Kristi Walker

You've probably heard it on the radio, and probably by quite a few different singers. You've also probably heard some of the criticism of the song "Mary Did You Know," as folks love to point out that yes, Mary did actually know. But despite all that, the song is still rich with Biblical truths and reminders for modern-day listeners about the power and majesty of Christ, even as a small baby. 

Martin Luther wrote this hymn as a declaration of his faith! Having faced trials, excommunication, sickness, depression, spiritual warfare, and death, he knew that God, his Mighty Fortress, would be his bulwark never failing.

In Rome, Martin saw with his own eyes the end result of all the money being made by the church and the sale of indulgences and the exhibition of relics. He also had read the Bible and never found any passage proving that one could purchase forgiveness with money.

We’ve all been there: We had a dream for our lives, and it didn’t play out the way we had hoped. Unmet or unfulfilled expectations lead to disappointment. As believers in God though, sometimes we wrongly assume it’s God who has failed us, instead of just our expectations.

If you’re lacking joy or peace or both, try trusting God and putting your hope in Him and Him alone (Proverbs 3:5-6; Psalm 42:5). He is “the God of hope,” so run to Him when you’re feeling hopeless.

Like so many things, food and drink can either control us, or we can be the one in control. (The fruit of the Spirit includes self-control, Galatians 5:22-23 reminds us.) We can choose to use what we consume for the glory of God, or even decide to set limits or abstain for God’s glory. 

God has forgiven all my sins, canceled the charge or debt I owed and nailed it to the cross, why must I still constantly be confessing my sins? Christ died for it on the cross, paying the wage for my sin (Romans 6:23) – past, present, and future. I’m forgiven and free! So, must believers continue to confess or admit their sins to God?

The Old and New Testaments of the Bible, comprised of 66 books, tell one cohesive story of redemption, climaxing in the person and work of Jesus Christ, the Savior! Photo credit: Unsplash/SixteenMilesOut

In these times when our human wills battle with the will of God, we need to remember those who have gone before us. Every person who has ever lived and had sincere faith in God has gone through similar valleys (read Hebrews 11), but just as life cannot be lived entirely on the mountaintop, life is not lived entirely in the valley.

Pentecost occurs on the seventh Sunday after Easter, and commemorates the day that Jesus was taken up to Heaven. But what exactly happened on this day, and what it meant for the growth of the modern Christian church, is something that we should all celebrate!

Is it true? Did He pay the full price for my sin, and yet I still “owe” Him my life? If it is truly finished, if God is satisfied, if I am justified, why must I live a life as a “living sacrifice?”

We all have a physical body, but we also all have a spiritual soul. How do these two work together, and often fight against each other, when it comes to our identity in Christ?

Four hundred years of silence followed Malachi’s message in the Old Testament . . . No written or spoken revelation from God . . . And then suddenly, out of the silence . . .

Matthew

Matthew records an angelic proclamation that the Messiah would be born to a virgin in Bethlehem, just as the prophets foretold, and continues on to tell, from his unique perspective as one of Jesus’ disciples, of the birth of Jesus, the Messiah, his life, his baptism, his earthly ministry, his miracles, his crucifixion, his resurrection, and his final charge to his disciples (followers).

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:19-20).

Photo credit: Unsplash