Luke
2:1-20 KJV
"1 And it came to pass in those days,
that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be
taxed. 2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
4
And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea,
unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house
and lineage of David:) 5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great
with child.
6
And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she
should be delivered. 7 And she brought forth 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.
8
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping
watch over their flock by night. 9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon
them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore
afraid. 10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you
good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11 For unto you is
born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12 And
this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling
clothes, lying in a manger.
13
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising
God, and saying, 14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will
toward men. 15 And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into
heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem,
and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto
us.
16
And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a
manger. 17 And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which
was told them concerning this child. 18 And all they that heard it wondered at
those things which were told them by the shepherds. 19 But Mary kept all these
things, and pondered them in her heart. 20 And the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as
it was told unto them."
A Little Background
Back in the Old Testament, God warned the Israelites that if
they turned their attention away from Him to false gods, that He would
discipline them by sending a foreign nation to take them into captivity. After years of warnings and
second...third...fourth...chances and more, the Assyrians invaded the northern
tribes of Israel in 722 BC. Judah was
taken into captivity by the Babylonians in 597 BC. But God also kept His promise to bring them
back to the land. Only now, they would
be ruled by another kingdom. First Babylon,
then Persia and Greece. By the time
Jesus was born, Israel was under the Roman occupation of Ceasar Augustus.
Most
scholars believe Jesus was born around 6 to 4 B.C. How can this be, since our calendar supposedly
reckons time beginning at A.D. 1 as the year of His birth? (A.D. is the abbreviation for the Latin
phrase anno Domini, meaning “in the year of our Lord.”)
The
simple answer is that the calendar we use today (the Gregorian calendar) was
systemized and recalculated in the 1500s by Pope Gregory. This refiguring pushed some early years of
the A.D. period back into the B.C. period.
How
can we be certain that Jesus was born in the 6 to 4 B.C. period? It had to be no later than 4 B.C., because
Jesus was born “in the days of King Herod” (Matt. 2:1) We know from secular
history that Herod the Great died in 4 B.C.
Some Explanation
Some scholars identify as many as 300 prophecies concerning
the Lord Jesus in Old Testament Scriptures.
Today’s Scripture fulfills one of them.
“But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall
come forth to Me The One to be Ruler in Israel, Whose goings forth are from of old, From everlasting.” (Micah
5:2)
Joseph took Mary to Bethlehem in the last days of her
pregnancy in order to be taxed or register to be taxed as part of a census
taking. The Bible describes Mary as his
“espoused” wife. We know from Matthew
1:24, 25 that Joseph married Mary. So
this likely refers to the fact that the marriage was not yet consummated.
The first angel announced, “...unto you is born this day a Savior which is Christ the Lord!” The word Christ is christos or anointed one, what the Jews knew as mashiach, Messiah. Jesus is the Messiah, Christ, the God-man from birth. (Actually from the very foundation of the world in Revelation 13:8) He did not become Christ later at either His Baptism or His resurrection.
The first angel announced, “...unto you is born this day a Savior which is Christ the Lord!” The word Christ is christos or anointed one, what the Jews knew as mashiach, Messiah. Jesus is the Messiah, Christ, the God-man from birth. (Actually from the very foundation of the world in Revelation 13:8) He did not become Christ later at either His Baptism or His resurrection.
Observations and Insights
Every year, as Christians celebrate Christmas we marvel that Jesus, “the One who would be ruler in Israel,” would be born in a dirty stable among animals. Jesus’ humble birth is like an exclamation mark to John 1:1-18. God in His glorious sovereign splendor, “whose goings forth are from old, from everlasting”, added the filth and corruption of human flesh to His Divine glory. Being born in a stable seems to emphasize this truth. He came to the lowly and humble. That is truly ALL of us—rich or poor, great and small. What a glorious miracle this truly is!
That
the angel was sent to shepherds watching their flocks by night is significant
and filled with rich, deep and profound truth. Shepherding was perhaps one of
the lowliest jobs in that time. Sheep need fresh green grass to
survive. When they munch down the grass in one field they must find
another. So, shepherds must take them far from
home. Shepherding is no 9-5 job! It is a relentless,
lonely and thankless task given to the lowly. Jesus is the Great
Shepherd of the sheep. The announcement of the angels to lowlife
shepherds was another exclamation point—a message of what kind of ministry
Jesus would have. But there is so much more beauty here to see.
The
nativity of Luke 2, and Psalm 23 are perhaps the two most familiar passages of
Scripture of all the Bible. Sometimes the most familiar things become so
common to us that we miss important truths. Luke 2 is about a birth. Psalm 23
is frequently read at funerals to remind us of the comfort of our Great
Shepherd[1].
Between birth and death is abundant life in the Great
Shepherd’s flock[2]. We
are all rebellious sheep in need of a lamb to bear our iniquity[3].
What breath-taking beauty that God Himself would take on human flesh to become
both Shepherd and sacrificial lamb in order to defeat the power of sin and
death. It is this sacrifice of the perfect Lamb of
God that makes salvation possible to those who hear and believe.
Most precious and comforting of all is the hope to us when we say
our last good-bye to loved ones in the Lord. It is what gives us joy
that truly it is the “last good-bye” we will ever say to them, knowing that
there will be a great and glorious greeting awaiting us with our Shepherd in
eternity!
Glory to God in the Highest!
No comments:
Post a Comment