The Christmas Story - A Compilation

I compiled this years ago. It's the Christmas story the way I like to tell it. I've posted it before. I'm offering it again. And ... may you and your family and friends celebrate with great joy the Incarnation of the Son of God sent to save us from our sin!
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In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth¹. And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good². But all of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way³. There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God. All have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one.⁴ All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God⁵. The wages of sin is death⁶.

But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us⁷, sent His Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins⁸.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men⁹. Although He existed in the form of God, He did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men¹⁰. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth¹¹. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God¹².

Unto us a child is born; unto us a son is given; and the government will rest on His shoulders; and His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace¹³.

And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn¹⁴.

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¹ Gen. 1:1
² Gen. 1:31
³ Isa. 53:6
⁴ Rom. 3:10-12
⁵ Rom. 3:23
⁶ Rom. 6:23
⁷ Eph. 2:4
⁸ 1 John 4:10
⁹ John 1:1-4
¹⁰ Phil. 2:6-7
¹¹ John 1:14
¹² John 1:10-13
¹³ Isa. 9:6
¹⁴ Luke 2:7