The First Christmas

This is the story of the very first Christmas, the night God's greatest gift arrived, wrapped not in shiny paper, but in strips of cloth.

Long ago, a great ruler named Caesar Augustus gave an order. Everyone had to go to their family's hometown, to have their names written down and be counted. So Joseph and Mary left their town of Nazareth, and set off for Bethlehem, the town of King David. Joseph's family came from there. It was a long, long way. And Mary was going to have a baby very soon, not just any baby, but God's own Son! When they got to Bethlehem, it was crowded, and there was no room for them in the inn.

And while they were there, Mary's baby was born. She wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a feeding trough. A feeding trough is the box where animals eat their hay. Some people call it a manger. What a surprising bed for a baby king! His name was Jesus. Think of it. The one who made the stars was now a tiny baby, small enough to hold.

Out in the fields nearby, some shepherds were staying with their sheep, keeping watch over them through the night. It was dark, and quiet. Maybe a sheep went baa. Maybe a shepherd yawned. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord stood beside them, and the glory of the Lord shone all around them! The shepherds were terrified!

But the angel said, "Don't be afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be to all the people." "For there is born to you today, in David's city, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord." A Savior is someone who comes to rescue. Jesus came to rescue us, and bring us home to God. And the angel told them, "This is the sign to you: you will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth, lying in a feeding trough."

Then suddenly, the whole sky was full of angels, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, on earth peace, good will toward men." Imagine how bright, and how loud, and how wonderful that must have been! Then the angels went away into the sky, and the night was quiet again.

The shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem, now, and see this thing that has happened." And they didn't stroll. They hurried! I wonder if the sheep wondered where everyone had gone. And there they found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, lying in the feeding trough, just as the angel had said.

The shepherds told everyone what the angel had said about this child. And everyone who heard it was amazed. But Mary kept all these things, and thought about them quietly in her heart. And the shepherds went back to their fields, praising God for everything they had heard and seen. Maybe they sang all the way home!

This story teaches us why we celebrate Christmas. God loves us so much that he sent his Son, Jesus, to be our Savior. That's the good news of great joy, for all the people, and that means you too! So at Christmas, we celebrate the best gift of all, Jesus.