“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.” Luke 2:7 (Read Luke 2:1-20)

Far more than a quaint story, these verses from Luke, chapter two, describe a historical event which occurred in a real time and at a real place. It happened in the days of the Roman emperor Caesar Augustus. Cyrenius was the governor of Syria.

Though Joseph and Mary lived in Nazareth, the ancient prophet foretold the birthplace of Messiah to be Bethlehem (Micah 5:2); and God, in his divine providence, moved Caesar Augustus to take a census at just the right time, making it necessary for Joseph and his espoused wife to be in Bethlehem when the days were fulfilled for Mary to bring forth her firstborn son.

When Messiah Jesus was born and laid in a manger, an angel announced his birth to shepherds living a field nearby and keeping watch over their flock by night. The heavenly messenger brought them good tidings of great joy for all people; for that very day in Bethlehem, the city of David, a Savior was born, the Messiah, the LORD himself in human flesh (Luke 2:10-11).

And, as the angel choir said in its hymn of praise, this child brought about peace between God and man, and God’s good will toward sinful man. How would this be? Christ Jesus satisfied the righteous demands of God’s holy law for all of us, and he suffered and died and paid in full the just punishment for the sins of the world that God might have mercy upon us and graciously forgive our sins when we look to His Son in faith for pardon and peace!

Having heard these things, the shepherds were not content to go back to their work of guarding the flock; they went to see the things of which the angel had told them. And, they found it just as the angel had said. They found Mary and Joseph and, with them, the baby lying in a manger.

Nor did the shepherds keep the good news to themselves; they told everyone – they made known abroad – what the angel had told them concerning this child born in Bethlehem. Mary herself treasured up the words of the shepherds concerning her son and pondered them in her heart.

When the Shepherds returned to their flock, they were glorifying and praising God for all they had seen and heard, which was just as the angel had told them. They were rejoicing in God’s gift of a Savior who would redeem them and give them a place in God’s eternal kingdom.

Of course, these events in history have great significance for each and every one of us today. God’s own Son was born in Bethlehem on that historic day. His birth is good tidings of great joy to us as well, for he is the long-promised Messiah, the LORD God himself; and he went to the cross for the sins of the world – for the sins of each of us – and he rose again in victory that each and every one of us might have forgiveness for all our sins and life eternal through faith in him!

O dearest Jesus, we thank you for coming into this world a true man – that babe born in Bethlehem – and going to the cross to redeem us and make us Your own. Move us to take the time to see, to worship and to spread abroad the good news of Your salvation. Amen.

[Scripture taken from the King James Version of the Bible]

“And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 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. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.” Luke 2:8-14

When Messiah Jesus was born and laid in a manger, an angel announced His birth to shepherds living in a field nearby and keeping watch over their flock by night. The heavenly messenger brought them good tidings of great joy for all people; for that very day in Bethlehem, the city of David, a Savior was born, the Messiah, the LORD Himself in human flesh.

And, as the angel choir said in their hymn of praise, this child brought about peace between God and man and God’s good will toward sinful man; for Christ Jesus satisfied the righteous demands of God’s holy law for us, and He suffered and died and paid in full the just punishment for the sins of the world!
The shepherds were not content to go back to their work of guarding the flock; they went to see the things of which the angel told them. And, they found it just as the angel had said. They found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger.

Nor did the shepherds keep the good news to themselves; they told everyone – they made known abroad – what the angel had told them concerning this child born in Bethlehem. Mary herself treasured up the words of the shepherds concerning her son and pondered them in her heart. When the Shepherds returned to their flock, they were glorifying and praising God for all they had seen and heard, which was just as the angel had told them. They were rejoicing in God’s gift of a Savior who would redeem them and give them a place in God’s eternal kingdom.

His birth is still good tidings of great joy today, for He is the long-promised Messiah, the LORD God Himself; and He went to the cross for the sins of the world – for the sins of each of us – and He rose again in victory that each and every one of us might have forgiveness for all our sins and life eternal through faith in Him!

O dearest Jesus, we thank You for coming into this world a true man – that babe born in Bethlehem – and going to the cross to redeem us and make us Your own. Move us to take the time to see, to worship and to spread abroad the good news of Your salvation. Amen.

[Scripture from the King James Version of the Bible]

“But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Gal. 4:4-5

In Luke 2 we read of the birth of the Christ Child, how it was that He was born in Bethlehem in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy in Micah 5:2. We heard how He was born, not in the best hotel in Bethlehem, but outdoors or in a stable and was laid in a manger “because there was no room for them in the inn.”

But what does it all mean? It was far more than a quaint story of a humble birth. It was the fulfillment of God’s promises, made since the world began. For, in the fullness of time, God kept His promise to send the Seed of the woman who would undo the work of Satan in the Garden (Gen. 3). He fulfilled His word to send the Seed of Abraham who would bring blessing to all the families of the earth (Gen. 12:3; 22:18). He fulfilled His word to “redeem Israel from all his iniquities” (Ps. 130:8); to send the one who would suffer and die to bear our iniquities and rise again (Isa. 53, Ps. 22).

“God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law….” In order to fulfill His promises and redeem us from the curse of the law, God sent His only-begotten Son, made of a woman. God Himself took on human flesh and blood and became true man that he might take our place under the law and die in our stead for our sins and redeem us (cf. Gal. 3:10,13; Heb. 2:14-17). This Christ did and rose again in victory (cf. 1 Cor. 15:3-4).

And why did God do this? “That we might receive the adoption of sons.” That we, who were condemned by the law and unacceptable to God might be made acceptable in His sight and be received into His everlasting kingdom through faith in Christ Jesus (cf. Eph. 1:6-7; Gal. 3:26-29).

And so we rejoice and give thanks this night and always that God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, born of the Virgin Mary and laid in a manger.

We thank and praise Thee, O God, for the gift of Thy Son, sent into this world a true man, born of the Virgin Mary and laid in a manger, that He might redeem us from our sins and make us Thine own. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.

[Scripture from the King James Version of the Bible]

“Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: to God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen.” Romans 16:25-27

Consider the message of the apostle Paul’s doxology. It summarizes the working of the eternal and only-wise God. And to God be glory through Jesus Christ forever!

It is God who establishes and keeps us in the faith through the preaching of the Gospel. The apostle Paul says: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith” (Rom. 1:16-17). He also says: “Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Rom. 10:17).

Through the preaching of salvation by faith in Jesus Christ – “according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith” – we are established and preserved in the faith by the gracious working of God the Holy Spirit.

This mystery which was kept secret from the beginning of the world and only partially disclosed through the Scriptures of the prophets (cf. Gen. 3:15; 22:18; 2 Sam. 7:16; Ps. 130:7-8; Isa. 7:14; 9:6-7; 53:1ff.) now has been fully revealed in the Gospel (cf. Luke 1-2; Matthew 1:18ff.; John 1:1-5, 14-18,29). Now, according to the commandment of God, Christ and salvation through faith in His name have been preached to all nations and peoples (cf. Matt. 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-16; Luke 24:46-47). And, through the preaching of Christ Jesus as the One sent by God to atone for all sin and to be the Savior of the world, God has brought us and people from all nations to “the obedience of faith.”

Instead of trusting in our own works and obedience under the law of God, we have been brought to “the obedience of faith,” acknowledging our sinfulness and shortcoming before God and taking hold of God’s righteousness which is of faith and imputed to us when we trust in Christ Jesus as our Savior (cf. Rom. 3:19-26).

This is not quite the same as “obedience to the faith” (v. 26 in NKJV), for we are not speaking of obedience to a creedal statement or a specific formula of doctrine but rather to “obedience of the faith” – believing the Gospel and placing our faith in Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice for our pardon and eternal salvation.

And, what a comfort it is to know that it is God who establishes us in the true and saving faith, according to the gospel preached by Paul and the apostles! As he wrote to the Philippians, we are “confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6). We are brought to faith and saved entirely of God’s gracious working through the Gospel (Eph. 2:8-9); and, through the preaching of the Gospel, God will continue His gracious working in us until we are with him forever in heaven (cf. Rom. 8:29-30; cf. 2 Tim. 4:18).

Thus, we can also join the apostle in praising God and saying: “Now to him that is of power to stablish you according to my gospel, and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery, which was kept secret since the world began, but now is made manifest, and by the scriptures of the prophets, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, made known to all nations for the obedience of faith: to God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for ever. Amen.”

Scripture taken from the King James Version of the Bible

“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.” Isaiah 9:6-7

Who is the Child born in Bethlehem two millennia ago? Though there be those who still believe and teach that Christ Jesus is somehow less than Jehovah God Himself, this ancient prophecy of Isaiah, spoken some 700 years before Messiah’s birth leaves no doubt about the truth.

This Child, descended of David and who would assume David’s throne at the head of God’s people, is none other than Jehovah God Himself come into this world as a babe born in Bethlehem. Why do we say this? Because the inspired Scriptures tell us that this Child, promised of old, would be called: “Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.”

Jesus is not only the son of Mary, He is the Son of the Most High (cf. Luke 1:32). He is of miraculous and wonderful birth, conceived by the Holy Ghost and born of the virgin Mary; and He indeed is the wonderful fulfillment of God’s plan to send a Savior.

He is our Counselor and Advocate, rightly making known the truth about our sinfulness and the salvation God provided in Him, and coming to our aid by paying in full for our sins and winning for us life and salvation.

He is the mighty God, though born a babe – a human child – and humbling Himself to fulfill all righteousness for us and to pay the price for our sins by His innocent sufferings and death upon the cross, He is God Himself.

He is the everlasting Father – not less than the Father or in some way inferior to Him, but one and the same with the eternal Father who created all things and by whom all things continue to exist.

And He is the Prince of Peace, the promised Shiloh of Genesis 49 who died on the cross to atone for mankind’s sins and establish peace between God and man (cf. Ephesians 2:13ff.).

Indeed, the divine truth expressed here – that Jesus is Jehovah God come into this world as the Babe born in Bethlehem to go to the cross for us and redeem us – is all important; for, if Jesus were just a man, His sufferings and death would not have been sufficient payment for the sins of all mankind (cf. Psalm 49:7-8). But Jesus is true God and true man, making it possible for Him to take our place under the law of God and to die in our stead, and making His obedience and sacrifice sufficient to redeem the whole world!

The government rests upon His shoulders and “of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever.”

The risen Lord Jesus, even now, reigns over His Church – made up of all who look to Him and His sacrifice in faith for their salvation. And Jesus’ kingdom continues to grow as more and more learn of Him and what He has done to open up the gates of heaven to sinners, for the Holy Spirit works through God’s Word to convince men of their sins and to comfort them with the good news of forgiveness and life everlasting through faith in Christ Jesus.

And, as the Scriptures promise, Jesus shall come again to judge this world and condemn all who refuse to repent but continue in rebellion against Him. And He shall establish His kingdom and rule over His people “with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever.”

Who is this Child born in Bethlehem and laid in a manger? He is none other than Jehovah God, the King of glory, come in human flesh to be our Savior!

Dear Lord Jesus, Son of God and son of man, graciously bring me into Your everlasting kingdom through faith in Your blood which was shed for me upon the cross, and keep me among Your chosen people unto life everlasting in Your eternal kingdom. Amen.

[Scripture is taken from the King James Version of the Bible.]