Sign 1 - First Coming of Jesus Christ

Year: 1 BC

Scriptures:

Matthew 2:1

1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

1 Nephi 10:4

4 Yea, even six hundred years from the time that my father left Jerusalem, a prophet would the Lord God raise up among the Jews—even a Messiah, or, in other words, a Savior of the world.

“Christmas is the traditional rather than the actual birthday of our Lord. As to the actual day and year, scholars generally are in such complete disagreement that reference to their various views does little more than multiply confusion and uncertainty. Authorities can be cited who contend his birth was during every year from BC 1 to BC 7. Perhaps most of them lean to the conjecture that it was in late 5 BC or early 4 BC.

“From the first sentence of the revelation given to Joseph Smith on the day the Church was organized in this dispensation, it appears that the latter-day kingdom formally came into being on the eighteen hundred and thirtieth anniversary of our Lord's birth. In other words, Christ was born April 6, BC 1 (D&C 20:1). As pointed out by Elder James E. Talmage, the Book of Mormon accounts that the Messiah would come ‘six hundred years from the time that Lehi left Jerusalem’ (1 Ne. 1 3 Ne. 1:10:4), seem to corroborate this BC 1 birthdate.” (Bruce R. McConkie, Doctrinal New Testament Commentary, 3 vols. [Salt Lake City:Bookcraft, 1965-1973] 1:91)