Luke was a doctor and one of Jesus followers and helpers. He said, I want to write and tell you about what we saw and heard about Jesus when He was here, so you will know that it is true.

There was a priest whose name was Zacharias who was doing his work at the Lord’s house, the temple. He had a wife whose name was Elizabeth. They were both doing the right things that the Lord said to do. But they didn’t have any babies and they wanted a baby. One day when Zacharias was doing his work at the Lords’ temple, all the people were standing outside praying and Zacharias went to burn the sweet smoke up to God.

There was a priest whose name was Zacharias who was doing his work at the Lord’s house, the temple. He had a wife whose name was Elizabeth. They were both doing the right things that the Lord said to do. But they didn’t have any babies and they wanted a baby. One day when Zacharias was doing his work at the Lords’ temple, all the people were standing outside praying and Zacharias went to burn the sweet smoke up to God.

Zacharias asked the angel, How can that happen? I’m too old to make a baby now and my wife is too old too. The angels said, I am Gabriel who stands in front of the Lord God and was sent to tell you this happy stuff. And you will be quiet and words won’t be able to come out of your mouth until the day this happens because you didn’t believe the words I said because they will happen when their time to happen is here. The people outside were waiting and wondering about what happened because Zacharias was taking so long. When he came out he couldn’t talk and all the people thought he saw something special.

 

 

 

 

When his workdays at the temple were done, Zacharias went back to his house in the hill country and made a baby with his wife. She was happy and hid away for five months.

Three months before time for the baby to be born, God sent Gabriel to a city called Nazareth to a young lady who was about to get married. Her name was Mary. The angel told her, Hi, you are held high by God. The Lord is with you and you will be most blessed more than other ladies.

Mary was thinking about what the angel said, and was wondering what this meant. Gabriel told her, Don’t be scared, Mary. God will put much blessing on you. You will make a baby in your tummy and it will be born a baby boy. You call his name Jesus. He will be great and He will be called the Son of the Highest One. And the Lord God will make him the king on the throne of His father David. He will be king forever and His kingdom will be the best and last forever.

Mary asked Gabriel, How can this happen? I have never been with a man. The angel told her, The Holy Spirit will put His power over you and the baby inside you will be the Holy Son of God, the all powerful one. He will be called the Son of God. And also, your cousin Elizabeth, is going to have a baby soon even though she is too old, because God can do everything. Mary told the angel, I am the servant of the Lord, Let it happen to me like you said. Then Mary hurried to visit her cousin Elizabeth in the hill country.

When Elizabeth heard the voice of Mary, the baby inside her jumped for happiness and the Holy Spirit filled Elizabeth and she said, You are the happiest of all the ladies in the world, and the happiest baby is growing inside you. When I heard your voice, the baby inside me jumped for happiness. You are very blessed because you believe what the angels said, and it will all be done.

Mary said, My soul makes God real big in my heart and I’m really happy in God who saves me. He saw my low place and all people from now on will hold me high. He has done great things for me and He is most special for always. His special love is on everyone that looks to him but He chases away the puffed up ones. He takes down the strong ones and puts up the weak ones. He fills the hungry with good things to eat and sends away the rich ones empty. He helps Israel, His people because He remembers His special love.

When it was time, Elizabeth had her baby and Zacharias called its name John, like the angel said. And then Zacharias could talk again. All the family was amazed. And all the people around them wondered what this baby would grow up to be like.

The Holy Spirit of God came on Zacharias and told important stuff coming. He said, Best of the best is the Lord God of Israel because He visited us and has come to get back His people from the bad one. He has made a power for the house of David, like He said through all His men through the years since the world started. He promised that we would be rescued and carried away from the bad ones and all that hate us.

And He will to do the special things that God promised. So that we can live without being scared and always do the right things. You, little child, will be called the prophet of the Highest because you will go in front of the face of the Lord to get everything ready for Him to come back to the world again.

 

And to show people how to be saved from the bad ones and how to get rid of all the bad stuff they did because the Lord’s God’s love for us is soooo big. He gives light to the ones who are sitting in the dark and guides the path for our feet to walk on into a quiet place.

The hand of the Lord was on John. And he grew strong in his spirit and was living in the deserts until the day the Lord God showed him to His people, Israel.

The roman ruler called everyone in Israel to go to the place they were born, and have their names listed there, and to pay taxes there; so Mary’s husband, Joseph, took Mary to go to a town called Bethlehem. While they were there, it was time for Mary’s baby to be born. She wrapped baby Jesus in cloths and laid the laid Him in a feeding box for animals because the hotel didn’t have any room for them.

Outside the town, shepherds were in the field watching over the sheep and it was nighttime. The angel of the Lord in heaven came to them and the shiny brightness of the Lord shined all around them and they were really scared. The angel told them, Don’t be scared. I came to tell you the best happy news ever for everyone because a baby was born this day in the city of David, who is the promised one, the Lord from God in heaven.

 

 

 

 

This is the sign for you so you will know who it is. You will find the baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a feeding box.

 

 

And right then the sky over the shepherds was filled with angels who were saying the best stuff about the Lord God, The best shiny brightness to God in the highest heaven and quiet peace and good things to men.

When the angels had gone back to heaven, the shepherds said, Let’s go now into Bethlehem and see this thing that happened that the Lord sent and told us about. So they went quick into Bethlehem and found Mary and Joseph and the baby Jesus lying in the feeding box. Then they went around telling everyone what the angel told them about this baby. Everyone that heard it was amazed.

Mary kept this all in her heart and thought about it a lot. And the shepherds went back to the field saying the best stuff to God for all the things they had heard and seen. After 8 days they took baby Jesus to the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem for the ceremony to God and they called His name Jesus like the angel had first told Mary.

There was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon who was waiting for the promised One from heaven. The Holy Spirit had told Simeon that he would stay alive in the world until his eyes saw the One God promised to send. The Spirit brought Simeon into the temple when Mary and Joseph brought Jesus for the ceremony. Simeon took Jesus into his arms and thanked God in his heart and said, Lord, now you can let me go from this life in peace because I have seen the One you sent to save us, who will show light and shiny brightness to all Your people, Israel.

Joseph and Mary were amazed at what Simeon said. He also said, This child is set to bring many up and to bring many down in Israel. Your heart will hurt so that the thinking of many hearts can be shown.

There was also a lady named Anna who was real old and she was always in the temple every day to thank God and pray. She came in right then and started thanking the Lord and told the people that this was the One who would buy back the people from the bad one.

Jesus grew up and became strong and filled with right thinking and smartness and right thinking and the special love from God. Every year Joseph took Mary and Jesus to Jerusalem for the party that remembered God bringing Israel out of being slaves in Egypt. So when Jesus was 12, they went to Jerusalem for the party. After it was over and they were on the way home, they saw Jesus wasn’t with them. They looked everywhere and with all their friends and couldn’t find Him so the went back to Jerusalem, looking for Him.

After 3 days they found Jesus in the temple sitting with the leaders and teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. Everyone that heard Jesus talk was amazed at what He said. When Joseph and Mary found Him, they said, Son, why did you do this? We have been so sad, looking for you everywhere. Jesus said to them, Why were you looking for Me? Don’t you understand that I have to be out doing My heavenly Father’s things.

They didn’t understand what Jesus told them and He went home with them and stayed with them, doing what they said. Mary kept all these things in her heart as special and was always thinking about them. And Jesus grew up more like a man and more like His Father God everyday.

When Jesus was all grown up, God sent His word from heaven to John, Zacharias’ son. So John went out telling people, Get ready because the real King from heaven was here now. Turn to God and turn away from bad stuff. Believe in Him and come and be dunked under the water instead of taking a lamb to the temple to be saved.

Every valley will be filled up and every mountain made low and all the crooked roads made straight and the bumpy places smooth and everyone will see the One God sent to save us. People came out to the Jordan River to John to be dunked under the water to wash away all their bad. John said to them, O bunch of snakes, who told you to run away from all the bad stuff coming.

Don’t keep looking back at Abraham and say you are saved because you come from his family. God is strong enough to take these rocks on the ground and make them into Abraham’s kids. Do the right stuff to show that you are turned back to God or you will be a tree that is chopped down and burned in the fire.

The people asked John, What should we do then? John told them, If you have two coats, give the extra one to someone who doesn’t have any coat. And give your extra food to ones who don’t have any food.

The tax collectors came to John and asked, What should we do? John told them, Don’t take more tax money from the people than you are supposed to.

The soldiers came to John and asked, What should we do? John told them, Don’t be beating up people, and don’t say that people did stuff that they didn’t do, and be happy with the pay that you get.

All the people were looking at John and wondering, Is this the promised One from heaven? But John told them, I dunk you in water, but One is coming right behind me who is so much stronger than me. I am not good enough to even take off His sandal.

He will fill you with His Holy Spirit and He will wash you with fire. He will clean up all the mess, and He will collect all His good ones into His barn, and He will burn up the bad ones with fire that doesn’t ever stop. John told the people lots more important stuff.

John told the leader of the country to stop all the bad stuff he was doing, especially marrying his brother’s wife.

When Jesus came to John to pray and to be dunked by him, The Holy Spirit came down like a dove on Jesus and a voice came from heaven that said, You are My beloved Son who I am real happy with. Jesus was the Son of God from heaven and He was from the fathers of this world straight back all the way to Adam who was the Son of God.