The very first Christmas is one of the most famous stories in the world. But it’s also a very old story, from around 2,000 years ago. So how do we know if it’s true? And what are the facts behind it? All About Christmas jumps into the Bible books of Matthew and Luke to help kids discover what the Gospels tell us about the things that happened during that first Christmas. Bursting with facts and colourful photography, it will teach them fascinating details not only about the Christmas story, but about how the holiday is celebrated around the world.
First, let’s journey back to the first Christmas.
The very first Christmas happened more than 2,000 years ago. So how do we know about it, and who told us?
Meet Matthew
The New Testament part of the Bible starts with four books called the Gospels. They are biographies of Jesus that were written by Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Two of them— Matthew and Luke—begin with the Christmas story. When Matthew was writing his Gospel, he squeezed in loads of chunks from the Old Testament. Why? Because the Old Testament is full of promises about a new King. Matthew shows us that Jesus is this promised King.
When Was Jesus Born?
Do you know when Jesus was born? The answer may surprise you. The Bible doesn’t tell us the date Jesus was born, or even the time of year, but he was almost certainly not born on December 25th. December 25th was chosen a very long time ago as a day to celebrate Jesus being born.
Do you like finding things out? Luke tells us that he “carefully investigated everything from the beginning” (Luke 1 v 3).
As well as Matthew, the other Bible writer who tells us about the first Christmas is Luke.
Meet Dr Luke
Luke was a doctor who wrote two books about Jesus. His first book is called Luke’s Gospel and is the life of Jesus. The word “Gospel” means Good News. Luke tells us the good news about who Jesus is and why he came.
Luke’s second book is the book of Acts. It tells us about the first followers of Jesus. They believed that Jesus was the Christ (God’s chosen King), so they were given a nickname—Christians. People who follow Jesus are still called Christians today.
Let’s read what Luke has to say in the following passage from his first book in the Bible:
“Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. With this in mind, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, I too decided to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.”
(Luke 1:1-4)
Luke wanted his friend, Theophilus, to be sure that the things he had been taught were true. So Luke wrote everything down so that his friend could be certain he knew the truth about Jesus. Interestingly, the name Theophilus means someone who loves God. Luke was writing his book for everyone who loves to discover more about God.
Oral History
Luke tells us that the true stories in his book had been “handed down” by eye witnesses. These were people who saw these things for themselves. To start with, the stories about Jesus would have been passed on from one person to another by speaking and being memorised. This is called oral history and it is the way we know many of the things we have learned from long ago.
Later, people like Luke wrote these stories onto scrolls. These scrolls were then copied by hand by scribes. These scribes were very, very careful not to make mistakes. They even counted the exact number of words, and then the number of letters, to be sure they had made a perfect copy. (And if they found a mistake, they had to throw their copy away and start again!)
Are You an Investigator?
Do you like finding things out? Luke tells us that he “carefully investigated everything from the beginning” (Luke 1 v 3). That means he spoke to people to find out what they knew. He probably travelled around to ask as many people as possible. And then he wrote “an orderly account” so that we could learn all the same things that Luke learned.
Like Luke, All About Christmas will help you to “carefully investigate” everything too, showing you how the events of the first Christmas happened to real people in a real place at a real time. Preview an example spread below!
This is an adapted extract from All About Christmas by Alison Mitchell. Bursting with colourful photography, this essential reference guide helps curious young minds check out the facts behind the very first Christmas, as well as enjoy fun stories about the way Christmas is celebrated around the world.
Alison Mitchell is a senior editor at The Good Book Company, where she has worked on a range of products including Bible-reading notes for children and families, and the Christianity Explored range of resources. She is the best-selling author of The Christmas Promise and the award-winning Jesus and the Lions' Den.
