The Christmas Family Series

THE CHRISTMAS STORY: THE CHRISTMAS FAMILY

A. For the past three Sundays we have been looking at the central figures vital to the Christmas Story.

1. The Angel Gabriel informing Mary that she had been chosen by God to give BIRTH to His Son.

2. The chorus of ANGELS who sang the PRAISES of the New Born King as they announced His birth.

3. There were the SHEPHERDS who received a special INVITATION from God delivered by the

ANGELS to come SEE and WORSHIP the Christ Child just shortly after His birth.

4. There were the MAGI—the WISE MEN from the East who traveled for months following a STAR

that led them so they could WORSHIP the toddler and present Him with PRECIOUS GIFTS.

5. Today we’re going to take a closer look at the Christmas Family—Mary, Joseph, and Jesus.

B. Obviously, there can’t be a Christmas without this FAMILY.

1. After all, this holiday is named after Jesus—CHRISTmas.

2. Mary and Joseph went through a lot to bring the Son of God into the world.

a. They were both from the small town of Nazareth.

ILLUSTRATION:

Mary was a TEENAGER who was BETROTHED to Joseph, a hard-working carpenter. Under the Jewish customs, a BETROTHAL was as binding as the MARRIAGE itself. In fact, the woman is considered to be the WIFE of the man to whom she is BETROTHED. However, according to the Jewish Talmud, the man and woman were not allowed to LIVE TOGETHER and CONSUMMATE the marriage until after 12 months, and that was the case with Mary and Joseph.

b. Everything was going as planned until Mary is told by the Angel Gabriel that she will be giving BIRTH to God’s Son.

ILLUSTRATION:

This put everything in a TIZZY. Mary is a VIRGIN, but no one else BELIEVES that. Under Jewish Law Mary could be STONED to DEATH. Joseph doesn’t BELIEVE that Mary has been

FAITHFUL to him, so he plans to DIVORCE her privately to PROTECT her as much as possible.

But when an ANGEL appeared to Joseph ensuring him that Mary was a VIRGIN and that the CHILD she was carrying was God’s Son, he then took her into his HOME and they became husband and wife. However, he still had no physical relationship with her until after Jesus was born.

c. Here’s Joseph and Mary, NEWLYWEDS, a PREGNANT wife, getting to know each other better and SETTLING into their home in Nazareth, when a decree by Caesar Augustus, the EMPEROR

of Rome, forced everything to return to their ANCESTRAL town to be counted in a CENSUS.

ILLUSTRATION:

This meant that Joseph had to take his very PREGNANT wife and travel 80 long miles from

Nazareth to Bethlehem, because he was from the ANCESTRAL line of King David.

Now, we are not certain of what their mode of TRANSPORTATION was. Even though TRADITIONALLY we see Mary riding a DONKEY, Scripture doesn’t say how they got there. But whether it was by DONKEY, HORSE, CAMEL or a WAGON, the TRIP wasn’t easy for a

PREGNANT WOMAN to endure.

And to top it off, once they got to Bethlehem they couldn’t find a SUITABLE place for Mary to give BIRTH. So, this mother had to DELIVER her tiny BABY in a smelly BARN. What an unlikely place for the Son of God to be BORN. (Let’s take a closer look at each member of this family.)

MESSAGE:

I. MARY, THE MOTHER OF JESUS

A. The first recorded words of Mary were spoken at the feet of an angel- Luke 1:26-35 (READ)

1. As with every other girl she had known while growing up in Nazareth, Mary DREAMED of

getting MARRIED and having a BABY.

a. But the REALITY of this NIGHT had never been part of those FANTASIES.

ILLUSTRATION:

Out of the clear blue, an ANGEL appeared to this TEENAGE girl and told her that she had been CHOSEN to give BIRTH to God’s Son. This had to have been a very EMOTIONALLY

draining NINE MONTHS for Mary.

There were no BABY SHOWERS for her. There were no CELEBRATIONS of the impending BIRTH with FRIENDS and FAMILY. Undoubtedly there had been much WHISPERING, some condescending REMARKS, some SNICKERING by her so-called GIRLFRIENDS. There was also the FEAR that she could be STONED to DEATH for

committing ADULTERY while being BETROTHED to Joseph.

b. Even Joseph was ready to CALL off the WEDDING, until he was ASSURED by an ANGEL that Mary had not been UNFAITHFUL to him.

2. Imagine trying to EXPLAIN to your PARENTS, to your FIANCÉ, to your FRIENDS that even

though you are PREGNANT, you have NEVER been with a MAN.

COMMENT:

Then IMAGINE how everybody will REACT when you tell you them that the FATHER of the BABY you are CARRYING is God, Himself. Talk about BLASPHEMY—this TEENAGE GIRL had the AUDACITY of saying that she, from all the GIRLS of Judea, was CHOSEN by God to give BIRTH to His Son.