Ever tried to read “the Christmas Story” to the family, only to realize that you’re flipping all around the Bible, unsure what comes from Matthew, remembering Linus’ speech (from Luke), and wondering if maybe some prophecy from Isaiah should be read as well (it’s what Handel’s Messiah is from)?
Yeah, us too.
So, I decided to FIGHT BACK.
NO MORE of this piecemeal Nativity reading. NO MORE slapdash rummaging around through the Bible, feeling unprepared and seeing po-faced disapproval from the fam. NO MORE!
Because I cracked the code. For you.
I went through the Bible, THOUGHTFULLY mind you, and find all the good Christmas Story bits, and I wove them together, into one tight compilation! I fear God, so I’m not going to say I “improved upon the Bible”- that would be lunacy. But I will say this is better than trying to remember where the angel appeared to MARY, and where the angel appeared to JOSEPH, and where the angels appeared in the SKY (Luke, Matthew, then back to Luke, if you care to know). It’s all here amigos. Just print this off and read IT.
You’re welcome.
THE CHRISTMAS STORY, ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE
Prophesies about the Coming One:
Isaiah 9…there will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish [for with judgment comes the promise of salvation]. In earlier times He treated the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali with contempt, but later on He will make them honored [by the presence of the Messiah], by the way of the sea, on the other side of Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles.
2 The people who walk in [spiritual] darkness Will see a great Light;
Those who live in the dark land, The Light will shine on them.
3 You [O God] will increase the nation, You will multiply their joy;
They will rejoice before You Like the joy and jubilation of the harvest,
As men rejoice when they divide the spoil [of victory].
4 For You will break the yoke of Israel’s burden and the staff (goad) on their shoulders,
The rod of their oppressor, as at the battle of Midian.
5 For every boot of the marching warrior in the battle tumult,
And [every soldier’s] garment rolled in blood, will be used for burning, fuel for the fire.
6 For to us a Child shall be born, to us a Son shall be given;
And the government shall be upon His shoulder,
And His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
7 There shall be no end to the increase of His government and of peace,
[prophecies still yet to be fulfilled!]
[He shall rule] on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
To establish it and to uphold it with justice and righteousness
From that time forward and forevermore.
The zeal of the God of the Angel Armies will accomplish this.
Isaiah 11Then a Shoot (the Messiah) will spring from the stock of Jesse [David’s father],
And a Branch from his roots will bear fruit.
2 And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him:
The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit of counsel and strength,
The Spirit of knowledge and of the [reverential and obedient] fear of the Lord—
3 And He will delight in the fear of the Lord,
And He will not judge by what His eyes see,
Nor make decisions by what His ears hear;
4 But with righteousness and [impartial] justice He will judge the poor,
And decide with fairness for the downtrodden of the earth;
And He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,
And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.
5 And righteousness will be the belt around His loins,
And faithfulness the belt around His waist.
6 And the wolf will dwell with the lamb,
And the leopard will lie down with the young goat,
And the calf and the young lion and the fatted steer together;
And a little child will lead them.
7 And the cow and the bear will graze [together],
Their young will lie down together,
And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 And the nursing child will [safely] play over the hole of the cobra,
And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper’s den [and not be hurt].
9 They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain,
For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
As the waters cover the sea.
10 Then in that day The nations [Goyim] will make supplications to the Root of Jesse [that’s us!]
Who will stand as a signal for the peoples;
And His resting place will be glorious.
THE ADVENT
1. Notice how many PROPHECIES are referenced in the reading. How many can you count?
2. Notice how specific God was in leading Miriam and Yoseph! Every time God gives a direction, somebody say “God’s leading them!”
Luke 1:26 … the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, 27 to a virgin [j]betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, a descendant of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Miriam. 28 And coming to her, the angel said, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29 But she was greatly perplexed at what he said, and kept carefully considering what kind of greeting this was. 30 The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Miriam, for you have found favor with God. 31 Listen carefully: you will conceive in your womb and give birth to a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32 He will be great and eminent and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Yacov (Israel) forever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end.” 34 Miriam said to the angel, “How will this be, since I am a virgin and have no intimacy with any man?” 35 Then the angel replied to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you [like a cloud]; for that reason the holy (pure, sinless) Child shall be called the Son of God. 36 And listen, even your relative Elizabeth has also conceived a son in her old age; and she who was called barren is now in her sixth month. 37 For with God nothing [is or ever] shall be impossible.” 38 Then Mary said, “[k]Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel left her…
46 And Miriam said,
“My soul magnifies and exalts the Lord,
47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
48 “For He has looked [with loving care] on the humble state of His maidservant;
For behold, from now on all generations will count me blessed and happy and favored by God!
49 “For He who is mighty has done great things for me;
And holy is His name [to be worshiped in His purity, majesty, and glory].
50 “And His mercy is upon generation after generation
Toward those who [stand in great awe of God and] fear Him.
51 “He has done mighty deeds with His [powerful] arm;
He has scattered those who were proud in the thoughts of their heart.
52 “He has brought down rulers from their thrones, And exalted those who were humble.
53 “He has filled the hungry with good things; And sent the rich and satisfied away empty-handed.
54 “He has helped His servant Israel, In remembrance of His mercy,
55 Just as He promised to our fathers, To Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
Matthew 1:18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Miriam had been [j]betrothed to Yoseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by [the power of] the Holy Spirit. 19 And Yoseph her [promised] husband, being a just and righteous man and not wanting to expose her publicly to shame, planned to send her away and divorce her quietly. 20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Yoseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Miriam as your wife, for the Child who has been [k]conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a Son, and you shall name Him Yeshua(which means The Lord is salvation), for He will [l]save His people from their sins.” 22 All this happened in order to fulfill what the Lord had spoken through the [m]prophet [Isaiah]: 23 “Behold, the [n]virgin shall be with child and give birth to a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel”—which, when translated, means, “God with us.” 24 Then Yoseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him, and he took Miriam [to his home] as his wife, 25 but he kept her a virgin until she had given birth…
Luke 2: Now in those days a decree went out from [the emperor] Caesar Augustus, that all the inhabited world (the Roman Empire) should be registered [in a census]. 2 This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 And everyone went to register for the census, each to his own city. 4 So Yoseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazaret, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bet Lechem (which means “the House of Bread”), because he was of the house and family of David, 5 in order to register with Miriam, who was [c]betrothed to him, and was with child. 6 While they were there [in Bet Lechem], the time came for her to give birth, 7 and she gave birth to her Son, her firstborn; and she wrapped Him in [swaddling] cloths and laid Him in a manger, because there was no [private] room for them in the inn.
8 In the same region there were shepherds staying out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord flashed and shone around them, and they were terribly frightened. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for [f]all the people. 11 For this day in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord (the Messiah). 12 And this will be a sign for you [by which you will recognize Him]: you will find a Baby wrapped in [swaddling] cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 Then suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host (angelic army) praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest [heaven], And on earth peace among men with whom He is well-pleased.”
15 When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying one to another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem, and see this [wonderful] thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 So they went in a hurry and found their way to Miriam and Yoseph, and the Baby as He lay in the manger. 17 And when they had seen this, they made known what had been told them about this Child, 18 and all who heard it were astounded and wondered at what the shepherds told them. 19 But Miriam treasured all these things, giving careful thought to them and pondering them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as it had been told them.
Matthew 2 Now when Yeshua was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king (Herod the Great), magi (or “wise men”) from the east came to Yerushalayim, asking, 2 “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east and have come to worship Him.” 3 When Herod the king heard this, he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 So he called together all the chief priests and scribes of the people and [anxiously] asked them where the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) was to be born. 5 They replied to him, “In Bet Lechem of Judea, for this is what has been written by the prophet [Micah]:
6 ‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are not in any way least among the leaders of Judah;
For from you shall come a Ruler
Who will shepherd My people Israel.’”
7 Then Herod secretly sent for the magi and learned from them the [exact] time the star [had first] appeared. 8 Then he sent them to BetLechem, saying, “Go and search carefully for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, so that I too may come and worship Him.” 9 After hearing the king, they went their way; and behold, the star, which they had seen in the east, went on before them [continually leading the way] until it came and stood over the place where the young Child was. 10 When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. 11 And after entering the house, they saw the Child with Miriam His mother; and they fell down and worshiped Him. Then, after opening their treasure chests, they presented to Him gifts [fit for a king, gifts] of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. 12 And having been warned [by God] in a dream not to go back to Herod, the magi left for their own country by another way.
The Flight to Egypt
13 Now when they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod intends to search for the Child in order to destroy Him.”
14 So Joseph got up and took the Child and His mother while it was still night, and left for Egypt. 15 He remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet [Hosea]: “Out of Egypt I called My Son.”
Herod Slaughters the Babies
16 Then Herod, when he realized that he had been tricked by the magi, was extremely angry, and he sent [soldiers] and put to death all the male children in Bet Lechem and in all that area who were two years old and under, according to the date which he had learned from the magi. 17 Then what had been spoken through Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:
18 “A voice was heard in Ramah,
Weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children;
She refused to be comforted,
Because they were no more.”
19 But when Herod died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, 20 “Get up! Take the Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.” 21 Then Joseph got up, and took the Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel. 22 But when he heard that Archelaus was ruling over Judea in place of his father Herod [the Great], he was afraid to go there. Then being warned by God in a dream, he left for the region of Galilee, 23 and went and settled in a city called Nazaret. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets:
“He shall be called a Nazarene.” [note: this quote does not appear in the O.T.]
Luke 2: 52 And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and in stature, and in favor with God and men.
*How many prophecies were named as being fulfilled? FIVE! (There are at least 30 more that were fulfilled in Christ’s birth!)
