"Let's get right down to it. Should Christians celebrate Christmas? Everyone knows that it's all rooted in paganism, and besides that, we all know that Jesus wasn't born on the 25th of December. Shouldn't we just avoid the whole thing altogether?"

Sure, those are things that people say, but are they true and accurate? Let's dig into the scriptures as well as some "historical resources to determine the truth for ourselves.

Works Cited

David Prior, The Message of 1Corinthians: Life in the Local Church, The Bible Speaks Today(Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985), 140.

Ancient Sources on December 25th and Pagan Festivals

Chronograph of 354 (Philocalian Calendar) – A.D. 354                                         Earliestrecord of December 25 as Christ’s birthday and of the pagan Natalis SolisInvicti (“Birth of the Unconquered Sun”).

Hippolytus of Rome, Commentary on Daniel – ca. 200–230                              IdentifiesDecember 25 as Christ’s birth and calculates March 25 as date of the Passion.

Tertullian, Against the Jews (Adversus Iudaeos) 8 – ca. 197–200 Links the Passion to March 25, forming part of the early Christian dating tradition.

Augustine, De Trinitate 4.5 – ca. 399–419                                                          Affirms that early Christians held conception and death of Christ occurred on March 25.

John Chrysostom, Homily on the Nativity – ca. 386- 390 Defends December 25 as the true date of Christ’s birth and notes its recent adoption in the East.

Historia Augusta, “Aurelian” 25.3 – Late 4th century                            Describes Aurelian’s promotion of the Sol Invictus cult in A.D.274.

Macrobius, Saturnalia – early 5th century                                                         Defines Saturnalia as December 17–23, confirming it did not include December 25.

Have you ever wondered what it meant for God to harden Pharaoh's heart? Does it raise questions in your mind about whether we actually have free will or not? It wasn't until I went to Egypt that I developed a fuller understanding of not only the concept, but implications for Bible study in general. Briefly put, travel to ancient biblical lands can add depth to your study available in no other way. Let's talk about it.

In "About the Rapture Pt. 1" we studied the timing of the rapture in response to a recent well-known failed prediction. In Pt. 2, we will seek to answer the question, "What is the rapture and what is its purpose?" To be forewarned is to be forearmed, and to be informed is to be prepared. Let's talk about the rapture.

Works Cited

Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete WordStudy Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMGPublishers, 2000).

D. Michael Martin, 1, 2 Thessalonians,vol. 33, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1995), 145.

Brandon Smith, “The Rapture,” in Lexham Survey of Theology, ed. Mark Ward et al. (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2018).

Do you know what has been in the news a lot lately?The rapture. It’s because a preacher recently claimed to have been told by God that the rapture would happen on September 23-24, 2025. When that did not happen, it was revised to October 7-9, 2025. What did you think of that?

This is not the first time such a thing has happened. What is the rapture anyway, and when will it happen? There is a biblical answer for one of those questions. Let's study together.

Works Cited

https://www.newsweek.com/10-rapture-predictions-that-never-came-to-pass-10476612

D. Michael Martin, 1, 2 Thessalonians,vol. 33, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & HolmanPublishers, 1995), 236.

Brandon Smith, “The Rapture,” in Lexham Survey of Theology, ed. Mark Ward et al. (Bellingham, WA:Lexham Press, 2018).

Perhaps you've heard about a sin (or sins) that are said to be unpardonable. They range from suicide to adultery to homosexuality and more. But did you know the Bible only specifically and expressly identifies one sin as such? Let's study together in order to know what it is and avoid eternal jeopardy.

Works Cited

Craig Blomberg, Matthew,vol. 22, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & HolmanPublishers, 1992), 204.

Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete WordStudy Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMGPublishers, 2000).

R. T. France, Matthew: AnIntroduction and Commentary, vol. 1, Tyndale New TestamentCommentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1985), 96.

Jay E. Adams, Fifty DifficultPassages Explained (Cordova, TN: Institute for NoutheticStudies, 2020), 38.WeHi

One of the best tools for Bible study is your own mind. What is meant by that is that we have an innate desire to seek information and are naturally curious. We are at our best when we apply those natural tendencies to our time with Scripture. For example, in Mark 8:22-24, Jesus heals a blind man, but it took multiple efforts. We should naturally wonder why and then seek the answer. Let's do just that together.

We all know John the Baptist as the forerunner of Christ. He was well known for his spartan appearance, his fervor for his mission, and his fearless righteousness. He famously baptized Jesus, but would later ask if he was actually the Messiah. What would cause him to ask such a question? Further, what was Jesus' answer, and why did he choose to answer him the way that he did? Let's study.

Family, today’s inspiration comes from something that I hear referenced often during conversations about the Bible or in Bible studies that involve things like the sinner’s prayer, whereChristians go when they die, and the necessity of baptism (or lack thereof). Of course, there are widely varying opinions about each of those topics, but they all seem to work their way around to referencing the “thief on the cross.”

 Many point to “the” thief on the cross as having been saved, without the ritual of baptism, and to having gone straight to heaven with Jesus upon their deaths. Have you ever heard anyof these positions? Do you advocate for any of them? Because I’ve heard these and other claims about the narrative, I thought it would make an excellent subject of study. Join me.

Works Cited Ceslas Spicq and James D. Ernest, Theological Lexiconof the New Testament (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers,1994), 241.

Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete WordStudy Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMGPublishers, 2000).

Allison A. Trites, William J. Larkin, CornerstoneBiblical Commentary, Vol 12: The Gospel of Luke and Acts (CarolStream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2006), 303.

Trent C. Butler, Luke, vol. 3, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 395.

Benjamin M. Austin, “Afterlife,” in Lexham Theological Wordbook, ed. Douglas Mangum et al., LexhamBible Reference Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014).

Robert H. Stein, Luke,vol. 24, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1992), 593.

What did the apostle Paul mean when he expressed the preference to be absent from the body and present with the Lord? As it turns out, there is quite a bit involved with the multiple concepts he is conveying. Let's study it together.

Works Cited

Craig A. Smith, “Complaining,” in Lexham Theological Wordbook, ed. Douglas Mangum et al., LexhamBible Reference Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014).

FrancescoBianchi, “Desire,” in LexhamTheological Wordbook, ed. Douglas Mangum et al., Lexham BibleReference Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014).

Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete WordStudy Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMGPublishers, 2000).

David E. Garland, 2 Corinthians,vol. 29, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & HolmanPublishers, 1999), 261.

Not long ago, I asked a great friend if he believed in ghosts. At the time, I did not. His response was, "Well, there's one in the Bible." Naturally, that is all that was needed to launch into a study. What was found was a need to also examine the consequences of disobedience to God. It is fascinating how the two considerations collided in Scripture.

Works Cited

Robert D. Bergen, 1, 2 Samuel,vol. 7, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & HolmanPublishers, 1996), 268.

James Swanson, Dictionary ofBiblical Languages with Semantic Domains : Hebrew (Old Testament)(Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997).