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NRS Micah 5:1 Now you are walled
around with a wall; siege is laid against us; with a rod they strike the ruler
of Israel upon the cheek. 2 But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah, who
are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who
is to rule in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.
3 Therefore he shall give them up
until the time when she who is in labor has brought forth; then the rest of his
kindred shall return to the people of Israel.4 And he shall stand
and feed his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of
the LORD his God. And they shall live secure, for now he shall be great to the
ends of the earth; 5 and he shall be the one of peace. If the
Assyrians come into our land and tread upon our soil, we will raise against
them seven shepherds and eight installed as rulers.
Today we
celebrate the third weekend of Advent, the weekend when we light the pink
candle, often known as Mary’s candle or the candle of joy. On this day we focus
on the joy of the birth of Jesus Christ and why that joy sustains us through
all of the times of trial and tribulation that we encounter in our lives. The
question that I want to ask you today as we focus on the upcoming birth of
Christ is, “Why Bethlehem?” Of all of the places for the child of God to be
born, why some small insignificant town on the outskirts of Jerusalem? Why of
all of the places that He could be born, why in a manger, the feeding trough of
animals? These are serious questions for a serious discussion as we encounter
Christ in the world of humankind. I say it to you that way because we must
focus on the fact that Jesus birth signifies an opportunity to meet our God on
a human plane.
Let us begin by
describing the city of Bethlehem and the surrounding area. Bethlehem sits in
the hill country of Judah and is considered to be the birthplace of Christianity.
What we also know about the city of Bethlehem helps explain our theological
question, why Bethlehem. In Hebrew Bethlehem means, “house of bread” and in the
original Aramaic means, “house of meat’. Some might regard these terms as contradictory
and yet both terms signify nourishment and sustenance of the body. Bethlehem is
also known as the city of David. It is here that Rachel and Ruth of the Old
Testament are buried. Now there is significance in that statement, the place
that Rachel and Ruth are buried. For it is from Rachel that we receive the
lineage that brings Apostle Paul into the world through the heritage of
Benjamin and it is through the lineage of Ruth and Boaz and the tribe of Judah that
we receive Jesse and then David and then ultimately Jesus. For us to discount
the significance of this city just on the basis of its size and position might
well lead us to forget its history. We cannot stop there. For Bethlehem is the
place that Samuel anointed David king by the well of Bethlehem where David was
nourished during his long struggle with King Saul. This small town on the
outskirts of the city of Jerusalem has a history that leads us ultimately to
the birth of Jesus. By the way, did I forget to mention that David was also
born here? Now to me that becomes significant because it is David whom God
promised that his heir would come to rule the world.
Now let us
dwell into another aspect of the city of Bethlehem. Bethlehem is in the hilly
country just outside of Jerusalem and is noted for the many caves that surround
the city. What is unique about some of these caves is that they became the
holding pens for animals. It was the norm for the inhabitants of the city to
keep their animals in the various caves around the city. Here they could be
protected and secured in a safe place where they could be fed and sheltered.
Bethlehem even though it had a wonderful history, was a small community of people.
It was not the major shipping port or major government center like some of the
cities to the east and north of Bethlehem, but can be described as a sleepy
little town about 5 miles outside of Jerusalem.
Historically,
we know that Jesus lived in this area even if there is argument about His
ministry, miracles and healings. In fact we know that around 150 AD, St. Justin
the Martyr referred to Bethlehem as the birthplace of Jesus in one of those
little caves where animals were kept. Origen, one of the founding fathers of
written Christian history writes that in Bethlehem in a cave, Jesus was born in
a manger and place in swaddling clothes.
So this tradition
of the Christmas story is based on information gleaned at the earliest of times
in the life of the Christian church. That is significant to us when asked how we
can believe that this story is true. It comes to us from early written records
that tell us of its truth. Before men could invent it, it was already a part of
the historical record. Indeed the church, St. Mary of the Nativity, stands over
the top of the cave where Jesus is said to have been born. Originally built in
527 AD, this church is placed at the birthplace of Jesus. Now it seems to me,
that if history records the birth in a place and the written record comes to us
through the centuries, then we ought to have faith in its authenticity. I also
think that we need to focus again on the significance of it being the place of
David’s birth and also a place where the common people lived in the social
economic strata of life. It was not the place of rulers and kings, but rather
the place of normal everyday people like you and I.
Finally, while
we focus on the place, we must also focus on the why. God does what God says God
is going to do. Not one single piece of prophecy has been found to be false.
Some have not happened yet. Unlike all of our modern day prophets, God’s
prophecy is always correct. This brings us to our text today and the point of
it. Micah means literally, “who is like Yahweh” and the prophet Micah lived
between 750 BC to about 686 B.C. This prophecy comes to us maybe 700 years
before the birth of Christ as a promise from God to the Jewish people. You O
Bethlehem, who are one of the little clans of Judah, from you shall come forth
for me one who is to rule in Israel. Now hear these words carefully, he goes on
to say, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days.
Now in the Old
Testament text, when the ancient days were used, this language indicates we are
talking about heaven before the earth was formed. We get the immediate sense
that he who comes will not be of this world in the sense that you and I are. Furthermore,
he will be born in the home of one of the twelve tribes of Jacob, specifically
the tribe of Judah. Now some theologians would argue that Judah here is the
Judah we know as Israel and yet, when Micah was writing his prophecy, the
twelve tribes were never referred to except by their own identification. It is
only in modern times that Judah has taken on the meaning of all of Israel.
What we know
from the prophecy is that one from ancient times, from heaven before the earth
is formed, will come to rule Israel and He will come to Bethlehem through the
tribe of Judah. We know that Boaz and Ruth had a son, Jesse. Jesse had a son
David. In that lineage then comes the man we know as Jesus. Now the rest of the written word also tells
us something about the event and then about what it is that this child will
accomplish and be. When the woman gives birth tells us that this child will be
human and then in the interpretation of the original Hebrew, we find the
masculine pronoun, he used.
We know that
this child will be a male and that he will be born in Bethlehem to the lineage
of David. This man will reunite the kindred, feeding the flock in the strength
of God and he shall be the one of peace. For those who may still not believe,
let me ask you a question? What was the preaching of Jesus all about if not how
to enter into a relationship with God and about achieving peace in your
lifetime? Does this passage not give you a sense that God had a purpose for
Jesus to be born in Bethlehem? With all of its history and significance, here
is where it was supposed to happen.
God told us
where he would be born, history tells us he was born there so what is so
unacceptable about the story that you cannot believe? When God speaks, it is to
tell us what God’s intentions are and to make known what God is doing in the
world. Seven hundred years before Jesus is born, God through Micah tells us the
place, who the person is and what he comes to do.
As we prepare
for the coming celebration, realize that you have a choice today. You can stand
on the sidelines looking in and questioning the authenticity of the story, or
you can realize that God spoke; history happened, and join the rest of us on
the inside. Christ came to make peace with the world and to reignite a
relationship with God. He came for the kindred of God who are the kindred of
Noah. That includes every member of the community called the earth. Don’t wait
until it’s too late to begin to realize that God wants to be in relationship
with you.
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