In the Gospel according to Luke, the Christmas story does not begin with “once upon a time” but in the real historical world of the “days of Caesar Augustus.” As a matter fact, the biblical account seem to labor this historical point. Why? Well, the radical claim of Christmas is that in Jesus Christ, God has entered the the real world, our world—the world of space and time, birth and death, joy and sorrow! Why did he do this? He did this so that he might materialize for us the “good new of great joy that will be for all people” (Luke 2:10). This is the good news of a God who totally identified with our fears, anxieties, weaknesses and sins—so that he might demonstrate his love for us to the bitter end—and conquer them all. This is “Christmas: The Real Story!”