Little Known Facts About the Christmas Story

Most Christians are familiar with the Biblical account of the Christmas story. The unfortunate thing is that much of what we believe true about the Christmas story never happened, and some of the things that are true are unknown.

This has happened over time as our knowledge of the Christmas story, the birth of Christ, has been shaped by tradition. Below are a few facts that you may never have considered about the Christmas story, as recorded in the Bible.

Little Known Biblical Facts about the Christmas Story

*The Importance of the Virgin Birth.

Joseph and Mary weren't married when Mary became pregnant. Most Christians know and accept this. According to the Bible, the Holy Spirit came upon her and she became impregnated with Jesus.

Doubters find this story incredulous. However, the virgin birth is vital to Christ's identity as the Messiah, the Savior.

Going into the Christmas story, most Christians understand the concept of Christ coming to die as a sacrifice for the sins of man, sins being the actions, attitudes, and thought that violate God's holiness and separate us from God. In order for the sacrifice to be acceptable, according to Old Testament scripture, the blood had to be from a perfect spotless lamb. Had Jesus been born from the bloodline of man, he wouldn't have been perfect. He would have had the blood of fallen man coursing through his veins. It is the perfect blood of Christ alone, sprinkled upon the altar of heaven that atoned, or paid for the wrong doings of man.

*The importance of Jesus' earthly genealogy.

Little attention is paid to the fact that Matthew traces Jesus' earthly genealogy all the way back to Abraham. It is important that the birth of Christ, the Messiah, be linked to God's chosen people, the Jews. Matthew speaks of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel. He traces Jesus' lineage through King David and King Solomon, Matthew reminds readers that Ruth was King David's great grandmother. He speaks of Uzziah, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Josiah and follows the genealogy to Jacob, father of Joseph (Matthew 1:1-17), who was engaged to be married to Mary.