It Came Upon a Midnight Clear: The Birth of the King
"It came upon a midnight clear that glorious song of old from Angels bending near the earth to touch their harps of gold: "Peace on Earth, goodwill to men from Heaven's all gracious King!" The world in solemn still lay to hear the Angels sing" ----It Came Upon a Midnight Clear rendition performed by Kutless
Thanksgiving is wrapped up. Christmas is around the corner. Black Friday craze is behind us. Cyber Monday chills are already warmed over, and Tuesday blues (you know, that buyer's guilt) is probably still upon most shoppers. This year is coming to a very rapid close. The "best time of the year" feeling is in the air. Breathe it in. But, let's not forget the true reason of the season: the birth of the eternal King.
It Came Upon a Midnight Clear Verses: The Birth of the King
The most beautiful season of all starts with a very breathtaking love story. This is the story of the savior who came from Heaven incarnate (in flesh) to pay the ultimate price of death and have sin imparted on Him to crush its power once and for all with the declaration of tetelestai ("it is finished" translated from Greek). This is far deeply moving than any European play. I'm going to dive into Matthew 1:1-25 for the first part of this post. The second half will be a testimony.
The Kinship of the King: Matthew 1:1-25
"The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez was the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram. Ram was the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon. Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz was the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David the king."
Sin Used Sinlessly
"David was the father of Solomon by Bathsheba who had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon was the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asa. Asa was the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah. Uzziah was the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. Hezekiah was the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amon, and Amon the father of Josiah. Josiah became the father of Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon. "
Importance of Lineage
"After the deportation to Babylon: Jeconiah became the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel. Zerubbabel was the father of Abihud, Abihud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor. Azor was the father of Zadok, Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud. Eliud was the father of Eleazar, Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.
"So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the Messiah, fourteen generations. "
Conception and Birth of Jesus
"Now, the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by the Holy Spirit. And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man and not wanting to disgrace her, planned to send her away secretly. But when he had considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife; for the Child who has been conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit."
“She will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Now all this took place to fulfill what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet: “BEHOLD, THE VIRGIN SHALL BE WITH CHILD AND SHALL BEAR A SON, AND THEY SHALL CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL,” which translated means, “GOD WITH US.” And Joseph awoke from his sleep and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took Mary as his wife, but kept her a virgin until she gave birth to a Son; and he called His name Jesus."
The above scripture is an excerpt from https://biblehub.com/context/matthew/1-1.htm using the NASB edition broken up into paragraphs to allow easier reading. It came upon a midnight clear verses will examine the origin of the greatest Christmas miracle.
1.) The Majesty of His Birth
Jesus was born of a virgin, out of the 14th generation of the tribe of Judah, in a manger to show humility.
A. It is necessary for the Messiah to have credentials
Israel's Messiah born out of the line of the tribe of Judah is proclaimed in versus 18-21, showing his credential as a "Lion" due to this being the tribe's seal. This was prophetized by the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 7:14. Jesus is the English rendition of the Hebrew name Yeshua much like most names that would translate to start with a "J" in the Romanian language start with an "I" instead. The name Yeshua is the common form of the name "Yehoshuah." Iesus (if you type this into any document by the way, it will automatically correct it to Jesus. Pretty interesting, huh?) This spelling of Iesus or Jesus is the Latin corresponding to the Greek "Iesous" meaning "God With Us."This alone appears over 218 times in the New Testament.
B. It is necessary for the Messiah to be Jesus.
2.) The Mystery of His Birth
He was born in Bethlehem (this town in Hebrew translates to read "House of Bread"). Jesus is proclaimed as the "living bread." Herod was the region's earthly king during this time and heard of the coming King's birth. He then issued an order to soldiers to kill every child who was of 2 years of age and younger. This also means those that weren't born yet. This undermines the argument that abortion is a new topic. It's worth mentioning here that Jesus and Herod were both Jews. Due to wanting to appease the Romans, Herod forsake his lineage. Herod's pride caused him to be afraid of losing his earthly throne.
History in the Making
Versus 7-11 declares Christ's geneology and this sanctions His right as King.
The Three Wise Men Who brought Christ gifts were the the equivalent to what we would call astrologists today. The English translates this as wise, or "Magi," to mean "equipped with applicable knowledge" or "knowledge that had been practiced."All three were Christians. Below is a list of the meaning behind the gifts.
Gifts Fit For a King
Gold: this shows Christ's royalty. Gold was offered to kings.
Frankincense: in simpler terms, this is incense. This gift recognizes Jesus as God. It grows in dry, mountainous regions of India, Africa, and the Middle East.
Myrrh: this was oil used to anoint a dead body. This is among the first foreshadowing of His death.
These gifts have several meanings. One of the deeper meanings is that they portray the new covenant that was established after Christ's death, burial, and resurrection that fulfilled the Law. Furthermore, explanation is discussed in this link:
https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/myrrh/
Three offerings: Priest, Prophet, King. Hebrews 9 states that there is a Jar of Manna from Heaven, portraying Christ as the manna or bread from Heaven. This underlines his role as the teacher (prophet).
3.) Christ's Geneology Highlights the Necessity of the Virgin Birth.
Versus 13-15 "out of Egypt I called my Son."
4.) The Ministry of His Birth.
A. He is a gracious King.
Matthew 3:13-17 proclaims the baptism of Jesus. In Matthew 4:12, this logs the start of Christ's ministry at age 12. "The people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light." Jesus is the light.
B. He is supernaturally born King.
Let me emphasis what this means.Jesus was born from a virgin without a human man's seed or chromosome and His blood that was tested from the Mercy Seat by Hebrew scientists was proclaimed still alive but with no "Y" DNA. This was supernaturally given to him by God the Father. This is scientifically impossible to any human. Thus, Jesus is the only exception as He was fully God, fully man while on Earth. I will leave a link below to a YouTube video that sheds light on this subject.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8TRoQk6WUE
C. He wants to be your King
Matthew 4:19 "Follow me and I will make you fishers of men."
He is the salt and the light and calls His people to be to the World. Matthew 5:13. Christ came to fulfill the law of sin that was passed down from Adam to all of us. "I am the way, the truth, and the life." Matthew 5:17. He is the only way, the only truth, and the only life, only chain-breaker and soul savior. In Him, we have redemption no matter what we have done or the sin we have sowed. It is His truth that sets us free and makes us spiritually alive. "Behold I am making all things new."
Two Roads, Two Destinies
We all have a choice to make. One choice will lead to everlasting life--spiritual eternal life--that we will share with Christ in Heaven where there is no pain or torment. The other choice is death and eternal separation from Christ. Wherever you are at, I ask that you bow your head and confess your sins to Christ as Paul tells us in Romans that there is none righteous among us for we have all fallen short of the glory of God. Ask Him to make you new and create a new heart in you. I will not post a prayer as some can be lead astray to believe that if they say certain words, this will save them. The only saving grace is Christ's one time payment of Calvary.
The Second Half: Testimony of Life of Sin to Life of Rejuvenation.
I will attach a copy of my conversion story as it is much too long for this postand I pray that my story will reach at least one person and help anyone who reads this post to see God's grace. If you still have questions, please reach out to me via email listed on my home page at the very bottom. I will do my best to answer any questions. Or, you can also leave a comment and I respond!
Take care this Christmas season and I hope you all have family to share it with.
God bless!
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