What would the world be like without Christmas? That is, what would it be like without the declaration of Christmas: “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord”?
This is the second installment in our series profiling women in the Bible (Who are not named Ruth or Esther). Both the stories of Ruth and Esther are beautiful, gracious, and profound. We love reading and rereading them. However, in an attempt to bring attention to more stories of more women throughout the Scriptures, we choose now to shift our focus.
What preacher’s deliver to their hearers is not just one or another gift, a present or two that enriches life. Preachers also deliver the very presence of the Lord.
Ascertaining the what and how of the Church greatly factor into the very purpose of the Church, that is, they essentially answer the question why the Church?
This is the litmus test for a Christian sermon: Did Christ have to die upon the cross for me to be able to say this and to say it as His very own message?
The story of Juneteenth is one of living between proclamation and emancipation, and the story of the Christian faith is one of living in that same tension.