Cross

Jesus Came Down the Mountain

/ pastorpete51 / 7 Comments 
And after six days Jesus took with him Peter and James and John and led them up a high mountain by themselves. And he was transfigured before them. Mark 9:2 ESV

When Jesus took His three closest friends up a mountain, He began to show them who He really was in a way they had never seen before. Yet in spite of the beauty and holiness of that moment, Jesus did not tarry on the mountain. No! He came down the mountain to heal one young boy. And He left the highest mountain of all, that place in Heaven when He came down to the manger, He came for you and me. But before His mission was finished, He had one more mountain to climb, the mountain that had a cross waiting at the top where He suffered and died for our sins. He paid the terrible price so that one day when this life is over, if we have put our faith in Him, we will be able to join Him forever on that mountain in Heaven!

Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form.
Philippians 2:6-7 NLT

It was not by His Mighty Word

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment 
It was not by His mighty word
When He commanded light to shine
But by a gentle prayer of thanks
That He blessed bread and wine

And He who made the storm to sleep
Chose the price of sin to pay
He showed in His surrendering
 That He would not run away


Then when nails pierced hands and feet
And His fate on earth was sealed
We were not saved by mighty words
But By His wounds, we’re healed



Not By His Mighty Word
by Peter Caligiuri
All rights reserved
Copyright © 2026

Only by His Wounds

/ pastorpete51 / 1 Comment

But I say to you who hear, “Love your enemies, do good for those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. Luke 6:27-28 ESV

Trying to love real enemies, is neither easy nor normal. It’s one of those commands that Jesus gave that we like to put on the back burner. But God loves our enemies, cares about our persecutors. He blesses those who scam us, cheat us and lie about us. Sometimes we secretly wonder, “What is wrong with God? Why would He do that?”

We can squirm, and make excuses for ignoring Jesus’s command as long as we like, but the Bible points us to the cross. There at the cross is the place where Jesus showed God’s love for us – while we were still His enemies! So, this morning in a world filled with violence, terrorism, political power plays and media manipulation of truth, only that kind of loving enemies can still work a miracle. Only radical love, the true love of Christ, turns enemies into brothers and haters to a loving Savior who still changes hearts and nations. And this morning  He reminds us that, it was not only by His power, but by His wounds that we are healed.