Transcript

Today’s Bible Translation

Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 23-25 NKJV

Associate Producer

Anonymous, Mike Haner

Podcast Introduction

This is Gospel Saturday. We’ll read Matthew 23-25.. I’m calling this episode “Look Up”

Comments on Matthew 24 and 25

 As long as I’ve been a believer, one of the topics within the church that never fails to inspire conversations is the return of Jesus. When will it happen? How do current events line up with end-times prophecy? Is the antichrist alive now? Who is it? What is the mark of the beast? 

In verse 3 of chapter 24, we see that wanting to know when Jesus is coming back is not a new phenomenon. Here, the disciples asked Jesus what they should be looking for that will signal His coming and the end of the age. Jesus spent a lot of time in chapters 24 and 25 talking about the end times and His return.

Today, I want to focus quickly on the first thing that He said in response to the disciples’ question.  In verse 4 He told them,“Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.” 

And then dropping down to verses 23 through 27 He says, “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand.

“Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.”

Almost immediately after Jesus was taken up to Heaven, when He left the disciples with the Great Commission, imposters declared that they were the returned Christ. It happened then, and it happens today. Most have been quickly set aside as wackos, but some have managed to gather followers, and a few have even gathered millions.  

The vast majority of the people who have been led astray by these false teachers obviously never studied the words of Jesus. His first warning was, “Don’t be fooled.” Further down he said, “Don’t believe those who say, ‘He’s here!’”

So how will we know? Look at verse 27 again, “For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.”

When there’s a thunderstorm in your area and lightning flashes and the thunder roars, it’s obvious isn’t it? You know instantly, don’t you? That is how it will be when Jesus returns. Everyone on earth will know the second Jesus makes His appearance. It will be nothing like His first appearance in Bethlehem. There will be a great sound like a trumpet blast, and BAM!…you’ll know.

In the mean time, while we wait, our job is to be busy doing the work He’s called us to. Don’t worry about when He’s coming. Just know that He is, be ready, and do all you can to share the Good News with as many people as you can, so that they’ll be ready, too.

Christmas Question Link

Right Here!

Cat Jahnke Links

No doubt. Cat Jahnke is easily one of my all-time favorite artists.

Her YouTube channel

Her Patreon Page

Support

This a value for value podcast. There are no advertisers because advertising=censorship. If you enjoy the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, decide how much value it brings to you. Only you can make that determination. Then put a number on the value and send it to me here: SUPPORT.

Transcript

Download .txt file.

Matthew 23-25: Look Up (LSFAB S13E063)

[TEASER – 0:00]
Don’t be fooled.

[INTRO S13E063 – 0:09]
This is the Lifespring Family Audio Bible coming to you from Riverside, California, and podcasting since 2004, I’m your OG Godcaster, Steve Webb. This is the daily podcast where we’ll read through the entire Bible in a year and the website is at lifespringmedia.com.

This is Gospel Saturday, and we’ll read Matthew 23 through 25. I’m calling the episode “Look Up.” We’ll read the chapters, I’ll have some comments on the reading, and we’ll have Christmas question number three today, which will be answered by James Cooper, the Christmas expert from whychristmas.com. I’ll also have a song at the end of the show by one of the most talented singer-songwriters I know.

Before we read, let’s pray.

[OPENING PRAYER – 0:52]
Our heavenly Father, we thank you so much for your Word, and we thank you for this time. I thank you for the Lifespring family and for each one that’s listening right now whenever now happens to be. I pray, Lord, that you would bless our time together today and I pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Okay, let’s begin.

[MATTHEW 23 (NKJV) – 1:12]
Matthew, chapter 23.

(1) Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, (2) saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. (3) Therefore whatever they tell you to observe, that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. (4) For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. (5) But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge the borders of their garments. (6) They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues, (7) greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, ‘Rabbi, Rabbi.’ (8) But you, do not be called ‘Rabbi’; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren. (9) Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. (10) And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ. (11) But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. (12) And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

(13) “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up the kingdom of heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in. (14) Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.

(15) “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel land and sea to win one proselyte, and when he is won, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.

(16) “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple, he is obliged to perform it.’ (17) Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that sanctifies the gold? (18) And, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, it is nothing; but whoever swears by the gift that is on it, he is obliged to perform it.’ (19) Fools and blind! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that sanctifies the gift? (20) Therefore he who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things on it. (21) He who swears by the temple, swears by it and by Him who dwells in it. (22) And he who swears by heaven, swears by the throne of God and by Him who sits on it.

(23) “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. (24) Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!

(25) “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. (26) Blind Pharisee, first cleanse the inside of the cup and dish, that the outside of them may be clean also.

(27) “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. (28) Even so you also outwardly appear righteous to men, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

(29) “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! Because you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, (30) and say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.’

(31) “Therefore you are witnesses against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. (32) Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers’ guilt. (33) Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell? (34) Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, (35) that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. (36) Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation.

(37) “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! (38) See! Your house is left to you desolate; (39) for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’”

[MATTHEW 24 (NKJV) – 6:11]
Matthew, chapter 24.

(1) Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. (2) And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.”

(3) Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

(4) And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. (5) For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. (6) And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. (7) For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. (8) All these are the beginning of sorrows.

(9) “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. (10) And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. (11) Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. (12) And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. (13) But he who endures to the end shall be saved. (14) And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

(15) “Therefore when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place” (whoever reads, let him understand), (16) “then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. (17) Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house. (18) And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes. (19) But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! (20) And pray that your flight may not be in winter or on the Sabbath. (21) For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. (22) And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened.

(23) “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. (24) For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. (25) See, I have told you beforehand.

(26) “Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it. (27) For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. (28) For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together.

(29) “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. (30) Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (31) And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

(32) “Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. (33) So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near—at the doors! (34) Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all these things take place. (35) Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

(36) “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. (37) But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. (38) For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, (39) and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. (40) Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. (41) Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. (42) Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. (43) But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. (44) Therefore you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

(45) “Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season? (46) Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. (47) Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods. (48) But if that evil servant says in his heart, ‘My master is delaying his coming,’ (49) and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, (50) the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, (51) and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

[MATTHEW 25 (NKJV) – 11:47]
Matthew, chapter 25.

(1) “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. (2) Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. (3) Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, (4) but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. (5) But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.

(6) “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming; go out to meet him!’ (7) Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. (8) And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ (9) But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ (10) And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.

(11) “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ (12) But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’

(13) “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.

(14) “For the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called his own servants and delivered his goods to them. (15) And to one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey. (16) Then he who had received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. (17) And likewise he who had received two gained two more also. (18) But he who had received one went and dug in the ground, and hid his lord’s money. (19) After a long time the lord of those servants came and settled accounts with them.

(20) “So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.’ (21) His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ (22) He also who had received two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents; look, I have gained two more talents besides them.’ (23) His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’

(24) “Then he who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you have not sown, and gathering where you have not scattered seed. (25) And I was afraid, and went and hid your talent in the ground. Look, there you have what is yours.’

(26) “But his lord answered and said to him, ‘You wicked and lazy servant, you knew that I reap where I have not sown, and gather where I have not scattered seed. (27) So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest. (28) Therefore take the talent from him, and give it to him who has ten talents.

(29) ‘For to everyone who has, more will be given, and he will have abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. (30) And cast the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

(31) “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. (32) All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. (33) And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. (34) Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: (35) for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; (36) I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

(37) “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? (38) When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? (39) Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ (40) And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’

(41) “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: (42) for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; (43) I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’

(44) “Then they also will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ (45) Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ (46) And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

[COMMENTARY – 17:19]
You know, as long as I’ve been a believer, one of the topics within the church that never fails to inspire conversations is the return of Jesus. When will it happen? How do current events line up with end times prophecy? Is the Antichrist around now? Who is it? What is the mark of the beast?

In verse 3 of chapter 24, we see that wanting to know when Jesus is coming back is not a new phenomenon. Here, the disciples asked Jesus, what they should be looking for that will signal his coming and the end of the age, Jesus spent a lot of time in chapters 24 and 25, talking about the end times and his return.

Today, I want to focus quickly on the first thing that he said in response to the disciples question. In verse 4, he told him, “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.”

And then dropping down to verses 23 through 27. He says, “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand.

“Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.”

Well, guess what, almost immediately after Jesus was taken up to heaven when he left the disciples with the Great Commission, imposters declared that they were the returned Christ. It happened then, and it happens today. Most have been quickly set aside as wackos. But some have managed to gather followers, and a few have even gathered millions of them.

The vast majority of the people who’ve been led astray by these false teachers obviously never studied the words of Jesus. His first warning was, “Don’t be fooled.” Further down, he said, “Don’t believe those who say, ‘He’s here!’”

So how will we know? Look at verse 27, again. It says, “For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.”

Let me ask you something. When there’s a thunderstorm in your area, and lightning flashes and thunder roars it’s obvious, isn’t it? You know, instantly, don’t you? That’s how it’ll be when Jesus returns. Everyone on earth will know the second Jesus makes his appearance. it will be nothing like his first appearance in Bethlehem. There will be a great sound like a trumpet blast, and – BAM! – you’ll know.

In the meantime, while we wait, our job is to be busy doing the work he’s called us to do. Don’t worry about when he’s coming, just know that he is. Be ready, and do all that you can to share the good news with as many people as you can, so that they’ll be ready, too.

[LIFESPRING FAMILY HOTLINE – 20:31]
What do you think about the end times? Call the Lifespring Family Hotline and let me know at +1-951-732-8511 and you can also comment at comment.lifespringmedia.com and you can email me at st***@*************ia.com. Let me hear from you.

Tomorrow is Epistle Sunday, and we’ll read 1 Corinthians 3 and 4.

[SUPPORT THE SHOW – 20:57]
I’ve got some people to thank today. I’ve got a couple of Associate Producers. We have an anonymous donor who came in with a weekly $22.22 donation. And Mike Haner came in with his weekly $7.77 Styper boost. I thank both of our Associate Producers today and may God bless you.

Boost.

And a boost of 1000 sats came in a few days ago from at @thesode from the Fountain app. Now the interesting thing is it came in while he or she was listening to the episode, where I said there wasn’t going to be an episode that day. And I’m not sure how I feel about that. Were they happy that I wasn’t doing an episode? I’m grateful for the boost. But well, whatever the case, and yes, I said whatever the case, thank you. I think.

Value-for-value is, of course, what helps to keep the Lifespring Family Audio Bible coming to you seven days a week. There are no advertisers, creepy or otherwise, on the show, and there never will be because with advertisers comes, well, you know… Most advertisers don’t want to be identified with the uncompromised teaching of God’s Word. So I am counting on the Lifespring family to support the show. If you find value in the daily reading of the Bible, and perhaps find some encouragement in what I have to say, the amount of your support is completely between you and the Lord. I do ask that you pray about it, seek His will, and then go to lifespringmedia.com/support. I’ll thank you and I think God will bless you.

[CHRISTMAS QUESTIONS – 22:30]
Before I get to Christmas question number three in a moment, I need to remind you that tomorrow December 4, 2022, at 4 pm Pacific is the drawing for the free tickets to the movie “Johnny Cash: The Redemption of an American Icon.” To see the trailer for the movie, you can go to lifespringmedia.com/cash. How do you get into the drawing? It couldn’t be easier. All it takes is for you to send in a Christmas question. For every question, you’ll get one entry: send in one question, get one entry, send in 10 questions, get 10 entries or whatever. And remember, too, that for each question I use on the show, you’ll get an entry for the drawing for a signed copy of my book “Webb’s Easy Bible Names Pronunciation Guide.” Send in your questions to st***@*************ia.com and put “Christmas question” in the subject line.

And now today’s question comes in from Howie and Ann. They ask, “What is the significance of the Christmas tree? How did it become something so representative and iconic of Christmas?” A few of you have sent in similar questions. So let’s get the skinny from James Cooper.

[JAMES COOPER ANSWERS – 23:36]
Evergreen trees and plants have been traditionally used to celebrate winter festivals for thousands of years. Pre-Christians use branches of evergreen trees to decorate their homes during the winter solstice. And the Romans used fir trees to decorate their temples at the festival of Saturnalia. However, they were very different to what we now think of as Christmas trees.

No one’s really sure when they came to be known as Christmas trees as we think of them today, but it was probably about a thousand years ago in Northern Europe. Christmas trees might well have started out as “paradise trees,” which were branches of trees or wooden frames decorated with apples. These were used during medieval German mystery plays. They were acted out in front of churches during Advent and on Christmas Eve. These trees represented the Garden of Eden, and they were paraded around the town before the play started as a way of advertising. The plays told Bible stories to people who couldn’t read. During the late 1400s and early 1500s, they were decorated with more things rather than just apples including, communion wafers, cherries and later pastry decorations in the shape of stars, bells and angels, and they even got a nickname during this period of the “Christ baum” or “Christ tree”.

The first documented use of a large tree at Christmas and New Year is argued between Tallinn in Estonia and Riga in Latvia. Both claim that they had the first trees, Tallinn in 1441 and Riga in 1510. Both of these trees were put up by the “Brotherhood of Blackheads” which was an association of unmarried merchants. There’s a picture from 1521 from Germany, which shows a tree being paraded through the streets with a man riding a horse behind it. The man is dressed as a bishop, possibly representing St. Nicholas. There’s a record of a small tree in Bremen, Germany, from 1570 described as being decorated with apples, nuts, dates, pretzels and paper flowers, and the similarly decorated one recorded in 1605 in Strasburg.

The first person to bring a Christmas tree into a house in the way we think of it today might have been the 16th century German preacher Martin Luther. The story is told that one night before Christmas, he was walking through the forest and looked up to see the stars shining through the tree branches. It was so beautiful that he went home and told his children that it reminded him of Jesus, who left the stars of heaven to come to Earth at Christmas. So he brought a tree into his house and decorated it with candles to represent the stars.

At first, it was a figure of the baby Jesus that was put on top of the tree. But over time, that changed into the star that the wise men saw, or an angel that told the shepherds about Jesus and later that turned into a fairy. The angel might have also represented the “Christkind,” which translates as “the Christ child,” but he’s normally shown as a little angelic figure with blond hair. And the Christkind is also a gift-bringer in parts of Central Europe.

The first Christmas tree put up in the UK was probably done so by Queen Charlotte who was the German wife of King George III. The first full recorded tree was in 1800, when she put it up for a children’s party at Windsor Castle, and it soon became fashionable among rich families. There’s actually no mention of Christmas trees in “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens, which was published in 1843. Christmas trees became very popular in the UK, when in 1848, a drawing of the Queen’s Christmas tree at Windsor Castle (and now that was Queen Victoria,) was published in “The Illustrated London News.” It showed Queen Victoria, her German husband, Prince Albert, and their young children around a tree which was set up on the table.

The drawing was then republished in “Godley’s Lady Book” in Philadelphia in December 1850, and that helped popularize Christmas trees in America. Lead and glass decoration started being made in the 1860s and 1870s. Some of the first glass decorations were apples, and that’s probably where red round Christmas baubles come from. Frank Woolworth started selling glass ornaments in his stores in the USA in 1880. 1880 was also the year when Thomas Edison invented the first electric Christmas tree lights. And in 1890, the Edison company published a brochure offering Christmas lighting services where they came round and put up lights in your house and you just rented them for Christmas. Electric tree lights became widely known in the USA in 1895 when President Grover Cleveland had the tree in the White House decorated with lights. The tradition of the National Christmas Tree on the White House lawn started in 1923 with President Calvin Coolidge.

If you’d like to know more about the history of Christmas trees, then please visit my site whychristmas.com. A link will be in the show notes. And also on there you can find out about the history of tinsel and the legend of the Christmas spider and the rather dubious tradition of the Christmas pickle.

[STEVE WEBB – 28:05]
Who knew Thomas Edison had anything to do with Christmas and the Christmas pickle? Really? James mentioned that there’d be a link on the show notes page to find out more and it will be at lifespringmedia.com/s13e063. Thank you, James. As always, you’re the best. If you’d like to know more fun stuff about Christmas be sure to listen to the Lifespring WhyChristmas show hosted by James Cooper and Yours Truly. Get it at lifespringwhyhristmas.show. We’re giving away a signed copy of Bryan Duncan’s CD “A Nehosoul Christmas.” And if you haven’t checked out James’s website, you do need to do that. Go to whychristmas.com.

[OUTRO S13E063 – 28:47]
Did you get the latest newsletter sent out by Sister Kirsty? Well if you haven’t be sure you go to news.lifespringmedia.com and sign up. Thank you so much, Kirsty. God bless you. And, of course, Brother Sean of San Pedro does the chapters, and Sister Denise corrects the transcripts. I couldn’t do all this stuff without you guys. God bless you.

Comment on the show by calling the Lifespring Family Hotline at +1-951-732-8511, or by going to comment.lifespringmedia.com and pull your keyboard up and type it out.

Tomorrow’s Sunday and, of course, we’ll be having our time of prayer. Send in your prayer requests and praises at prayer.lifespringmedia.com or email me at st***@*************ia.com.

[CHRISTMAS MUSIC – 29:29]
And now music. Cat Jahnke in my humble opinion should be far more well known than she is. She is popular in her hometown of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, and she’s got fans all around the world but nowhere near as many as I think she deserves. Her song “Apple” served as the theme song for the NBC web series “Ctrl”, while her “Happy Song” appeared in an episode of “Degrassi: The Next Generation.” Cat along with Darren Johnston, with whom I’ve corresponded many times won Best Original Score in the 168 Hour Film Project in 2006 for the film, “Free of Charge.” Her song, “None Of Those Things” was also a finalist in the 2006 John Lennon Songwriting Contest. That’s not too bad, right? Two of her songs were featured in the music video game iDance 2. Her song “Apple” was also used in the fourth season of the reality show “Dance Moms” in the Teens Group Dance. She’s definitely a very, very talented lady.

And she’s nice. I’ve been playing her music on my shows since I discovered her not long after I started podcasting, so I think it’s safe to say that she was one of the first artists to embrace podcasting by granting permission to guys like me to play her music. But in addition to that proof that she’s a nice person, I know it from personal experience. The Lovely Lady LeeAnn and I had a chance to take Cat to dinner a few years back when she was in San Diego visiting her sister. So yeah, I’m definitely a fan. And once you hear her music, I think you’ll be a fan too. She writes much of the music she plays, but she also does some extraordinary covers that she arranges in beautiful, unique ways. I’ll put a link on the show notes page to her YouTube channel so you can hear more of her music. And of course, I’ll have a link to her website.

Today. I’m gonna play a song from her outstanding Christmas album called “O Night Divine.” The song is “Rise Up, Shepherd, and Follow.”

I’ll use that song to play us out. So until tomorrow, may God bless you richly. Thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of your day. My name is Steve Webb. Bye. And enjoy the song.

[CAT JAHNKE SINGS “RISE UP SHEPHERD, AND FOLLOW” – 32:05]
There’s a star in the east on Christmas morn
Rise up, shepherd, and follow
It will lead you to the place where the savior’s born
Rise up, shepherd, and follow

Leave your flocks and leave your lambs
Rise up, shepherd, and follow
Leave your sheep and leave your rams
Rise up, shepherd, and follow

Follow, follow
Rise up, shepherd, and follow
Follow the star of Bethlehem
Rise up, shepherd, and follow

If you take good heed to the angel’s word
Rise up, shepherd, and follow
You’ll forget your flock, you’ll forget your herd
Rise up, shepherd, and follow

Leave your flocks and leave your lambs
Rise up, shepherd, and follow
Leave your sheep and leave your rams
Rise up, shepherd, and follow

Follow, follow
Rise up, shepherd, and follow
Follow the star of Bethlehem
Rise up, shepherd, and follow

Transcribed by https://otter.ai

Transcript corrected by Denise