On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me . . . twelve drummers drumming.

The final gift is tied directly to the Christian Church. The drummers are the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostles’ Creed. Just as drums are often used to grab our attention for something important, the 12 drummers of the twelfth day of Christmas remind us of 12 important parts of our Christian faith life.

So here are those 12 teachings of our Christian faith listed out:

1. We believe in One God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.

2. We believe in Jesus Christ, His only Son.

3. We believe that Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary.

4. We believe Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried.

5. We believe Jesus rose from the grave on the third day.

6. We believe that Jesus ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God.

7. We believe that Jesus will come to judge the living and the dead.

8. We believe in the Holy Spirit.

9. We believe the church is universal.

10. We believe in the communion of the saints.

11. We believe in the forgiveness of sins.

12. We believe in the resurrection of the body and life everlasting in Christ.

Think of how many times you might have recited that list as you’ve said either the Apostle’s or Nicene Creeds. Yes, #3 clearly states the Christmas story. But think about how many of these foundational teachings of our Christian faith are built on and rise from the manger in Bethlehem! This twelfth day of Christmas is a reminder of 3 important aspects of our Christian faith: 1) How all of our Christian faith is tied together, 2) The doctrine of the Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) – that our God is one God in three persons (mind blowing) and how all 3 persons of the Trinity work together for our eternal good and 3) how Christmas is just the beginning of the story of the work of Jesus to save the entire world.

Let’s look at 2 of those aspects of our faith. First of all, the Trinity. As was said above, we’ve confessed the Trinity countless times as we’ve recited the creeds of the Christian faith, but how often do we stop to think about the importance of the working of the Trinity in our daily Christian walk? 

Maybe you’ve been reminded this Christmas or in a previous Christmas season that the manger is only the beginning of the plan God laid out to win our forgiveness and salvation. It is always good for us to remember that God’s plan was for the manger to lead to the cross with many other things in between.

Prayer: O Triune God – thank you the way you’ve work on my behalf to bring me a Savior, assure me of my forgiveness, support me on my Christian walk and keep me on the road to heaven. Amen.