The Birth of Jesus

While Christmas may not be the exact day that Jesus was born, it is a beautiful celebration where you can remind yourself and others about how Jesus came into our world to fulfill God’s promise to send each and every one of us the greatest gift: the gift of Salvation.

Way back when Abraham was alive, God made three promises to him. He promised a great nation, the Promised Land, and a blessing for the entire world. After some time, all but one promise had come true. The Messiah, who is the blessing, had not yet arrived, even 400 years later since the Prophet Isaiah predicted His coming. The Israelites began to lose hope.

In the town of Nazareth, an angel named Gabriel visited a young woman. Her name was Mary. She was told by the angel that she would become pregnant and give birth to a baby boy named Jesus and he will be the true Son of God. Mary was confused since she was engaged to her soon-to-be husband and was still a virgin. The angel said,

“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy--the Son of God. And behold, your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For nothing will be impossible with God” (Luke 1:34-38 NIV).

Mary’s fiancé, Joseph, experienced the same confusion as Mary and he was hurt because he did not believe her. He was visited by the same angel that visited Mary and was told it was indeed true. Mary would give birth to the Messiah!

Because of an order for all residents to return to their hometown, the couple rode a donkey back to Bethlehem. They needed a place to stay but all the inns were full and closed. There was an inn owner who allowed Mary to stay in his stable, where she gave birth and laid Jesus on the manger. The angels told the good news to a group of shepherds, who rushed to find and worship Jesus.

A trio of three wise men were informed of Jesus’ birth. The Wise Men followed a bright star that appeared and rested over the stable Jesus was born in. During their trip, they ran into Herod, the king of Judah. He told the wise men to come back and let him know where Jesus is so he could worship the Messiah as well. But the three wise men later had a dream that Herod intended to harm Jesus, so they avoided Herod and protected the location of His birth. They finally arrived to the stable and provided gifts and worship for Jesus.

On the days of Christmas Eve and Christmas day, depending on one’s culture, families throw huge parties celebrating the holiday. Gifts are left under the Christmas tree and families travel to come together on this special day. But how many of these families know what they’re celebrating? How many of them know the word of God and make sure to celebrate the birth of Jesus, not just a gift giving day? Therefore, when we throw parties to celebrate the holiday, we must make sure that Jesus is at the center of it. If not, it is like throwing a birthday party without the birthday person there. It defeats the purpose of the day. The purpose of Christmas is to thank Jesus for His sacrifice. Thank the Messiah for taking the ultimate punishment and bleeding on the cross for our sins. Thank God for placing His son on Earth and allowing Him to die to the cruel world. And although this is a day we dedicate to Him, this shouldn’t be the only day. We should give these thanks every single day, not just once a year.  So, as you open your gifts, as you feast, and as you dance, just remember the birth of the One who allowed you to be doing all of this, and remember the sacrifice He made so you can be celebrating.