On a busy summer weekend, you hit the beach. You try to locate a motel not too far from the boardwalk. Signs after signs, they usually read: no vacancy.
There was no guest room when Jesus was born, as we read from Luke’s account in chapter two. Fortunately, he found room for about 280 days in Mary’s womb. For at least a few days after his birth, he shared the room for the special cows and sheep. For a couple of hours, he commanded the undivided attention of busy shepherds.
The time and manner of Jesus’ birth was as inopportune as inappropriate for Mary. Being a teen virgin, Mary was engaged to Joseph who was customarily more than ten years her senior. Contrary to our time when it was commonplace for unwed women to give birth before marriage, to be engaged and pregnant at the same time was an immoral combination punishable by death through stoning. Mary was at the mercy of Joseph who kept the engagement only after an angel of the Lord dissuaded him from quietly divorcing her, since what she bore was the very Son of God, the Savior of mankind.
The couple’s travel from Nazareth in Galilee to Bethlehem in Judea happened at the worst imaginable time. The entire Roman world was embracing a celebration of Caesar Augustus’ silver jubilee after his ascension to power 25 years earlier. Augustus was to be granted the prestigious title of Pater Patriae (Father of the Country) by the Senate early next year, also the 750th anniversary of Rome’s founding. Augustus decreed that the entire Roman people, including the conquered Palestine, should register their vote of approval for this honorable title. When the decree reached Palestine, Quinrinius the ruler of Syria made sure all the Jewish people must go back to their hometown to register their vote of approval. Off they went. Joseph and Mary had to make a trip of no less than 70 miles, likely enduring a few days’ bumpy donkey ride up the hilly country. All the while, little Jesus was kicking around in the sanctuary made of Mary’s womb.
But God had a very different kind of celebration in mind. The announcement was made much earlier than Augustus’ decree. It was made first by God after the Adamic Fall at the dawn of humanity and then by Prophets Isaiah and Micah eight centuries earlier and Prophet Daniel almost six hundred years before Jesus’ birth. It is safe to say that none of the earthlings’ births were forecasted in such advanced notice. By all probability, people except a few Magi had forgotten all about the prophecies. Let’s have a quick refresher.
A young virgin shall give birth to a son, who is Emmanuel, God with us. His name shall be called the Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. He shall be born at the unremarkable town of Bethlehem. He shall be famous and exalted among all people. His entry into the world shall be in the fourth superpower counted from Nebuchadnezzar’s new Babylon. Now we know that was Augustus’ Roman Empire. Between them were Persia and Greece. The kingdom of God shall grow its reach into the ends of the earth and ultimately conquer the entire world to become the only surviving, eternal Kingdom.
In the hustle and bustle of homecoming people who were to register their vote of approval for an earthly emperor, Jesus was kicking around in the bulging belly of a young teen named Mary. To the uninformed critics, she carried her own shame and Joseph’s disgrace. To God, she is the equivalent of the Trojan horse that hides a true prince who was to wage an unprecedented, epic war of asymmetry.
When the pain of dilation intensified, Mary had to turn to a midwife. She and Joseph most probably stayed in a close relative’s already crowded four-room house consisting of the family’s kitchen near the entrance, the living room (also as bedroom) on one side, the special room for animals on the other side, and the guest room (kataluma) either in the back or above the animal room, which is accessible through a ladder. Most English bibles translate kataluma as inn. But guest quarters (as in International Standard Version), guest chamber (as in Young’s Literal Translation), or, simply, guest room in a typical Jewish house then is a more accurate translation. Apparently, Mary and Joseph had no choice but to stay in the only available room of the special animals (cows and sheep reserved for sacrificial offering). Shortly after the water broke, out came the baby Jesus. As the midwife cleaned his nostrils, cut the umbilical cord and tied the stump, baby Jesus blurted out his first cry. He was then given a simple water bath and oil massage, swaddled in cloths and placed inside a manger or feeding trough for the animals.
Let’s pause and mediate a bit deeper here. The room for special animals now became the room for Jesus’ birth place. In due time, those animals would be offered to the temple for religious sacrifice by the Jewish family. In just a little over three decades, Jesus would give himself up to be nailed on the cross as a sin offering for the whole mankind. What a remarkable juxtaposition that the Son of God must cohabit with the special animals, all reserved for sacrificial offerings! Think about it. When the world of the mortals tried to honor its king, the world of the immortals invaded to secure victory over sin and death. When the world of the mortals refused to give a royal room or bed befitting the King of kings, the world of the immortals made sure that its emissary dwelled among and identified with the special animals for the purpose of sacrifice, God’s first tactics of winning the epic war in the disguise of humiliation.
On the night of Jesus’ birth, there was a specially convened concert performed by the heavenly choir. It is free but by invitation only. The lucky guests were the unnamed shepherds guarding their flocks in the fields nearby. As shepherds, they have the responsibility of tending to their master’s flocks. In biblical time, they must not lose over 20% of the flocks under their vicarious care. If necessary, they put their lives on the line. But that night, they could care less about the flocks. They were visited upon by an angel of the Lord and dazzled by the glory of the Lord. Certainly, a sense of awe and terror sent a chill down their spine. What is happening?
But an 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. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly, a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” (Luke 2:10-14)
When this extraordinary, inaugural Christmas concert ended on that high note, the shepherds forgot all about the flocks. Nothing was more important in this hour of the night. They said to each other: “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has told us about.” (Luke 2:15) Seeing Jesus the new born King was singularly important to them. They apparently abandoned the flocks for a few hours and hurried off to find baby Jesus. In the little town of Bethlehem with a population then of no more than 200, it was probably rather easy to locate the family that hosted Joseph and Mary. Lo and behold, there was Jesus lying in a manger, sleeping in heavenly peace and keeping company with his parents and the special animals. The shepherds marveled at this wonder and spread the word around the close-knit town of Bethlehem as they danced their way back to their fields and gave praises to God. People who heard the message were amazed at what the shepherds had to say. Mary who knew the best about this event “treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart” (Luke 2:19). Their trip started with the emperor’s mandate to register their vote of approval. Their trip ended with the birth of the only true King.
On the eighth day, Jesus was circumcised according to the Mosaic Law. He was officially named Jesus, meaning God saves, a name given by an angel before he was conceived. Jesus was legally adopted into the household of Joseph and Mary. The rest is history.
When the King of kings comes, will he find a room to dwell in? Have you got room?
Jesus found room in Mary’s womb, despite the liability of disgrace and disrepute on both sides. Mary received Jesus into her life by being willing to conceive him at great personal risk. She nurtured the new life within her to mature into a full term baby ready for delivery. She counted the cost and relinquished her rights of self righteousness and self determination. Those of us who have received Jesus into our lives can take a cue from Mary. Today, many believers of Christ sustain ridicule, harassment, discrimination, and even threat of death in various parts of the world. That is part of the cost of following Christ. Have you received Jesus into your life? If not, I invite you to receive him today. For believers, I encourage you to continue the faith journey and to grow the inner new life in Christ into greater maturity, that is, Christlikeness. Let Jesus be our life’s CONtent and conTENT.
When the King of kings comes, will he find a room to share? Have you got room?
Jesus found room and company with the special animals reserved for sacrificial offering. He lived a consecrated life of full dedication to God the Father, from the moment of birth in a manger until his last breath upon death on the cross. The life of any genuine follower of Christ is likewise a consecrated life of self denial and dying to self everyday. Everyday, we carry our cross and walk to our execution ground. Everyday, we nail a little bit more of our self that is rebellious against the will of God, until one day when we die in every sense of the word and are ready to meet our Lord and Maker. Will we take up our cross and walk with Jesus all the way? Let Jesus be our life’s roommate and companion.
When the King of kings comes, will he find a room in your schedule? Have you got room?
Jesus found room in the busy schedule of the shepherds. We live in the busiest era of human history. Does Jesus find room in our outlook calendar? Do we fill up our schedule so full that even the King of kings has to wait in line to have a one on one meeting? Do we constantly put God’s call on hold while we mind our own business? In this season of celebrating Christ’s birth, slow down your pace of life and have a Sabbath moment every now and then throughout the day and week. Marvel at the wonder of Christmas. Go tell someone else about the good news of great joy, just like the shepherds. Dance your way back to your post of daily duty. Give praises to God. Let Jesus be our life’s uncontested boss and inexhaustible joy.
(2010/12/9) |
