Matthew 1:18
Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah* took place in this way.
In what way did Jesus birth take place? Looking at Matthew’s account alongside Luke’s account one would have thought they might have done a bit more cross checking before publication. The stories don’t easily align. I wonder though is thus a problem?
Taking the words of scripture as some kind of literal historical truth is fraught with all kinds of difficulty not the least of which is we often don’t understand the context. Moreover, when we know a story so well (or at least we think we do) it is difficult for us to really listen to what is going on.
As we anticipate hearing hearing the stories of Jesus birth again I wonder how you can prepare to hear them afresh. Sometimes a new insight or a letting go of old assumptions can help.
This year I came across this TED talk about David and Goliath and was surprised by the insights… as you listen to this recount think to about what might be different or new in the birth narratives for you this year.
http://www.ted.com/talks/malcolm_gladwell_the_unheard_story_of_david_and_goliath.html