John 1:14 captures the incarnation of the Son of God and the glory thereof in these memorable words: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” The Incarnation of the Word By this point… Read More »
My favorite Christmas hymn is “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” written by Charles Wesley. I love its rich truths about Christ and the gospel. The text is based on many different passages in Scripture. In the first stanza, Wesley poetically summarizes the angels’ message to the shepherds that Christ, the newborn King, had been born… Read More »
The lyrics of the Christmas carol “In the Bleak Midwinter” lull us into the chill of a winter gone by: In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan, earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone; snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow, in the bleak midwinter, long ago. Our experience can… Read More »
“To us a child is born, to us a son is given” (Isaiah 9:6). This promise was fulfilled when Mary gave birth to Jesus, fully God and fully man. He came and conquered sin and death, and we look for Him to come again. When He does, He will fulfill the rest of Isaiah’s promise:… Read More »
Matthew 2:1–2 records the travel of the wise men from the east to Jerusalem, looking for the King of the Jews, “For we saw his star when it rose.” King Herod interrogated them as to “what time the star had appeared” (Matthew 2:7). After leaving Herod, the star apparently reappeared and “went before them until… Read More »
Matthew 2:6 records the quotation of Micah 5:2 by the chief priests and scribes to inform King Herod that Israel’s Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. If we look at Micah 5:2 and its surrounding verses (Micah 5:1–5), we can see how this passage encouraged Israel then and encourages us today. Jesus is greater than… Read More »
Matthew 1:18–25 tells how “the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way,” and Joseph’s dream is a significant part of this passage.He had just discovered that Mary was pregnant and made a natural but incorrect conclusion that Mary had become pregnant through another man (Matthew 1:18–19). Joseph was probably heartbroken. Mary seemed to… Read More »
Introduction The point of Matthew 1:18–25 is to tell how “the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way,” that is, in the way described in the rest of the passage. We will come to the highlights of this passage by focusing on its details through the eyes of Joseph. A Rocky Engagement (Matthew… Read More »
Where I live, we just had several inches of snow. Not only does the Bible say a few things about snow itself, but it also uses several wintry analogies to teach us truths and lessons to live by today. Winter’s Origin, Purpose, and Duration God created winter (Gen 8:22; Ps 74:17) so that we would… Read More »
From “Hark, the Herald Angels Sing,” the first two verses of the third stanza read as follows: Hail, the heav’nborn Prince of Peace! Hail, the Sun of Righteousness! Light and life to all He brings, Ris’n with healing in His wings. “The heav’nborn Prince of Peace” is obviously the Messiah (see Isaiah 9:6), but our… Read More »