God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said,
“‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’

Acts 13:33-38

33 he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:
“‘You are my son;
today I have become your father.’
34 God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said,
“‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’
35 So it is also stated elsewhere:
“‘You will not let your holy one see decay.’
36 “Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his ancestors and his body decayed. 37 But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay. 38 “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.

Today’s title is “Preaching Christ Only”

Jesus took His disciples to Caesarea Philippi at the last phase of His public ministry. In today’s language, it was a sort of spiritual retreat for them before He was crucified. There He asked disciples the famous questions. “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” “Who do you say I am? Why do you think that Jesus asked such questions at such a critical moment? Was Jesus overtly interested in how popular He was among the people? Absolutely not! Jesus intentionally avoided those who followed Him with overenthusiastic zeal after witnessing His power and authority. He kept refusing the request of His supporters to take over the political power of Israel when His popularity among the people reached its peak. Then why did he ask such questions? The answer is rather simple and obvious. He wanted people to have the right knowledge of Him. Knowing Jesus right is the key to all the spiritual knowledge. In Him lies salvation. In Him, we find the truth. By knowing Him, we know God. So knowing Jesus right is Indeed the alpha and omega of our life. But even Christians and even church leaders such as pastors and preachers often forget it. One of the most repeated training that I have received through the seminary training was to preach Christ. Why did the seminaries do that? It is because they know that preachers often forget it. As a young preacher, I confess I often made such mistakes. I sort of took Jesus for granted in my preaching and indulged in something else. But as I have more experience as a preacher, I came to understand why the rugged old professors stressed it. There is nothing that touches souls like Christ. No persuasion oratorical skills can change hearts and souls. It only tickles the ears of the people. Listening to Jesus such as who He is, what He has said, what He has done, and what He is doing touches and moves our hearts and souls like nothing else. We call it Christ-centered preaching. We see it in the preaching of the apostles. We see this in Peter’s preaching. We see it here in apostle Paul’s preaching. It is all about Him. A genuinely converted soul like Paul has an insatiable desire for Jesus. That is probably the hallmark of our spiritual health. How about you? Do you have such an insatiable desire for Jesus? Does His name still move your soul and heart? Then, you must be spiritually healthy.