An Inconvenient Birth

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We’ve been working through the story of the birth of Jesus Christ as told by Luke in the last couple of week. We are now coming to the event itself. We read this story in Luke 2 at the end of the service last week without comment, and I asked you to read it several times this week and ponder the meaning. I have read these 20 verses through many times this week in several different versions. It seems like each time, I pick up a bit more.. Let’s read it together…again!
Luke 2:1–20 (NASB1995)
Now in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth.
This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria.
And everyone was on his way to register for the census, each to his own city.
Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David,
in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child.
While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth.
And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
In the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields and keeping watch over their flock by night.
And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people;
for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
“This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”
When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.”
So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger.
When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child.
And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds.
But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.
The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.
One thing that strikes me as we read this story again is it’s incredible brevity. And this is the longest account that we have of that night. Of the four gospels, only Matthew and Luke say anything of the nativity of Jesus. Matthew’s account of that night is even shorter than Luke’s! Yet, how much is said is so few words!
We want to dive into this…As we talked about last week, looking at the fish!
In the first three verses of this chapter, we are flung away from Nazareth up into the great halls of Rome…into the very palace of the great Ceasar Augustus. This man was the man who made Rome what it was. He was considered a god by the Roman people, and he himself looked upon himself that way.
Here is a short summary of the world that Jesus was born into...
“Jesus was born in the reign of Augustus. After a long period of wars which had racked the Mediterranean and its shores, political unity had been achieved and the Roman Empire had become roughly coterminous (meaning filling the same space) with the Mediterranean Basin...Augustus was the first Emperor. Building on the foundations laid by his uncle, Julius Caesar, he brought peace and under the guise of the chief citizen of a restored republic ruled the realm which for several generations Rome had been building. The internal peace and order which Augustus achieved endured, with occasional interruptions, for about two centuries. Never before had all the shores of the Mediterranean been under one rule and never had they enjoyed such prosperity. The pax Romana made for the spread of ideas and religions over the area where it prevailed.” (Latourette)
So this was during the Pax Romana or Roman Peace. For hundreds of years, going all the way back to Nebuchadnezzer, the world had been racked with wars. However, in the time of Augustus, it was a time of peace. It was a time of peace because Augustus had vanquished all his foes. Though it was a time of peace, it was a heavy-handed peace. The land of Judea (as it was then known), after having had a brief period of independence under the Maccabees, had been under the rule of Rome for several decades. It is hard for us to imagine what it would have been like to live in a nation which had known independence, having been ruled by the great David and the great Solomon and later of the Maccabeean rulers, to now be cruelly subjugated by the Roman emperor. In addition, the land of Judea had a man ruling over them named Herod the Great who was totally unprincipled to say the least. He was so paranoid that he had his own wife and two of his sons murdered because he thought they were trying to remove him from power. (Matthew talks a lot of him, but Luke does not.)
So now the great Augustus decides it is tax time. The entire Roman world then has to respond. Augustus couldn’t care less how inconvenient this census would be on his subjects. They were the pawns, and he was the king. They will do as he decides! Yet, isn’t it interesting that, though he had no idea, Augustus himself was the pawn in the hands of God Almighty! The Messiah was prophesied to be born in Bethlehem, a little village about six miles south of Jerusalem where David had been born. However, the young virgin who had been entrusted to bear this Child was way up in Nazareth, about 90 miles from Bethlehem. How is this to be resolved? God resolved it by putting it in the heart and mind of the great emperor to require every male in the whole empire to go back to his city of origin.
Let’s pause a moment....Have you ever been frustrated at something that your government has done? How about your employer or anyone else who has authority over you. We can get quite out of sorts at people in authority who come up with hair-brained schemes that make us want to scratch our heads. When something like this happens, what is our reaction? We can rail against the powers that be. We can call our Senators and Representatives or other government officials (not to say that there is not a time and place for that). We can get on our preferred social media platform and stir up a stink. But…just consider…maybe God Almighty is up to something…something that we or the government officials involved cannot see.
One of my favorite verses (or actually two verses) is found in Daniel. The fourth chapter of Daniel was actually written by a pagan king by the name of Nebuchadnezzar. In it, he tells a fascinating story (which I don’t have time to get into today) of God bringing him down a notch…well, actually many notches! Because of his great arrogance, God took away King Neb’s reasoning. He went mad for a time, even to the point that he was driven out into a field and ate grass like cattle. At the end of this time, his reasoning returned to him. Here are the first words that we have recorded coming out of his mouth after this...
Daniel 4:34–35 NASB95
“But at the end of that period, I, Nebuchadnezzar, raised my eyes toward heaven and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High and praised and honored Him who lives forever; For His dominion is an everlasting dominion, And His kingdom endures from generation to generation. “All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, But He does according to His will in the host of heaven And among the inhabitants of earth; And no one can ward off His hand Or say to Him, ‘What have You done?’
What God determines to do, He will do! When he decides that a baby will be born in Bethlehem, he will get it there!
Verses 4 and 5 describe in the briefest possible way the trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
Now I’d like for us to just think about how difficult this was for Joseph and Mary…particularly for Mary. Nazareth and Bethlehem were separated by 90 miles. Ninety miles is no big deal now. It was a very big deal then! Most of the depictions of the nativity story that I have seen have Mary riding on a donkey with Joseph leading the way. It might have in fact been that way, but we have no idea whether they had a donkey or not. We do know that they were very poor. Later on in the story, after Jesus is born, they offering a sacrifice for Mary’s purification. The sacrifice was supposed to be a lamb, but allowance was made in the law for the poor that they could bring a pair of doves or two pigeons. They had to bring the birds as they couldn’t afford a lamb. So they were poor. For the sake of argument, let us say that they did have a donkey, which means only one could ride at a time. How long do you think this would take? Remember, there is not a four-lane interstate between these two towns. It is rocky and hilly in places. Oh, and no Taco Bells along the way. They would have had to take there own provisions. I think it’s fair to say, that they would have done well to have made ten miles a day, with Mary in her condition. So that would have been (at least) a nine day journey. They might have asked, “Why now, Lord?” Couldn’t this have happened a few months earlier or a few months later? Yet there is no record that Joseph or Mary either one were distressed by this. They simply trusted God…together. God had a will for this child.
Let’s return to verses 6 and 7...
Luke 2:6–7 NASB95
While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
These two verses are all that we have about the actual birth of Christ. Let’s start with the last phrase in verse 7…”no room for them in the inn.”no room for them in the inn.” Let’s say this didn’t describe the local Hilton…not even a Motel 6!
Moody - Inn (katalyma) is better translated “guest room in a private home” ...The home, probably belonging to a relative, where Mary and Joseph would have stayed, was full, so they sought refuge and privacy either in an animal room adjacent to the home (analogous to an attached garage), or in a nearby cave used for housing animals. In either case, the idea of the holy family being turned away from an inn so Jesus would be born in a stable is probably not quite accurate
So...because the town was full from all the people coming in for the census, the normal guest room where they might have stayed was full, so they either found refuge in an animal room that was attached to the house or in a nearby cave. Our text then tells us three things that happened in this space. First, she gave birth…no details. We have to assume that it was a normal birth. There was much pain, much blood…In the end, an ordinary-looking baby is born. There was no halo around his head. The glory of the Lord was not shining all around them in that animal room or that cave as far as we know. The second thing that happened was that she wrapped him in cloths (some versions say swaddling clothes but they were just pieces of cloth). Mothers bound their newborn babies in cloths to straighten their limbs. It was thought to help promote the help and strength of the infant’s limbs. This was not unusual. But then, the third thing...
Moody - However, the detail—and laid Him in a manger —described an act that was completely contrary to expectation and seemingly utterly absurd! Tradition and familiarity with the story has removed the absurdity for many readers. Yet the idea that a young mother—even an inexperienced one—would place her newborn in an animal feeding trough is to be understood as entirely incongruous...The scene is one of abject humility—of utter condescension. It is contrary to expectation so far as the arrival of the Messiah is concerned. Luke is letting the reader know from this beginning, this Messiah will surprise you; this Messiah will do the unexpected...
Now the scene changes…Overlooking the “Little Town of Bethlehem” are the Judean hills. Shepherds were out there keeping watch over their flocks that night.
Luke A. The Savior’s Earthly Birth (2:1–21)

Shepherding had changed from a family business as in David’s time (1 Sam. 16:11) to a despised occupation. Many shepherds were accused of robbery and using land they had no rights to. Shepherding was also a lonely occupation, particularly at night, as a shepherd stood his watch, making sure sleeping sheep did not wake up and wander and that prowling predators did not attack and devour the sheep. Only God would visit those in such a low occupation and raise them to witness to his salvation.

Though this was a despised occupation to many, these particular shepherds had an especially important duty. It was on these hills that the lambs were raised who would become sacrifices in the temple in Jerusalem. Keep that in mind as we move forward...
Luke 2:9–11 NASB95
And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.
So now we have another angelic visitation. We have encountered an angel twice before in Luke. When were they? (Zacharias in the temple and Mary in Nazareth) Both were from the angel Gabriel. Here we again have a single angel, though unnamed. For the third time also, we have an angel saying, first to Zacharias, then to Mary, now to the shepherds “Do not be afraid!” They were terribly frightened. I would be too! However, something accompanies this angel that we didn’t have with Zacharias nor to Mary. What was it? It was the glory of the Lord! The Shekinah glory of God had centuries ago left the temple. Ezekiel saw of vision of that glory departing. Now, it is back…Not in the temple (where it was not welcome) but out in the countryside among some lowly shepherds! It wasn’t only the angel that frightened the shepherds, it was the glory. Nowhere in the scripture when the glory fell did men go about their normal day. It always had a profound effect!
Then the announcement by the angel. “Good news of great joy which will be for all the people.” The gospel was first preached here on the Judean hills to these despised shepherds. This good news was for all people…that it, it was (and is) available to all. A baby had been born in Bethlehem. He was given three titles here. Savior (remember Yeshua or Jesus means Savior), who is Christ (the Messiah) the Lord . One commentary explains it this way...”The three titles—Savior, Christ, Lord—appear in this combination only here in the NT, and they highlight His mission, His royalty, and His authority.” From the outset, it was proclaimed that this Jesus was both God and man.
Then verse 12
Luke 2:12 NASB95
“This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
We’ve encountered signs before. Zacharias received a sign that he didn’t want. It was that he wouldn’t be able to speak for 9 months until his son was born. Mary received a sign that she didn’t ask for. What was it? Elizabeth was to have a child. Now the shepherds receive a sign. What is the sign. It was the sign of the manger. This great king, the Savior Christ the Lord would be found in an animal feeding trough! How they must have been shocked by this. Did we hear that right? In a feeding trough! Now I mentioned earlier that it was common to wrap a baby in cloths. However, this had a special meaning to these shepherds. Tony Evans shares this point...
The shepherds were responsible for making sure that newborn lambs had no defects since the sacrificial animals had to be without spot or wrinkle. So the shepherds would tightly wrap the lambs in cloth to keep them from becoming blemished and injuring themselves. This explains why Luke makes the point that Jesus was wrapped tightly in cloth, since at his birth he was the sinless Lamb of God whose substitutionary sacrifice would take away the sin of the entire world (see John 1:29; 2 Cor 5:21; 1 Pet 1:19–20; 1 John 2:2).
This was a sign that only these shepherds could understand. They knew that this Child would be the Lamb of God who was to take away the sin of the world!
Now at this point, one angel is no longer enough.
Luke 2:13–14 NASB95
And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”
The Tony Evans Bible Commentary I. Prologue, Birth, and Childhood (1:1–2:51)

The angelic announcement of “peace on earth” repeated so often at Christmastime is not about quiet tranquility or merely the absence of animosity between people. It is a declaration of the coming end of hostilities between a holy God and sinful humanity through the atoning work of the Messiah: peace with God. The Son of God came to pay the penalty for our sin and impute to us his righteousness. Only when “we have been declared righteous by faith,” can “we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom 5:1). Peace among people is only possible when humanity is living at peace with God and submitting to his kingdom rule.

Although this message was to be for “all the people” (vs 10), it would only bring peace to those men who God was pleased with…that is for those who believed the good news, as Tony Evans says, to those who are “submitting to his kingdom rule.”
Have you submitted to His kingdom rule? Do you have that “peace (Shalom) which passes all understanding?”You can have it today, but only if you are willing to come to a lowly place…Lowly like the shepherds. Lowly like the babe in the manger.
Then as suddenly as the angels appeared, they were gone. I doubt that this whole transaction from first to last lasted more than five minutes…if that! But what a five minutes it was! So now the shepherds are left with instructions…but no angels to lead them along. None to push them towards Bethlehem. They like us had a choice. It is unthinkable that they would go back to business as usual. Can you imagine them just rubbing their eyes and saying, “Well, that was unusual? I wonder what it means?” Yet, isn’t that what so many men have done with they have had an authentic encounter with God. There may be people who are under the sound of my voice who have had this experience…Maybe not an angelic encounter but some kind of encounter with a holy God. Question is…what did you do with it? Did you ignore it? Did you act on it? Did you start down that road and then turned back. The key to everything was that the shepherds obeyed the angelic summons!
Luke 2:15–16 NASB95
When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us.” So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger.
Notice...”Let us go straight to Bethelehem.” No hesitation! No detours! They went in a hurry! So with you and I. When God invades your space and gives you direction, you have a choice. You can ignore it to your own peril or you can obey it. Aren’t you glad that these shepherds obeyed that night!
Many years later, at a wedding in Cana, Jesus’ mother would utter these words to the servants. I think they are very appropriate here...
John 2:5 NASB95
His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
Today, whatever He says to you, do it…and don’t delay!
These shepherds were given one of the greatest gifts any human has ever been given. They would be the first (besides his parents) to see the long-awaited Messiah. Aren’t you glad that they obeyed?
But going to see the baby was not all that they did.
Luke 2:17–20 NASB95
When they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart. The shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.
After they had their “Jesus encounter”, they told others about it! They didn’t hold it to themselves…They became the first evangelists! Notice that they gave no excuses...”I’m only a shepherd.” “I’m not ordained.” “I’m not this or that.” No…they told the Good news..they didn’t lay out a bunch of theology to people but they told accurately what they had heard and seen. So should we.
One more thing…Do you remember that I mentioned that the glory of the Lord didn’t fall in that cave (or room or whatever it was) while Mary was giving birth…at least not according to our record. However, I believe the glory did come with the shepherds. They brought the good news with them. They told Mary and Joseph what they had seen. How that must have been encouraging to this young couple.
The text says that Mary “treasured all these things, pondering them in her heart.” There is a great need for this as well in our age. We who go from one social media post to another, one YouTube video to another, we need like Mary to take time to ponder the important things in our lives. Do you remember what Paul said to the Philippians?
Philippians 4:8 NASB95
Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.
So should we.
I’d like to close with some words from Michael Card. It is from a book he wrote called Immanuel. Immanuel is of course the phrase from Isaiah that the Messiah was given which means “God with us.”
The implications of the name Immanuel are both com- forting and unsetling. Comforting because He has come to share the danger as well as the drudgery of our everyday lives. He desires to weep with us and to wipe away our tears. And what seems most bizarre, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, longs to share in and to be the source of the laughter and the joy we all too rarely know The implications are unsettling. It is one thing to claim that God looks down upon us, from a safe distance and speaks to us (via long distance we hope). But to say that He is right here, is to put ourselves and Him in a totally new situation. He is no longer the calm and benevolent observer in the sky, the kindly old caricature with the beard. His image becomes that of Jesus, who -wept and laughed, who fasted and feasted, and who, above all, was fully present to those He loved He was there with them. He is here with us...
Most incredible, however, are the times we know He is with us in the midst of our daily, routine lives. In the middle of cleaning the house or driving somewhere in the pick-up, He stops us ...in our tracks and makes His presence known, Often it's in the middle of the most mundane task that He lets us know He is there with us. We realize, then, that there can be no "Ordinary" moments for people who live their lives with Jesus
Jesus paid a tremendous price to be with us. Certainly the cross was the most obvious cost. But I believe more is in view.
We focus so much on the fact that Jesus died for us, we sometimes forget that He also lived for us and lives for us still. If Jesus had simply come as Himself, and not as one of us, the Bible makes it quite clear that we could not have borne the sight of His presence, any more than Moses could have looked directly at the face of God. Imagine what it would be like to be at the Father's side one moment and struggling to sleep in a cattle trough the next. Imagine what it would be like to go from hearing the praise of angels to suffering the taunts of stupid men. The cost to Jesus is an indication of the incredible value of what He came to give us. And because no one will ever fully know what that cost Jesus, we can only begin to understand the incredible value of His gift to us.
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