A little over 2,000 years ago the archangel Gabriel came to Mary and told her she was going to have a baby boy, who she would call Jesus Christ, our anointed Saviour.  (Luke 1:31-33)

“Mary was very surprised by this news”, says Nanna. “Mary asked how can this be, since I am not married?  Gabriel told her that she would have Jesus by God’s Holy Spirit entering her, which would be the Son of God”.  (Luke 1:34-38)

“Yes Nanna, that must have been so amazing to Mary to hear, and to her husband to be, Joseph”, says Grandad.

Joseph and Mary from their different families came from the same family line as King David, way back to Adam and Eve. That’s why there are 2 different family trees in Matthew and Luke. (Matthew 1:1-19, Luke 3:24-38)

Jesus had a special prophesied cousin, called John the Baptist, born to Elizabeth and Zacharias, just 6 months before Jesus was born. (Luke 1:5-17)

John was called by God, to prepare the way for Jesus, when He was ready to preach the Kingdom of God. John was given God’s Holy Spirit within him to teach and preach in the same spirit and power of the prophet Elijah.

Elijah and John and the end-time Elijah prepare God’s people, by turning the hearts of parents to their children and children to their parents. Their message is to turn all of us, to loving God and keeping God’s commandments and laws. (Luke 1:17)

“So, is it very important our child, that you do what your father and mother ask you to do?” says Grandad.

Of course Jesus was not born on the 25^thday of December in the middle of winter.

Jesus was born in the Autumn season, around the time when Joseph and Mary travelled from Nazareth to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.  At the same time they were required to register in Bethlehem to pay their taxes to the Roman government over them. (See booklet: “Holidays or Holy Days?”)

No sooner did they arrive in Bethlehem, Jesus was born and many shepherds, and some prophets like Simeon and Anna, came to visit Him and tell everyone about his birth. (Luke 2:1-7, Luke 2:8-20, Luke 2:25-35, Luke 2:36-38)

Eight days later, He was circumcised and officially named Jesus. (Luke 2:21-24)

Some wise men from the East called Magi, saw a bright star appear at the time of Jesus birth and travelled towards it. The Bible does not say how many of these wise men there were.

When Herod the evil king, heard of them coming, he asked if they could find where Jesus was and come and tell him.

The wise men visited Jesus and gave glory to God, and honour to Jesus, with rich presents of gold, frankincense and myrrh in honour of Him being a future almighty King. Being wise, they travelled home by another way, and did not tell Herod where Jesus was. (Matthew 2:1-12)

God also warned Joseph in a dream to quickly take Jesus and Mary to Egypt and stay there until the coast was clear to come back home. (Matthew 2:13-15, Hosea 11:1)

Herod was very angry when he couldn’t find Jesus, so he did a very evil wicked thing.

He ordered the death of all the little boys in and around Bethlehem, who were new born up to 2 years old. (Matthew 2:16-18, Jeremiah 31:15)

“Jesus lived with His parents in Egypt until horrid king Herod died and was no longer a threat”, says Nanna.

So, when they were returning home from Egypt, Joseph was told by God in a dream, to take Jesus and Mary to live in Nazareth, which was up from the sea of Galilee. (Matthew 2: 19-23, Luke 2:39, Amos 2:10-12)

“Jesus grew up learning the skills of carpentry and building, working hard with his father Joseph”, says Grandad. “He also learned the scriptures really well. Of course Jesus loved God’s word.  After all, when He was God with God the Father, He was the One who had inspired the prophets to write down the words of the Bible, we call the Old Testament. He also inspired the writers of the New Testament.”

At the age of 12 we read of Jesus and his parents keeping God’s appointed Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread in Jerusalem with many of their friends.

They were in such a large travelling company of family and friends, that somehow Jesus was accidentally left behind. Joseph and Mary were very worried, so they hurriedly travelled back to Jerusalem, only to find Jesus happily surrounded by many wise teachers in the Temple area.

Jesus at 12, knew the scriptures so well that he had these Temple teachers sitting on the edge of their seats in amazement.  They were impressed by his wisdom and understanding shown in His questions and answers.  He was of course doing the business of His Father in heaven. (Luke 2:40-52)

As Jesus grew up with God’s spirit in Him, He kept increasing in wisdom and being strong and sensible. Because of His loving nature, He was favoured by people he met, as well as being loved by God His Father. (Luke 2:52)

His cousin John the Baptist, also loved God and followed his parents fine example of living by God’s laws. (Luke 1:5-6)

John began to preach about God’s coming Kingdom to this Earth and that we need to repent of our sins, of breaking God’s Commandments and laws.

He and his fellow disciples baptised many repentant people. He told them that Jesus, who was greater than him, would soon begin His prophesied ministry. (Matthew 3:1-4, Mark 1:1-3, Luke 3:1-6, John 1:6-10, John 1:26-27)

When Jesus Christ began His ministry, he asked John the Baptist to baptise Him in the river Jordan. (Matthew 3:13-17, John1:28-34)

After Jesus was baptised by John, a voice from the heavens called out: “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased!”

The next day John the Baptist was standing with 2 of his disciples, Andrew (the brother of Peter) and a man also called John, and they were looking at Jesus. (John 1:35-42)

John the Baptist told them “Behold, the Lamb of God!” 

Because they had read the prophets writings in their Old Testament Bible, they knew John was referring to the many prophecies about Jesus being symbolically spoken of as like an innocent wonderful lamb. (Isaiah 53:7, Isaiah 53:11, Exodus 12:3)

So, they left John the Baptist to follow Jesus in His God ordained ministry.

10 other men also keenly followed Jesus, which made a total of 12 disciples (students) and Apostles of Jesus Christ. Their names were Andrew, John, Peter, Philip, Nathanael (Bartholomew), James (son of Alphaeus), James (son of Zebedee), Matthew, Simon the Canaanite, Thaddaeus, Thomas, and Judas Iscariot.

“After Jesus death, quite a few more men became Apostles”, says Grandad. “There were men like Matthias, Paul, Barnabas, James (the Lord’s half-brother), and…”  “Yes that’s true Grandad”, says Nanna. “But, let’s keep that part of the story for later on”.

John the Baptist was very brave and even told the bad king Herod that he had sinned in many ways against God’s good laws and had done evil by marrying Herodias, who was the wife of his brother Philip.

Herod was so angry that he threw John in prison and later ordered John to be killed.

“Sometimes God in his love and wisdom, allows awful things to happen to His faithful people. But, it is always for a very good important reason”, says Grandad. “You will see this in your life as you get older. Sometimes, it takes many years later to understand, why God wisely allows things to happen the way they do. But remember, God will resurrect His faithful people to live forever in God’s family. So, there is never anything to be frightened about, is there, our child?”

“Yes, that is what Grandad and I have observed too, over many years”, says Nanna. “John the Baptist’s death, opened up the way for the Ministry of Jesus Christ, to begin very powerfully and became known to everyone in the land. And of course John will be made alive again in God’s Family at the time of the 1^st Resurrection, when Jesus Christ returns to this Earth”

To be continued in Chapter 15...