The Mississippi enterprise. (Jackson, Miss.) 1938-current, 1960-12-24
SUNDAY SCHOOL LESSON
DECEMBER rs, 1860
BY Rev. George A. Harper,
511 Avenue g.,
Greenwood, Miss

511 Avenue g.,
Greenwood, Miss.
Lesson Text - Luke 2; Print
Luke 1920.
MEMORY SELECTION -
Thanks be unto God for his
unspeakable gift. - q Corin-
thians 9:15). Gifts are expires
sions of appreciation. They are
purchased-paid for by the
benefactor and given to a ben
eficiary. The gifts of men are
measured in value and can be
purchased by men, expressed
by men; however, the gift of
God is unspeakable, it can not
be purchased by all men, is
intimate in value and cannot
be purchased by all men, is
intimate in value and cannot
be fathomed nor expressed
The unspeakable Gift of God
is Gods greatest gift, even His
only begotten Son. God gave
His best - His Son - for the
worst, even sinners, on earth.
This is unfathomable, unspeak-
able, incomprehensible, incom-
parable. Such is the love of
God.
THE ANGEL APPEARS TO
THE SHEPHERDS:
And there were in the
same country shepherds abid-
ing in the field, keeping watch
over their flock by night -
1.-THE same country" has refer
ence to the country, discussed
in the preceding verses name
ly, Bethlehem. The story as
related so far tells of Joseph
and Mary coming to Bethle-
hem from Nazareth of Galilee
to enroll or register in their
home town according to the
decree of Augustus Caesar.
While the couple were in Beth
lehem the time arrived for
their first child to be born and
it happened that Jesus was
born at a time when crowded
conditions in Bethlehem made
it necessary for his parents
to take shelter in a stable. An
other theory that appears a bit
more reasonable is the appear
ance of the angel to shep-
herds as an indication of
Christ's office as the Good
Shepherd. "And, 10, the angel
of the Lord came upon them,
and the glory of the Lord
shone round about them: and
they were sore afraid" ..
Therefore, men are afraid
whenever God appears unto
them. Therefore shepherds
were acting in the usual way
when they became extremely
afraid at the appearance of
the angel of the Lord and at
the sight of the brightness of
divine presence.
THE BIRTH OF JESUS AN
NOUNCED:
"And the angel said unto
them, Fear not: for, behold, |
bring you good tidings of great
joy, which shall be to all peo-
pie" This was not a visit
of judgment that caused the
angel to appear unto these
shepherds, there was nothing
to be afraid of, for no harm
was planned against them.
The great joy of which the
angel spoke had already been
realized by the angel who
brought the message, but it
would take the unfolding of
time to reveal to men why this
particular event about to be
announced would be the
source of great joy unto all
people. Yet the good news
and glad tidings were for all
people, and In the course of
time they would realize why
it really was good news. s'For
unto you is born this day in
the city of David a Saviour,
which is Christ the Lord
Bethlehem was generally
known as the city of David be-
cause it was the home of the
great ruler who unified the
tribes and built a great nation
of Israel.
All the world was in need
of a Savior and therefore the
good news Of a Savior was a
blessing to all, although the
event took place on Jewish
soil and among Jewish peo-
pie. And this shall be a sign
unto you: Ye shall find the
babe wrapped in swaddling
clothes, lying in a Manager