#jesus

Mary was frightened and confused. The angel Gabriel suddenly appeared and told her that she was going to have a child. Mary asked the obvious question, “How will this be, since I am a virgin?” In Gabriel’s amazing and mysterious answer, he explained that the entire Trinity would be involved in the miraculous birth.

Have you ever considered God to be as distant as the stars he created? Have you ever felt God to be a stern disciplinarian ready to punish you when you say something you shouldn’t say or do something you shouldn’t do? If you believe God is out of reach, then reconsider the Person named Jesus.

Do you ever wonder why the person who cuts corners gets the promotion? Why one with no scruples lands the deal? Why do the promiscuous ones get the engagement ring? Why do the wicked ones prosper? The psalmist wondered the same thing.

What if God was not on your side? What if he didn’t have your back? What if he decided to take his eyes off you and look the other way? What if God said, “You are on your own!”

Contentment. Where does it come from? There is no one better to ask than the apostle Paul. He was familiar with life’s extremes with challenging circumstances.

Our sin leaves us in a similar condition as Anna Lyndsey. Life is spent in the spiritual realm of darkness. But Jesus changes everything. Here’s what the apostle Paul tells us.

Who are you? What gives you identity? What’s your brand?

For the next few days, let’s consider the story of a man who needs no introduction. Well, at least not in the time and town where he lived. Our story is about a young man with a lot of money. But this rich young man was contemplating mortality. Makes you wonder why. Maybe a young friend had died, and he had come face to face with death. Maybe he had had a near-death experience. For whatever reason, the man ran up to Jesus and fell on his knees before the Lord. The man wanted a fresh start.

In the Old Testament, those who worshiped God participated in animal sacrifice. The believer took their sacrifice to the temple, put the animal to death, and placed its body on the altar to be consumed in the fire. Because of their sin, the worshiper should have been the one who died. But God, in his great mercy, allowed the animal to die in place of the believer. culminated