Quote:
Originally Posted by awareness
Why tell Matthew and Luke, but not Mark, John, and even Paul? Why wouldn't something as phenomenal as the virgin birth (and the birthday) be told to everyone closely involved?
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Why do you so love rhetorical questions?
We don't know who Mary told. Perhaps Elizabeth knew. Had Mary told her local NBC affiliate, she might have been turned into a pile of stones. Not a good idea. Try to picture yourself back in those days.
When the shepherds worshiped the Newborn in the manger, Mary "
kept all these things, pondering them in her heart." (Luke 2.19)
When the 12 year old Jesus was found in the temple being about His Father's business, "
His mother carefully kept all these matters in her heart." (Luke 2.51)
Apparently Mary kept a carefully guarded secret until long after He had ascended into heaven. According to John, the Spirit would later remind them of that which the Lord had said and done among them. In this regard, Mary kept secret all that happened until much later when the Spirit of God inspired her to reveal certain specifics about Jesus' birth and childhood to others.
The Lord's birthday was never secret. Have you read the Gospels? It seems that the Lord might have been born on the side of the road because there was no vacancy at the Bethlehem Bed and Breakfast. Then the Lord Jesus was laid in an animal feeding trough. Do you get the impression that these were trying times for the new mom after spending 3 weeks on that old Mule Betsy.
Since Shutterfly was not yet up and running, Joseph could not post the baby pictures from his iPhone. Obviously there was no hometown celebrations since Augustus had ordered them to be in Bethlehem. Who are those "closely involved" who were not told? Elizabeth knew shortly after Mary had conceived. Had Herod not tried to hunt them down and kill them, perhaps there might have been a party to your liking.
