December 24th Family Christmas Questions / Advent Study
Here are the next questions for your family Christmas Study or Advent Study. They are followed by a creative idea on keeping Christ in your family Christmas. The answers to the questions appear at the end of this blog. One great benefit of doing this with your family is that it will become a tradition which transcends the Advent Season whereby you do a short daily Bible study as a family at every meal throughout the year. Answer each question True or False
According to the Bible… 55) _____ The gifts of the Magi (Magi) – gold, frankincense and myrrh, were of prophetic significance concerning the Messiah and the death He would experience.
56) _____ One of the indicators of the special position Mary would someday hold in the church was the fact that when the Magi arrived they paid homage to Mary and venerated her as the “mother of God”.
57) _____ The shepherds and the Magi all converged upon the baby Jesus in the manger.
58) _____ The Magi were from the East.
Keeping Christ In Christmas - The Christmas story vs. the Biblical Revelation of the Incarnation…
Today’s hint is one which I hope you will continue to apply throughout the year, that being honoring the intelligence of your children. In my Family Discipleship Seminar I challenge parents to make sure that the challenging level of their children's religious education tracks that of their academic education. The reason parents do not do this is that they want religious education to be “fun”. The unforeseen result of the decision to sacrifice academically challenging standards of religious education for fun is that we have a generation of children who view religion as a pastime, as fun, as simplistic while they view their secular education as interesting, challenging and something that must be taken seriously. Not to mention a generation of children who are Biblically ignorant. The academic level of most Christian educational curriculum in church peaks at about the fourth grade level.
Let me give you some examples… What would your reaction be if your church board decided to begin offering basic Greek to Jr. High and High schoolers as part of their Sunday school program? Now what would your reaction be if your school board announced that foreign languages were too difficult so they would no longer be offered in the Jr. High and High schools of your district?
What would your reaction be if I suggested that children in your Sunday school programs be tested and allowed to move from grade level to grade level on the basis of passing these tests? Now what would your reaction be if your school board announced that one of the reasons for low attendance in school and the high dropout rate was that children did not enjoy taking tests so these would be discontinued?
What would your reaction be if your school board announced that children would no longer be required to memorize spelling words, vocabulary words or any other fact. That if they required children to do this then schools would not be fun. The board announced their fears that some parents would not bring their children to schools which were academically challenging choosing instead to enroll their child in a school that did not require memorization, vocabulary tests and correct spelling.
Now what would your reaction be if your child’s Sunday school program required memorization of verses (not suggested but required), had vocabulary tests for words such as Imputation, Propitiation, Justification, Sanctification, etc.. That passing these tests would determine whether or not their child advanced to the next level from year to year?
This list could go on and on. We have very high standards and expectations for our children’s secular education because we view it as necessary to their success as adults. When we as parents begin to view our children’s religious education as equal to or more important for their success as adults we will once again be sending out from our churches students who enter the University, military and workplace not only equipped to survive spiritually in the world but eager to join a church and continue their spiritual growth.
This Christmas set aside the “Christmas Story Book” with its simplistic and childlike representation of the Christ’s Incarnation and get out your Bible, your Bible atlas, your Bible Dictionary and teach the Revelation of Christ’s Incarnation. This may require study on your behalf but that is nothing new. How do you help your children with their secular homework, don’t you have to prep yourself before you help them? In fact many schools offer tutorials for parents so they can help their children. Begin to take your child’s religious education seriously and your children will take seriously their religion.
The Answers to today’s Advent Questions -
55. F – (The gifts of the Magi (Wise Men; Sorcerers) – gold, frankincense and myrrh, were of prophetic significance concerning the Messiah and the death He would experience.) Although much has been made by writers and preachers about the prophetic significance and symbolism of the gifts of the Magi, the Holy Scriptures are completely silent on this area. There are both precedence and opportunity for these gifts to have prophetic significance, should the Holy Spirit had wished them to do so. He is nevertheless silent. All through the Holy Scriptures the Holy Spirit interjects the reality of fulfilled prophecy and the birth of the Messiah is no different. (Matthew 1:22; 2:15, 17,23; Luke 1:20 to name a few). Yet, despite this precedent of meticulously sighting fulfilled prophecy concerning the birth of Christ, the Word of God is silent as pertaining to the Magi’s gifts. They played no role in the prophetic revelation of the Holy Spirit, neither in the past, fulfilling prophecy, nor in the future, prophetically pointing to events in Jesus’ life. It should be remembered from question number nine, that the Magi were MAGOS, pagan eastern sorcerers. They should not be elevated above this level. As a result we should not look to them as having some special spiritual understanding of Christ. Their actions should be simply taken as stated, Matthew 2:11 “And they came into the house and saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell down and worshiped Him; and opening their treasures they presented to Him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh.”
56. F –One of the indicators of the special position Mary would someday hold in the church was the fact that when the Magi arrived they paid homage to Mary and venerated her as the “mother of God”. In the Historical Revelation of God the Holy Spirit the Magi worship Christ but nothing special is said of their association with or recognition of Mary.
57. F – Luke 2:8 - 16; Matthew 2: 11 (The shepherds and the Magi all converged upon the baby Jesus in the manger.) The shepherds came upon Jesus as a newborn, in the manger, wrapped in swaddling cloths. The Magi came later to Jesus’ house and found him as a young boy living in a house.
58. T – (The Magi were from the East) Matthew 2:1 states, “Magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem”. The geographical orientation of “from the east” refers specifically to Jerusalem and not to the reader. This is important in understanding other references in Scripture such as the star being seen in the east by the Magi. That would be east of the Magi who were east of Jerusalem.
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