The Living Christ

Prophecies of Isaiah concerning the Messiah come to pass centuries after their foretelling with the annunciation and subsequent birth of Jesus Christ.

Joseph and Mary remain in Bethlehem following Jesus' birth. Baby Jesus takes rites of presentation in Temple, as Simeon recognizes the child as the Christ. The Wise Men arrive, and King Herod attempts to outwit them. Joseph, warned in a dream of the King's murderous plans for the child, takes Mary and Jesus and escapes to Egypt.

Joseph, Mary and Jesus return from Egypt, and the boy Jesus begins school training and Temple. Newly appointed governor Pontius Pilate faces pushback from Herod and the priest Caiaphas. John the Baptist arrives and his menace to the Herodian throne explained. Jesus is baptized.

Jesus seeks solitude in the wilderness for forty days, climaxed by three temptations. Returning to Jordan, He learns of John's imprisonment by Herod, who attempts to break the Baptist's spirit. Conflict arises between Herod and Herodias over disposal of John. Now the great ministry of Jesus begins. He calls His first disciple, the humble fisherman. Jesus heals of a mad man at Capernaum, and cures the sick and lame in the courtyard of Peter's home.

Christ begins a preaching ministry with His first disciples, Peter, Andrew, James and John. John the Baptist is secretly visited in prison by friends. On the shore of Galilee, Jesus renews friendship with the disciples' old fishing companions, and Jesus calls Matthew to discipleship. Jesus heals a paralytic.

As Jesus' popularity rages, multitudes follow Him. After a night in prayer, He chooses twelve from a group of disciples whom He names Apostles. Jesus gives the Sermon on the Mount, instructs on prayer and offers the Lord's Prayer before healing a leper.