Pastor John D Jakes

A friend of mine has been reminding me much these last few weeks of the true meaning of Christmas.  He is working hard not to forget it.  So, here goes… The true meaning of Christmas…

Luke 1: 26 Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city in Galilee called Nazareth, 27  to a virgin engaged to a man whose name was Joseph, of the descendants of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. 28  And coming in, he said to her, “Greetings, favored one! The Lord is with you.” 29  But she was very perplexed at this statement, and kept pondering what kind of salutation this was. 30  The angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; for you have found favor with God. 31  “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32  “He will be great 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 Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.” 34  Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I am a virgin?” 35  The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; and for that reason the holy Child shall be called the Son of God. 36  “And behold, 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 nothing will be impossible with God.” 38  And Mary said, “Behold, the bond slave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. 

Matthew 1: 18 Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. 19  And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. 20  But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21  “She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” 22  Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: 23  “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.” 24  And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, 25  but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus.

Luke 2: 1 Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. 2  This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3  And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city. 4  Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, 5  in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. 6  While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. 7  And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. 8 In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night. 9  And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord 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 all the people; 11  for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12  “This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13  And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14  “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.” 15  When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.” 16  So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. 17  When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. 18  And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. 19  But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. 20  The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

I hope you and yours have a blessed Christmas.  And may you, like Mary, ponder all these things in your heart.

Something to think about,

Pastor John