>It is Christmas time again. Christ’s birth in Bethlehem brought a glow of warmth and love into our world, changing the lives of people everywhere. Jesus came bringing life and hope to the lives of millions. Under the spell of His love, lives hardened by hopelessness, cruelty, and oppression, grew soft and renewed by divine love.

When Jesus was born, that Holy Child was the brightness of the Father’s glory, born, not only to manifest the Father’s love for us, but also to identify Himself with us in our suffering. Christmas reveals the full extent of God’s love for us. God was touched by our needs; He could not see us suffering alone so, He came to give us help, comfort, and peace.

As you celebrate Christmas, think again about what Christ’s coming has done to our world: wherever He went, hard hearts softened and sinful lives were changed. Pray that Christ might be enthroned in so many faithful hearts that Christmas of 2006 might become the beginning of a new awareness that Jesus Christ is the only hope for a lost world.

During this Christmas season, I thank you for the opportunity of ministering to you through my blog. My life is richer because many of you have touched my life so many different ways.

I will be taking a break during the Christmas holidays. I will be back again in January 2007 with a renewed commitment to spread the good news everywhere. There is so much to learn from the Old Testament and together, I hope that we will dig a little deeper and discover the many riches of God’s Word.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. May the Lord of Christmas bring joy, love, and happiness to you and your loved ones.

Claude Mariottini
Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

Tag: Christmas