W e will celebrate Christmas soon. Christmas is when we celebrate the birth of the baby Jesus. We have this holiday on December 25th, but we are not certain this was the actual day Jesus was born. The Christian, Roman emperor Constantine decided on this day in 325 AD to replace the holiday of Saturnalia.
The Apostle John hints that the birth may have been in Winter season near the Jewish feast of tabernacles by his words in John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us... It most likely was not in the middle of winter because the shepherds were abiding in the field. In late December, it would be too cold to spend the night outside in a field.
What is more important is that God chose to come into the world as a baby, and how humbly he did it. Now humble is a word that means gentle, and not putting on a big show of importance. Actually, the fact that Jesus was born was the most important news in the world. It deserved to be told to the most important people in the world: the kings and emperors. But is this who heard the news first? No! God sent his angel to lowly shepherds tending to flocks of sheep. Shepherds were not viewed by others as being important at all. They had a very humble job. This is why God made it clear that the good news was for all people, even the very poorest people.
An angel appeared to shepherds who were in the nearby fields. A great light shone down on them, and the angel told them, "Do not be afraid. A Savior who is Christ
the Lord is born tonight." The shepherds left in search of this child. They found him in the stable. Luke 2:8-14 This was not the birth of any ordinary child. This baby was the Son of God. Was he born in a palace and wrapped in fine silk clothing? No! There was not even room at the inn. He was born in a lowly stable where animals slept. His only bed was the straw in the feeding trough (a manger). He had small strips of cloth wrapped around him, not a warm pair of baby diapers. His family wasn’t rich, but lived modestly. The Savior of the world entered the world in a humble fashion as an example for us to be humble. As Isaiah 9:6 says Unto us a child is born... The Prince of Peace.
Mary, who was a young woman gentle and good, lived in the town of Nazareth. She was soon to marry a carpenter named Joseph. She was visited one day by an angel named Gabriel who told her that she would have a son and that she should name him Jesus. He said the Holy Spirit would be with her and the child would be the Son of God.
One night Joseph had a dream in it an angel spoke “ Joseph take mary as your wife. The child in her is from the HOLY SPIRIT when he’s born, call him Jesus he will save his people from their sins” Mary and Joseph were married. Then one day they had to travel to Bethlehem to pay their taxes. It was a long journey. When they arrived in Bethlehem, there was no place for them at the inn. They spent the night in the stable. That night the baby was born. They named him Jesus, just as the angel had said.
Wise men from the east followed a star to Jerusalem in search of Jesus. King Herod tried to trick the men, so he could find out where this child was that they were calling "King of the Jews." (He was afraid the child would one day take his throne from him.) The wise men found Jesus in Bethlehem in a house. They worshiped him and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense (incense) and myrrh.
He came as a baby in a manger. God loves us so much that he gave us a gift Yes, it is GRACE. Grace is a word we hear a lot in church but sometimes we don't know what it means. Grace means we have been given something we don't deserve because we cannot do anything to earn it.
The Bible says in Ephesians 2:8,9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
When Jesus was grown he died on the cross to pay for our sins or badness. We could never be good enough to get to heaven on our own. Jesus loves us so much he wants us to go to heaven when we die and be with him forever. We have a gift we can give to God we can give ourselves to God and serve Him.
In Romans 12:1 it says I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. That means our gift is giving ourselves to God. We can do that when we trust Jesus to be our Savior and follow Him all through life on earth. The shepherds hurried to Bethlehem and found the manger where Jesus lay. Then they returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen... As you ponder the meaning of Christmas this year.
Be sure to thank God for sending us his Son Jesus, and giving us an example of being humble. It doesn't matter if there is no room at the inn, as long as there is room in your heart. God decided long ago that he would send us his Son Jesus
