Lessons

The message on December 22, 2013 was a break from the Ephesians study and celebrated Christmas time. We learned the correct interpretation of the phrase “Xmas” which turns out that it isn’t a modern convention at all. It was used commonly in 16th-century Europe, when many people began using the term “Christos,” the Greek translation for Christ, to refer to Jesus. The letter chi in the Greek alphabet is symbolized by an X and translates to “ch.” So along with the Greek letter rho for “r”, the term Xmas was used to refer to the birth of Jesus as an informed abbreviation, not an offensive one. Xmas was a way for Christian scholars to refer to Jesus respectfully in an ancient language — not to disrespect his name with a harsh symbol by simply X-ing out Christ at Christmas.  However, that is a current trend in the world today.  Christmas time is the celebration of the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ who is the reason for the season.  This message teaches why Jesus came, and what He achieved on the cross.  The fullness of time was discussed and we learn about time in the bible.  It is Christmas time and this message celebrates the fullness and how the Gentiles fit into it. The scripture reading was from Galatians 4:4-5 KJV “4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, 5 To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.”