Life's Inanities and Ironies

 In a world where the cultural rush of "Christmas" often peaks on December 25 and fades quickly afterward, many Bible-believing Christians are rediscovering the richer, historic practice of *Christmastide*—the full twelve days of celebration from Christmas Day to Epiphany. This season invites us to linger longer in worshipful reflection on the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ, drawing from early church traditions while keeping our focus squarely on Scripture's account of His birth and revelation.   What Is Christmastide? Christmastide, also called the Twelve Days of Christmas, begins on **December 25** (celebrating the Nativity of Jesus) and continues through **January 5**, concluding with the Feast of Epiphany on **January 6**. Epiphany commemorates the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles, as seen in the visit of the Magi (Matthew 2:1–12). While the exact date of December 25 is not specified in Scripture, the early church chose it to honor the birth of the Savior...

As Bible-believing Christians, we hold Scripture as our ultimate authority. We rejoice in the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ—the Word made flesh—who came to save us from our sins. Every year, we gather on December 25 to celebrate His birth with carols, gifts, and family. But many of us have heard the question: *Was Jesus really born on December 25?* The honest, Scripture-based answer is **no**. The Bible never specifies the day—or even the month—of our Savior's birth. Yet God, in His sovereignty, has allowed this date to become a worldwide reminder of the greatest event in history. Let's look carefully at what the Bible does (and doesn't) say, examine some biblical clues about the likely timing, and trace how December 25 became the day we celebrate today. My goal is simple: to honor the truth of God's Word while encouraging us to keep Christ at the center of our celebrations. What the Bible Says—and Doesn't Say—About the Date The Gospel accounts in Matthew and...

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, As a Bible-believing Christian committed to the authority of Scripture alone, I approach the subject of Christmas with both reverence for the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ and deep concern for the many traditions that have attached themselves to this holiday over the centuries. The birth of the Savior is the most glorious event in human history after the resurrection itself , yet the Bible gives us no command to celebrate it annually on a specific date, nor does it provide most of the customs we associate with “Christmas” today. In this blog post, I want to walk you through the historical development of Christmas celebrations—from the silence of Scripture and the early church, through the adoption of December 25, the incorporation of extra-biblical (and often pagan) practices, the godly rejection by Reformers and Puritans, the 19th-century revival, and finally to the thoroughly commercialized spectacle we see in our day. My prayer is that ...

  C.S. Lewis , the renowned Christian apologist and author, addressed the doctrine of hell thoughtfully in several works, including * The Problem of Pain * (1940), * The Great Divorce * (1945), and scattered references in * Mere Christianity * and his letters. He affirmed hell as a real, eternal reality but presented it with distinctive emphases on ** free will **, ** self-choice **, and ** separation from God **, rather than focusing primarily on physical torment. Lewis rejected caricatures of a sadistic God gleefully punishing sinners; instead, he portrayed hell as the inevitable outcome of rejecting divine love. Core Themes in Lewis's Theology of Hell 1. Hell as Self-Chosen Separation      Lewis famously argued that hell results from human freedom. God respects our choices, even when we persistently reject Him. In *The Great Divorce*, he depicts hell (or a purgatorial precursor ) as a vast, dreary town where inhabitants quarrel and isolate themselves, yet a bus ...

  Ray Comfort , founder of Living Waters ministry and a prominent figure in evangelical street evangelism through " The Way of the Master " (formerly co-hosted with Kirk Cameron ), unequivocally defends the ** traditional doctrine of eternal conscious torment ** (ECT). He views hell not merely as a place of physical suffering but, most profoundly, as ** eternal separation from God **—the ultimate horror for any created being. Comfort teaches that God's presence is the source of all goodness, beauty, joy, peace, and life itself ( Psalm 16:11 : "In your presence there is fullness of joy"). To be eternally banished from that presence means existing forever in a state of utter deprivation, where every trace of divine common grace—restraint of evil, glimpses of beauty, relational comfort—is permanently withdrawn.  The Essence of Eternal Separation in Comfort's Teaching Comfort emphasizes that the greatest torment in hell is not primarily flames or worms (though ...