Let us go to Bethlehem
“O little town of Bethlehem, how still we see the lie. Above thy deep and dream-less sleep, the silent stars go by. Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting light. The hopes and fears of all the world are met in thee tonight.”
We sing Silent Night, and it was silent for most of the world. In Bethlehem, most slept deep and dreamlessly, not knowing that time was being divided. The city’s streets were dark. They were lit only by the silent stars. No one knew that the Light of the world had come to banish darkness.
The name Bethlehem means “house of bread,” and in Bethlehem, the Bread of Life was born. No room was available, so the Son of God was born in a smelly stable. There were no clean sheets, so Mary lay on a bed of hay. There was no crib, only a feed trough to hold the Maker of all things.
Bethlehem sits on top of a mountain about six miles from Jerusalem. It was here that a heartbroken Jacob buried Rachel, the love of his life. It was here Ruth the Moabitess fell in love with Boaz, The Lord of the Harvest. It was in this little village that the prophet Samuel anointed David, the shepherd boy, as king. And hundreds of years before the coming of Christ, Micah prophesied that Bethlehem would be the birthplace of the Messiah.
Modern-day Bethlehem is in the Palestinian-controlled West Bank portion of Israel. In those days, just as today, Bethlehem was home to people who were prone to armed revolt and violence. And yet God chose Bethlehem to be the birthplace of the Prince of Peace.
Maybe your life is a mess and full of turmoil. Why don’t you allow your heart to be a new Bethlehem? Invite Jesus into your heart. You will find that He meets all your hopes and fears today.
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, saying, “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”
When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. So they said to him, “In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it is written by the prophet: ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, Are not the least among the rulers of Judah; For out of you shall come a Ruler Who will shepherd My people Israel.’ ”
Then Herod, when he had secretly called the wise men, determined from them what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the young Child, and when you have found Him, bring back word to me, that I may come and worship Him also.”
When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.
And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.”
Matthew 2:1-12 NKJV
https://bible.com/bible/114/mat.2.1-12.NKJV
Douglas and Deborah Huff
From Down Where the Pavement Ends
Email- pavementendsministry@gmail.com
