Perspectives of the Nativity

“Whom say ye that I am?”—Matthew 16:15

On December 25 the Christian world will celebrate the birthday of Jesus of Nazareth. Despite the fact that the date chosen is arbitrary and out of accord with the gospel records, we rejoice that so many still desire to honor in some way the one who came to save men from their sins. Although the holiday has become polluted by crass commercialism, it remains aday set aside by the sincere to acknowledge that Jesus was indeed the Son of God. Therefore we are glad, in keeping with the spirit of the holiday, to join in this celebration by dedicating this issue of THE HERALD to this marvelous and miraculous birth.

Even though the parents of Jesus were of the poorer working class, the birth of Christ was witnessed by a surprising number of quite different individuals. Each one had his own unique perspective of the significance of that birth. In this issue of the journal we will examine the different impressions of these witnesses.

No two people see the same event exactly alike. It may be their physical angle of sight or some personal bias or prejudice that brings them to different conclusions on the details of what they saw. This phenomenon occurs in courtrooms when jurors listen to witnesses reporting their impressions of the case in hand. We will be examining the viewpoints of eight individuals or groups in the articles that follow.

No viewpoint is more important or more precisely accurate than that of God himself. In God’s Journey to Bethlehem the author seeks to enter into the mind of the Almighty Creator of the universe and establish his particular viewpoint of the nativity. God, the giver of every good and perfect gift (James 1:17), “gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). It is almost presumptuous to attempt to enter into the mind and heart of God, but it is good to contemplate the feelings of a loving parent who voluntarily submitted his dearest possession to experiences he knew Jesus would undergo.

Among the first to be aware of the birth of the Lord, even before the event, were his relatives Elizabeth and Zacharias. Elizabeth prophesied of the coming event to Mary, while Zacharias referred to it on the occasion of the naming of his only son, John the Baptist. Their unique perspective is treated in the article entitled The Torah of Humanity.

Naturally, no one on earth was more acutely aware of the blessed event than the parents themselves, particularly Mary. In Blessed Among Women, the perspective of Mary and Joseph is reviewed—the angelic announcements, the trip to visit Elizabeth, and the final journey to Bethlehem, where Jesus was born.

The witnesses to the birth of Jesus were not only Hebrews, but also wise men, or magi, who came from the east. They were following a guiding star. They warned the family in Bethlehem of impending danger and their precious gifts may have provided sustenance for the family while in Egypt. Their visit is analyzed in the article The Guiding Star.

Not all were thrilled at the prospect of a newborn king. Those in positions of power never relish the thought of their power being threatened. A prime example of this is the Edomite King in Judea, Herod the Great. The Jealous Monarch seeks the perspective Herod may have had when he heard from the wise men that a new king was born in Israel.

The birth of the Messiah had been long anticipated. There was an expectation for his birth at the time (Luke 3:15). Two faithful elderly people in Jerusalem frequented the temple in anticipation of the Messiah, praying for the “consolation of Israel” (Luke 2:25). Their names were Simeon and Anna and their story is narrated in the treatise, Jesus Presented at the Temple.

Two regular features are included in our celebration of the birth of Jesus. The “Echoes from the Past” is a reprint of The Question Box from 1962 by Bro. P. L. Read, a former editor of this journal. The concluding treatise is our verse by verse study in Isaiah 53 entitled Despised and Rejected.