ADAM

Was once the first, and only, man on earth.  He had never known another human being.  He missed much that makes us who we are-he had no childhood, no parents, no family or friends.  He had to learn to be human on his own.  God didn't let him struggle too long before presenting him with an ideal companion and mate, Eve.  Theirs was a complete, innocent, and open oneness without a hint of shame.

Before God made Eve he had already given Adam complete freedom in the garden, with the responsibility to tend and care for it.  But one tree was off limits, the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.  Adam would have told Eve all about this.  She knew, when Satan approached her, that the tree's fruit was not to be eaten.  However, she decided to eat the forbidden fruit.  Then she offered some to Adam.  At that moment, the fate of creation was on the line.  Sadly, Adam didn't pause to consider the consequences.  He went ahead and ate.

In that moment of  rebellion something shattered.  God's perfect creation, man was separated from God by his desire to act on his own.  Many things would change for Adam after that beginning with being cast out of the Garden of Eden.  He would also have to toil and struggle and work to live from now on among other things.

Adam was:

Only mand who never had an earthly mother of father
First zoologist-namer of animals
First landscape architect, placed in the garden to care for it
Father of the human race
First person made in the image of God.
First human to share an intimate personal relationship with God
Avoided responsibility and blamed others, chose to hide rather than confront, made excuses rather than admitting the truth

Relatives:
Wife: Eve
Sons: Cain, Abel, Seth, Numerous other children.

SAMSON

Samson was one of the last of the judges of the ancient Israelites.

He was given supernatural strength by God in order to combat his enemies and perform heroic feats such as killing a lion, slaying an entire army with just the jawbone of an ass and destroying a pagan temple.

 Samson had two vulnerabilities however, his attraction to the wrong women and his hair which he was powerless without.  These vulnerabilities eventually led to his death.

Samson is believed by some to be buried in Tel Tzora Israel where there are two large gravestones, one for him and one for his father Manoah.

Samson was:
Dedicated to God from birth as a Nazirite
Known for his feats of strength
Listed in the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11
Began to free Israel from Philistine oppression
Violated his vow and God's laws on many occasions
Was controlled by sensuality
Used his gifts and abilities unwisely
Father; Manoah

His story is told in Judges 13-16.  And he is also mentioned in Hebrews 11:32

ARCHANGEL GABRIEL

Gabriel is one of only two angels specifically named in the Bible.  (The other being Michael).

He is an angel who typically serves as a messenger sent from God to certain people.

He is mentioned both in the Old and the New Testament.

In the Old Testament it is in the book of Daniel where he explains Daniels visions to him.
In the New Testament it is in the book of Luke where he appears to Zacharia and Mary fortelling the births of both John the Baptist and Jesus.
He is also the angel that causes Zacharia to be unable to speak for a period of time due to his unbelief of the angel's message.

ARCHANGEL MICHAEL

The Archangel Michael is only mentioned three times in the Bible.  In Daniel 10:13-21 and 12:1.

The prophet Daniel experiences a vision after going through a period of fasting.  In the vision an angel identifies Michael as the protector of Israel.  Later in the vision Daniel is informed about the role of Michael during the "Time of the End" when there will be "distress such as not happened from the beginning of nations" and that:

At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. 

In the book of Revelation during the war in heaven Michael leads God's armies against Satan's forces and defeats Satan.

Because of this Michael is seen as playing an important role as the protector of Israel and later of the Christian Church.

DANIEL

Daniel's early life demonstrates that there is more to being young than making mistakes.  No characteristic wins the hearts of adults more quickly than wisdom in the words and actions of a young person.  Daniel and his friends had been taken from their homes in Judah and exiled.  Their futures were in doubt, but they all had personal traits that qualified them for jobs as servants inn the king's palace.  They took advantage of the opportunity without letting the opportunity take advantage of them.

Our first hint of Daniel's greatness comes in his quiet refusal to give up his convictions.  He had applied God's will to his own life, and he resisted changing the good habits he had formed.  Both his physical and spiritual diets were an important part of his relationship with God.  He ate carefully and lived prayerfully.  One of the benefits of being in training for royal service was eating food from the king's table.  Daniel tactfully chose a simpler menu and proved it was a healthy choice.  As with Daniel, mealtimes are obvious and regular test s of our efforts to control our appetites.

While Daniel limited his food intake, he indulged in prayer.  He was able to communicate with God because he made it a habit.  He put into practice his convictions even when that meant being thrown into a den of hungry lions.  His life proved he made the right choice.

Daniel was:

• Although young when deported, remained true to his faith
• Served as an adviser to two Bablyonian kings and two Medo-Persian kings
• Was a man of prayer and a statesman with the gift of prophecy
• Survived the lions den
• Where: Judah and the courts of both Babylon and Persi
• Occupation:  A captive fro Israel who became an adviseer of kings
• Contemporaries:  Hananiah, Mishael, Azariah, Mebuchadnezzar, Belshazzar, Darius, Cyrus

Daniel's story is told in the book of Daniel.  He is also mentioned in Matthew 24:15

MARY (Mother of Jesus)

Young Mary of Nazareth had the unique privilege of being mother to the very Son of God.

Mary was the only human present at Jesus' birth who also witnessed his death.  She saw him arrive as her baby son, and she watched him die as her Savior.

Until Gabriel's unexpected visit, Mary's life was quite satisfactory.  She had recently become engaged to a carpenter, Joseph, and was anticipating married life.  But her life was about to change forever.

Gabriel told her that even though she had never been with a m an she would have a baby and that baby would be God's Son.  Her answer was the one God waits in vain to hear fro so many other people.  "I am the Lord's servant...May it be to me as you have said"  (Luke 1:38).  Later, her song of joy shows us how well she knew God, for her thoughts were filled with his words from the Old Testament.

Within a few weeks of his birth, Jesus was taken to the temple to be dedicated to God.  There, Joseph and Mary were met by two devout people, Simeon and Anna, who recognized the child as the Messiah and praised God.  Simeon directed some words to Mary that must have come to her mind many times in the years that followed.  "A sword will pierce your own soul" (Luke 2:35).  A big part of her painful privilege of motherhood would be to see her son rejected and crucified by the people he came to save.

Mary was:

• The mother of Jesus, the Messiah
• The one human who was with Jesus from birth to death
• Willing to be available to God
• Knew and applied Old Testament scriptures
• Where: Nazareth, Bethlehem
• Occupation:  Homemaker
• Relatives:  Husband-Joseph.  Relatives:  Zechariah and Elizabeth, Children-Jesus, James, Joseph, Judas, Simon and daughters

Mary's story is told throughout the Gospels.  She is also mentioned in Acts 1:14  

JOHN THE BAPTIST

There's no getting around it-John the Baptist was unique.  He wore odd clothes and ate strange food and preached an unusual message to the Judeans who went out to the wastelands to see him.

But John did not aim at uniqueness for his own sake.  Instead, he aimed at obedience.  He knew he had a specific role to play in the world-announcing the coming of the Savior-and he put all his energies into this task.  Luke tells us that John was in the desert when God's word of direction came to him.  John was ready and waiting.  The angel who had announced John's birth to Zechariah had made it clear this child was to be a Nazirite-one set apart for God's service.  John remained faithful to that calling.

This wild-looking man had no power or position in the Jewish political system, but he spoke with amost irresistible authority.  People were moved by his words because he spoke the truth, challenging them to turn from their sins and baptizing them as a symbol of their repentance.  They responded by the hundreds.  But even as people crowded to him, he pointed beyond himself, never forgetting that his main role was to announce the coming of the Savior.

The words of truth that moved many to repentance goaded others to resistance and resentment.  John even challenged Herod to admit his sin.  Herodias, the woman Herod had married illegally, decided to get rid of this desert preacher.  Although she was able to have him killed, she was not able to stop his message.  The One John had announced was already on the move.  John had accomplished his mission.

John was:

• The God-appointed messenger to announce the arrival of Jesus
• A preacher whose theme was repentance
• A fearless confront-er
• Known for his remarkable life-style
• Where: Judea
• Occupation:  Prophet
• Relatives:  Father-Zechariah, Mother-Elizabeth.  Distant relative-Jesus
• Contemporaries:  Herod, Herodias

John's story is told in all four Gospels.  His coming was predicted in Isaiah 40:3 and Malachi 4:5, and he is mentioned in Acts 1:5, 22; 10:37, 11:16, 13:24, 25, 18:25, 19:3,4

DAVID

When we think of David, we think:  shepherd, poet, giat-killer, king, ancestor of Jesus-in short, one of the greatest men in the Old Testament.  But alongside that list stand another:  betrayer, liar, adulterer, murderer.  The first list gives qualities we all might like to have, the second, qualities that might be true of any one of us.  The Bible makes no effort to hide David's failures.  Yet he is remembered and respected for his heart for God.  Knowing how much more we share in David's failures than in his greatness, we should be curious to find out what made God refer to David as "a man after my own heart"(Acts 13:22)

David, more than anything else, had an unchangeable belief in the faithful and forgiving nature of God.  He was a man who lived with great zest.  He sinned many times but he was quick to confess his sins.  His confessions were from the heart, and his repentance was genuine.  David never took God's forgiveness lightly or his blessing for granted.  In return, God never held back from David either his forgiveness or the consequences of his actions.  David experienced the joy of forgiveness even when he had to suffer the consequences of his sins.

David was:

• Greatest king of Israel
• Ancestor of Jesus Christ
• Listed in the Hall of Faith in Hebrews 11
• A man described by God himself as a man after his own heart
• Committed adultery with Bathsheba
• Arranged the murder of Uriah, Bathsheba's husband
• Directly disobeyed God in taking a census of the people
• Did not deal decisively with the sins of his children
• Lived in Bethlehem, Jerusalem
• Occupations:  Shepherd, musician, poet, solider, king
• Relatives:  Father-Jesse, Wives-Michal, Ahinoam, Bathsheba, Abigail.  Sons-Absalom, Amnon, Solomon, Adonijah.  Daughters-Tamar. Seven brothers
• Contemporaries:  Saul, Jonathan, Samuel, Nathan

His story is told in 1 Samuel 16-1 Kings 2, He is also mentioned in Amos 6:5, Matthew 1:1, l; 22:42-45,  Luke 1:32,  Acts 13:22, Romans 1:3,  Hebrews 11:32

AARON

Effective teamwork happens when each team member uses his or her special skills.  Ideally, each member's strengths will contribute something important to the team effort.  In this way, members make up for one another's weaknesses.  Aaron made a good team with Moses.  He provided Moses with one skill Moses lacked-effective public speaking.  But while Aaron was necessary to Moses, he needed Moses as well.  Without a guide, Aaron had little direction of his own.  There was never any doubt as to who God's chosen and trained leader was.  The pliability that made Aaron a good follower made him a weak leader.  His major failures were caused by his inability to stand aloe.  His yielding to public pressure and making an idol was a good example of this weakness.

Aaron was:

• First high priest of God in Israel
• Effective communicator, Moses' mouthpiece
• Pliable personality that gave in to people's demands for a golden calf.
• Joined with Moses in disobeying God's orders about the water-giving rock
• Joined sister Miriam in complaining against Moses
• From Egypt, Desert of Sinae
• Occupations:  Priest, Moses second in command
• Relatives:  Brother-Moses, Sister-Miriam, Sons-Nadab, Abihu, Eleasar, and Ithamar

Aaron's story is told in Exodus-Deuteronomy 10:6  Also mentioned in Hebrews 7:11

ELIZABETH

In societies like Israel, in which a woman's value was largely measured by her ability to bear children, to be aging and without children often led to personal hardship and public shame.  For Elizabeth, a childless old age was a painful and lonely time during which she remained faithful to God.

Both Elizabeth and Zechariah came from priestly families.  For two weeks each year, Zechariah had to go to the temple in Jerusalem to attend to his priestly duties.  After one of those trips, Zechariah returned home excited, but speechless.  He had to write down his good news, because he couldn't give it any other way.  And what a wonderful surprise he had for his wife-their faded dream would become an exciting reality!  Soon Elizabeth became pregnant and she knew her child was a long-hoped for gift from God.

News traveled fast among the family.  Seventy miles to the north, in Nazareth, Elizabeth's relative, Mary, also unexpectedly became pregnant.  Within days after the angel's message that she would bear the Messiah, Mary went to visit Elizabeth.  They were instantly bound together by the unique gifts God had given them.  Elizabeth knew that Mary's son would be even greater than her own, for John would be the messenger for Mary's son.

When the baby was born, Elizabeth insisted on his God-given name:  John.  Zechariah's written agreement freed his tongue, and everyone in town wondered what would become of this obviously special child.

Elizabeth whispered her praise as she cared for God's gift.  Knowing about Mary must have made her marvel at God's timing.  Things had worked out even better than she could have planned.

Elizabeth was:

• Known as a deeply spiritual woman
• Showed no doubts about God's ability to fulfill his promise
• Mother of John the Baptist
• The first woman besides Mary to hear of the coming Savior
• Occupation:  Homemaker
• Relatives:  Husband-Zechariah, Son-John the Baptist, Relative-Mary
• Contemporaries:  Joseph, Herod the Great

Elizabeth's story is told in Luke 1:5-80

ZECHARIAH

Zechariah was told before anyone else that God was setting in motion his own visit to earth. Zechariah and his wife, Elizabeth, were known for their personal holiness.  They were well suited to doing a special work for God.  But they shared the pain of not having children, and in Jewish culture this was considered not having God's blessing.  Zechariah and Elizabeth were old, and they had stopped even asking for children.

Their trip to the temple in Jerusalem for Zechariah's turn at duty had included an unexpected blessing.  Zechariah was chosen to be the priest who would enter the Holy Place to offer incense to God for the people.  Suddenly, much to his surprise and terror, he found himself face to face with an angel.  The angel's message was too good to be true!  But Zechariah did not respond to the news of the coming Savior as much as he expressed doubts about his own ability to father the child the angel promised him.  His age spoke more loudly than God's promise.  As a result, God prevented Zechariah from speaking until the promise became reality.

The record of the prayer in Luke 1 is our last glimpse of Zechariah.  Like so many of God's most faithful servants, he passed quietly from the scene once his part was done.  He becomes our hero for those times when we doubt God and yet are willing to obey.  We gain hope from Zechariah's story that God can do great things through anyone who is available to him.

Zechariah was:

• Known as a righteous man
• Occupation:  A priest before God
• One of the few people to be directly addressed by an angel
• Fathered John the Baptist
• Momentarily doubted God's promise of a son
• Relatives:  Wife; Elizabeth, Son; John the Baptis

Zechariah's story is told in Luke 1

KING HEROD

King of Judea from 37 to 4 BC, more than 30 years.

Also known as "Herod The Great"

An  effective, though ruthless, ruler

He is remembered as a builder of cities and the lavish re-builder of the temple in Jerusalem.

But he also destroyed people.  He showed little greatness in either his personal actions or his character.  He was ruthless in ruling his territory.  His suspicions and jealousy led to the murder of several of his children and the death of his wife Mariamne.

Herod's title, king of the Jews, was granted by Rome but never accepted by the Jewish people.  He was not part of the Davidic family line, and he was only partly Jewish.  Although Israel benefited from Herod's lavish efforts to repair the temple in Jerusalem, he won little admiration because he also rebuilt various pagan temples.  Herod's costly attempt to gain the loyalty of the people failed because it was superficial.  His only loyalty was to himself.

Because his royal title was not genuine, Herod was constantly worried about losing his position.  His actions when hearing from the Magi about their search of the new king are consistent with all that we know about Herod.  He planned to locate and kill the child before he could become a threat.  The murder of innocent children that followed is a tragic lesson in what can happen when actions are motivated by selfishness. Herod's suspicions did not spare even his own family.  His life was self-destructive.

NEW TESTAMENT IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER

6BC

There was a King of Judea named Herod.  This was Herod the Great, confirmed by the Roman Senat as king of the Jews.  Only half Jewish himself and eager to please his Roman superiors, Herod expanded and beautified the Jerusalem temple-but he placed a Roman eagle over the entrance.  When he helped the Jews, it was for political purposes and not because he cared about their God.  Herod the Great later ordered a massacre of infants in a futile attempt to kill the infant Jesus whom some were calling the new "king of the Jews".

At the same time there was a Jewish priest named Zechariah.  His wife was Elizabeth who was a descendant of Aaron.  They had no children because Elizabeth was barren and they were both well along in years.  Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Lord's commandments and regulations blamelessly.  They didn't merely go through the motions in following God's laws, they backed up their outward compliance with inward obedience, unlike the religious leaders whom Jesus called hypocrites.  Their obedience was from the heart.

But Zechariah and Elizabeth were suffering.  Some Jews at that time didn't believe in a bodily resurrection so their hope of immortality was in their children.  In addition, children cared for their parents in their old age and added to the family's financial security and social status.  Children were considered a blessing and childlessness was seen as a curse.  They had been childless for many years and at this time were too old to expect any change in their situation.  They felt humiliated and hopeless.

 Jewish priests (Zechariah) were ministers of God who worked at the temple managing it's upkeep, teaching the people scriptures and directing the worship services.  At this time there were about 20,000 priests throughout the country-far too many to minister to the temple at one time.  Therefore the priests were divided into 24 separate groups of about 1,000 each according to David's directions in 1 Chronicles 24:3-19.  Zechariah was a member of the Abijah division on duty this particular week.  Each morning a priest was to enter the Holy Place in the temple and burn incense.  Lots were cast to decide who would enter the sacred room.

Once when Zechariah's division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen to go into the temple and burn incense.  Incense was burned in the temple twice daily.  When the people saw the smoke from the burning incense, they prayed.  The smoke drifting heavenward symbolized their prayers ascending to God's throne.

When the time came for Zechariah's burning of the incense, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.  An angel of the Lord appeared to Zechariah, standing at the right side of the altar of incense.  Angels are spirit beings who live in God's presence to do his will.  Only two angels are mentioned by name in scripture-Michael and Gabriel-but there are others.    Gabriel appeared not only to Zechariah but also to Mary and to Daniel more than 500 years earlier (Daniel 8:15-17; 9:21). Each time Gabriel appeared, he brought important messages from God.

 Here, the angel Gabriel delivered a special message to Zechariah.  When Zechariah saw him, he was scared.  But the angel said "Do not be afraid Zechariah; your prayer has been heard.  Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to give him the name John.  He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth for he will be great in the sight of the Lord.  He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even from birth.  Many of the people of Israel will he bring back to the Lord their God and he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of his fathers to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous-to make ready a people prepared for the Lord."

John means "the Lord is Gracious".  He was set apart for special service to God.  He may have been forbidden to drink wine as part of the Nazirite vow, an ancient vow of consecration to God (Numbers 6:1-8)  Samson was under the Nazirite vow and Samuel may have been also.  John's role was to be almost identical to that of an Old Testament prophet-to encourage people to turn away from sin and back to God.  John is often compared to the great prophet Elijah, who was known for standing up to evil rulers.  In preparing people for the Messiah's arrival, John would take stony hearts and exchange them for soft, pliable, trusting hearts open to change.

When the Angel told Zechariah they would have a son he asked the angel, "How can I be sure of this?  I am an old man and my wife is well along in years?"  The angel answered, "I am Gabriel.  I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news.  And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their proper time."

Meanwhile, the people were waiting for Zechariah to come out and pronounce the customary blessing upon them (as found in Numbers 6:24-26) and wondering why he stayed so long in the temple.  When he came out, he could not speak to them.  They realized he had seen a vision in the temple, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak.

When his time of service was completed, he returned home.  After this his wife Elizabeth became pregnant and for five months remained in seclusion.  "The Lord has done this for me"  she said.  "In these days he has shown his favor and taken away my disgrace among the people."

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David.  The virgin's name was Mary.  Nazareth was Joseph and Mary's hometown and it was a long way from Jerusalem.  It was the center of Jewish life and worship.  Located on a major trade route,  Nazareth was frequently visited by Gentile merchants and Roman soldiers.  It was known for it's independent and aloof attitude.  Jesus was born in Bethlehem but grew up in Nazareth.  Nevertheless, the people of Nazareth would reject him as the Messiah.

 The angel went to Mary and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored!  The Lord is with you."
Mary was young, poor, female-all characteristics that to the people of her day, would make her seem unusable by God for any major task.  Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.  But the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.  You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.  He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High.  The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, his kingdom will never end."

Jesus, a Greek form of the Hebrew name Joshua, was a common name meaning "the Lord saves"  Just as Joshua had led Israel into the promised land (Joshua 1:1,2) so Jesus would lead his people into eternal life.  The symbolism of  his name was not lost on the people of his day, who took names seriously.  Centuries earlier, God had promised David that David's kingdom would last forever (2 Samuel 7:16)  This promise was fulfilled in the coming of Jesus, a direct descendant of David, whose reign will continue throughout eternity.

When the angel told Mary she would be with child she asked the angel "How will this be since I am a virgin?"

The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.  So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.  Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month.  For nothing is impossible with God."

A young unmarried girl who became pregnant risked disaster.  Unless the father of the child agreed to marry her, she would probably remain unmarried for life.  If her father rejected her she could be forced into begging or prostitution in order to earn her living.  And Mary, with her story about being made pregnant by the Holy Spirit, risked being considered crazy as well.  Still Mary, despite the risks said:  "I am the Lord's servant,"  Mary answered  "May it be to me as you have said"  Then the angel left her.

 Joseph was going to break off the engagement but he didn't want to shame her and was going to do

it privately but an angel came to him in a dream and said;  "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will give birth to a son and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins."  This took place to fulfill a prophecy from the lord to Isaiah many years earlier;  "The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son and they will call him Immanuel-which means, God with us."  When Joseph woke up he did what the angel commanded him and took Mary home as his wife.  But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son.

About Jesus family line:
The old testament tells the story of Jesus family line starting with Adam and Eve.
There are many people in between that don't get talked about but who were recorded as part of the family tree.  But the main people, the ones we are most familiar with are as follows:

Adam & Eve

Cain-Abel-Seth

Seth

(Some in between)

Noah

Shem-Ham-Japheth

(More in between)

Shem

Abraham

Isaac

Jacob (Father of the 12 tribes)

Reuben-Simeon-Levi-Judah-Dan-Nephtali-Gad-Asher-Issachar-Zebulun-Joseph-Benjamin

Judah (4th son)

(Some in between)

David

Solomon

(Some in between)

Joseph/Mary

Jesus

I think this is interesting because I didn't know that all of these people we learn about in Sunday School were all part of the family tree of Jesus and the bible is telling His story and I don't think most people realize it either.  It's mostly thought of as just stories of different people in the Bible.

After Mary learns she and Elizabeth are both pregnant she went to a town in the hill country of Judea to Zechariah's home and greeted Elizabeth.  When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.  In a loud voice she exclaimed:  "Blessed are you among women and blessed is the child you will bear!  But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?  As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy.  Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!

And Mary said:

"My soul glorifies the Lord

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 

for he has been mindful 

of the humble state of his servant,

From now on all generations will call me blessed,

for the Mighty One has done great things for me-

holy is his name.

His mercy extends to those who fear him,

from generation to generation.

He has performed mighty deeds with his arm;

he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts,

He has brought down rulers from their thrones

but has lifted up the humble.

He has filled the hungry with good things

but has sent the rich away empty.

He has helped his servant Israel,

remembering to be merciful

to Abraham and his descendants forever,

even as he said to our fathers." 

           Luke 1: 46-55

This song is often called The Magnificat and has often been used as the basis for choral music and hymns.  

Mary stayed with Elizabeth for about three months and then returned home.  Because travel was not easy, long visits were customary.  Mary must have been a great help to Elizabeth who was experiencing the discomforts of a first pregnancy in old age.

When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son.  Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord has shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.  On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child. The circumcision ceremony was an important event to the family of a Jewish baby boy.  God commanded circumcision whenhe was beginning to form his holy nation (Gen. 17:4-14) and reaffirmed it through Moses (Lev. 12:1-3)  This ceremony was a time of joy when friends and family members celebrated the baby becoming part of God's covenant nation.  

Family lines and family names were important to the Jews and the people naturally assumed the child would receive Zechariah's name or at least a family name and the family members were going to name him after his father Zechariah, but his mother spoke up and said "No!  He is to be called John." They said to her, "There is no one among your relatives who has that name."  Then they made signs to his father to find out what he would like to name the child.  He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone's astonishment he wrote, "His name is John."  The family was surprised that both Elizabeth and Zechariah wanted to name the boy John but that's what  the angel had told them to do and immediately Zechariah's mouth was opened and his tongue was loosed and he began to speak, praising God.  The neighbors were filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things.  Everyone who heard this wondered about it asking, "What then is this child going to be?"  For the Lord's hand was with him.

Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied:

"Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel,

because he has come and has redeemed his people.

He has raised up a horn (symbol of strength) of salvation for us

in the house of his servant David

(as he said through his holy prophets of long ago),

salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us-

to show mercy to our fathers

and to remember his holy covenant,

the oath he swore to our father Abraham:

to rescue us from the hand of our enemies,

and to enable us to serve him without fear

in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

And you, my child will be called a prophet of the Most High:

for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for him,

to give his people the knowledge of salvation

through the forgiveness of their sins,

because of the tender mercy of our God,

by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven

to shine on those living in darkness

and in  the shadow of death,

to guide our feet into the path of peace."

Luke 1:68-79

Zechariah had just recalled hundreds of  years of God's sovereign work in history, beginning with Abraham and going on into eternity.  Then, in tender contrast, he personalized the story.  His son had been chosen for a key role in the drama of the ages.  

And the child grew and became strong in spirit; and he lived in the desert until he appeared publicly to Israel.

Why did John live out in the desert?  Prophets used the isolation of the uninhabited desert to enhance their spiritual growth and to focus their message on God.  By being in the desert, John remained separate from the economic and political powers so that he could aim his message against them.  He also remained separate from the hypocritical religious leaders of his day.  His message was different from theirs and his life proved it.

So, there came a man who was sent from God; his name was John.  He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe.  He himself was not the light, he came only as a witness to the light.  The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. 

He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him.  He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him.  Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God-children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.  The word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.  We have seen his glory, the glory  of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

6 BC   Augustus Taxes The Roman Empire

In those days Caesar Augustus (the Roman Emperor) issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.  And everyone went to his own town to register.  So Joseph left Nazareth in Galilee and went to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David because he belonged to the house and line of David.  He went with Mary who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.

5 BC  The Birth of Jesus

 While they were there the time came for the baby to be born and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son.  She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

.