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The Birth of Jesus
Christ
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virgin Mary lived in the city of Nazareth. One day when
she was alone, Angel Gabriel appeared to her and told
her, “Don’t be afraid. God has chosen you. You shall
have a son, and you shall call Him Jesus. He shall be
great and shall be called the Son of God”. Mary was
very happy with the news given to her by the angel. |
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Joseph the
carpenter and his wife Mary went on a journey. When
they arrived at Bethlehem in the evening, Joseph wanted
to find a comfortable place for his wife Mary who needed
to rest and who was awaiting the birth of her promised
Son. The only place they found was a stable with
camels, donkeys and sheep. It was a quite night. Soon
after midnight, Jesus was born under the clear sky of
Bethlehem. |
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After His
birth, the angels were singing in the sky, which was lit
by the light of heaven. Nearby there was a group of
shepherds. An angel appeared to them and announced to
them the birth of Jesus Christ. The angel said, “Do not
be afraid. I bring you great news. Today was born a
Saviour, who is Christ the Lord”, and the angel showed
the shepherds where the newborn baby was. The shepherds
rushed to the stable to see the newborn baby. After
seeing Him, the shepherds left the stable. They
praised God and told everybody what they saw on this
first Christmas morning.
Joseph
and Mary went to Jerusalem to present baby Jesus to God
in the Temple. As they were there, they were approached
by an old man, who was known to be always watching and
praying for the coming of the Messiah. The old man whose
name was Simeon, took baby Jesus in his arms. As he
looked at the baby’s face he knew at once that his
prayers were answered. He said, “Oh Lord, my eyes have
seen your salvation”. |
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A few months
later, three old men came to Jerusalem with their
servants. The old men were asking, “Where is he who was
born King of the Jews, for we have seen his star in the
East and have come here to worship him “. Herod the
king of Judea was troubled by these events and brought
the three wise men to his palace. He asked them about
the star the have seen and about the King they were
looking for. The three wise men who spent many years
studying the stars explained to King Herod about the
star which they saw, and that it means the birth of the
King of the Jews. |
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King Herod
ordered the three old men to go to Bethlehem and bring
him baby Jesus, King of the Jews. “Go to Bethlehem and
bring me the child so that I can also worship him”.
King Herod’s intention was however not to worship but to
kill baby Jesus. The three men went to Bethlehem and
found baby Jesus. They kneeled before the child and
offered gifts to him. When they left Bethlehem, they
did not go back to Jerusalem because god warned them in
a dream about king Herod’s bad intention. King Herod
was very angry so he ordered that every baby boy in
Bethlehem should be killed. God spoke to Joseph in a
dream that night and told him to take Mary and the child
to Egypt where it is safe. At dawn, Joseph and Mary
along with baby Jesus left Bethlehem and went south
towards Egypt. |
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