Lesson 156 - Senior

Memory Verse

"Thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins" (Matthew 1:21).

Cross References

I The Birth of Christ

1. Jesus was born at Bethlehem, the City of David, [MAT:2:1], [MAT:2:5-6]; [LUK:2:1-7]; [JHN:7:42]; [MIC:5:2].

2. Jesus' earthly heritage was humble and poor, His birthplace was a manger, [LUK:2:7], [LUK:2:12]; [PS:2:7]; [ISA:9:6-7].

II The Visit of the Shepherds

1. The glory of the Lord appeared, and the angel brought good tidings to the shepherds, [LUK:2:8-12]; [ACT:5:31]; [ISA:52:7].

2. A multitude of the heavenly Host joined in praising God, [LUK:2:13-14]; [REV:19:6].

3. When the angels had returned to Heaven, the shepherds went to Bethlehem, [LUK:2:15].

4. They found Mary and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger, [LUK:2:16].

5. The shepherds spread abroad the wonderful things that they had seen and heard, [LUK:2:17-20].

III The Wise Men and the Star

1. The wise men, following Jesus' star, came to Jerusalem from the East, [MAT:2:1-7]; [NUM:24:17].

2. When the wise men found that Bethlehem was Jesus' birthplace, they started for that city and once again saw His star, [MAT:2:8-10].

3. Jesus the Saviour was the object of adoration of the wise men, [MAT:2:11]; [MAT:14:33]; [PS:95:6].

4. Being warned of God, the wise men returned home another way, and Joseph took Mary and the infant Jesus into Egypt, [MAT:2:12-15]; [HOS:11:1].

5. Herod sent forth and slew all the children in the coasts of Bethlehem, two years old and under, [MAT:2:16-18]; [JER:31:15].

6. The Holy Family returned to the land of Israel and Nazareth after Herod's death, [MAT:2:19-23]; [JHN:1:45-46].

Notes

The Promised Messiah

As this cheerful Christmas season is observed, may we direct our thoughts to the events that make Christmas possible. Think of the incomparable Gift that God gave to men. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

For centuries the promised Messiah had been the cherished hope of God's people. Now on this first Christmas night, the promise became reality; and with a glorious display that was worthy of the Son of God, Jesus came to earth in the likeness of man, to dwell among men. Yes, Jesus was God's Gift to the world, but He came willingly to pay the price of man's redemption. Jesus knew that the Cross lay at the end of His earthly pilgrim-age, but His only desire was to do the will of His Father. God desires only one thing of us in return for the love that He has manifested: He asks that we love and serve Him. Jesus gave His life for us. Should not we give our lives to Him in gratitude?

Good Tidings

So momentous was the event when the Saviour was born, that God sent an angel from Heaven to proclaim the good news. The angel was not sent to the crowded cities of the Jews; He was sent to the simple shepherds on the Judean hills. Without question, these openhearted people had had a love for God and a yearning to see His Word fulfilled. Suddenly the night watches of their eastern sky were illuminated by the glory of the Lord. The shepherds feared as they beheld this glorious sight, but the angel was there to reassure and comfort them. The tidings that the angel brought were not tidings of fear; they were tidings of great joy: "For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:11). Though addressed to the shepherds, the tidings were intended for the whole world for all people. Thus has God ordained. He tells the few, then commissions them to go and tell what they have seen and heard.

A Wonderful Night

Surely it was a wonderful night for the world, that first Christmas night when Jesus was born! God's angels must have realized the import of that night; for as soon as the good tidings were made known, a whole multitude of the heavenly Host joined in the exultation. Their praises rang out in one accord with what the angel had already declared: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men" (Luke 2:14).

The shepherds did not doubt the wondrous declaration, for they saw the attendant glory. After the angels returned to Heaven, the shepherds said one to another, "Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us." They came to the city with haste and found Mary, and Joseph, and the Babe lying in a manger, just as the angel of the Lord had said. This humble scene did not daunt their faith in the least degree: "When they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds." Oh, that men would be as willing to see Jesus today, as were these shepherds, and then would go out into the world to declare the vision they have beheld!

The City of David

Jesus was born in the City of Bethlehem, as the prophet had declared nearly 700 years previous to the event. Bethlehem was the birthplace of King David, too, and later became known as the City of David. It was here that David lived and tended his father's sheep before he was advanced to the kingship of Israel. How fitting that Jesus, the Son of David according to lineage, should be born in this same city to become the Great Shepherd of all God's sheep, and the coming King of all the redeemed. The name Bethlehem signifies "The house of bread." Does not this seem the proper place for him to be born who is the "living bread which came down from heaven" (John 6:51)?

Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a woman of Nazareth, a city of Galilee far to the north of Bethlehem. How could it be, then, that Jesus was born at Bethlehem? It seems that God put the whole world into motion to bring His prophecy to fulfilment. A decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed, every one in his own city. Joseph and Mary left Nazareth to go to Bethlehem (because he was of the house and line-age of David), "to be taxed with Mary his espoused wife." The Lord thus proved beyond a chance of question that Jesus was of the house and lineage of David, as the Scripture said that He would be.

Simeon and Anna

The shepherds were the first to hear and see the glorious things concerning Christ. Forty days later in the Temple, Simeon and Anna spoke by the Spirit, to all who would heed, of the salvation and redemption of God that was manifest in this Child. One would think that these declarations would have aroused at least some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem to a perception of what was before them; but apparently nothing could stir these people, for when the wise men arrived, none of the people seemed to be aware of Jesus' birth.

The Wise Men's Visit

Some time had elapsed after Jesus' birth, before the wise men from the East came to Jerusalem seeking for the King. They saw the Star of Bethlehem the same night that Jesus was born, and without doubt they started on their journey to Him as soon as they could. They seemed to know what the star meant, possibly as the result of Balaam's prophecy to the king of Moab more than 1,400 years before, "There shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel" (Numbers 24:17).

That the wise men were Gentiles and not of the common-wealth of Israel appears to be sure. They lived a great distance from the scene of the nativity and could have said, "If such a Prince and Saviour be born, we shall hear of Him shortly in our own country, and it will be time enough then to pay homage to Him." But the wise men had no thought of waiting to see Jesus, for they were so eager to honour Him that they took the long journey to the land of Israel to see the King and present their gifts to Him.

Following the Star

Well may these men be counted wise. They saw Jesus' star, and they arose and followed it to its source. These who really desire to find Jesus and know Him, will not idly wait until Jesus passes by, but will arise and seek for Him. Those who earnestly seek for the King of Glory will find the Light to lead them to their destination.

No doubt the wise men expected to find all Jerusalem worshiping their newborn King, but the question they asked, "Where is he that is born King of the Jews?" caused Herod to be troubled and all Jerusalem with him. Herod called the chief priests and scribes to demand of them where Christ should be born. The chief priests and scribes were quick to furnish the answer, for they knew the prophecy of Micah: "But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting" (Micah 5:2).

The chief priests and scribes had studied God's Word all their lives and perhaps had memorized a great portion of it; still they failed to recognise their day of Christ's visitation; therefore all their efforts and hopes to-ward heavenly things were lost. "The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life" (II Corinthians 3:6). A mental knowledge of God's Word will never save anyone. The Word must be written in the heart as well, and that is what Christ came to do.

Going to Bethlehem

Herod sent the wise men to Bethlehem, saying, "Go and search diligently for the young child; and when ye have found him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship him also." The star which they saw in the East reappeared, and they followed it to the place where the young Child lay. "And when they were come into the house, they saw the young child with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh" (Matthew 2:11).

The wise men did not return to Jerusalem as Herod had directed them to do, for God warned them in a dream to return to their country another way. When the men had departed, the Lord appeared to Joseph in an-other dream and said: "Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him" (Matthew 2:13). Herod had no thought of worshiping Jesus; he thought only of slaying the Son of God because the wise men had declared that He was the King of the Jews.

Jesus of Nazareth

After the death of Herod, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, in Egypt, to say that it was safe for the Holy Family to return to Israel. Joseph feared to go into Judaea, however, for Archelaus, the son of Herod, reigned there. Being further directed of God, they made their way into Galilee, and came to the City of Nazareth.

Jesus of Nazareth became the stumbling stone of the Jewish people, for they said, "Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth?" (John 1:46). The answer is, "Come and see." You must see Jesus to appreciate Him; you must know Jesus to love Him. Those who know and love Him have the greatest treasure in the world, and they have the promise of the life that is to come.

"When the lowly Nazarene

To my rescue quickly came,

Filled my heart with sweetest peace,

Day had broken, night was gone:"

Questions

1. Who was the first to declare the good tidings of Jesus' birth? Who were the first to hear the tidings?

2. Where was the Son of God lying when the shepherds came to Him? Could not a better place be found for Jesus?

3. In what city was Jesus born? Tell how this came about.

4. What does the name "Bethlehem" signify?

5. Who were the wise men? Were they of the Children of Israel?

6. How did they happen to come to Jerusalem?

7. Why did Joseph take the Holy Family into Egypt?

8. To what city in Israel did they go after they returned from Egypt?

9. What is the greatest Christmas gift that has ever been given?