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December 2022 December 2022

 if they are wet or damp, get them into dry clothes OTHER CHURCHES NEWS
 wrap them in a blanket, covering their head

 give them a warm non-alcoholic drink and some sugary food if they are BERE REGIS CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
fully awake
 keep them awake by talking to them until help arrives With Christmas approaching, my thoughts have turned to the Gospel of Matthew,

 make sure you or someone else stays with them. particularly chapter 2:1-12 (I would encourage you to go and read that passage).
A person suffering from hypothermia should be warmed up over several hours, Here in this short text, we heard the account of the visit of the wise men who were
about the same time as it took them to become chilled. It is very dangerous to seeking the infant Jesus. To my mind, there are three particular details that stand
warm them too quickly. out in a striking manner.
Remember what NOT to do The first detail is that when the wise men arrived in Jerusalem and spoke to Herod,
Herod asked the religious scholars of the day where the Christ was to be born.
 do NOT use a hot bath, hot water bottle or heat lamp to warm them up They didn’t have books like we have books, but they had writings which were on a
scroll, so they turned to the scroll of Micah, which is now one of the books of our
 do NOT rub their arms, legs, feet or hands Bible, and read a 500 year old prophesy that the Christ would be born in

 do NOT give them alcohol to drink. Bethlehem. To put it in perspective, 500 years ago, the King of England was a man
who was perhaps the most infamous king we have ever had, King Henry VIII. The
Recent figures from the ONS show that in England and Wales, there were about time gap between Micah and Jesus was the same time gap between Herny VIII
8,500 deaths due to cold homes last winter. With the worries about fuel bills this and today, and yet Micah said that from Bethlehem would come forth one who
number could rise this winter. Please be aware of the danger of hypothermia and would rule the people of Israel. The Bible is full of hundreds of ancient prophesies
economise safely. that have come to pass with total accuracy in human history, some of which are
still happening before our very eyes today, and this shows us that this is not just any
Janey Gordon book that we are dealing with, but that it is a supernatural book given by God
Himself.
The second striking detail is that when the wise men get into Bethlehem and find
the infant Jesus, they worship Him. The Bible is clear and consistent from start to
finish that worship should be given to God and to God alone. If Jesus was at all less
than God, then these wise men would be sinning, and in a sense Jesus would be
Did you Know? too, He would become flawed by their worship as they would have turned Him
into a false idol, but this is not the case. The fact of the matter is that Jesus Christ
Would you like to have the parish magazine delivered was a man who was no ordinary man, but rather He was what we call the God-
to your door each month if you live within the man, God who came and took on human flesh, to walk amongst us, reaching
parishes? down to meet us where we were at. As one famous carol says, He was “Veiled in
flesh, the Godhead see, hail the incarnate deity.”
We have a fantastic team of volunteer distributors
who undertake the delivery of this magazine, and for The third striking detail is the fact that these wise men brought Jesus three gifts,
just £10 a year (which is £2 less than you would pay and much has been said and written about these gifts throughout history. The gold
at the retail price and no charge for delivery), you was given in recognition of His kingship and royal lineage. The frankincense was
could be included on one of these rounds. given because he would be a priest for us, representing God to man and man to
God, and the myrrh was given, because myrrh was used for the embalming of
Contact the Editor, for more information: Alison corpses, and thus stands as a stark reminder that this baby, even at the beginning
Debenham alison@culverdell.co.uk or 471780 of His life, had come into the world specifically to die. Each of us were once a

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