In Chapter Two of the Biblical Facts of the Birth of Christ, we are going to consider how He was revealed to the world.
Chapter One showed us what had happened “behind the scenes” of His Birth. It was now time for Jesus to be revealed to the world. Those are the facts we will consider in this message.
Biblical Facts, The Revealing
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Sometimes it is amazing how that God can and does manipulate world affairs to bring about His will and way.
As we have seen previously, Nazareth in Galilee was the home of both Joseph and Mary. Yet prophecy said that Jesus was to be born in Bethlehem. There was an emphatic decree that was sent out from Caesar Augustus, the grandnephew of Julius Caesar, Emperor of Rome. Since Israel was part of the Roman Empire, all had to return to the home of their original family.
Each one had to return to the city of his ancestors or extraction. It seems that is where the family records were apparently kept. This registration was a census registration that required disclosure of men and their land and property as a basis of imposing, assessing, or calculating taxes, throughout all the inhabited earth, over which the Roman Caesar claimed jurisdiction. The completion is said to have taken several years.
We have a time frame with which to work for Luke gives us the name of a governor, or military leader, that seemed to be in charge of the region. Cyrenius was a military leader for the Romans who was in charge of the entire region. It appears that he was not a politician but rather a military ruler.
History records that he ruled twice and during the time of his first ruling was when the decree for the registration of taxes went out to all the Roman Empire. Thus, it was during the first reign of this man that Jesus was born. You will note in Luke 2:2 that the decree was FIRST made during his rulership.
Marin De Boylesve, a French scholar who lived in the 1800s, had this to say about God using Augustus to accomplish His will.
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“Augustus, while sending forth his edicts to the utmost limits of the East, little knew that on his part he was obeying the decrees of the King of kings. God had foretold that the Saviour should be born in Bethlehem. In order that this might be accomplished He made use of
Augustus, and through this prince the order was given for the census of the whole people.
At the sight of these wars and revolutions that upset the world you feel inclined to imagine that God no longer governs the world or those in it. You are mistaken, God permits that these awful catastrophes should take place, just for the salvation and perfection of this or that person whom the world knows not.”
So, we now turn our attention to the fact that Mary was very pregnant when they arrived at Bethlehem. Luke 2:5 reveals to us that they arrived in Bethlehem with Mary being great with child. We are not told how soon after their arrival that Jesus was born. We are simply told in verse six that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.
We know what tradition says, but is it correct? Because there was no room for them in the inn. The traditional Christmas play gives us an idea, but a close examination of the Biblical account makes more sense and is more interesting. The play has to take certain liberties, to get everything into a 30-minute time frame.
Luke 2:7 says she (Mary) gave birth and wrapped Jesus in cloths and laid him in a manger. She did this because there was no room at the Inn.
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“No room at the Inn?” What exactly was this “Inn” where there was no room? We get the idea of a crusty old hotel manager who has no rooms, so he sends them out into the cold and somehow they end up in a barn.
But what is more likely, is that the “Inn” was not a hotel at all, but a guest room in someone’s house – probably family –
since Mary and Joseph were both from the immediate area.
The word used for “Inn” in the original languages simply means a room. It is only used three times in the New Testament. The other two times it is used (Mark 14:14 and Luke 22:11) is when Jesus asked His disciples to go and prepare the Upper Room for the last supper.
There was no room there where they were staying, so Mary gave birth in the “outer” room. This outer room would also be where animals were brought for the night, and likely there would be a manger there. In these times in Israel, there was not a lot of difference between a barn and a home. They were normally built together anyway to allow easy access from the house.
This is not unusual even today. I am not aware of any houses being built in the 21st century that have a barn or some kind of stable attached to it, however, many modern houses have a garage of some size connected with it. In New England in the 1800s and early 1900s, it was very common for the houses and a very large barn to be connected because of the winter weather. This was typical. This was also typical of the houses that were built during Jesus’ time.
One other little tidbit: we have seen in tradition that Mary rode a donkey from Nazareth to Bethlehem, there is no record in Scripture anywhere that even hints that she did.
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Just one more thing that has been handed down through the years but not backed by Scripture.
I want to examine Luke 2:8-20 for our next segment of the Revealing.
Luke 2:8-20 8And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field,
keeping watch over their flock by night. 9And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. 10And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. 12And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in
swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. 13And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, 14Glory to God in the highest, and on earth
peace, good will toward men. 15And it came
to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to
another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem,
and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. 16And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger.
17And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them
concerning this child. 18And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were
told them by the shepherds. 19But Mary kept
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all these things, and pondered them in her heart. 20And the shepherds returned,
glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them.
The first group of individuals to be aware of the birth of Jesus was a group of shepherds in the hill country around Bethlehem. It is important to know where they were found when the angels appeared to them.
We find in verse 8 that they were in the fields. In the winter and spring times, they would have their sheep put up. In the summer and fall, they would be in the open fields with the sheep. It is still that way today there.
While there is not any way that we can be completely definite, there is compelling evidence that Jesus’ birth did not occur on December 25th. This verse is one of those compelling pieces.
Regardless, the angel found the shepherds with their sheep in the fields. This angel was probably Gabriel, although we are not given this as a definite fact.
To me it makes sense that it would have been Gabriel because he had been the one that had handled the announcement to Mary, Joseph and even Zacharias, John the Baptist’s father.
This angel gives them the good news of the birth of Jesus and tells them where to find Him.
Immediately following his words, there was a multitude of angels that appeared and began to sing praises to God. What at sight that must have been! No wonder the shepherds were scared!
The angels finished and returned to heaven. As the night drew on, the shepherds began to discuss what had been revealed to
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them. They determined that they should go into Bethlehem and see for themselves. They did not doubt what had been revealed to them by the angels, but they wanted to see with their own eyes!
Verse 15 lets us know that they what they been told by the angels was indeed from the Lord to give them this knowledge.
Hurriedly, they went to Bethlehem and found it to be exactly as they angels had said. These shepherds were eager to tell everyone they saw about the birth of Jesus, the Emmanuel.
Thus, this first “Revealing” was spread throughout the hills surrounding Bethlehem. Did everyone know about it, maybe not, but these shepherds were not ashamed to broadcast the news about the birth of the Saviour. It mattered not to them that no one might believe their testimony. They had been informed by the angels and had seen Him with their own eyes; that was enough for them.
It is apparent that all of this relating to the shepherds took place within hours of Jesus’ birth. That was just the beginning!
Conclusion to Chapter Two
While the time element concerning the Birth of Christ may ever be in dispute—we may each have our own “Roberts Theology;” the important fact is that Jesus did come and was born as He was according to prophecy. (“Roberts Theology”
is what I call a belief of mine that might be proven to be true or false, but cannot be determined definitively.) Without His virgin birth, He would not have been able to be our sacrifice, our payment for our sin debt. What you or I might believe concerning the time element of Jesus’ birth is not important. What is important is that we believe what the Bible gives us concerning the Birth of Christ.
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