Born in Humility

There it is the miniature manger scene. We bought ours in 1966. There is the baby Jesus with Mary and Joseph. Of course there are several animals, an angel, some shepherds and, to complete the picture, the three wise men. I love it! It helps make Christmas real. There is only one problem; it probably isn’t exactly the way it looked at the time. Last week, we discussed that the wise men (the Magi) probably came a couple of years later and there weren’t necessarily three of them. Today we will look at some other things that may appear different than expected. But, don’t fear, the essence of the story is true and it is all there.

The story is so familiar. I have heard it from childhood. When I was young, it was even read in the public school (shows how old I am). The story is found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 2, and verses 1-7:

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register.

So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

I think that the first important thing to remember about the Christmas story is that it is all accomplished and arranged by God. We have already seen that it was God, who so loved the world that He sent His son. Mary is pregnant through the activity of the Holy Spirit. Joseph is free to continue his relationship with Mary because of God speaking through a dream. Now, God uses human history to ground the birth of Jesus in history, at a particular time; and it is the right time.

It happened during the reign of Augustus Caesar. He was worshipped, not just as Caesar, but as the bringer of peace. In actuality, Jesus is to be worshipped as the king and He is the Prince of Peace. But, this gives a historic time frame for Jesus’ birth. We also know that Jesus was born during the reign of Herod the Great. And, this scripture, states that the census occurred while Quirinius was governor of Syria. To most of us, these are just names – sounds ok to me. But, to those who are academically minded, there is a problem, the dates don’t really match up. Let me give some thoughts that may clarify the problem and the solution:

· Herod the Great died around 4 BC

· Therefore Jesus was born before 4 BC – obviously when they set up the calendar, they figured wrong

· Quirinius became governor several years AD

· Solution: Probably the census was issued by Augustus Caesar during the reign of Herod and (it took a long time for this to take place) didn’t finish until Quirinius became governor.

· Is this right? It is a theory and it isn’t my imagination – but it may help.

Joseph is really one of my heroes. He was a righteous man in all aspects. He listened to God and he was obedient to the laws of the land. He and Mary lived in Nazareth, but the child was to be born in Bethlehem. How could this be? Well, God arranged a census and Joseph headed to the ancestral home. Why Bethlehem? Jesus was to be of the Davidic Kingly line. Bethlehem was the town of David.

I think that the charm of the story of course is the fact that the child was born in a manger. It was a humble birth. There wasn’t room in an inn. That probably wasn’t too bad – inns were not that comfortable – or private in that day. The stable was probably connected to the house. I remember entering small villages in Viet Nam where the animals slept under and around the houses. I actually like the answer that we receive when we visit Israel. The Church of the Nativity is built over a cave. It is said that, in that day, the animals were kept in a system of caves. This created shelter for them – and for the birth of Jesus.

We may not know exactly how everything looked, but we do know that Jesus was born. His birth is a historical event. The nature of that birth shows that he was born to relate to all people, not just to the rich and famous. He is one of us. Finally, this story shows that God really is in charge. He not only created the Heavens and the Earth, He is continually creating. We can trust Him. We can trust Jesus. Thank you Lord.

Merry Christmas to All!