The Christmas Story Revisited – 2024 Version

All scripture references NIV

(When I started blogging in 2018, this was the first Christmas story I wrote.  I’m going to present it to you again this year.)

What would the Christmas story be without the young lady chosen by God to carry His Son?  She’s obviously a critical link in the story.  Based on my research, Mary was a very young lady, anywhere from 12 to 20 years of age.  I realize that’s a pretty wide range, but because of the customs of that day, most believe she was probably 12 to 14.  So we can only imagine at that young age, that when the angel Gabriel appeared telling her she was going to be “with child” she was very confused and frightened.  Although she was betrothed to be married, she didn’t understand how this could happen.  In Luke 1:34 Mary says: “’How will this be….since I am a virgin?’”  And so very matter-of-factly, Gabriel replied in vs. 35: “’The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.”  Not really much of an explanation if you ask me.  If I’d been Mary I likely would’ve said something like…”And?  What does that mean?”  Amazingly, in verse 38 Mary simply said: “’I am the Lord’s servant….May it be to me as you have said.’”  

Now we need to consider Joseph – the man to whom Mary was betrothed.  We can only imagine how he must have reacted when he learned that she was pregnant.  How confused and hurt he must have been, since he & Mary had not yet come together as husband and wife.  

Matthew 1:18b tells us “Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.  Because Joseph her husband was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.”  But an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and told him not to be afraid to take Mary home to be his wife.

I have to confess that I was always curious about how Joseph could divorce Mary since they apparently weren’t living together, so in my modern day, rational mind they weren’t married.  I also have to confess that the word “husband” earlier in that same sentence had never really registered in my mind either.  Even if it had clicked, I think I probably would’ve still been confused because of them not living together yet.  But according to The International Bible Commentary on page 1122 it says “Here let us note that apart from the divine activity in conception, Christ’s birth was completely normal.  He was not conceived until Mary was married; betrothal was legally marriage.”  So Joseph could have divorced Mary.  (I also read another scripture during my Bible study that confirms this information – Deuteronomy 22 discusses marriage violations and verses 23 & 24 say: “If a man happens to meet in a town a virgin pledged to be married and he sleeps with her, you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death – the girl because she was in a town and did not scream for help, and the man because he violated another man’s wife…”)  

So anyway, Joseph did as he was instructed and took Mary to his home.  They were then called to go to Bethlehem for the census.  Upon arriving there, they could find no rooms available and for all practical purposes we’d have to call where they ended up staying, a good old-fashioned barn.  The time came for Jesus to be born and He was laid in a manger – a simple feeding trough for animals.  (Jesus’ birth at this time and place was necessary to fulfill the prophecy in Micah 5:2 that tells of the savior being born in Bethlehem.)

We all are very familiar with this story and how an angel then appeared to the shepherds that were nearby in fields.  This angel gave the details to them about how to recognize this child and where he could be found.  Then a host of angels appeared proclaiming the birth of the Savior with praises.  It seems as soon as the angels left, the shepherds hurriedly left to go find this child.  

When the shepherds arrived in Bethlehem, they found Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus.  Can you imagine, based on what the angels had told them how amazed and completely overcome with joy they were?  In reading this story I had always just pictured that when they found the child they were so happy they just lingered there for a long time – admiring him, talking with Mary and Joseph and asking to hold him like most doting visitors do when seeing a new baby.  But apparently they were SO excited they couldn’t contain themselves and left to go spread the word of what they’d been told by the angel and how they had found the child.  In Luke 2:17-18 it says: “When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them.”  That seems to indicate they went out quickly to spread the word – plus, don’t forget, they had left their flocks so they had to return to care for & watch over them – verse 20 says: “The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.”   

What I discovered that for me was the most interesting part is that the Magi did NOT appear at the same time as the shepherds as we always see depicted in the stories and pictures – they did not even go near the manger.  It was, in fact, quite a long time before they visited this wonderful young family.  (My research indicates that it could have been anywhere from 6 months to 2 years later.) 

Luke 2:39 tells us that after Joseph and Mary had completed all that was required by law after the birth of their child, that they returned to Nazareth.  (No mention of the Magi between verse 20 when the shepherds were glorifying and praising and verse 29 when the family leaves for their home.)

The account of the Magi is in Matthew 2.  In verse 2 it speaks of how the Magi went to Jerusalem looking for the child – “‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?’” Needless to say, the idea of another king was very upsetting for the reigning King Herod.  In verses 7-11 – “Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, ‘Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.’  After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.  When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.  On coming to the house they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him.”  (That indicates that the family was back in Nazareth in their home – not still in the barn.)  

Because instead of a lamb, a pair of turtle doves or pigeons was Mary and Joseph’s offering (Luke 2:24) at the time Jesus was consecrated at the temple, we can assume they were poor.  So when the Magi visited them and presented very valuable gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh, it gave them funds that would soon be very much needed.  

After the Magi left, an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream telling him they needed to escape to Egypt (Matthew 2:13.)  The International Bible Commentary, on page 1122 indicates that the “gifts of the Magi were divinely provided” in order to help fulfill the prophecy that he had to come out of Egypt (Matthew 2:15b.)  Those funds likely helped them afford the travel to Egypt as well as getting established once they arrived and apparently resided for quite a long while; thus saving the life of Jesus from Herod.

So there you have it…The Christmas Story Revisited.  You may already have known all of those things that I apparently had not been aware of – if not, I hope you found them as interesting as I did 6 years ago when my eyes were opened.

How wonderful is The Christmas Story!  God loved us so very much that he sent His own Son into this world – knowing that He would be sacrificed to save us all from our sinfulness!  I pray that everyone reading this has accepted Jesus as their Lord & Savior so that when your time on this earth is done, you can dwell in the house of the Lord forever & ever.  Amen!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!  

Written by Karran Martin – October 21, 2018 (Revised December 9, 2024)   

[All bold emphasis is mine]