Egypt: Calling Out of Captivity
Only the Gospel of Matthew relates Mary and Joseph taking the Christ child to Egypt to protect his life. At the time of the Patriarchs, Egypt was a place of refuge for the Israelites when God led Jacob and his…
Ultimate Outcomes
Why ideas matter.
Ultimate Outcomes
Why ideas matter.
Marty Elwell
The Star: Leading to the Savior
After meeting with king Herod, the Magi continued to follow the star to the place where they found Jesus with his mother. They gave valuable gifts to the child. The fact that three gifts are listed has given rise to the…
The Wise Men: Seeking the Savior
Our reading now shifts back to the Gospel of Matthew, as Matthew relates part of the Christmas story that Luke doesn’t. Matthew doesn’t say much about the birth of Christ, instead, he focuses on what happened after. Matthew is the…
Simeon: Seeing with his Eyes the Precious Savior
After Jesus was born, Mary and Joseph fulfilled what the Jewish law said to do after the birth of a son. They had Jesus circumcised on the eighth day. After 40 days of a purification period, they went to the temple in…
The Lost Sheep: Needing a Shepherd
Looking at the sheep in the stable reminds us not only that Jesus is the Lamb of God, it also reminds us that we are lost sheep in need of a shepherd. In Micah 5:4-5a a prophecy about the Savior says, “He…
Lamb of God: Taking Away the Sins of the World
Having sheep in the manger scene reminds us of two things. First, Jesus is the sacrificial lamb that takes away the sin of the world. John 1:29 says, “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the…
The Donkey: Bearing the Savior
We do not know for sure what animals were in the stable when Jesus was born, but we can imagine that there were perhaps a donkey and some sheep and these are the animals we will look at in this…
The Shepherds: Believing the Message
Once they got over their terror, the shepherds must have been awestruck when the heavenly host appeared to them. Their response was to go and see what they had been told. They believed and so they obeyed. We too must believe the…
The Angels: Announcing the Birth
We have already seen the role that the angel Gabriel had in visiting Zechariah and Mary. Now we see that a whole host of angels appeared to a humble group of shepherds at the birth of Christ. The shepherds were…
The Manger: Cradling God’s Humble Servant
As we look at the scene in the stable we want to evaluate the surroundings into which Christ was born. In the last reading we read that Mary wrapped Jesus in cloths and placed him in a manger. A manger is…