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This is the season of beautiful sights and sounds—decorative lights on houses and carols which have lived through the years. It is the season when thoughts center on the birth of Jesus, one of the greatest events in the history of mankind.

It is a time when facts and fiction have become so intertwined. For example, when you see a crèche, you will see Joseph and Mary with the baby Jesus in a manger. Visiting this family are shepherds and three wise men.

The Biblical account of the birth of Jesus records that He was born and laid in a manger. His birth was announced to lowly shepherds by an angel. After hearing the announcement and seeing the spectacle of heaven, the shepherds then went into Bethlehem to see the baby. (Luke 2:7-17)

The wise men came later. They first went to Jerusalem to see the new King of the Jews, but they learned that He was born in Bethlehem. So they journeyed to Bethlehem where they found the child and His mother in a house—not the stable—where they worshiped Him. That they presented three gifts leads to the assumption there were three wise men, but the Bible is silent as to the number. (Matthew 2:1-11)

The Bible tells us that shepherd visited the night of Jesus’ birth and at a later time the wise men visited. 

--Ralph Burris