The Twelve ApostlesThe First Christmas

John the Baptist

The Risen ChristThe Crucifixion

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 Zechariah helped his little son to learn and understand the scriptures – God’s laws
and the words of the prophets. From the start, John was trained for the work God had
chosen him to do.
When he was older, he lived alone in the desert. He wore clothes made of rough
camels’ hair, with a leather belt round his waist. He lived on locusts and wild honey.
 There in the desert God gave John his message. And when he was
grown up he began to preach and teach. Crowds flocked to hear this
strange, wild-looking man who spoke with such power.
“God’s King is coming soon,” he said. “Make sure you are ready.
Change your ways, and God will forgive you.”
 John told people what they were doing wrong. Many of those who
heard him really wanted to live better lives. So he took them down into
the River Jordan, “baptizing” them in the water as a sign that their past
sins were washed away. When people asked him what they ought to do,
John answered: “Share your food and clothes with those who need.
 Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by
him. But John would have hindered him, saying, "I need to be baptized
by you, and you come to me?" But Jesus, answering, said to him,
"Allow it now, for this is the fitting way for us to fulfill all
righteousness." Then he allowed him.
When he was baptized, the heavens were opened to him. He saw the
Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming on him. Behold, a
voice out of the heavens said, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I
am well pleased."
Joseph’s family was descended from King David.
So he had to go to Bethlehem, where King David
was born. He had to take Mary on the long
journey south through the hills – eighty miles of
rough dirt roads. The donkey carried their food,
warm cloaks for the chilly nights, and clothes for
the baby who was due to be born any day.
Mary was very tired when they arrived at last. And there was
nowhere for them to stay. The inn was already crowded with
travellers. The inn-keeper felt sorry for Mary – but the only
space he had left was the stable. It was dirty and smelly in
there with the animals. But at least Mary could rest – and there
was nowhere else.
That night Mary’s baby son was born. She wrapped him up
warmly in the clothes she had made, and put him in a manger
to sleep.
On the hills around the town, shepherds kept watch, looking
after their flocks. The night was dark and everything was quite
– just a little bleat now and then from one of the sheep.
 When the angels had gone and the sky was dark again, the shepherds began to talk
among themselves.
“We must go to Bethlehem,” they said, “and see what has happened.”
They made sure the sheep were safe. Then they hurried into the town. There they
found Mary and Joseph – and a new-born baby lying in the manger. Then they knew that
what the angels had told them was true.
 Then suddenly there was a blaze of light – so bright, the men had to shield their eyes.
And out of the brightness came the voice of God’s messenger-angel.
“Don’t be afraid. I’ve come with good news – for you and all the world. The Saviour has
come – God’s promised King – born today in Bethlehem. You will find the baby asleep in
a manger.”
Then the shepherds saw a great crowd of angels, all singing praises to God.
“Glory to God in heaven,” they sang, “and peace to all who love him on earth.”
 When Mary’s baby was eight days old, he was given his name – Jesus.
Soon it was time for Joseph and Mary to do as the Jewish law said, and
dedicate their first son to God. So they took the baby to God’s Temple at
Jerusalem. There was a good old man called Simeon living in the city.
God had promised him that before he died he would see the King.
Simeon was there when Mary and Joseph came to the Temple with Jesus.
He took the baby in his arms and thanked God for him.
“God has kept His promise,” Simeon said. “Now I shall die content. For I
have seen the Savior.”
 At that time Kings from the east came to Jerusalem.
“Tell us where we can find the baby who is born to be King of the Jews,” they said.
“We have seen His star and have come to give him presents.”
Soon the whole town was talking about the wise men and their strange question.
What could it mean?
Kings continued to follow the star and they came to
Bethlehem. They found the baby in one of the houses, with
Mary and Joseph. Then they opened their bags and brought
out presents – gold, frankincense and myrrh.
 Now after the Sabbath, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to
look at the grave. And behold, a severe earthquake had occurred, for an
angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled away the
stone and sat upon it.
 And his appearance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as
snow. The guards shook for fear of him and became like dead
men. The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid; for I know that
you are looking for Jesus who has been crucified. "He is not here, for
He has risen, just as He said.
 Then the angel said, "Go and tell His disciples that He has risen from
the dead; and behold, He is going ahead of you into Galilee, there you
will see Him.” And they left the tomb with fear and great joy and ran
to report it to His disciples.
 And behold, Jesus met them and greeted them. And they came up
and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to
them, "Do not be afraid; go and take word to My brethren to leave for
Galilee, and there they will see Me."
 So they told everything to the disciples and they proceeded to
Galilee. And Jesus spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been
given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples
of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the
Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I
commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the
age."
Jesus went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in
prayer to God. And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and
chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles: Simon, whom
He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James and John; and
Philip and Bartholomew; and Matthew and Thomas; James the son of
Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; Judas the son of James,
and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.
Simon the Apostle was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus. He
received the authority to cast out unclean spirits and to heal every
kind of ailment and disease. The name Simon means "God has heard."
Simon was also known as Simon the Zealot.
 Andrew is the brother of the apostle Peter and his parent's names
were Joanna and Jona. Like their father, Andrew and Peter were also
fishermen on the Sea of Galilee. Andrew was the first of the Apostles
to follow Jesus. The apostle Peter became the fisher of men in masse
where Andrew was a fisher for individuals.
James the son of Zebedee and his brother John were among
the twelve disciples of Our Lord. They, together with Peter,
were privileged to behold the Transfiguration, to witness the
healing of Peter's mother-in-law and the raising of the
daughter of Jairus, and to be called aside to watch and pray
with Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane on the night before
His death.
James and John were apparently from a higher social level
than the average fisherman. Their father could afford hired
servants, and John had connections with the high priest.
 Philip the Apostle was one of the original twelve apostles. He came
from Bethsaida in Galilee. Jesus invited Philip to become His disciple.
Philip became the sixth disciple of Jesus, and introduced his friend
Nathanael (Bartholomew) to Jesus, who also became an apostle.
 Matthew was one of the original 12 apostles. He was a tax collector
before he was called by Jesus to be an apostle. Known formally as
Levi, son of Alphaeus, Matthew wrote the first book of the New
Testament. Matthew's work has been described as a textbook for
Christian leaders. It is Gospel "to announce the good news", a
presentation of the birth, ministry of teaching and healing, death and
resurrection of Jesus Christ.
 Thomas is also called Didymus (the twin). Thomas is most
famous for how he is depicted in the Gospel According to
John. He first appears as a symbol of strength, encouraging
the others to follow Jesus to Judea where death awaits. Later
he expresses doubts about following Jesus. Finally, after
Jesus’ resurrection, he is the “doubting Thomas” who
refused to believe that Jesus really returned until he saw the
scars and placed his fingers in Jesus’ side.
 The Apostle Matthew also is the son of a man named Alphaeus, it
has been thought that he and James were brothers. But the two were
never referred to as brothers. His mother's name was Mary and she
was one of the women who went to the tomb of Jesus, and found that
it had been opened. James was also called "James the Less" and
"James the Younger."
 Simon the Apostle received the authority to cast out unclean spirits
and to heal every kind of ailment and disease. The name Simon means
"God has heard." Simon was also known as Simon the Zealot.
 Thaddaeus was also known as Judas, son of James Saint Jude's
attribute is a club. He is also often shown in icons with a flame around
his head. This represents his presence at Pentecost, when he received
the Holy Spirit with the other apostles. Occasionally he is represented
holding an axe or halberd, as he was brought to death by one of these
weapons. In some instances he may be shown with a scroll or a book
(the Epistle of Jude) or holding a carpenter's rule.
 Judas Iscariot "man of Kerioth," the son of Simon, was one of the twelve original
apostles of Jesus. He considered it a waste of money when Mary anointed Jesus with
expensive oil. And, John states that Judas had often dipped into the funds for his own
personal use, and that Judas cared little about using the money to help the poor.
After Jesus and His disciples went to Jerusalem, Satan entered into Judas and Judas
approached local community leaders, offering to deliver Jesus into their hands for 30
pieces of silver. During the Last Supper, Jesus foretold of Judas' betrayal. Judas
betrayed Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. After Jesus' arrest, Judas was seized
with remorse.
He returned the betrayal money and hanged himself. The money was later used to buy
a piece of land, which became known as the "Field of Blood."
 During supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas
Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him. Jesus, knowing that the Father
had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from
God and was going back to God, got up from supper, and laid aside His
garments; and taking a towel, He girded Himself. Then He poured water
into the basin, and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them
with the towel with which He was girded.
 So He came to Simon Peter. He said to Him, "Lord, do You wash my
feet?” Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no part
with Me.” Simon Peter said to Him, "Lord, then wash not only my
feet, but also my hands and my head." Jesus said to him, "He who has
bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you
are clean, but not all of you."
 Simon Peter then, having a sword, drew it and struck the high
priest's slave, and cut off his right ear; and the slave's name was
Malchus. So Jesus said to Peter, "Put the sword into the sheath;
the cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?" So the
Roman cohort and the commander and the Jews, arrested Jesus
and bound Him.
 Pilate then took Jesus and scourged Him. And the soldiers twisted
together a crown of thorns a crown of thorns and put it on His head,
and put a purple robe on Him; and they began to come up to Him and
say, "Hail, King of the Jews!" and to give Him slaps in the face.
 Now Jesus stood before the governor, and the governor questioned
Him, saying, "Are You the King of the Jews?" And Jesus said to him,
"It is as you say." And while He was being accused by the chief
priests and elders, He did not answer. Then Pilate said to Him, "Do
You not hear how many things they testify against You?" And He did
not answer him with regard to even a single charge, so the governor
was quite amazed.
 Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the
people any one prisoner whom they wanted. At that time they were
holding a notorious prisoner, called Barabbas. So Pilate said to
people, "Whom do you want me to release for you? Barabbas, or
Jesus who is called Christ?" While he was sitting on the judgment
seat, his wife sent him a message, saying, "Have nothing to do with
that righteous Man; for last night I suffered greatly in a dream because
of Him."
 But people said, "Barabbas." Pilate said to them, "Then what shall I
do with Jesus who is called Christ?" They all said, "Crucify
Him!" And he said, "Why, what evil has He done?" But they kept
shouting all the more, saying, "Crucify Him!" When Pilate saw that he
was accomplishing nothing, he took water and washed his hands in
front of the crowd, saying, "I am innocent of this Man's blood; see to
that yourselves." And all the people said, "His blood shall be on us
and on our children!"
 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the Praetorium.
They stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him. And after twisting
together a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His
right hand; and they knelt down before Him and mocked Him, saying,
"Hail, King of the Jews!" They spat on Him, and took the reed and
began to beat Him on the head. After they had mocked Him, they took
the scarlet robe off Him and put His own garments back on Him, and
led Him away to crucify Him. As they were coming out, they found a
man of Cyrene named Simon, whom they pressed into service to bear
His cross.
When they came to a place called Golgotha, which means Place of a
Skull, they gave Him wine to drink mixed with gall; and after tasting
it, He was unwilling to drink. And when they had crucified Him, they
divided up His garments among themselves by casting lots. And
sitting down, they began to keep watch over Him there. And above
His head they put up the charge against Him which read, "THIS IS
JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS."
 One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at
Him, saying, "Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!" But the
other answered, and rebuking him said, "Do you not even fear God,
since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? "And we
indeed are suffering justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for
our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong." And he was saying,
"Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!" And He
said to him, "Truly I say to you, today you shall be with Me in
Paradise."
 It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness fell over the whole
land until the ninth hour. And the veil of the temple was torn in
two. And Jesus, with a loud voice, said, "Father, INTO YOUR
HANDS I COMMIT MY SPIRIT." Having said this, He breathed His
last. Now when the centurion saw what had happened, he began
praising God, saying, "Certainly this man was innocent."
 A man named Joseph went to Pilate and asked for the body of
Jesus. And he took it down and wrapped it in a linen cloth, and laid
Him in a tomb cut into the rock, where no one had ever lain. It was
the preparation day, and the Sabbath was about to begin.