “The great day of the LORD is near” (Zeph. 1:14). For those enmeshed in sin, the day of the Lord’s judgment is not pleasant. “That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation, a day of darkness and gloominess, a day of clouds and thick darkness,” (Zeph. 1:15). God would arrange the Babylonian invasion of Judah as punishment. Those punished would stumble around like blind men because of their sins (Zeph. 1:17). Gold and silver would not be able to deliver them from the Lord’s wrath (Zeph. 1:18).

Violence and deceit were prevalent in that day (Zeph. 1:9). Jeremiah, who prophesied around the same time as Zephaniah, also highlighted violence and plundering in Judah for which God would bring in Babylon for their destruction. Some years prior, Micah decried the violence of rich men and deceitful tongues in Jerusalem (Mic. 6:12). While we do not live in the same time as Zephaniah, we do live in a world filled with violence and deceit. From the beginning, God has always punished mankind when society becomes filled with violence (Gen. 6:11). Today we have also been warned of the day of the Lord’s judgment (1 Cor. 5:5; 1 Thess. 5:2; 2 Pet. 3:10). It will not be Babylon coming upon Judah as in Zephaniah, but a day in which “the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up” (2 Pet. 3:10). The same sins denounced in Zephaniah’s day must be denounced today. Those who participate in them without humbling themselves in repentance and obedience to the Lord will suffer. Revelation 21:8 says, “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”

Zephaniah’s name means “Jehovah hides,” which may indicate that the Lord will protect the righteous in the day of wrath. God takes note of the righteous who do not follow the majority in the sins of the day. Exodus 12 showed how God passed over the righteous families of Israel who followed the Lord’s instructions so that they were spared from the plague that killed all the firstborn in Egypt. Zephaniah pointed toward a remnant who do not commit iniquity, nor speak lies, but rather trust in the name of the Lord (3:12-13). Those who through baptism have died with Christ and have been risen with Him have their sins covered by His blood (Rom. 4:7). Their lives are hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3). Instead of being filled with pride, these are poor in spirit (Zeph. 3:12; Mt. 5:3). Instead of deceiving and being deceived, these people feed on God’s word (Zeph. 3:13; 1 Pet. 2:2; Acts 20:32), believe the truth (1 Thess. 2:13; 1 Jn. 2:21; 3:19, and speak it in love to others (Eph. 4:15). One can look to the day of judgment with confidence if one believes the truth and is abiding in the love of God (1 Jn. 4:17).

The apostle Paul declared in Romans 1:16, the keynote verse of the book of Romans: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.” God has provided the powerful means for our salvation. On our own, without the gospel, we are without the power and strength to save ourselves. Gospel means “good news.” The good news is this: “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly” (Rom. 5:6).

God’s word, the gospel, reveals to us the righteousness of God (Rom. 1:17). While God’s character is righteous, this is not what Romans 1:17 is referring to; indeed, the way that man can be made righteous or justified by faith is what is under consideration in the book of Romans. God’s word reveals the path to righteousness through faith.  Romans 1:17 says, “For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.” The axiom of Habakkuk 2:4 , “” is quoted here and at other key places in the New Testament (cf. Gal. 3:11; Heb. 10:38). God has revealed in His word righteousness that comes through faith in Jesus Christ (Rom. 10:17).

This righteousness is not flawlessly keeping the law of Moses, but rather faithfully following the Lord Jesus. Paul gave up all the credentials of law-keeping under Judaism for Christ (Phil. 3:4-8). This he did, as he went on to explain, “And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith.”

The gospel is called “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus” in Romans 8:2; it delivers us from the law of sin and death. The oft-repeated general truth, or law, in the lives of humans is sin leads to death (James 1:15). In other words, we all sin (Rom. 3:23). Sin deserves death, but through Jesus Christ we can receive the gift of salvation (Rom. 6:23).

We have to obey the gospel, the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus, in order to be freed from sin and death. Many were obedient to the faith, the gospel in the book of Acts (Acts 6:7). Romans is written for obedience to the faith (Rom. 1:5; 16:26). This obedience involves calling on the name of the Lord (Rom. 10:13). This is not a prayer, but rather obedience to the gospel that results in baptism (Acts 22:16). The equivalent of “calling on the name of the Lord” in Romans 10:13 is obeying the gospel in Romans 10:16; they who “have not all obeyed the gospel” have not either heard the message of the gospel (vv. 14, 17), or believed it (v. 16) to the point of obeying. Those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel will suffer everlasting destruction (2 Thess. 1:7, 8). The gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus (1 Cor. 15:1-4). Romans 6:17 and 18 say those who have been made freed from sin have obeyed from the heart the form (pattern) of teaching. Baptism is where one is united with the form (pattern) of Jesus Christ in death, burial, and resurrection (Rom. 6:3-7).

The gospel is powerful. God has revealed in it the way to be saved and stand righteous in his sight through faith. Do you believe it? Have you obeyed it?