The Christmas Story

The second chapter of the Gospel of Luke in the Bible is perhaps the most popular and most often quoted version of the story of Christmas, the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. However, my wife and I attended a Christmas Eve service with our family at Mariners Church in Irvine, CA where they had printed a version of the Christmas Story based on passages taken from the Old Testament (the book of Isaiah) as well as from the New Testament Gospels for Matthew and Luke. It has become a favorite of mine, and so I share it with you below.

The Christmas Story
From Isaiah 9, Matthew 1 & 2, Luke 1 & 2

God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God! You will give birth to a Son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High." The angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph and said, "Do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a Son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus because He will save the people from their sins." So Joseph went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee, to Bethlehem in Judea with Mary. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born and she gave birth to her firstborn, a Son. She wrapped Him in cloths and place Him in a manager, because there was no room for them in the inn. There were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks by night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them and they were terrified. But the angel said, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good tidings of great joy that will be for all the people. A Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: you will find the baby wrapped in cloths lying in a manger." So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and the Baby. They spread the word concerning this Child, and all who heard it were amazed. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which was just as they had been told. Wise men from the East came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the One who has been born King of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship Him." King Herod sent them to Bethlehem and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped. They saw the Child with His mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshipped Him. Then they opened their treasures and presented Him with gifts of gold, incense and myrrh. For unto us a child is born and He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace and Immanuel, which means God with us.

Mariners Church, Irvine, CA
Marinerschurch.org
2017

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