When Was Christ Really Born?

2006-12-01T08:28:00.000-08:00

The gospel of Luke tells us that at the time of Christ's birth "there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed" (Luke 2:1). However, there is no record showing that the time of taxing took place in the month of December, or during any of the other winter months. It is more logical to conclude that this particular taxing period occurred sometime in the autumn.

Since the final harvest of the year took place in the fall, this would have been a most convenient time for the Jews to be able to pay their taxes. And the decree to pay taxes, would cause a great influx of travelers and visitors into Jerusalem, the holy city, and the surrounding towns, such as Bethlehem. This would even explain why it was that "there was no room for them in the inn" (Luke 2:7) when Mary and Joseph sought a place to stay on that notable night of Christ's birth.

Just as it is illogical for shepherds to be watching their flocks out in the fields on a cold winter night, certainly it is illogical to conclude that Mary and Joseph and all the other travelers would have made their way to the city on a cold winter night. Many of the travelers may have had to journey from very long distances to get to the city, and it is unlikely that they would have done so in the cold of winter. It is also unlikely that the Roman ruler, who would have been more concerned about receiving the taxes, would have taken the risk of trying to get all the Jews to make their way to their "own city" (Luke 2:4) during the winter season.

Therefore, we can safely conclude that Mary and Joseph were not refused lodging at the inn on a cold night in the month of December, as some may want us to believe, but instead sometime during the autumn season when many were assembled in the city for the payment of taxes. There was a very good reason that the Most High allowed Caesar Augustus to issue his taxation decree around the autumn, which was the very season God had ordained, many years in advance, that His people should gather their final harvest and come together for the final Feast of the year. Both of these occasions fell within the comfortable climate of the autumn season. Thus our heavenly Father made it possible for all of Israel to be present for the birth of our Lord, if they so desired. But sad to say, the majority were blind to the sacred event and glorious opportunity.

Certainly if Mary and Joseph had a choice as to when their child should be born, they would not have chosen December or any other month within the winter season. They would have settled for a more suitable time, especially if they had to travel. If man is wise enough to consider these matters in light of his own convenience and what would be best overall, then certainly the Great I Am definitely took all of these things into consideration centuries ahead of time.

The time of Jesus' birth can be greatly determined by the following events surrounding His life. Since it is widely known and accepted that our Saviour died in the spring during the time of the Passover (John 18:39), and since it is also known that He labored for three and a half years before He died, then it is clear that Jesus' baptism in the river of Jordan (three and a half years prior to His death) took place in the fall or autumn. The Bible also teaches that Christ's baptism and work began when He turned thirty years of age (Luke 3:23). Therefore, since Christ was baptized (in autumn) exactly thirty years after His birth, we can safely conclude that Christ was definitely born in the autumn and not in the winter. A careful examination of the experience of Mary's cousin Elizabeth, as well as the time her husband officiated as a priest in the Jewish temple, provide additional proof to the theory of Christ's autumn birth. Study Luke 1:5-38; 2 Chron. 23:8; 1 Chron. 24:10.

Surely God took everything into consideration before sending His Son into the world. Our heavenly Father and all the inhabitants of heaven were, from the very beginning of time, looking forward to the appearance of the Son of God on earth as man's glorious deliverer and Messiah. Therefore, the most appropriate time and season was divinely appointed by our heavenly Father for such a momentous occasion involving the birth of His beloved Son, Jesus Christ.

THE CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS TODAY

2006-11-29T18:19:00.000-08:00

When Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth and the life", He meant just that. There is no truth outside of the Word of God, and that is why we are admonished over and over again by the Lord himself and our Heavenly Father, to prove all things (I Thess.5: 21). In this way, we can assure ourselves of fact, truth and protection from deception. Even in Acts 17:11, the brethren in Berea were called more noble than those at Thessalonica, for they received the Word of God spoken by Paul and Silas with all readiness of mind. But what did they do to be commended by God this way? It says that they went and searched the scriptures to see if these things were so and then they believed. The word searched in the Greek means to literally scrutinize!! Should not we do the same today as Disciples of Jesus Christ?

God wants us to try things spoken and witnessed, so that we can prove them by the one and only true test, does it line up with the word of GOD? Not our emotions!! Not our feelings!! Not what we think!! not what men say!! Not what the multitudes believe or do!! But what saith the scriptures?!!! We already know that the Lord is not interested in our traditions when we try to apply them to spiritual matters. Jesus again said in Matthew 15 that our "traditions" transgress the Word of God. Did you get that in your spirit? How sad, those we as professing Born-Again children of God, go and make the Word of God of none effect. They transgress the Word of God and make it of none effect. How can this be? By not observing the Word of God and proving all things. The sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, were slain in the temple for offering up "strange fire" before the Holy Lord God—Nu.3:4 & 26:61. Strange fire is offering something to God that HE has not asked for, does not receive, does not observe and truly becomes dead works.

Christmas celebration is noted for its joy and exuberance. It is a time of family Togetherness, feasting, and gifts. Singing Christmas carols, going to parties and Christmas pageants are common fare. It has grown into an entire month of Christmas shopping, parties, Santa Clauses and merry Christmas's. Of course, everybody knows there is a dark side to Christmas as well. Family stress increases, resulting in increased domestic violence. Cases of depression and suicide increase. There are those for whom Christmas is a time of excessive drinking and revelry. Every year there are homes and apartments that burn due to unwise use of Christmas lighting. And, of course, rampant commercialism prompts people to blow their budgets buying gifts that they often cannot really afford.

But there is another, almost invisible, facet to Christmas that people tend to put out of their minds. When folks are giddy with the "high" of Christmas celebration, they are not concerned with the why of it. They are so wrapped up in its celebration that they don't take time to consider where it came from. To Christians it is considered one of the most holy times of the year, the celebration of the birth of Jesus. Even secular folks often get involved in the religious aspect of "the birth of the savior", attending Christmas services, pageants, cantatas, etc. Christmas celebration is simply a given and we are not open to any discussions of its dark origins. We choose to ignore clear historical accounts that it is a relic of an ancient pagan celebration that has been appropriated as the most holy celebration of the western world, though it perpetuates ancient idolatrous practices that we would shun if we only recognized them for what they are. There is no dearth of information that this December 25th holiday was practiced long before the birth of Jesus. It represents something that is greatly at odds with Christian teaching, yet we go on blindly observing it, pretending that it means something else. When we stumble across the truth about its origins, we simply choose to go on about their business as if nothing has happened, dismissing it from our minds as irrelevant.

It is well known that the origins of Christmas are questionable and that the trappings of it are much the same as they were centuries before Jesus was born. December 25th was once known throughout the Roman empire as the celebration of the rebirth of the sun, observed at the time of the winter solstice. To the ancients it was a time of drunken revelry (much the same as now) to entice the sun to return from its descent in the southern sky and bring spring once again. Homes were decorated with garlands, holly and little sun shaped ornaments (much the same as now), and folks sang by the yule log and kissed under the mistletoe (much the same as now). Of course, it has come to be considerably less orgiastic. But other than that, only the name has been changed. It is now supposedly celebrated in honor of Christ. Few stop to think that Jesus, being a devout Jew who shunned idolatry, would have had nothing to do with such a pagan celebration in his time. It was the very antithesis of what he stood for. How ironic it is that Jesus' name would become indelibly attached to this festival in the centuries that followed. To many, of course, Christmas is a mostly secular holiday, but even the secular often take time out from their partying to go to church and take part in the quasi-heathen observances of Christmas and Easter.

Xmas celebration xpose

When Was Christ Really Born?

THE CHRISTMAS TRADITIONS TODAY