{Acts1711} What IS Christ-mas? (must read)

{Acts1711} What IS Christ-mas? (must read)
When is the last time you read the Biblical passages on the purpose of Jesus, His birth, death and resurrection?
Well here's your chance ---- give a gift to yourself this Christmas by reading it all, even with your loved ones, and finding yourself filled with His peace in so doing.
The Gospel IS and only IS about Jesus - the 'good news' that He came to earth and made salvation from sin His priority. It is a fact that the crucifixion and resurrection are BOTH the vital points of His earthly service to God...as well as His ministry...but time changed when He was born (BC to AD, or BCE to CE), and death was conquered by His resurrection. Hope for life eternal to be spent with God was now a reality, and front page news!
'The Cross & Christ Crucified' -- this is THE Gospel and it involves both Jesus' miraculous birth and miraculous resurrection from the dead, breaking the curse of sin & death.
Read on....
Matthew 1:
"This is how Jesus the
Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph.
But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she
became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit. Joseph, her fiancé, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.
As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream.
“Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary
as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet: “Look! The virgin will conceive a child!
She will give birth to a son,
and they will call him Immanuel,
which means ‘God is with us.’”
Luke 2:
" At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census.
And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to
Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the
village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant.
" And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born.
She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in
strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging
available for them.
" That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”
" Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”
"When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each
other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened,
which the Lord has told us about.” "They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph. And there was the baby, lying in the manger.
"After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.
The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God
for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them."
But is that ALL there is to know about what Christ-mas is? No!
Here's the rest:
Luke 24:
" But very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes.
"The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then
the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is
alive? He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead! Remember what he told you back in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day.”
" Then they remembered that he had said this. So they rushed back from the tomb to tell his eleven disciples—and everyone else—what had happened. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and several other women who told the apostles what had happened. But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it.
However, Peter jumped up and ran to the tomb to look. Stooping, he
peered in and saw the empty linen wrappings; then he went home again,
wondering what had happened.
" That same day two of Jesus’ followers were walking to the village of Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem. As they walked along they were talking about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things, Jesus himself suddenly came and began walking with them. But God kept them from recognizing him. " He asked them, “What are you discussing so intently as you walk along?”
"They stopped short, sadness written across their faces. Then one of them, Cleopas, replied, “You must be the only person in
Jerusalem who hasn’t heard about all the things that have happened there
the last few days.”
“What things?” Jesus asked.
“The
things that happened to Jesus, the man from Nazareth,” they said. “He
was a prophet who did powerful miracles, and he was a mighty teacher in
the eyes of God and all the people. But our leading priests and other religious leaders handed him over to be condemned to death, and they crucified him. We had hoped he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel. This all happened three days ago.
“Then some women from our group of his followers were at his tomb early
this morning, and they came back with an amazing report. They said his body was missing, and they had seen angels who told them Jesus is alive! Some of our men ran out to see, and sure enough, his body was gone, just as the women had said.” " Then Jesus said to them, “You foolish people! You find it so hard to believe all that the prophets wrote in the Scriptures. Wasn’t it clearly predicted that the Messiah would have to suffer all these things before entering his glory?”
Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the
prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning
himself."
And there's this:
John 1:
" In the beginning the Word already existed.
The Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
He existed in the beginning with God.
God created everything through him,
and nothing was created except through him.
The Word gave life to everything that was created,
and his life brought light to everyone.
The light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness can never extinguish it.
" God sent a man, John the Baptist, to tell about the light so that everyone might believe because of his testimony. John himself was not the light; he was simply a witness to tell about the light. The one who is the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.
" He came into the very world he created, but the world didn’t recognize him. He came to his own people, and even they rejected him. But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. They are reborn—not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.
" So the Word became human and made his home among us. He was full of unfailing love and faithfulness. And we have seen his glory, the glory of the Father’s one and only Son.
"John testified about him when he shouted to the crowds, “This is the
one I was talking about when I said, ‘Someone is coming after me who is
far greater than I am, for he existed long before me.’”
" From his abundance we have all received one gracious blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses, but God’s unfailing love and faithfulness came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. But the unique One, who is himself God, is near to the Father’s heart. He has revealed God to us."
Christmas isn't merely December 25th ---- Christmas is rightfully celebrated EVERY DAY, 365 days a year!
Jesus isn't merely the babe in the manger ---- He is God, Lord of all and is due all glory, honor, and respect as is God.
Jesus speaking...“I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach
these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be
sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28
He rose again from the dead, breaking the curse of sin & death. He sacrificed His life so that we could have eternal life spent with God.
So much attention has been given to Christmas that Easter gets lost, and seriously underplayed.
Yes neither day is celebrated on its rightful day. Historical records indicate Jesus was likely born in October. Resurrection Day is properly honored at Passover time in late March/early April [since Jesus' was crucified and He rose again at Passover time according to the Bible records].
But that is not what is the most important thing to remember!
It is important, vitally eternally important to remember that Jesus came, gave His life for us, rose from the dead, is the Son of God, He is God...AND He is coming back!
Coming back as Lord of lords and King of kings.
You ready?
Make sure today! Get right with God today!
For the first time -->http://www.billygra ham.org/SH_ StepsToPeace. asp
If you've wandered away from God (called being carnal), not being obedient to Him, and want to get right with Him again ---> http://www.ccci. org/training- and-growth/ classics/ the-spirit- filled-life/ index.htm
Make this Christmas the one where you made sure of your relationship with God through belief on Jesus as Saviour and Lord.
John 3:16-17, Romans 3:23, Romans 6:23, Romans 10
Scriptures Used: New Living Translation
Copyright 2010 Gretchen Offord, Acts 1711 Ministries. All rights reserved however permission is granted to only forward this article electronically without any changes made.
--The head may seek God, but it is the heart that finds Him. Jeremiah 29:13 --"This is the way to have eternal life—to know you, the only true God,
and Jesus Christ, the one you sent to earth." John 17:3
Acts 1711 Ministries ~ Searching The Scriptures to Know Truth