1Start
The town where Jesus was born has a name that means house of bread. His first bed was a feeding box for animals (Luke 2:7).
2Read Together
Joseph and Mary went from Nazareth to Bethlehem because Joseph “was of the house and lineage of David” (Luke 2:4). In Hebrew, Bethlehem means house of bread. A manger is the trough that holds food for animals.
Luke 2:6–7 · King James Version
6And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. 7And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.
John 6:35 · King James Version
35And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
3What It Teaches
The angel gave the shepherds a sign to look for. “Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12). The Bread of Life was born in the house of bread and laid where food is kept.
Years later, after feeding five thousand people, Jesus taught, “I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger” (John 6:35). He also said, “I am the living bread which came down from heaven” (John 6:51).
Bread keeps a body alive one day at a time, and tomorrow we need it again. We need the Savior the same way, every day.
Each Sunday the sacrament bread helps us remember his body, given for us (Luke 22:19). The baby in the manger grew up to feed the world.
4Talk About It
Jesus called himself the bread of life. What helps you come to him for strength each day, the way we eat every day?