Short biography. Until the beginning of time, God the Father had His eternal Son, who together with Him created the universe. When the hour came, the Father sent Him into the world to save people from sin, damnation, and death. And then, a little more than two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ was born from the Virgin Mary in the city of Bethlehem (Matthew 1:18-25). This is how the Gospel describes it:

The angel Gabriel was sent from God to the city of Galilee, called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, from the house of David; and the name of the Virgin was Mary. The angel came in to Her and said: Rejoice, O Thou of Grace! The Lord is with Thee; blessed art Thou among women... for thou hast found grace with God; and behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bear a son, and shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God shall give him the throne of David his father; and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and his kingdom shall have no end. And Mary said to the angel, How shall this be, since I know no man? The angel answered and said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; wherefore also the Holy One who is born shall be called the Son of God... for with God no word will be powerless. Then Mary said, Behold, the handmaid of the Lord; be it done to Me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her (Luke 1:26-38), and nine months later she gave birth to 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. In that country there were shepherds in the field, who kept a night watch over their flock. Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared to them... And he said to them, Do not be afraid; I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all men: for this day is born unto you in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord; and this is a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger (Luke 2:7-12).

Three wise men also came from Persia, saying that they had seen the star announcing the birth of the King of Judah and had come to worship Him. And behold, the star which they had seen in the east was going before them, when at last it came and stood over the place where the Child was. And when they saw the star, they rejoiced with great joy, and when they entered into the house, they saw the Child with Mary His Mother, and they fell down and worshipped Him. and having opened their treasures, they brought Him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh (Matthew 2:9-11).

On the fortieth day after Christmas, the Virgin Mary and Joseph brought the Infant Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem to fulfill the command of the Mosaic Law (Lev 12:2-6). In accordance with it, every firstborn was to be dedicated to God and sacrificed for him as a ransom.

In Jerusalem there lived a righteous man named Simeon. And when they came to the Temple, the Holy Spirit brought Simeon to meet them. He took the Child in his arms and blessed God:

"Now Thou dost let Thy servant go, O Lord, according to Thy word, in peace, for my eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared before the face of all nations, a light for the enlightenment of the Gentiles, and the glory of Thy people Israel (Luke 2:29-32).

The Jewish king Herod, wishing to retain power for himself and his sons, ordered to find and kill the One Who was spoken of as the great King who had been born. Then Joseph and Mary fled from his country to Egypt, where they remained for three and a half years, until the death of Herod, after which they returned and settled in the city of Nazareth. Here Jesus Christ lived until the age of thirty, in obedience to His Mother and Joseph.

At that time, the great prophet of God John came out of the wilderness where he had lived before, and went about all the region around the Jordan River, urging:

- Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand (Matthew 3:2), I am the voice crying out in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord (cf. John 1:23), I baptize you with water for repentance, but after me comes one who is mightier than I, I am not worthy to bend down, untie the straps of his sandals and carry them after him. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Matthew 3:11-12).

When everyone was baptized by John, Jesus came with them. And John restrained Him, and said, I must be baptized by Thee, and dost Thou come to me? But Jesus answered and said to him, "Leave it now, for thus it behooves us to fulfill all righteousness." Then John admits Him. And having been baptized, Jesus immediately came up out of the water, and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and John saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and descending upon Him. And behold, a voice from heaven saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:14-17).

After Baptism, Jesus fasted for forty days and nights in the wilderness, where Satan approached Him, trying to tempt Him, but departed empty-handed, as if defeated.

And John the Baptist said to his disciples about Jesus:

"Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world... I did not know Him, but for this reason I was sent to baptize in water, so that He might be revealed to Israel. I have seen the Spirit come down from heaven like a dove and dwell upon Him. I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize said, "On whom you see the Spirit descending and abiding upon Him, that is he who baptizes with the Holy Ghost." And I testified that this is the Son of God (John 1:29-34).

After this, his disciples followed Jesus. Later, Christ chose twelve of His disciples, whom He called apostles (messengers), and sent them to preach. The Lord gave them the power to cast out unclean spirits, heal the sick, and raise the dead.