The Christmas Quiz

Peace on earth will come one day, but we can have it now in our lives. Paul would say it this way in Romans chapter 5 verse 1, Therefore we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Those who have accepted the sacrifice of the sovereign Lord, those who have believed in Him, finding their merit in Him alone, have this peace treaty signed with God. And now on earth, in our lives and hearts, we can have peace.

Welcome to Wisdom for the Heart. Christmas Day is now behind us, but I hope the joy of celebrating the Incarnation lingers in your heart. Today, Stephen Davey has what I think will be a fun message for you.

In fact, if there are children nearby, I encourage you to gather them around as well because they can participate in what's about to happen. Today, Stephen is giving a quiz about Christmas. What did the innkeeper really say? Where did the wise men come to visit Jesus?

What is myrrh? What infamous world leader outlawed the word Christmas? Are you ready to test your Christmas knowledge?

Here's Stephen. One of the things I love about the Christmas season is the opportunity to deepen our appreciation for the humility and the sacrifice of Christ on our behalf, observed in His Incarnation. I fear that the Christmas story often is so polished and cleaned up that we wouldn't recognize the real scene if it were enacted in front of us.

The truth is the original Christmas scene was actually a desperate, filthy scene with two teenagers, more than likely delivering their firstborn in a stone cutout in a hillside. I thought we'd do something a little different. I threaten you often that I'm going to give you a test, or you need to remember that for the quiz or whatever. I thought I'd give you a quiz today. We're not going to grade it. Well, we'll grade it immediately, actually, and you can find out how well you did.

Your membership is not at risk, so don't worry about that. Question number one as we review this scene together briefly today. According to the biblical record, Joseph and Mary travel to Bethlehem on a camel and a wooden cart and a Volkswagen. Now, that's an easy one.

You're to know that's not the real answer, although I've seen some that old. Or D, Joseph walked and Mary rode a donkey. Right, none of the above. I've tricked you. This is going to be fun. I'm going to enjoy every bit of this.

I have already this hour. None of the above. The Bible merely records for us in Luke chapter two that Joseph went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, in order to register with Mary, who was engaged to him and was with Job. We're not told how they got there or upon what they rode. It's possible that both Mary and Joseph were too poor to own a mule. Joseph was a carpenter, literally in the likes of what we could think of today as a migrant worker. More than likely, they both walked. When they finally arrived in Bethlehem, question number two, the innkeeper's actual words to Joseph and Mary were, why didn't you make a reservation? Two, or B, please use my stable, or C, there is no room for you in the inn. None of the above. Okay? I won't trick you anymore. At least I don't think I will.

I might later. The answer is none of the above. The Bible simply informs us that there was no room for them in the inn. In fact, there's no innkeeper mentioned. There's no one there to turn them away. More than likely, when they arrived, Luke 2.7 tells us there was simply no room. They probably observed it with all of the travelers heading back to their hometowns for this census, this taxation at the decree of Caesar. The roads were swelled with people. Packed, every inn, no doubt, was packed.

They probably got there and without even going up to the door, ever knocking at the door, they observed the courtyard spilling over with people. There's no room in the inn. You ever thought about the fact that poor innkeeper gets the bum job of the Christmas story?

I read about one church who put on a children's Christmas play and they used special needs kids. The innkeeper had Down Syndrome, this little boy, and he was to play the role of the innkeeper and the moment finally arrived where Joseph and Mary, exhausted, arrive in town and they knock on the door and he came to the door, opened it on cue. Everything was going along perfectly and little Joseph explained their pitiful situation with little Mary there and he ended, as he was supposed to, with the question, can we have a room? And the innkeeper was simply supposed to say, well, we're full, use the stable. But he was so engrossed in the scene that after pausing a moment, he said, we're full, but you can have my room. Isn't that great? That kid got it right.

What a great answer. Frankly, ladies and gentlemen, the inn in Bethlehem does remain to this day a powerful metaphor for the human heart. How many hearts in our world today would have hanging upon them a sign delivering a message to God that basically says, sorry, no vacancy. There's no room.

Is there room for Jesus Christ in your heart today? Well, Mary, as you know, delivers the baby in the stable, although that would be a trick question. We're never told there was a stable, were we? We're just told she delivers the child. The only clue that seems to inform us that there is probably some kind of stable is the fact that after Jesus was born, they laid him in a what? In a manger.

Well, what exactly was that manger? Here's another question. It was A, a wooden cradle, B, in a hammock, or C, it was a feed trough.

You're afraid I'm going to say none of the above, aren't you? No, it was a feed trough. This time you got it right. It might have been out in the open. Many scholars believe that this stable was nothing more than a hollowed out cave in a Bethlehem side, common in those days to provide some form of shelter, and they place Jesus in this manger. Fatane is the Greek word.

It simply means trough, literally part of a wall, and they would put in the grain or perhaps the hay. This isn't the cozy, warm, comfortable picture you have, is it, with adoring animals? Even they've got halos.

You've seen that, right? Well, those weren't photographs that you saw. Those were paintings.

Most of these skilled painters from the middle centuries especially were on the payroll of the church, and most of them provide this kind of scene, which ultimately dehumanizes Jesus. It takes away the dank, dark, smelly arena where the Lord, the King, the Sovereign was born. This was a dark, confusing, painful, lonely scene. But their hearts would have been filled with courage, with joy. At the coming of some of the first visitors, we're told there were some arriving. The angels filled the heavens and delivered a message to the shepherds, but think carefully for a moment. How many angels, next question, spoke to the shepherds? A, a heavenly host. B, one angel. C, none.

The answer is B. One angel, Luke 2, verse 10, the angels said to them, Don't be afraid, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy, which will be for all the people. Today, in the city of David, there's been born for you a Savior who is Christ's Lord.

Only one. But then at that moment, he's joined with the hosts of heaven. That's where you get a hundred million, perhaps, angels who burst into the scene.

And here are the lyrics of their singing. Verse 14, Glory to God in the highest and on earth, peace among men with whom he is well pleased. Now the angel gave the shepherds a clue to identify the Savior. Here's another question. The sign the shepherds were to look for in identifying the Messiah was A, a Christmas tree. B, three wise men. Or C, a baby lying in a feed trough.

The answer is C. Right. A baby lying in a manger or a feed trough. How can that be a sign? Surely there were other babies born in Bethlehem, maybe even this night. But no other baby would be potentially in the open, lying in a feed trough, surrounded by flies and the dank darkness of that hillside cave and the smell of manure. So much so that this could be the sign. They couldn't miss it. And so after wrapping him with strips of cloth, they swaddled him literally.

They laid him in the feed trough. That's your sign, shepherds. The Messiah, the glorious sovereign, has been born. And here's the sign that you can know. You've found him.

He's a newborn baby lying in a feed trough. Imagine that. Matthew's gospel records for us that other visitors are on the way, led by the brilliance of God's glory, translated as stare, a star. Who saw the star in the east?

Let's ask that question. The shepherds? B, three kings from Orient.

Or C, astrologers living in Persia. You need to understand these were the magi. That's the word that gives us the word magic, or magician. Quite a bit of occultic mysticism wrapped up in these wise men, but they were more than that. The ancient Greek writer, historian Herodotus, informs us that the magi were responsible for personally training the heir to the throne. They were the professors of this generation.

These were the professors of the arts and sciences, languages and mathematics. No king could ascend the throne in the kingdom without mastering the disciplines and receiving the blessing and the approval of the magi. The most distinguished magi to have lived in Persia, of course, was a believing Jew named Daniel, who had at his disposal and for his use the Torah, certainly the prophets, he had learned, he had believed he would give prophecy of the coming. Second advent of the Messiah and the kingdoms to come, which we're now studying in the book of Revelation.

He would live out his faith in that kingdom in such a way that many would believe with him. The book of Numbers informed him and us in chapter 24 that a star, a star in the Septuagint, would rise as it were in the sky, it would rise from Jacob, signifying that the scepter would not leave them, that is the king would come. That word a star can be translated brilliance or glory. This was the light, the a star that guided the people of Israel, the Shekinah glory as they journey through the wilderness, Exodus 13 21. This was the light that made the face of Moses shine after he visited and saw the glory of God, Exodus 34. This was the brilliant light of the resurrected Lord who knocked Saul off the horse as he traveled on the Damascus road, Acts chapter 9. The vision of John the Apostle as he saw the light on the face of Christ shining like the sun, S-U-N.

Revelation chapter 1 verse 16. The star was actually the light, the Shekinah brilliance of God. How else do you explain its disappearance when the Magi arrived in Jerusalem? How else do you explain that it suddenly reappeared when they left Herod's palace? How else do you explain that it literally hovered or stood as it were over the very place where the child was, the Magi, believing descendants of Daniel's faith, professors from the ancient kingdom of Persia had arrived to give their blessing to the heir to the throne in Israel? By the way, the church developed the myth of three wise men probably because they brought three significant gifts. Gold representing royalty, frankincense representing the high priestly function of intercession from the law. Jesus was both royalty, he was the high priest, and then the third gift which was the oddest of all to give a child, in fact Jesus was probably more interested in the boxes than he was the gifts, is myrrh. Here's another question for you. Myrrh was used, A, to mix in drinks to relieve pain, or B, to embalm the dead, or C, both?

C, notice how I'm getting easier, all the answers are C at this point. Myrrh would be used to mix in drinks to deaden pain. It was also used to create that sticky substance that would be rolled into the folds or the wrappings of the shroud. This gift symbolically foretold the suffering and death of the Messiah. In fact, you may remember at the outset of the crucifixion as they arrived at the hill, Jesus was offered a drink mixed with myrrh.

Mark's gospel tells us, and he what? He refused to drink it. He refused to deaden the pain, he certainly didn't want to muddle his mind, he had some very important things to say, didn't he?

Like, it is finished, that is the penalty of your sin is now paid in full. He would commune in agony with his father, he would make plans for Mary, evidently Joseph has already died. He had a lot of things to do, not the least of which was to pardon one of the criminals and promise him paradise. So he refused that, later on he was offered a drink of sour wine which he received and a few moments later died.

There could be little doubt that this gift of myrrh was significant, certainly to Mary and Joseph, knowing it was given to remind them that he was born to die. He, the king of heaven who had everything, gave it all up, owned virtually nothing, borrowed everything. I was sent some words of poetry by a missionary who had been serving faithfully for many years, it's simply entitled The Borrower.

I thought it summarized well, I want to put it in here and read you some of the lines. Owner of the whole creation, fashioned worlds with but a word. Yet he borrows now a manger for his entrance to his world, for a little while he borrows then returns it back again. Rides above the earth as sovereign on the wings of tempest wind, yet he borrows now a donkey to reveal himself as king. For a little while he borrows, then returns it back again. Ever living one, eternal, sinless, holy, pure as light, yet he borrows now a cross to die as lamb in darkest night. For a little while he borrows, then returns it back again. Cries in sorrow, interceding, stripped of clothing, sold, betrayed, dead, he borrows now a tomb in which his broken body lays.

For a little while he borrows, then returns it back again. Taking on our flesh and nature, son of God and son of man, mighty Jesus, Lord of heaven, second Adam, great I am, still a man, yes. Man now forever takes our form eternally, rids our souls of sin and fits us evermore with him to be. And of all the things he borrowed, he returned them one by one, all except my sins.

Great Savior, these are gone, my soul is one. Let me shift gears and ask you some questions relative to a little more recent history. Here's a question for you. Christmas was not officially celebrated until the early fourth century, true or false?

The answer is true. The actual date of December 25th comes from a Roman pagan festival during the season. There were several of them. One festival celebrated their belief that the sun had not been conquered yet again for another year and that spring would soon arrive. The celebration was called Saturnalia.

It was nothing more or less than a drunken orgy, but it also involved the giving of gifts to one another and the decorating of evergreen trees. On December 25th, the Romans celebrated the birth of Mithras and their pantheon. The gods can't keep up with them, but this one was supposedly the god of light. This was the birth of this particular god. So as Christianity spread throughout the Roman Empire and AD 336, the early part of the fourth century, Emperor Constantine took that day, used by the Romans to celebrate the birth of their god of light to signify the birth of the true and living god who is the light of the world.

I still do think it was a master stroke of his. All of these icons, some of them found their way into the Christmas tradition. In fact, here's another question for you. Christmas trees, mistletoe, ivy, and holly were all pagan icons. The answer is true.

I think it's fascinating to be living in an era not unlike the fourth century. And for them, Christmas can either be a pagan celebration or a Christian celebration depending on what you choose to do with whatever icons you choose to have. The Puritans would have nothing of this day, by the way, in America. In fact, they made it illegal to celebrate December 25th. And they knew people were celebrating, so they decided in 1664 to enact a law that made it illegal to bake mince pie and make plum pudding on Christmas Day. It was illegal to do that.

And so what do you think everybody did? They made that stuff on Christmas Eve so they could eat it on Christmas Day. Frankly, our culture is riddled with pagan icons. Even the days of our week are named after Roman gods. Do you use the name monday or freyaday?

We say it a little differently, but those are in honor of gods, false gods. The question isn't, do you use monday or freyaday? The question is, what do you do on those days? How do you live on those days? The question isn't, do you celebrate Christmas and have a tree and exchange gifts?

The question is, why? And what do you hope to communicate with that? Is it for you just a pagan celebration, or does it have significant meaning? For this one, we believe, was the light of the world. The apostle Paul made it clear in Romans 14, regarding these gray areas of life, he said, Whoever observes the day, be fully convinced in your own mind, whatever day it is, observe it for the Lord and give thanks to God. I think Christmas is a wonderful day for the believer to uniquely exalt the birth of our Savior, to give thanks to God for this redemptive plan of salvation, which included such a humble birth. I would agree with the action of Martin Luther.

You're probably aware of his. He took the evergreen and he attached globed candles to it, decorating his tree, to signify Jesus Christ, who is truly the light of the world. If you haven't noticed, I'm sure you have, the world doesn't really like the idea of Christmas revealing the truth of Christ, though does it? It would rather it remain strictly pagan. Here's another question for you in more recent history. In 1936, Adolf Hitler outlawed the word Christmas and exchanged it with the word Yultai.

True. He also outlawed Christmas hymns as well. Sounds eerily familiar as our generation continues to digress away from the truth of Christ.

Is it any wonder then in our modern Western world what the answer to the next question would be? Here's the question. The month with the highest suicide rate is January.

It's false. It's December. One author wrote, the Christmas season is marked by deeper emotional strain, greater anxiety, more acts of violence. Part of our security team is a sheriff who was walking me backstage here before this hour and he said, this is just an unbelievable season, all the crime, all of the domestic violence.

This author said the stress of the holiday, the depressing weight of loneliness added to that, the meaninglessness of mindless revelry make the holiday utterly intolerable for so many people. Isn't it interesting that when the angels did break out in their doxology before the shepherds, Luke records their words went like this, glory to God in the highest and on earth peace and most people put a period there. Here's no peace on earth. We've had nearly 2,000 treaties since the birth of Christ and I understand from reading history that the average life span of a treaty is less than 90 days.

A treaty one author said is when both sides simply stop and reload. There was no peace in Bethlehem. The echoing of the angels about the hillsides of Bethlehem that the savior was born would in a matter of months turn into the echoing sound of weeping and wailing and crying of bereaved mothers and fathers with the slaughter of their little boys.

You see, it's significant to understand the rest of that text. The rest of that text says this, glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among men with whom God is pleased. There is peace in the heart of the one who is in fellowship with God the Father through Jesus Christ. To those who accept the savior who came and died and rose again there is peace. In fact, Paul would say it this way in Romans chapter 5 verse 1, therefore we have peace with God even while we're now on earth. We can have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

That's hell. Those who have accepted the sacrifice of the sovereign Lord are pleasing to God. That doesn't mean we have to have a good week or a good day. That somehow now we have earned his pleasure. Now this is related to the peace treaty and the dying of Christ and the perfected life giving sacrifice of Christ. Those who have believed in him, finding their merit in him alone have this peace treaty signed with God. And now on earth, in our lives and hearts, we can have peace.

It's the only way. Peace on earth will come one day, but we can have it now in our lives as we believe in this Lamb of God who came to die on a cross for the sins of the world to rise again on the third day to ascend to the Father where he intercedes for those who claim his sacrifice as their full and final payment for sin. What is your peace connected to? What do you hope to make God no longer your enemy and you no longer his? What is it that you're claiming to bring you out of those who are condemned already, John 3 says, and those who have life everlasting?

It can only be this one. And in that heart, that understanding of this one who died for them, that individual can have the peace of God which passes all understanding. Peace with God through Jesus Christ our Lord. I hope that you and the people you love experience that peace today. You're listening to Wisdom for the Heart with Stephen Davey.

The office staff are off today and all this week as they spend some extended time celebrating with their families. If you call us today, you can leave a message and we'll call you back. This ministry is only possible because of the faithful support we receive from listeners like you. If you'd like to send a gift, you can do that from our website or send it in the mail. Our website is wisdomonline.org and here's our mailing address. When we come back tomorrow, Stephen's going to take us to the book of Romans. So please make plans to join us then right here on Wisdom for the Heart. .