A Silent Night?
Posted by: Asn <Asn@...>
At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David's ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee. He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant. And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born. She gave birth to her first child, a son. She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them. Luke 2:1-7 NLT
The entire Roman Empire was astir and little Bethlehem was no exception. In home after home, long-lost family members dropped their tattered garment bags and embraced their gracious relatives. The local inn nearly burst at the seams with road-weary travelers in town for the census, and the market was frantic with shoppers vying for last-minute provisions. Out in the fields, the proclamation of an angelic host ruptured the tranquility of a starry night, and shepherds rushed to locate the chosen stable. And in the midst of all the hustle and bustle, antithetical to the surrounding chaos, time stood still as a young man and his betrothed gazed in awe at the infant King Who lay within their sheltering embrace. Emmanuel. A miracle far beyond any other. They studied His face and the rhythm of His breath. God had entrusted them with His Son. Nothing else mattered.
Cities and towns and villages and hamlets across our land are astir this Christmas season. Roadways are congested, shopping malls are teeming and parties are being planned. Between all the shopping and baking, decorating and traveling, many season-weary consumers are wishing for the start of a new year – a chance to shed the past and begin again. Yet Christmas offers us the ultimate chance to do just that. Nestled safely within those "strips of cloth" was God's greatest Gift – eternal Life. In the midst of all the hustle and bustle of our lives, antithetical to the chaos of our world, we need only to stand still and gaze upon the majestic King of Kings. Emmanuel. Study His face and the rhythm of His breath. God has entrusted us with the gift of His Son – and nothing else matters.
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