By the providence of God Mary gave birth to Jesus in the very town where the Scriptures predicted the Messiah would be born (See Micah 5:2). And see how this providence works: it included a decree of Caesar Augustus! Mary would not have undertaken such a journey in her condition and may have felt the decree to be terrible timing. But God is sovereign over history, and his plan was perfect. This didn’t mean, however, that it was easy for Mary and Joseph. Mary had to give birth in a stable! Couldn’t the God who ruled over the acts of Caesar have provided a guest room in Bethlehem? No, Jesus was to come in humility, to serve in humility and to raise up a humble people to overcome the world with humility. His birth in a manger served as a sign of this (2:12). As a further sign of this, the first people to visit Jesus and spread the news about him were lowly shepherds (the lowest class of people in those times). God was going to establish his kingdom in a completely inverse way to how the kingdoms of this world arise. As the prophet Zechariah had said, God’s kingdom will be established “’not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord Almighty’” (4:6). He had predicted a humble movement of a humble Messiah: “See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey” (9:9). The victory of the Kingdom will come through humility, and only the humble will prevail. Don’t rise up over others. Stoop down to serve and raise up others.
Ask God to show you who he wants you to bless and encourage today.
Read Luke 2:1-21
