Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-12-20

The thought of the world today centers
about the little village of Bethlehem,
where the Lord Jesus was born. No
greater event ever occurred in history
than the birth of the Christ Child.
| Time has besn related from that day.
! We draw near to gaze at the infant as
| he lies III the manger, because the an
+, gels proclaimed His incarnation in song
| filed with good tidingS of great JOY
which shall be to all the people," We
are not alone, for the wise men followed
/ the CLEAN of the star in the east, and
through the assistance of scholars who
understood the prophecies contained in
the scriptures concerning His birth
| found the place where the King was
born. They worshiped Him by present.
| ing the choicest gifts of their lands.
| Mingled with the evidence of splendor
and majesty We note the signs of pow
erty and lowliness. Both Joseph and
Mary were poor, but theirs was royal
blood. III response to the angelic cho-
rus the shepherds, the plainest sort of
| people, had come to test the reality of
the SaViour'S birth. They found the
newborn babe in the manger, because
| there was no room for them in the inn.
Instead of being born in Nazareth, an
edict calling for census of their nation
! brought them to Bethlehem, closely as
ISOLATED with the early life of David
and the place where, according to
prophecy, the Messiah was to be born.
| Looking back through the centuries
upon the Babe born in thos humble
surroundings, we celebrate His advent
| because the little child had the evidence
of Gods hand of power being upon Him
Geography has been changed. History
has been rewritten. Nations have been
redeemed The influence of that Babe S
| life has changed the destiny of men and
the currents of civilization, because He
brought the sustaining and saving power
Of God to men.
The Christmas Message.
| Jesus brought reinforcement to mer
of all nations when He emptied Himself
of His glory and entered the human
race as child. He did not come for 6
brief revelation, but to live with mer
and become part of their spiritual power
He had heard the cry of the suffering
sorrowing and sinful race. His spirit
was filed with sympathy for their strug-
giles. He came that as the Lamb of Goo
/ He could save the mfrom their own sins
No wonder the shepherds left theii
f1ocks and journeyed to Bethlehem tt
learn the truth that confirmed the an
gels message. They fastened to the
nearby community because they haC
been inspired by the hopes of salvation
They knew their needs and approached
their newborn King with great an
ticipations.
Their hearts were filled with courage
and their songs expressed their praise
| for Gods gift to them. There was JOY
in their songs and stories of what they
| had seen and heard. They were the
| first preachers of the Gospel. They
! had seen in the helpless babe, wrapped
up in the royal swaddling clothes that
are no longer used, a universal Savior
| for all people. The salvation of lost
world meant more than the justifyine
| Of an individual soul. The joys OF
| Christmas fill the thought of humanity
| today. The desire to make all people
| happy and aid all to share the joys OF
| a merry Christmas calls for more than
! the gifts of food, shelter and clothing
! If We are to help men permanently in
| this crucial hour, we must aid them to
assist themselves. We are called upon
| to impart to al the spiritual founda-
tons that will give men liberty from
their sins. This freedom will help them