A 12-Day Guide To Feasting On The Bible This Christmas

Since Recession Christmas is almost here, I hope we’re all ready to play a Yuletide game normally reserved for impoverished college students and gambling addicts — Christmas Cash Reimbursement. In case you’re not familiar, this is the game where you pile up all the Christmas money people gave you as gifts and then watch your joy melt into a puddle of sorrow as you remember that you won’t actually be able to use it for anything other than paying off the debt you incurred earlier that month. Were you looking forward to taking the 300 bucks your parents gave you to buy a Roomba? Too bad. You still owe 300 bucks on the Roomba you bought your parents.

While Recession Christmas may prevent us from rejoicing in the annual ritual of post-Christmas “Treat Yo Self,” there is one very obvious and very free gift we can all give ourselves this Christmas season. It’s Christ Jesus, the Son of God, revealed to us in the words of the Holy Scripture. If you wish to give yourself peace, hope, and joy this Christmas season, give yourself the gift of reading the Bible.

How can we do this? While Americans have developed a rather curious habit of celebrating Christmas from 12:01 a.m. on Nov. 1 until nap time on Dec. 25, liturgically speaking, Christmas is a 12-day celebration that begins on the evening of Dec. 24 and lasts until Jan. 5. Therefore, it’s good, right, and salutary to make time every day of the Christmas feast to feast on God’s Word. And while any portion of Scripture is always worthy of your attention, it’s fitting to spend the Christmas season focusing on the majesty of the Christmas story, the story of God taking on flesh to become our Brother and be our Savior. Here’s a guide for doing exactly that:

Dec. 24 and 25: Genesis 1-3, Luke 1

On the first day of Christmas, begin with the beginning. In Genesis 1 and 2, we learn of how God created the heavens and earth, and how He created us to live with Him forever. In Genesis chapter 3, we learn of mankind’s fall into sin, and we hear God’s promise that the offspring of the woman will crush the head of the serpent. In Luke 1, we meet that woman, the virgin Mary who learns from the angel Gabriel that she will give birth to the Satan-conquering Son of God and the Savior of mankind.

Dec. 26: Isaiah 7, Luke 2

On the second day of Christmas, spend a bit more time on the glorious miracle of the virgin birth. In Isaiah 7, we hear the prophet confront duplicitous King Ahaz with the promise that God’s sign of victory and faithfulness will be the virgin conceiving and bearing a Son. In Luke 2, we hear the beautiful story of that virgin-born Son entering the world in lowliness, born to be the Savior of the lowly.

Dec. 27: 2 Samuel 7, Matthew 1

On the