Christ’s Birth
READ Luke 2:1-7
Why was Jesus prophesied to be born in
Bethlehem?
With Christ’s birth occurring in April
and not December, why else was there “no room in the inn”?
Why may have Christ’s birth in a stable
cave have been preferable to the “inn” for Mary?
READ Matthew 2:1-3
Where did the Wise Men go to find Christ?
Why was Christ born in such humble
circumstances when He could have been born in a palace?
READ Luke 2:8-14
Why do we not have a record of angels
appearing to others around Bethlehem to proclaim Christ’s birth?
What flock were these shepherds watching
over and what is the significance?
What does the name “Jesus” or “Yeshua”
mean?
What does “Christ” mean?
Who does “the Lord” refer to?
What is the actual translation of the
angel’s message to the shepherds?
Why is the sign of the birth of the Lord
God Jehovah that He will be lying in swaddling clothes and lying in a manager?
READ Luke 2:15-20
Why did the shepherds decide to leave the
flocks immediately and make haste to find the child?
What do you think Mary and Joseph’s
reaction was to a bunch of shepherds running into the cave and falling at their
feet to worship their newborn?
Why did all that heard the shepherds’
testimony “wonder” at it?
READ Luke 2:25-30 and 2:36-38
Who else added their testimony to the
shepherds?
The Magi from the East
Skipping ahead in the narrative, we
already read the beginning of the account of the Magi from the East…
READ Matthew 2:4-12, 16
How did the Chief Priests and scribes
know where Christ was to be born?
So why did their study of the scriptures
not lead them to recognize and accept Jesus as that Messiah?
What else where the Magi studying that
the Chief Priests had missed and what is implied?
Why did the Magi bring these specific
gifts to the Lord?
How long had the Magi been traveling to
get to Christ and what does this imply?
What does the Magi’s error in judgment
with regard to Herod’s character and their subsequent revelatory dream teach
us?
Christ’s Childhood
READ Luke 2:40-52 (including JST v46)
What does the fact that the scribes and
priests were astonished by the answers Jesus gave them to their questions
imply?
What is the difference between one who
studies the scriptures for thousands of hours and one who “gazes into heaven
for five minutes”? (see TPJS 365:1)
