Tag Archives: Bethlehem

Really Good News

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The town of Raqqa, Syria, used to be a pretty nice place to live.  That is, before ISIS marched in and took over.  Now everyone is forced to live under their draconian laws.  No one is allowed to leave.  A squad of goons patrols the town, looking for people to arrest.  Commonly, those arrested, even for minor offenses, are publicly tortured, mutilated, beheaded or crucified.  In other words, life in Raqqa is not much different from life in Bethlehem when Jesus was born.  Particularly with the public floggings and crucifixions.

Consider that, and read this:

Luke 2:10 — 11 
And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

Good news?  Really?  Suppose you  lived in Raqqa, trapped and terrified, and an angel came and said, “Good news! A savior has come!”  But then he tells you the savior is an infant, so you are going to have to be patient…   Would that really seem like good news?  Wouldn’t you rather have a savior who was special forces and flew a helicopter? 

Most people felt the same way back in first century Bethlehem.  They didn’t realize their captivity was not primarily to the Romans but to their own self-destructive, sinful urges. As awful as it was to be under the thumb of cruel, pagan conquerors, far worse was the threat of eternal damnation.  Jesus was born as a baby and lived a normal and yet sinless life in order to be qualified to set them (and us) free from captivity to sin.

Joseph received this angelic message in a dream:

Matthew 1:21
She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

I am certain there are people in Raqqa today who are discovering this Savior, just as some did in Bethlehem.  His salvation is just as powerful today as it was then, bringing peace and freedom despite dark and desperate circumstances.  Jesus gives eternal life that not even ISIS can destroy.  And that really is “good news for all the people.”

Unlikely but Certain

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Shepherds near here live in rustic, tiny wagons with rounded tops.  Pretty shabby accomodations but then shepherds are on the bottom of the food chain; they don’t command per diem expense accounts in fancy hotels.  Same thing was true in biblical days: shepherds were considered to be a pretty low and sleazy lot. 

Kings, on the other hand, jet around the world in private, posh comfort and command the highest respect and fanciest privileges.  As they have for thousands of years.  (Ok, they didn’t have Lear Jets back in the Bible days, but you get the idea…)

These days, the nations surrounding Israel want to wipe her off the map and take her land for themselves.  As was also the case a few hundred years before Christ.  And, just as they were about to conquer Israel, God made this astonishing promise:

“Now muster your troops, O daughter of troops; siege is laid against us;
with a rod they strike the judge of Israel
on the cheek. But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old,
from ancient days. Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel. And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth.
And he shall be their peace.  (Micah 5:1-5a)

Quick paraphrase.  God said, You, Israel, are about to get wiped out by your pagan neighbors.  But after you have been destroyed and things look hopeless, I will send you a King Who will be a Shepherd to His people.  His mother will give birth to Him in Bethlehem, the least likely of places.  But eventually, His reign will be accomplished by My unlimited power.  He will incorporate people from every nation into His flock and His reign will be supreme even to the ends of the earth.  He will bring peace because He will be peace. This may seem unlikely, but it is going to happen, because I planned and ordained His coming from ancient days past.

His birth was extremely unlikely.  But it happened, just as God said it would.

His dual role as Shepherd/King seemed like a ridiculous oxymoron.  And yet He affirmed both.

Perhaps least likely of all, that anyone one man could reign supreme to the ends of the earth and bring peace.  But His reign is already being established, growing and spreading around the globe.   Unlikely, but certain. 

Scary Christmas

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His scream was blood-curdling.  But there was nothing I could do.  It was the middle of the night, the house was dark, and just as I approached the bathroom door, my little brother came out and saw me standing there.  He woke the whole family.  You should have seen what Dad looked like when came flying out of his bedroom…   I got thinking about that night as I read these familiar lines:

” And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:8-11)

Understandably, before the angel said anything about good news or about the Christ child being born, He said “Don’t be afraid!”  Don’t freak out, I’m not going to hurt you.  He probably was trying to stop all the screaming.  Can you imagine how the shepherds felt, out there in the field, minding their own business in the middle of the night, when suddenly they get lit up with a search light from above?  “Don’t be afraid!”

I’ve never seen “Don’t be Afraid!” on a Christmas card but maybe we should start adding that phrase to our Christmas greetings.  “Don’t be afraid – Merry Christmas!”  What do you think?  I sense a lot of fear out there concerning the Christmas message.  People seem to want to make Christmas go away.  Perhaps it frightens them?  It used to frighten me, back when I was a confirmed doubter.  I didn’t want to be a sucker and buy into any false legends.  I was afraid to believe – kind of like a little kid on the end of a diving board for the first time.

I know better now.  Come on in, He won’t hurt you!  Don’t be afraid!  Merry Christmas!

Quotes: The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

Chrismystery

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Consider this:

King David of Israel:

  • Was born in Bethlehem
  • Was considered too little and too young to fight with the big boys and instead was assigned to shepherd his father’s sheep.
  • By the power of God, and against all odds, rescued the nation from an unstoppable threat (Goliath – cool name, huh?).
  • Became the best king Israel ever had.

Jesus

  • Was born in Bethlehem – a town considered too small to play any important role in the affairs of the nation.
  • Came as a tiny, homeless, poor baby – a descendant of King David.
  • Became a Shepherd for His Father’s flock.
  • By the power of God, and against all odds, saved His people from an unstoppable threat (Satan).
  • Will be revealed to be the King of Kings forever.

You might think this was mashed together by revisionists, after the fact, to make Jesus seem more important.  In truth, the synchronicity of those two men was mysteriously designed by God as an object lesson for His people and was explained by the prophet, Micah, 700 years in advance of Jesus’ birth!

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,
who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old,
from ancient days.
Therefore he shall give them up until the time
when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return
to the people of Israel.
And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great
to the ends of the earth.
And he shall be their peace.  (Micah 5:1-5)

Christmas Travel

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When some genius suggested that they allow cell phone use on airplanes, the push-back was instantaneous and unanimous.  Which makes me wonder: If everyone is upset about it, then who would actually want to make the calls?  (All God’s people say, “Not me!”)  The consensus is that flying, in terms of discomfort and inconvenience, is about one notch down from getting a colonoscopy. Having to put up with inane cell phone conversations as well, might just push people over the edge.

Have we become a bunch of wimps?  I wonder how we would have felt about travel by donkey – in the last few weeks of pregnancy!  Christmas rapidly approaches at the speed of a commuter train.  As I’ve been revisiting some of the passages in the Bible that pertain to Jesus’ birth, I’ve been struck by how inconvenienced Mary and Joseph were by travel.  Mary was greatly favored by God but that meant she was going to have to endure travel – tough travel.

The angel comes to Mary and tells her:

But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God.  You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus.  He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. (Luke 1:3032)

We can only imagine Mary’s astonishment, to be told that she, a virgin, was pregnant with the Son of God.  But on top of that, she had to travel.  First to see her relative, Elizabeth.  Then back home.  Then up to Bethlehem.  You’ve heard what happened there and what a hassle that turned out to be.  But then more travel, this time to Egypt.  And then back to Nazareth.

It’s true that Mary didn’t need to submit to an xray search, remove her shoes or explain the nature of her carry on lotions.  She was not jammed between two people whose moment of fame on TV was a brief video taken from the neck down.  But donkey travel was no picnic.  Mary was traveling as a pregnant woman and then with a baby.  I wonder why, in God’s wisdom, He decided that Mary and Joseph should spend so much time traveling, so much time away from the comforts of home.

Of course, that is what Jesus decided to do as well – endure tough travel away from His home.  Jesus left the glory of Heaven and came to earth, not as a highly respected dignitary, not as a powerful king, but as a homeless traveler.  If you chew on the “why” of that, you will see glimpses of how God’s love is revealed in tough circumstances.  God allowed some of His favorite people to endure discomfort and travel because He loves us.

God has also allowed some His favorite people in Lyons, Colorado to be forced from their homes this year.  They are facing months and years of tough work, just to get back home – so to speak.   If you would like to help with the flood recovery efforts, please visit the website for The River Church:  http://therivercolorado.org/    I have been humbled and amazed to see how this small church has been blessing the community, while experiencing their own travels and troubles.