Today we start reading another of the four Gospel books: the Gospel of Matthew. In Matthew 1, we read about the birth of Jesus. We learn that his mother Mary is a human, but that she conceived not from a man, as is the case for all of us with our mother and our father. Rather, the Holy Spirit came upon her in a very special way. This is why Jesus is one hundred percent human yet also one hundred percent God. This is difficult to understand, but that should not trouble us. The Trinity is a miracle that we can never fully comprehend. We also learn in this chapter that Mary remained a virgin when she conceived Jesus. That too is a miracle, but it was prophesied hundreds of years earlier in the Old Testament (in Isaiah, chapter 7): “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanuel” (which means “God with us”). This is one of many, many Old Testament prophesies about the coming Messiah that Jesus of Nazareth fulfilled. Amen.

Today we read the last chapter of Mark. Here, Jesus commands His disciples to go out into the world and proclaim His Good News to all of creation. Two thousand years later, we pastors and missionaries are doing the same thing–now on the Internet, so wherever you are reading this, you may believe that Jesus died for your sins and rose again to grant you eternal life. Hallelujah!

Today we read Mark 15. In verse 34, Jesus on the cross curiously exclaims, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?” Quoting Psalm 22 from the Old Testament, Jesus means that, by taking all the sins of the world upon Himself on the cross, He is during those hours actually separated from God the Father. This is even more painful for Him than the physical pain of the crucifixion. Jesus did this *for you*, so that your sins will never separate *you* from the Father. Hallelujah!

Today we read Mark 14. The most important thing in this chapter is the Lord’s Supper that Jesus offers His disciples. Christians do this in church today too, as they receive the Lord’s true body in the bread and His true blood in the wine. We pray for the believers in countries who are not able to receive the Lord’s Supper because their governments do not allow freedom of religion. May the Lord someday soon make this possible!