First Words of Jesus by Stu Epperson

"The One she carried in her womb would one day carry her cross and come out of the tomb” writes Stu Epperson in his latest book, First Words of Jesus: From the Cradle to the Cross. The author provides meditations this Christmas season on what Jesus’ first recorded words meant for those seeking Him including Mary, Joseph, the shepherds, Herod, Anna, Simeon, and others. Epperson gives 10 excellent contrasts between the cradle and the cross:

Cradle	Cross
1. Roman law led to His traumatic birth in a cattle trough	1. Roman law sentenced Him to His traumatic death on a wooden cross
2. Born in Bethlehem, the city of bread	2. The bread of life was broken at Golgotha
3. The good news of the Gospel first came to the lowly shepherds	3. The good news of the Gospel was last given to the lowly thief
4. Mary’s pain in childbirth	4. Mary’s pain in her child’s death
5. Marked by the brightness of a star at birth	5. The morning star was covered in oppressive darkness at death
6. Blessing by the giving of gifts from wise men	6. Cursed by the taking of His clothes for gambling by fools
7. The first cry of birth	7. The last cry of death
8. Accepted and embraced in love and care	8. Rejected and forsaken in judgment and wrath
9. Blessed and worshiped	9. Cursed and mocked
10. Born inside a stable and clothed	10. Died outside in the open air and stripped of clothing