Adult Christmas Program 2022

Micah 5:2 KJV 1900

2 But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, Though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; Whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

Introduction

This morning we’ve been challenged to go back in our minds to Bethlehem.

That first Christmas, where God changed the course of history by humbling Himself to be born in a human body.

As the choir has sung about that day, when Jesus was born, I want to talk to you just a little bit about some lessons we can learn from the place that God chose as the birthplace of Christ.

Let’s see what we can learn from the city of Bethlehem.

The first point I want to emphasize is Bethlehem’s size.

Micah says, “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though though be little among the thousands of Judah...”

Bethlehem was a small town.

Though dear the hearts of most Israelites, Bethlehem is one of the smallest, most insignificant places.

It gets all of it’s recognition for the people that have been tied to it.

Rachel, Jacob’s favorite wife, died near Bethlehem.

Ruth and Boaz fell in love in Bethlehem.

David was born and raised in Bethlehem.

If not for these people, Bethlehem would not even merit a mention.

In fact multiple times in the Old Testament, Bethlehem is left off of lists of important cities.

It is not listed in Joshua when they were cataloging the names of the cities conquered.

It is not listed in Nehemiah, either.

Bethlehem’s small size is made more apparent by it’s proximity to Jerusalem.

Just 6 miles to the south, Bethlehem is dwarfed by the Jerusalem metro area.

Why go to Bethlehem, when Jerusalem is so close?

Bethlehem was not only small, it was also poor.

If Jerusalem was the image of strength and wealth in Judah, Bethlehem was a picture of weakness and poverty.

God loves to use the weak and poor things of this world.

When the world looks at the weak and poor, we see disadvantage.

When God looks at the weak and poor, He sees opportunity.

The rich and powerful do not need Him.

Micah was the prophet to the poor.

As He tells about the glory of the Messiah’s arrival and subsequent reign, he takes joy in the fact that He doesn’t rise from power.

Michah shows his readers, and us, that when the Messiah appears, He will show up among the poor.

Bethlehem's name belies the actual condition of the town.

The city’s name means “house of bread.”

The district’s name “ephratah” means fruitful.

And yet, the people here were very poor.

This isn’t a problem for God.

Micah also offers a comparison of the new ruler.

Micah 5:1 KJV 1900

1 Now gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops: He hath laid siege against us: They shall smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.

In verse 1, Micah prophesied the embarrassment of the last Judean king.

This is exactly what went down.

Troops/armies overtook Jerusalem.

The Babylonians overthrew the city.

The king was drug out of the city and humiliated by Nebuchadnezzar.

It was an embarrassing end for the once proud, Davidic line of kings.

Micah wants his readers to compare vs 1 with vs 2.

One shows Jerusalem’s failure and destruction.

The other shows salvation and power springing up, once again, from unlikely Bethlehem.

From Bethlehem, one would arise who would reestablish the Davidic line.

The prophets usually avoided the use of the word, king, because of it’s pagan connotations.

The one that is spoken of in verse 2 is a king, nonetheless.

But, He will be unlike any of the kings that preceded Him.

God is speaking when He says the new ruler will “come forth unto me.”

This phrase is meant to indicate two aspects of the rulers ministry.

He comes in the will of the Father.

He comes to accomplish the plan of the Father.

Judah had a few godly kings in their day.

They were all sinful, though.

Even some of the best among them ended in failure.

This new ruler would be so unlike this.

In fact, it will be impossible for Him to fail or be defeated.

Micah reveals the divine nature of the new ruler.

He is an eternal king.

Before His birth, this ruler was eternal.

He had no beginning, He would have no end.

His reign would be unmatched, and He was working to guide history to that point.

When Rachel was buried at Bethlehem, this ruler was there.

When Ruth was scavenging in Boaz’s fields, this ruler was there.

When David was born and spent his childhood days running around Bethlehem, this ruler was there.

Only one person fits that description.

It’s Jesus.

Jesus chose Bethlehem as the place where He would make His entrance into the world.

9 months earlier He had set aside His freedom to move through time and space.

The eternal one allowed Himself to be bound by the limitations of time and space so He could form a new kingdom.

The thing about kingdoms is, you need citizens.

Jesus came 2,000 years ago to initiate an immigration effort to attract new citizens to his kingdom.

He died to pay the price for our inclusion in His kingdom.

He removed all of the barriers.

Now, He invites anyone to come and make Him their king.

It all started in Bethlehem.

God took a small, insignificant town and made it the place of His nativity.

He took a broken, embarrassed line, and reestablished it.

He didn’t deputize any other agent to do this, God came to earth personally for us.

Application

It doesn’t matter small or poor you are, God can use your life.

You may feel insignificant.

You may feel like no one even recognizes your presence.

God sees you, and God can use your life.

All of us need to trade in the weak, old life you’ve been living.

God replaced the weak, human rulers that had failed His people for the Messiah.

This morning, do you need trade the ruler of your life?

Have you been trying to manage everything yourself?

Do you need to recognize Jesus as your king this morning?

This Christmas, remember that we celebrate the incarnation of God.

The trimmings and trappings are fun.

The reason for the celebration must not be lost in the busyness.

Jesus is the reason why we are here this morning.