4Kidz: Why do we call it Christmas (Part 3)

What year was Jesus born? That’s an interesting question! First, a little history lesson … Our modern calendar is set up into 2 categories – Before Christ (B.C.) and Anno Domini (A.D.). Anno Domini is a Latin phrase that means “in the year of our Lord.” In 525, a monk named Dionysius created the system for that calendar, and declared that Year 1 AD was the year Jesus was born. Anything before that would be measured in years “B.C.” (Before Christ). The problem is – he counted wrong! We all make mistakes sometimes. Jesus was actually born in 4 or 5 BC. We know this because the Bible tells us that King Herod was around when Jesus was born, but we also know that King Herod died in 4 BC. What’s important is not the exact day or year or time that Jesus was born, but that he was born – and his birth meant that God had a plan to restore our relationship with him! Let’s praise God for His faithfulness through all of time and for His plan to rescue us from sin.