Love to hear from and know who is listening During the Christmas season many of us get super focused on stuff. Some get obsessed with Christmas decorations, some get obsessed with greeting cards and some of us think we need to buy everyone gifts. The world bombards us with advertisements, there is Black Friday, Cyber Monday and countless other sales. It is easy to see how we can get distracted from what the true meaning of the Christmas is! It is so easy to listen to the Christmas carols, look at the Christmas manger scene decorations and get confused about what really happened the day Jesus was born. The Christmas carol, We Three Kings, has at least three errors in the song. First, the Bible does not identify these men as kings. They were magi, a Greek term that translates to wise men. They would have been known for studying the night sky for signs or omens. Since they were from the east, they were probably from Persia or Babylon, which is modern day Iran or Iraq. Second, the Bible never tells us that there were three magi. The notion that there were three magi is based on the three gifts that they presented gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Finally, the wise men definitely did not arrive on the night Jesus was born. Since we sing this song at Christmas time, many believe that the wise men were at the nativity. Modern nativity scenes also include the wise men, but the Bible clearly teaches otherwise. Matthew 2:1 and 2:11 ESV 1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem. 11 And going into the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh. If you were paying close attention you noticed verse one begins with, after Jesus was born. It is a common misconception that the wise men visited Jesus at the stable, on the night of His birth. In fact, they came days, months, or possibly even years later. Another common myth is that the wise men rode camels. Because the lyrics of the carol says, We 3 kings from Orient are, most of us envision men wearing ornate, crowns riding camels. The bible simple doesn't tell how they traveled. What we do know is that camels were considered pack animals. It is possible they were wealthy and could have been riding Arabian horses or the simple truth is they could have walked. That really messes up all the modern day manger scenes doesn't it. The world is filled with Christmas traditions that while they are not evil, they are not good either and they don't bring glory to God. How many times have you wasted away your evening shopping for stuff on Amazon or spent hours driving to the city to find every bargain you can at the shopping malls. I would be willing to say that nearly everyone of us have done this at some point in our life. We want to buy everything our children and grandchildren have ever dreamed they of. However in reality what our children really need more than gifts is to know the truth. John 1:14 ESV And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. We as Americans have truly been blessed. We have so much abundance, that we have become spoiled and think we are entitled to everything all the time! When you are given to much, then you don't rely on God to give the things we need. With the blessings of plenty comes great responsibility. The bible says in Luke 12:48 “To whom much was given, of him much will be required, and from him to whom they entrusted much, they will demand the more. There is no sin in enjoying Christmas movies, watching your children in Christmas plays and singing ChristmasSupport the show

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