"Now she shall be bringing forth a Son, and you shall be calling His name Jesus, for He shall be saving His people from their sins." Now the whole of this has occurred that that may be fulfilled which is declared by the Lord by the prophet, saying: "Lo! The virgin shall be pregnant And shall be bringing forth a Son, AND they shall be calling His name 'Emmanuel,'" which is, being construed, "God with us."
Matthew 1: 21-23, Concordant New Testament
Christmas is a special time of year. A time where we take time to think more of others instead of ourselves. A time where we reflect on the deeper meaning of this life. I now know that the Christmas season is upon us because of the blitz of Christmas specials I've been seeing on television. It seems that everyone and their brother has a unique interpretation of what the true meaning of Christmas is. One You tube influencer threw out the possibility of creating the first openly gay holiday over the Christmas season. For me, my own vision of the meaning of Christmas is something between the mainstream church and the Jesus I have come to know. Yet, before I could celebrate my knowledge of the birth of Jesus, I needed to take another look into the stained glass windows of the brick and mortar church. This is where I learned what they told me was the true meaning of Christmas. How Joseph and Mary huddled in a outdoor manger because there was no room for them at the local boarding house. It seems holiday travelers dealt with this issue even back then. How a star in the sky guided three wise guys to said manger where they dealt gifts to and worshipped this newborn child. Here's something interesting, a portion of the gifts the three wise men gifted to the baby Jesus were...spices used in that day for the embalming and burial process {Matthew 2:11}. Indeed, frankincense and myrrh were often used in Jesus' day during the burial process. Were these three men prophets? Is there some sort of inner message we should be seeing through their gifts to the Christ child? Through all of my years looking through the stained glass nobody ventured to ask that question. So, Jesus is born in a manger in Bethlehem. We're told that His is a humble birth, possibly signifying His later years. Interestingly, this is where the story of the boy Jesus comes to an abrupt end. The next time we see Jesus He is almost grown and about to begin His ministry. My, that kid grew fast.
And the messenger said to them, "Fear not, for Lo! I am bringing you an evangel of great joy which will be for the entire people, for today was brought forth to you a Savior who is Christ, the Lord."
Luke 2: 10-11, Concordant New Testament
What my life behind the stained glass of the mainstream church failed to introduce me to was the REAL Jesus whom I had heard so much about. The Jesus that did not vanish from our reality once He rose from the grave. On the contrary, in the story of the birth of Jesus we're again introduced to a few revelations of scripture that reveal to the reader that there is something more to His birth. We're told that His birth will be of great joy for all of the people {Luke 2:10}. That it is He who will save His people from their sins {Matthew 1:21}. Yet most important of all are the words of the prophet Issaiah who proclaimed that the child's very name would remind us of His purpose {Issaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23}. Yes, Jesus saves people from their sins, but I believe that the most important scripture concerning His birth is that which proclaims His name. Immanuel, which is translated to mean "God with us." This is the meaning of the birth of Jesus. Jesus did not come to simply wipe our sin slate clean and then return to His Fathers side. No, Jesus came to BE WITH US. As Issaiah predicted, the true meaning of the Christ child is God with us. No, God in us {Galatians 2:20}. As I said, this is the story of the birth of Jesus I never learned in the mainstream church. This is the revelation which I received from the Lord. The revelation of Christ Jesus in me. This is the reason He came.
"That they may all be one, according as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us, that the whole world should be believing that Thou dost commission Me."
John 17: 21, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
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