1. In that moment of greatest despair, we find the antidote for all our fears. We know we are beloved of God and there is salvation in Christ’s atoning death.
  2. Christ shows up in the middle of our storms and our nightmares. That’s where he sets up shop.
  3. God comes to us through the flesh and blood and spirit of Christ precisely where he promised to be manifest to us and for us.
  4. This is an excerpt from “Finding God in the Darkness: Hopeful Reflections from the Pits of Depression, Despair, and Disappointment” by Bradley Gray (1517 Publishing, 2023).
  5. In the tumultuous sea of information, opinions, and ideologies that break over us each day, we hold fast to the anchor of our faith—Jesus, the true prophet.
  6. Chains may have restricted Paul, but nothing can restrict the gospel.
  7. If Jesus did not rise, then religion is just religion — a mere anthropological phenomenon.
  8. It was meant to be Karlstadt’s moment to shine, but all anyone remembered was Luther.
  9. The resurrection of Jesus encompasses the total and comprehensive glorification of a human being, not merely his restoration.
  10. As Luther said, “Our Lord has written the promise of the resurrection not in books alone, but in every leaf of spring.”
  11. The Holy Spirit unleashes his power through us, his vines, and we then get to watch as his fruits blossom and ripen.