Christmas
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And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord stood
before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, "Do not be
afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of
David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:8-11
According to Strong's Greek & Hebrew Dictionary the words in verse 10 for "all people" are "pas laos" means "everyone" or "all men."
If the angel wanted to say that the Savior was for just a select group he could have said that Jesus' birth for a certain select few, but he didn't, he
said the Savior was for all people.
The Christmas message, the Savior, was and is for kings and shepherds, wise men and ignorant men, Jews and Gentiles, and even a thief on a
cross some 33 years later.
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On a totally different bent, something I ran across that I thought was interesting regarding shepherds, flocks, and Christmas.
The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah
Alfred Edersheim M.A.Oxon., D.D. Ph.D.(1825-1889)
CHAPTER VI.: THE NATIVITY OF JESUS THE MESSIAH.
- ...But as we pass from the sacred gloom of the cave out into the night, its sky all aglow with starry brightness, its loneliness is peopled, and
its silence made vocal from heaven. There is nothing now to conceal, but much to reveal, though the manner of it would seem strangely
incongruous to Jewish thinking. And yet Jewish tradition may here prove both illustrative and helpful. That the Messiah was to be born in
Bethlehem, was a settled conviction. Equally so was the belief, that He was to be revealed from Migdal Eder, ‘the tower of the flock.’ This
Migdal Eder was not the watchtower for the ordinary flocks which pastured on the barren sheepground beyond Bethlehem, but lay close to
the town, on the road to Jerusalem. A passage in the Mishnah* leads to the conclusion, that the flocks, which pastured there, were destined
for Temple-sacrifices, [952] and, accordingly, that the shepherds, who watched over them, were not ordinary shepherds. The latter were
under the ban of Rabbinism, [953] on account of their necessary isolation from religious ordinances, and their manner of life, which rendered
strict legal observance unlikely, if not absolutely impossible. The same Mishnic passage also leads us to infer, that these flocks lay out all the
year round, since they are spoken of as in the fields thirty days before the Passover - that is, in the month of February, when in Palestine the
average rainfall is nearly greatest. [954] Thus, Jewish tradition in some dim manner apprehended the first revelation of the Messiah from that
Migdal Eder, where shepherds watched the Temple-flocks all the year round. Of the deep symbolic significance of such a coincidence, it is
needless to speak....
people, as championed by the Pharisees, and is considered the first work of Rabbinic Judaism.
[952] In fact the Mishnah (Baba K. vii. 7) expressly forbids the keeping of flocks throughout the land of Israel, except in the wilderness - and the
only flocks otherwise kept, would be those for the Temple-services (Baba K. 80 a).
[953] This disposes of an inapt quotation (from Delitzsch) by Dr. Geikie. No one could imagine, that the Talmudic passages in question could
apply to such shepherds as these.
Full text version: www.ccel.org/ccel/edersheim/lifetimes.txt Full HTML version: www.ccel.org/ccel/edersheim/lifetimes.toc.html
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CHRISTMAS RESOURCES
From Ray Vander Laan's That The World May Know/Follow The Rabbi
Herod is Dead, Jesus Lives
Herod The Great
Herodion
Bethlehem--Jesus' Birthplace
Jesus' Genealogy
Also from Ray Vander Laan: In The Shadow Of Herod:
Part 1: Herod's Magnificent Palace
Part 2: Jesus' Humble Manger
Part 3: Nations in Conflict
Part 4: Two Kings—Two Legacies
Part 5: God's People in the Shadows
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From Christiananswers.net:
Is biblical Christmas story true? Is Jesus Christ for real
When did the Luke 2 census occur?
What are some of the most common misconceptions about Jesus Christ's birth?
What Is The Real Meaning Of Christmas?
What was the Star of Bethlehem?
If Christ's miracles really happened, why weren't they reported by historians?
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