The Rock the Road and the Rabbi

Intro:

I said on Sunday morning that to understand the bible, we need to take off the westerm head abd put on the eastern head.The bible was given under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, to eastern men who wrote for an eastern audiance.

This evening for a few finutes, we are going to put our selves in an eastern believers mindset.

And begin to consider somethings that we as westerners just scan over.

The Rock is Jesus, the road is the Holy land and the Rabbi is the Word of God.

Luke 2 vs. 4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. 6 So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

I. Our imagination as westerners,

Intro:

Our imagination as westerners takes out thoughts to Mary and Joseph with the donket, pulling up out side of the hotel in Bethlehem.

First of all, there is no mention of a denkey, and in all reality, poor people didnt have a donkey.

Second of all, the inn wasnt a hotel at all.

1/ An inn was the top floor of a Jewish house.

2/ A Jewish family would build a house and on the ground is where they kept the animals.

3/ Up one level was the family.

4/ Up again was a guest room for parents and famil;y who passed by,

A. That room was called an inn.

3. Bethlehem is this tiny community of about 100 people where everyone coming in for the census is related.

1/ They are all related,

2/ BUT Mary is pregnant and scandel of scandels, the baby is not Josephs. (just pause and feel the weight of that)

II. The place they find is connected to the shepherds,

1. There are just outside of Bethlehem, caves that the lambs

were placed for protection and the shepherds would sit at the entrance.

1/ These lambs were bread for one purpose,

A. To be used up in the temple as a sacrifice.

2. A stones throw away up the hill in Jerusalem is Herod, king of the Jews.

1/ Herod wasnt even a king and he heard about this baby

3. So you have Herod in a palace,

1/ God born in the flesh in a manger,

2/ And Luke 2 vs. 11 Angels appearing to the lowest of the low and saying,

For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.

II. Now for a few minutes, lets just stop and consider somethings...

The shepherds were told, vs. 12 And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger.”

1/ These shepherds actualy worked for the temple providing

lambs to be used.

A. So they had to provide, unplemished, perfect lambs OR

they didnt get paid.

B. So not only providing lambs but perfect lambs.

C. And the way they did this was to wrap the new born lamb in swaddleing cloths so the lambs woudnt hurt itsself on the sharp rocks of the cave.

2/ So you can imagine, what the shepherds saw, coming to the cave and looking in and seeing a baby in swaddleing cloths.

III. Now, where did Mary get these swaddleing cloths for her baby? 1/ Well remember John 3 vs.

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

1/ Hebrews would connect the robes of the priests in the temple

with Jesus.

A. After robes were too worn to be used they wouldnt just throw them away,

A/ they would reuse them as the wicks of the candels burned in the temple,

2/ So to a Hebrew shepherd, they would identify,

A. Him not only as the lamb of God but the light of the world.

3. Now, Jesus is born into the house of David.

1/ King David is from the tribe of Judah,

A. Yet Jesus is called our great High priest.

4. Consider this,

1/ Mary on learning she is pregnant goes and visits who?

A. Elizabeth.

2/ Who is Elizabeths husband?

A. Zacharius.

3/ What was Zacharias? Luke 11 vs.

11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

B. Born again Jews, connect the dots and they belive Jesus was wrapped in the robes of the priest.

IV. So as shepherd walk in and see what they see,

1/ they would recognise Him as the angels said,

A. In a manger wrapped in cloth

B. God with us, the light of the world, our High priest, the perfect lamb of God.

Closing:

Now, thats a born again Jewish perspective of the manger scene.

Now I know that there are people who do not like the 25th of December as Christmas day.

1/ Noone is saying Jesus was born on the 25th of December.

But get this,

1/ Every significant thing that happened, happened on a Jewish festival.

2/ From scripture we know that Zaharias was taking his turn in the temple in the spring at the feast of tabernacles.

A/ Mary is pregnant six months later so that places the conception around December,

B/ Nine months later, Jesus is born in september, during the seast of tabernacles.

2/ tabernacles is when Jewish people camped outside under a tent to remember when God, in the days of Moses, dwelt with His people.

So, no Jesus wasnt born on the 25th of december, but His conception was in December.

Closing:

All the way through scripture is this thread of who Jesus is,

1/ Remember when Jesus was in the Temple?

A. It was the morning after the night before when it was the festival of lights.

B. At the festifal of lights, the whole temple was lit up with lanterns and candles and from the outside was this glow of light and music and dancing

2/ The next morning, the candles had burned out,

A. Shadows covered the court yards of the temple and Jesus leans forward and says, John 8 vs. 12

Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”1

Let me give you another one,

1/ Genesis,

A. 1st of january, reading through the bible, we love, creation, the fall of man, God’s redemption plan.

2/ We read cain and then how cain killed abel but then we come to first of the begats, Genesis 5 vs. 1

This is the book of the genealogy of Adam. In the day that God created man, He made him in the likeness of God. 2 He created them male and female, and blessed them and called them Mankind in the day they were created. 3 And Adam lived one hundred and thirty years, and begot a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth. 4 After he begot Seth, the days of Adam were eight hundred years; and he had sons and daughters. 5 So all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years; and he died.

6 Seth lived one hundred and five years, and begot Enosh. 7 After he begot Enosh, Seth lived eight hundred and seven years, and had sons and daughters. 8 So all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years; and he died.

9 Enosh lived ninety years, and begot Cainan. 10 After he begot Cainan, Enosh lived eight hundred and fifteen years, and had sons and daughters. 11 So all the days of Enosh were nine hundred and five years; and he died.

12 Cainan lived seventy years, and begot Mahalalel. 13 After he begot Mahalalel, Cainan lived eight hundred and forty years, and had sons and daughters. 14 So all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years; and he died.

15 Mahalalel lived sixty-five years, and begot Jared. 16 After he begot Jared, Mahalalel lived eight hundred and thirty years, and had sons and daughters. 17 So all the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred and ninety-five years; and he died.

18 Jared lived one hundred and sixty-two years, and begot Enoch. 19 After he begot Enoch, Jared lived eight hundred years, and had sons and daughters. 20 So all the days of Jared were nine hundred and sixty-two years; and he died.

21 Enoch lived sixty-five years, and begot Methuselah. 22 After he begot Methuselah, Enoch walked with God three hundred years, and had sons and daughters. 23 So all the days of Enoch were three hundred and sixty-five years. 24 And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.

25 Methuselah lived one hundred and eighty-seven years, and begot Lamech. 26 After he begot Lamech, Methuselah lived seven hundred and eighty-two years, and had sons and daughters. 27 So all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred and sixty-nine years; and he died.

28 Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and had a son. 29 And he called his name Noah, saying, “This one will comfort us concerning our work and the toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord has cursed.” 30 After he begot Noah, Lamech lived five hundred and ninety-five years, and had sons and daughters. 31 So all the days of Lamech were seven hundred and seventy-seven years; and he died.

32 And Noah was five hundred years old, and Noah begot Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

bible names always mean something. A. Adam means man, B. his son Seth means appointed one, C. his son Enosh means frail, mortal or miserable, D. his son Cainan, means sorrow, E. his son Mahahalel, means bless God, F. his son Jared, means shall come down, G. his son Enoch, means teaching, H. his son Methuselah, means his death shall bring, I. his son Lamech, means the hopeless, J. his son Noah, means comfort and rest, A/ Put all those names together in a sentence and you have… a) Man is appointed, frail, miserable, sorrow, but the blessed God shall come down teaching and His death shall bring the hopeless rest.