The First Advent (Coming) of The Christ

The Incarnation/Conception and Nativity of Jesus

Almost incomprehensibly, we see the eternally begotten Son of God, voluntarily¹ take on human flesh, be born of a young woman, in abject poverty, who is yet, miraculously, still a virgin.² Despite his royal lineage, He willingly enters the world and spends his first night in a stable, with only the most minimal rags for clothing. He has no crib or soft blankets but instead sleeps in an animal feeding trough (manger) on top of some straw. Is this not the most incredible example of humility imaginable? He could have been born into fabulous wealth, with an entourage of servants and attendants. Instead, Jesus³ comes as if a child of the lowliest servant. Angels announce his birth to lowly shepherds, this baby, destined to be the Good Shepherd.⁴ All of this was undoubtedly to prefigure his role as the suffering servant of Isaiah 53, the one who would take on the sins of the world and undergo a torturous death on the Cross in order to free humanity from its bondage.

The culmination of the Advent⁵ season is the birth of Jesus the Christ⁶, undoubtedly, one of the two most important events in salvation history. The other is the [sacrificial death]⁷ of our Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross, through which He reopened the gates of heaven to mankind, closed since the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden after they failed their test of obedience.⁸

The Birth of Jesus Foretold

“²⁶ In the sixth month (of Elizabeth’s pregnancy), the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ²⁷ to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ And he came to her and said, “Hail, full of grace,^[a] the Lord is with you!”^{[b] 29} But she was greatly troubled at the saying and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. ³⁰ And the angel said to her,^[c] ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. ³¹ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.

³² He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High;
and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David,
³³ and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever;
and of his kingdom there will be no end.’

³⁴ And Mary said to the angel, ‘How can this be, since I have no husband?’ ³⁵ And the angel said to her,

‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you;
therefore, the child to be born^[d] will be called holy, the Son of God.

³⁶ And behold, your kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son (John the Baptist); and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. ³⁷ For with God nothing will be impossible.” ³⁸ And Mary said, ‘Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.’ And the angel departed from her.

Mary Visits Elizabeth

³⁹ In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, ⁴⁰ and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit ⁴² and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! ⁴³ And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord (God) should come to me? ⁴⁴ For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. ⁴⁵ And blessed is she (Mary) who believed that there would be^[e] a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” (the coming birth of Jesus, God the Son in the flesh) ⁴⁶ And Mary said,

Mary’s Song of Praise (the Magnificat or Canticle of Mary)

‘My soul magnifies the Lord,
⁴⁷ and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
⁴⁸ for he has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden.
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed;
⁴⁹ for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
⁵⁰ And his mercy is on those who fear him
from generation to generation.
⁵¹ He has shown strength with his arm,
he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts,
⁵² he has put down the mighty from their thrones,
and exalted those of low degree;
⁵³ he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent empty away.
⁵⁴ He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
⁵⁵ as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his posterity forever.’^[f]

⁵⁶ And Mary remained with her about three months, and returned to her home.”, (Luke 1:26-56).

Internal Footnotes

a. Luke 1:28 Or O favored one

b. Luke 1:28 Other ancient authorities add “Blessed are you among women!”

c. 1.30 The words of the angel are drawn from Messianic passages in the Old Testament.

d. Luke 1:35 Other ancient authorities add of you

e. Luke 1:45 Or believed, for there will be

f. 1.46-55 The Magnificat is based on the Song of Hannah (1 Sam 2.1-10), and other Old Testament passages that describe God’s favor toward Israel and especially toward the poor and lowly.”

Genealogy of Jesus of Nazareth

The Gospel according to Matthew, records in great detail, the genealogy of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ. It indicates that there were 42 generations between Abraham and Jesus.⁹ The reason this extensive documentation was included, is to demonstrate that God’s covenant with the ancient Israelites through the patriarch, Abraham, was brought to fruition in the birth of Jesus of Nazareth (by direct biological lineage). As such, He is the long-awaited and prophesied¹⁰ Messiah (Savior), referred to throughout the Old Testament, beginning with Genesis.¹¹ For example, we see this anointed person (Savior) referred to by the prophet Isaiah:

“There shall come forth a shoot (rod) from the stump (root) of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. ² And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. ³ And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth, and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked. ⁵ Righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist, and faithfulness the girdle of his loins.”, (Isaiah 11:1-5).

This person is also described as the Lion of the tribe of Juda

The Patriarch Jacob spoke:

“Judah, your brothers shall praise you;
your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
your father’s sons shall bow down before you.
⁹ Judah is a lion’s whelp;
from the prey, my son, you have gone up.
He stooped down, he couched as a lion,
and as a lioness; who dares rouse him up?
¹⁰ The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet,
until he comes to whom it belongs;^[a]
and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.”, (Genesis 49:8-10).

And,

^“5 Then one of the elders said to me, ‘Weep not; lo, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, (the Lord Jesus Christ), the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals.”, (Revelation 5:5).

In summary, Christ’s extensive genealogy begins with Abraham and comes through the line of Judah to David, the first king of that line. The detailed enumeration provided by St. Matthew includes all the other descendants down to Joseph, the husband of Mary. According to the flesh, Jesus, the Messiah comes from the seed of Abraham, the greatest of the Patriarchs, through the progeny of David, the greatest king and from the tribe of Judah, the most noteworthy of all the tribes.¹²

The Birth of Jesus (from the Gospel according to Matthew)

¹⁸ Now the birth of Jesus Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit; ¹⁹ and her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to send her away quietly. ²⁰ But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, [for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; ²¹ she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.’]¹³ ²² All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: ²³ [“Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son,
and his name shall be called Emmanuel”]¹⁴ (which means, God with us). ²⁴ And Joseph rising up from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him, and took unto him his wife. ²⁵ but knew her not until she had brought forth her first born son and he called his name Jesus.”, (Matthew 1:18-25).

Internal Footnotes

1.25 This means only that Joseph had nothing to do with the conception of Jesus. It implies nothing as to what happened afterward.

The Birth of Jesus (according to the Gospel of Luke)

“In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be enrolled. ² This was the first enrollment, when Quirin′i-us was governor of Syria. ³ And all went to be enrolled, each to his own city. ⁴ And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem¹⁵ , because he was of the house and lineage of David, ⁵ to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. ⁶ And while they were there, the time came for her to be delivered. ⁷ And she gave birth to her first-born son and wrapped him in swaddling clothes (essentially rags or strips of cloth), and laid him in a manger (an animal feeding trough), because there was no place for them in the inn.¹⁶ (Tradition holds that the baby Jesus was placed between an ox and an ass [figuratively between the ancient Israelites and the Gentiles], as is recorded in the Book of Isaiah):

“The ox knows its owner, and the ass it’s master’s crib.”, (Isaiah 1:3).

The Shepherds and the Angels (according to the Gospel of Luke)

⁸ And in that region, there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with fear. ¹⁰ And the angel said to them, ‘Be not afraid; for behold, [I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people; ¹¹ for to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.¹⁷ ¹² And this will be a sign for you: you will find a babe wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger.’ ¹³ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

¹⁴ ‘Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace among men with whom he is pleased!’, (peace to men of good will).

¹⁵ When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.’ ¹⁶ And they went with haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. ¹⁷ And when they saw it, they made known the saying which had been told them concerning this child; ¹⁸ and all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. ¹⁹ But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart. ²⁰ And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.”, (Luke 2:1-20).

Internal Footnotes

2:7 first-born: The term connotes possession of certain rights, privileges, and obligations; cf. Exodus 13:1-2, 11-16. The word is used even in modem times without necessarily implying subsequent births.

2:14 Other ancient authorities read peace, good will among men.

For Unto Us a Child is Born (the Prophecy of Isaiah)

“²The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness, on them has light shined…⁶ For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder, and his name will be called ‘Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.’ ⁷ Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David, and over his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time forth and for evermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.”, (Isaiah 9:2, 6-7).

“¹⁴ Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall call his name Imman′u-el. ¹⁵ He shall eat butter and honey, that he may know to refuse the evil, and to choose the good.”, (Isaiah 7:14-15).

God Has Spoken by (through) His Son

^“1 In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets; ² but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. ³ He reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature, upholding the universe by his word of power. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, ⁴ having become as much superior to angels as the name he has obtained is more excellent than theirs.

The Son Is Superior to the Angels

⁵ For to what angel did God ever say, ‘Thou art my Son, today I have begotten thee’? Or again, ‘I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son’? ⁶ And again, when he brings the first-born into the world, he says, ‘Let all God’s angels worship him.’ ⁷ Of the angels he says, ‘Who makes his angels winds, and his servants flames of fire.’ ⁸ But of the Son he says, ‘[Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever]¹⁸, the righteous scepter is the scepter of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, thy God, has anointed thee with the oil of gladness beyond thy comrades.’ ¹⁰ And, ‘Thou, Lord, didst found the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of thy hands; ¹¹ they will perish, but thou remainest; they will all grow old like a garment, ¹² like a mantle thou wilt roll them up, and they will be changed. But thou art the same, and thy years will never end.’”, (Hebrews 1:1-12).

The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us

“…³¹my delights are to be with the children of men.”, (Proverbs 8:31).

“²⁷ My dwelling place shall be with them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”, (Ezekiel 37:27).

“¹ In the beginning was the Word (God the Son), and the Word was with God (God the Father) and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God; ³ all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. ⁴ In him was life, and the life was the light of men. ⁵ The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”, (John 1:1-5).

¹⁴ And the Word (God the Son) was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we saw his glory, the glory as it were of the only begotten [Son] of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”, (John 1:14).

“³⁵ The next day again John (the Baptist) was standing with two of his disciples; ³⁶ and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”, (John 1:29).

“³ And I heard a great voice from the throne, saying: Behold the tabernacle (dwelling) of God is with men, and he will dwell with them. And they shall be his people; and God himself with them shall be their God.”, (Revelation 21:3).

The Holy Name of Jesus

The Circumcision of Our Lord Jesus Christ, on the eighth day after His birth, is celebrated on January 1. It was on that day that He was publicly given the name Jesus, even though it had first been proclaimed by angels¹⁹, to His mother Mary and to her spouse, Joseph. It is closely associated in time, with the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus, because of the thematic symmetry of the two.

“²¹ And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.”, (Luke 2:21).

“³¹ And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.”, (Luke 1:31).

“⁹Therefore God (the Father) has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name (Jesus), ¹⁰ that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow/bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹ and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, (God the Son) to the glory of God the Father.”, (Philippians 2:9-11).

“In (Jesus) Christ, the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily…” (Colossians 2:9).

“He (Jesus Christ) is the image of the invisible God, born (begotten) of (God) the Father before all ages”, (Colossians 1:15). Thus, in the Nicene Creed, we say, “begotten not made, one in being with the Father…”

“There is no other name (Jesus) under heaven, given to men, whereby we must be saved.”, (Acts 4:12).

The Epiphany of Our Lord

The word Epiphany means “manifestation.” In the Traditional (Catholic) calendar it is celebrated on January 6, subsequent to the Feasts of the Circumcision of Our Lord and the Holy Name of Jesus. There are two sets of triple manifestations associated with this feast. The first is the triad of the manifestation of Jesus Christ to 1) the gentiles through the arrival of the Magi, 2) the baptism of Jesus by John the Baptist when the voice from heaven said, “…this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.”²⁰ and 3) the miracle of changing water into wine during the wedding at Cana.²¹

The second triad focuses on the nature of the gifts the Magi brought to the baby Jesus. The first was gold, to emphasize that this child would be a king, the second, frankincense, to indicate that he would be a priest and third, myrrh to indicate that he would be a sacrificial victim through His atoning death on the Cross. The Gospel passage for this day is:

The Visit of the Wise Men

“¹ Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, ² ‘Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star²² in the East and have come to worship him.’ ³ When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him; ⁴ and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. ⁵ They told him, ‘In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it is written by the prophet’:

^{6 ‘}But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose origin is from of old,
from ancient days.’, (Micah 5:2).

⁷ Then Herod summoned the wise men (Magi) secretly and ascertained from them what time the star appeared; ⁸ and he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, ‘Go and search diligently for the child, and when you have found him bring me word, that I too may come and worship him.’ ⁹ When they had heard the king they went their way; and lo, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came to rest over the place where the child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy; ¹¹ and going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. ¹² And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed to their own country by another way.”, (Matthew 2:1-12).

There are two Old Testament prophetic scriptures that specifically predict the event referred to above.

“A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense and shall proclaim the praise of the Lord.”, (Isaiah 60:6).

“May the kings of Tarshish and of the isles render him tribute, may the kings of Sheba and Seba bring gifts! May all kings fall down (and worship) before him, all nations serve him!”, (Psalms 72:10-11).

The Prince of Peace

For thousands of years, humanity has struggled to find and maintain tranquility in this world. The birth, life and death of Jesus Christ was in part intended to bring peace to the earth, a peace which was stolen by Satan from our first parents, Adam and Eve when, using deception, he robbed them of their birthright. Since then, as a result of original sin, human beings have labored, largely unsuccessfully. Had mankind embraced/obeyed²³ the full Gospel of Jesus Christ, which includes active and [continual opposition to Satan]²⁴and all his evil machinations, the past two thousand years might have been very different. Christ indicated this on many occasions, for example, he said:

“⁵ I am the vine; you are the branches. He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”, (John 15:5). (Certainly, apart from Him we can do nothing truly good, since there is this),

“¹⁸A rich ruler asked him, ‘Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?’ ¹⁹ And Jesus said to him, ‘Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.’”, (Luke 18:18-19).²⁵

What these scriptures reduce to is as follows: Christ as God, is the source of all good and when we are not connected/obedient to Him, we can do nothing good.²⁶ We must walk the walk, not just talk the talk. That is why St. Paul says we are to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ.”, (Romans 13:14) and this is reiterated in Ephesians and 2 Corinthians,

²²Put off your old nature which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful lusts, ²³ and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, ²⁴ and put on the new nature, (put on or become like Christ) created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”, (Ephesians 4:22-24).

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come.”, (2 Corinthians 5:17).

With respect to the nature of Christ’s peace, scripture records,

“Suddenly, there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly hosts.”, (Luke 2:13) and the angels announced, “Glory to God in the Highest and on earth, peace to men of good will.”, (Luke 2:14).

In light of the foregoing, what does it mean that Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace came to bring peace to the earth? This peace, brought by Christ, is not for everyone, but, according to the angels, only those of good will, that is, good people who welcome Christ’s birth and do not attack or disobey him, (“there is no peace, says my God, for the wicked”, [Isaiah 57:21] and “but much peace have they that love your law; nothing can make them stumble.”, [Psalms 119:165]). As Ludolph of Saxony wrote:

“True peace for a Christian means not being separated from the Will of God and taking delight in only those things that God loves. What it means to have peace with God is to desire what He commands and reject what He forbids… The angel’s words also make it clear that the peace foretold by the prophets at Christ’s coming was the inner peace of good will.”²⁷

Christ taught this to his disciples:

“²⁷ Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”, (John 14:27-31).

“³³ These things (all of the preceding verses of chapter 16), I have spoken to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation (distress); but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”, (John 16:33).

There is no peace worthy of the name without Jesus Christ as its author. If the world wants a true peace on earth, it should obey the Prince of Peace. For most of us (“since all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God”, Romans 3:23), that would mean, repenting, confessing²⁸ our sins, doing penance (“I tell you, No; but unless you repent [do penance], you will all likewise perish”²⁹, Luke 13:3), and amending our lives. We should devote ourselves to doing only God’s will and resisting the devil. It has never been more necessary than it is now.

Merry Christmas and may the Peace of Christ be truly with you all.

1. God the Son, as a member of the Blessed Trinity with God the Father and God the Holy Ghost, in timeless eternity, enjoyed a spiritual/non-physical communion of three divine persons in one Divine or Supreme Being. Imagine what it must have cost Him to permanently take on human flesh and thereby, no longer resemble God the Father and God the Holy Ghost who remained entirely non-physical. Consider by analogy, what it would be like as a human being to become the equivalent of a worm, yet with the intellect of a man. What God the Son gave up through His incarnation, was an infinitely greater sacrifice, but one He willingly made to rescue the human race.

2. Mary was a virgin at the time of the incarnation/conception of God the Son as Jesus of Nazareth, through the power of the Holy Spirit which established her miraculous pregnancy and, thereafter, as well. The Perpetual Virginity of Mary (PVM) is a traditional Christian teaching that comes to us from the Patristic age, but which was referred to symbolically, in the book of Ezekiel, “⁴⁴ Then he brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, which faces east; and it was shut. ² And the Lord said to me, “This gate shall remain shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it; for the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered by it; therefore, it shall remain shut.”, (Ezekiel 44:1-2). For further details see, Who were the “brethren of Jesus” in light of The Perpetual Virginity of Mary?

3. Jesus is a name given by the Angel Gabriel. It was therefore by Divine command. In Luke 1:31, the angel informs the Blessed Virgin Mary, "Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.” In Matthew 1:20-21, the angel appeared to Joseph and said: “…Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; ²¹ she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” Therefore, it was clear to Mary and Joseph, that her very special son, would be the long-awaited savior of the world.

4. The infancy narrative is so rich with symbolic meaning. Christ’s birth was announced by angels to lowly shepherds who were tending their flocks by night, prefiguring the fact that Jesus was born to be the Good Shepherd who saves His flock from eternal damnation, “¹¹ I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ¹² He who is a hireling and not a shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. ¹³ He flees because he is a hireling and cares nothing for the sheep. ¹⁴ I am the good shepherd;^[a] I know my own and my own know me, ¹⁵ as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. ¹⁶ And I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will heed my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd.”, (John 10:11-16).

a. Internal footnote: 10.14 the good shepherd: The name has Messianic significance; cf Ezekiel 34.

Take time to meditate on these wonderful insights.

5. Traditionally, Advent ends with the imminent birth of Christ after which the Christmas season begins on December 24 and extends until January 13.

6. The word Christ is a Greek term which means Savior. In ancient Hebrew, the word for anointed or chosen one is Messias (Messiah, in English). The word Emmanuel (God with us), expands upon the idea that the Savior or anointed one, is in fact God, but in the flesh, that is, incarnated, in the form of a man.

7. Man is a finite being, God is infinite. When Adama and Eve failed their test of obedience, they incurred a debt of infinite magnitude because it was owed to an infinite God. Nothing they could have done on their own would have paid that debt. Only an infinite God could pay the debt, but it was owed by a finite creature (man). By becoming incarnated into human flesh, God the Son, second member of the Blessed Trinity, became a God/man, and then was able to pay the debt which could not be paid by a mere human.

8. “²² Then the Lord God said, ‘Behold, the man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil; and now, lest he put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live forever’— ²³ therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken. ²⁴ He drove out the man; and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life.”, (Genesis 3:22-24).

9. “The Genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, ¹ The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. ¹⁷So, all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ, fourteen generations.”, (Matthew 1:1,17).

10. This promise was specifically made to Abraham and to David. The priesthood from Abraham and the kingship of David were Christ’s birthright. “And in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”, (Genesis 22:18). “… in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”, (Genesis 12:3).” ¹⁶ And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure for ever before me; your throne shall be established forever.’”, (2 Samuel 7:16).

11. “I (the Lord God) will put enmity between you (Satan) and the woman (Eve), and between your (Satan) seed (antichrist) and her (Mary through Eve) seed (Jesus Christ); He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heal.”, (Genesis 3:15). The explanatory footnote, from the RSVCE, that refers to the last clause is as follows; “he shall bruise your head: i.e., the seed of the woman, that is, mankind descended from Eve, will eventually gain the victory over the powers of evil. This victory will, of course, be gained through the work of the Messiah who is par excellence the seed of the woman. The Latin Vulgate has the reading ipsa conteret, “she shall bruise.” Some Old Latin manuscripts have this reading, and it occurs also in St. Augustine, De Genesi contra Manichaeos, II, which is earlier than St. Jerome’s translation. It could be due originally to a copyist’s mistake, which was then seen to contain a genuine meaning—namely, that Mary, too, would have her share in the victory, inasmuch as she was mother of the Savior.”

12. See: The Life of Jesus Christ by Ludolph of Saxony, Part I, Volume I, chapter 7, entitled The Savior’s Genealogy, for a detailed treatment.

13. This is an extremely important passage. The angel imparted two messages within it. First, he demonstrates that Jesus the Christ, will be true man because he is to be born of a human woman. Second, that this man will also be true God (since He was conceived by God the Holy Spirit without the cooperation of a human man, which makes him God and man), who will save His people from their sins and only God can save us from sin. In the letter of St. Paul to the Galatians, we see this recapitulated as follows: “⁴ But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, ⁵ to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.”, (Galatians 4:4-5).

14. Isaiah 7:14.

15. Bethlehem, the birth place of Jesus Christ (God the Son in the flesh) was foretold in the Old Testament book of Micah, “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.”, (Micah 5:2). Bethlehem Ephrathah means, “house of bread.” How fitting that the literal “bread of life” (John 6:32-35) come down from heaven, was born in a place with that name.

16. Almost incomprehensibly, we see the eternally begotten Son of God, voluntarily take on human flesh, be born of a young woman, in abject poverty, who is yet, miraculously still a virgin. Despite his royal lineage, He willingly enters the world and spends his first night in a stable, with only the most minimal rags for clothing. He has no crib or soft blankets but instead sleeps in an animal feeding trough (manger) on top of some straw. Is this not the most incredible example of humility imaginable? He could have been born into fabulous wealth, with an entourage of servants and attendants. Instead, He comes as if a child of the lowliest servant. This was to prefigure his role as the suffering servant of Isaiah 53, the one who would take on the sins of the world and suffer a torturous death on the Cross.

17. Compare this to, “¹¹ For the grace of God has appeared for the salvation of all men, ¹² training us to renounce irreligion and worldly passions, and to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this world, ¹³ awaiting our blessed hope, the appearing (a reference to the second advent or coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in glory to judge the living and the dead at the end of the world), of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, ¹⁴ who gave himself for us to redeem us from all iniquity and to purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.¹⁵ Declare these things; exhort and reprove with all authority. Let no one disregard you.”, (Titus 2:11-15).

18. ^“3 I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. ¹⁴ And to him was given dominion and glory and kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.”, (Daniel 7:13-14).

19. Ludolph of Saxony wrote that it would not have been appropriate for humans to be the first to utter the name Jesus. It was a name given to God the Son by His Father and conveyed by angelic messenger. Ludolph cites the prophet Isaiah in support of this contention, “…and you shall be called by a new name which the mouth of the Lord will give.”, (Isaiah 62:2). For additional details see, The Life of Christ. Ludolph of Saxony, Part I, Volume 1, chapter 10, The Lord’s Circumcision.

20. Matthew 3:17.

21. John 2:1-11.

22. This star was prophesied by a gentile prophet named Balaam, “I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not nigh: a star shall come forth out of Jacob, and a scepter shall rise out of Israel; it shall crush the forehead of Moab and break down all the sons of Sheth.” (Numbers 24:17). Ludolph of Saxony in his book, The Life of Jesus Christ, Part I, Volume 1, chapter 11, on the Epiphany of Jesus, posits that the Magi were descendants of Balaam and were aware of his prophecy. When this new star became visible, they understood that the long-awaited and predicted Messiah had been born, so they began their journey to find him.

23. In numerous passages of scripture, Christ specifically indicates that we must obey Him. For example, “If you love me, obey my commandments.”, (John 14:15). ¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe (obey) all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age.”, (Matthew 28:18-20).

24. “⁸ Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. ⁹ Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same experience of suffering is required of your brotherhood throughout the world.”, (1 Peter 5:8-10).

25. With the greatest of humility, Jesus Christ says, ‘no one is good but God alone’, even though He could have said, ‘no one is good but Me.’ If we are to emulate Christ, we must be humble.

26. Any good that we do, apart from Christ is only apparent and not genuine/real, because it is not done in union with the source of goodness itself. From a moral perspective, doing something good for the wrong reason is still evil. We must do the right thing for the right reason if we are to remain in the vine as part of its branches.

27. The Life of Christ. Ludolph of Saxony, Part I, Volume 1, chapter 9, The Birth of the Savior.

28. “¹⁶ Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power in its effects.”, (James 5:16).

29. Here, Christ is indicating that we must repent in order not to lose our eternal salvation, not that we will die physically, which every human being does.