NO VACANCY
(Dec. 20, AD 2020; Pastor
Terry L. Reese, Valley GBC, Armagh)
TEXT: Luke 2:1-7. Luke’s
emphasis: The Humanity of Christ.
This week, we note the humble circumstances of the Man Jesus’ birth.
I. God is a Sovereign
God, controlling history (Luke 2:1-3).
The Roman tax a cruel reminder of Israel’s
subjection to foreigners; this is the “Time of the Gentiles” (Luke 21:24)…
…BUT a Sovereign God uses earthly rulers (Caesar, Cyrenius,
Herod)—mere chess pieces—to fulfill prophecy (Micah 5:2; Matt. 2:6)!
II. Joseph & Mary
brought to Bethlehem
(Luke 2:4-5).
Joseph David’s line: a reminder of the
Davidic Covenant & the Messianic Promise! But the Royal House reduced to
obscurity.
III. The Details of
the Savior’s Birth (Luke 2:6-7)...
A simple, terse description of the birth of
the Son of God (vv.
6-7)
A. He is Mary’s firstborn
(ordinary births would follow; Matt. 13:55)
B. He is wrapped in swaddling cloths (long strips of linen) by His mother—no midwife—pointing to a lonely birth.
A somber scene—His wrapping a single
ray of tenderness in His entrance into the world—foreshadowing His
departure (John
19:40).
C. A manger:
perhaps a stone animal trough.
The cloths & manger a sign to the shepherds: Luke 2:12.
D. No room at the inn...
IV. A scene of simplicity, poverty, loneliness, &
rejection (Isa. 53:3).
The
beginning of the kenosis, or
Self-emptying (Phil. 2:5-7).
o Obscurity
(John 1:10-11)
o Loneliness
& abandon—as at Calvary (Matt 26:31, Mark
15:34)
The contrast: the birth's commonness vs. the Child's greatness!
o He leaves Heaven, His Home, that we might have that Heaven as our own dear home (John 14:2-3);
He becomes obscure that we might have a name (1Jhn 3:1);
He becomes poor that we might become rich (2 Cor. 8:9);
He becomes a weak slave (Matt. 20:25-28) so that we might become powerful governing authorities (1 Cor. 6:2-3, Rev. 20:4);
He becomes mortal that we might be immortal (1Cor. 15:53);
He becomes humble that we might be glorified (Rom. 8:30).
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