This is how Yeshua the Messiah was born.
His mother Mary was engaged to be married to a man named Joseph,
A descendant of King David,
And Yahweh sent the angel Gabriel to Mary,
Who lived in Nazareth,
A village in Galilee.
Gabriel appeared to her and said,
Greetings,
Blessed one,
Yahweh is with you.
Confused and a little frightened,
Mary tried to think of what the angel could mean by that.
Don't be afraid,
Mary,
Gabriel told her,
For you have found favor with Yahweh.
You will conceive and give birth to a son,
And you will name him Yeshua,
Which means God saves.
He will do great things and will be called the son of El Elyon,
God Most High.
Yahweh Elohim will give him the throne of his ancestor David,
And he will reign over Israel forever.
His kingdom will never end.
Mary asked the angel,
But how can this happen?
I am a virgin.
Gabriel answered,
The Holy Spirit will indwell within you,
And the power of El Elyon will make this possible.
Thus the baby to be born will be holy,
And he will be called the son of God.
What's more,
Your relative Elizabeth has become pregnant in her old age.
People say she is barren,
But she has conceived a son and is now in her sixth month of pregnancy,
For nothing is impossible with Yahweh.
Mary responded,
Yes,
I am a daughter of Yahweh.
May everything you have said about me and my child come true.
And then the angel left her.
Now when Joseph saw that Mary was pregnant before they were married,
He decided he would break off the engagement.
But because he was a compassionate man and did not want to disgrace her publicly,
He decided he would do so quietly and privately.
His mind was racing so much he could hardly sleep.
When he finally did fall asleep,
He dreamt that he saw an angel.
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 when she gives birth,
You will name the boy Yeshua,
Because he will save all humankind.
When Joseph woke up,
He decided he would embrace his calling by taking Mary as his wife and to raise Yeshua as his own son.
Shortly after Joseph's dream,
The Roman Emperor decreed that a census should be taken throughout the whole Roman Empire,
Which was most of the populated world at that time.
This meant everyone had to return to their own ancestral towns to register for the census.
Joseph was a descendant of King David,
So he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea,
David's ancient home.
So Mary and Joseph traveled together from Nazareth to Bethlehem,
And Mary was due to give birth any day.
While they were in Bethlehem,
Mary began the birth passage.
They looked for a comfortable place to stay for the night,
Where she could give birth.
There was no room for them in the inn,
However,
So she gave birth in a stable.
She wrapped the newborn baby boy in snuggly and swaddling cloth and laid him in a manger,
And they named the baby Yeshua,
Just as the angels had foretold.
That night,
There were shepherds staying in the fields nearby,
Guarding their flocks of sheep.
They were sitting around the nightly campfire together,
When suddenly an angel of Yahweh appeared among them.
The radiance of Shekinah,
Glory,
Presence,
Surrounded them.
They were terrified,
But the angel reassured them.
Don't be afraid,
The angel said.
I bring you good news of great joy for all people.
The Savior,
Yes,
The Messiah,
The Christ,
Has been born today in Bethlehem,
The city of David,
And you will know it is him by this sign.
You will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloth,
Lying in a manger.
All of a sudden,
The angel was joined by a multitude of heavenly hosts,
Singing,
Glory to Yahweh in the highest,
And peace and lovingkindness toward all humankind in the cosmos.
When the angels had returned to the heavens,
The shepherds said to one another,
Let's go to Bethlehem,
Let's see this wonderful thing that has happened.
Then they hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph,
And there was the baby they had been told about,
Lying in a manger.
After seeing him,
The shepherds told everyone what had happened,
And what the angels said to them about this child.
Everyone who heard the shepherds' story were amazed and astonished,
But Mary treasured all these things in her heart and meditated upon them often.
The shepherds went back to their flocks,
Glorifying and praising Yahweh for all they had seen and heard.
It was just as the angel had told them.
About that time,
Some wise men from the east arrived in Jerusalem,
Asking,
Where is he who has been born King of the Jews?
We saw his star as it rose,
And we have come to revere and adore him.
After getting no answer to their question,
They saw the star that they had seen in the east rise again,
And they were ecstatic.
It guided them to Bethlehem,
It went ahead of them and shone bright over the stable that was sheltering the baby Messiah.
They just knew as soon as they saw it that they had found what they were looking for,
And they were overjoyed.
They entered the stable and saw Mary,
Joseph,
And baby Yeshua.
They bowed down low to the boy and worshipped him as soon as they saw him.
Then the wise men opened their treasure chests and gave Yeshua gifts of gold,
Frankincense,
And myrrh.
All of this occurred to fulfill Yahweh's message through the prophet.
Behold,
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.
For to us a child is born,
To us a son is given,
And his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,
Mighty God,
Everlasting Father,
Prince of Peace.
Glory to Yahweh in the highest,
And on earth peace and loving kindness toward all humankind.
Merry Christmas,
My fellow Harkonners.
I wish you a blessed holiday season and new year to come.
Peace and loving kindness toward all humankind.
