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Text: Luke 2:6ff
I’m an early riser as most of you know by now, and this Christmas morning is no exception. My coffee is hot, keeping my hands warm as I make my way to my home office. As I read out of Luke 2, my spirit was quiet as these words filled my mind and heart,
“And while they were there (Bethlehem), the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the Inn.”
Perhaps you were moved by the pathos of this verse while reading it – I certainly was. It’s hard for me to wrap my mind around this verse with any kind of understanding – I’m at a loss for words, and my coffee is not helping my temporary condition. I mean, Zachariah just spent 12 verses proclaiming as a mouthpiece for God who exactly this child was. I made a mental list as I read Zachariah’s prophecy and the verses that followed;
*God who visited man
*He would be our Redeemer
*His salvation offered would be powerful
*He would fight for us
*Show us mercy
*He would remove all fear
*He is the “Most High”
*Mercy sent Him here
*He would be the dawning of a new day
*He would give Light
*Bring Peace
*He would be the Savior
*His name: “Christ the Lord”
So, when I read in Luke 2:7 concerning this lowly birth of God the King, who came to be a Savior and redeem man – I’m a little taken back. I mean, wouldn’t God come on a white horse with crowns of gold on His head – with trumpets sounding?? Now that’s how a King should come!
But that’s not what the text says. A 14-16-year-old virgin girl who rides a donkey to a little town in the middle of nowhere. Listen to the pathos, listen to the humility of these verses when it says, “she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger” – Why, “because there was no room for them in the Inn.”
No doctors present. No midwifes. No parents or family – not even strangers to help this young girl. I’m sure Joseph wasn’t any help, he was freaked out by this whole event – and maybe stood by to hold her hand, but probably not.
The words of the text haunt me. “she gave birth,” “she wrapped him in swaddling cloths” (rags), “she laid him in a manger” (the thing an animal ate out of). This setting was nothing but a barn or cave hewed out of a rock. There was nobody there to help Mary, yes, it was certainly a lowly birth. And then we read the words that tell us why God the Savior was being born in a barn with animals – “because there was no place for them in the Inn.”
God chose to send His “only begotten Son” in humility, to redeem me! Yes, the words “because there was no place (room) for them in the Inn” sound loud and clear. I understand! The world would reject this Savior – even today these words are true. “No room,” not for this humble birth that took place in a village called Bethlehem.
So, what do we walk away with today (Christmas morning) as we read these verses?
Love humbled Himself for me!
It was for you and I that God would come in flesh, in humility, to be offered up as a sacrifice to redeem us. That kind of love is strange to me – certainly nothing I have experienced from the world who had “no room” for Him. So today, as I read these verses, I sit and ponder this love that gave all for me. Me, the unworthy one. Me, the one who rejected Him so many times. Me, the one who lacks obedience to all that He said in His Word. Bust isn’t that what Love is?? A God who didn’t come to me and love me based on my qualifications – No, He is the Savior, I was the Sinner! I was His enemy. I hated everything about Him, in fact, I loved “darkness over light.” But yet, His love penetrated this stone-cold heart of mine – and made me a new man, full of His love.
This story is not over!
I’ve read how this story ends – and it’s almost more amazing than its beginning. The Savior, God’s Son, will come again – but next time He comes to this earth, He’ll come on a white horse, in full glory – and the heart of man who had “no room” for Him, will experience God in full majesty. Sadly, it’ll be too late to turn to Him. The conquering King will come in what I call His full Majesty and Glory, and judgment will be given.
Christmas is really a story of Love!
Love motivated the King to come and humble Himself to redeem man. The Christmas story ends with Christ hanging on a criminal’s cross – taking all of our sin, shame, and guilt, and nailing it to His cross. Oh, you really can’t understand Christmas without understanding Calvary’s cross. Love brought Him here, and love took Him home.
Today, I want to encourage you to take some time and ready Luke chapters 1 & 2. Enjoy your favorite cup of coffee or tea, and go to your secret place – and worship the King as you read about His humility in Bethlehem. Today is a Special day for us as believers. Enjoy your family and friends – but better yet, spend some time with your King who loved you enough to come to Bethlehem!
Merry Christmas!
Pastor Doc
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