INTRODUCTION
I want to start off with a couple of related questions this morning:
• Why are you here in this place, in this church, this morning?
• Why are you in South Africa and not in America or Europe or Asia?
• Why are you at the work you are at?
• Why are you in the social or sport club you are in?
• Why have you been born at the place that you have been born at?
These are all important, or unimportant, questions, depending on how you look at it, which might be answered as accidental occurrences, as chance.
But it might also be answered as divine intervention.
That God has purposely placed you at a place for you to fulfill His purpose through you.
Now most Christians, I hope, do believe that God has a plan and purpose for their life.
They do believe that God has placed them at a certain place for a certain reason, for a certain purpose.
They do believe that God has placed them at certain places in order for them to gain experience, gain knowledge, to learn.
So ultimately, God has a purpose for us being born at a certain place.
Last Week
We are busy with the second part of our three part series on the significance of Jesus’ birth.
Now last week we discussed the significance of the time of Jesus’ birth.
We saw that it is important to realize that God has a purpose with our time and therefore we need to give all our time over to Him.
It is also important to understand that God, therefore, needs to be in control of all our time.
And only when we give our time to Him, can He use us in His time.
We also saw that there is a waiting period when we are looking for the correct timing to do something.
Now this morning I will be speaking to you on the Significance of the Place of Jesus’ Birth.
SCRIPTURE
But before we do that let’s read from God’s Word first.
As I told you last week, we have a series scripture and a sermon scripture.
Let’s start with the series scripture:
Luke 2:1-7 KJV
And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
(And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)
To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.
And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.
And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.
Our Sermon Scripture for this morning
Micah 5:2 GW
(2) You, Bethlehem Ephrathah, are too small to be included among Judah's cities. Yet, from you Israel's future ruler will come for me. His origins go back to the distant past, to days long ago.
Let’s Pray
SERMON
When we speak of the place of Jesus’ birth, we are faced with two areas, namely:
• Bethlehem and
• The Manger
Both these places have significance and this morning we will be exploring some of these connotations.
But before I do that I want to state the following:
Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem and in the Manger was not by accident.
It was by divine intervention.
God had a reason for Jesus to have been born in Bethlehem and in a Manger.
1. HE IS OUR NOURISHMENT
Bethlehem
Prophesy came True
We read in Luke 2:4 that “Joseph … went … unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem…”
And in Micah a prophesy went out that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem
That prophesy came true when Jesus was indeed born in Bethlehem.
Throughout the Old Testament prophesy have been given regarding the birth of a Messiah, a King that will redeem the Jewish nation.
A conqueror that will overthrow the Roman Government.
And then, in Micah, the place of His birth are prophesy.
The question is, Why Bethlehem?
What about Jerusalem?
Would it not have been better that a King, a future ruler, the conqueror of the Jews, should come from a big and important city like Jerusalem?
One would think that.
But God does things much differently than we humans can ever think of doing.
He does it in ways that we do not always understand.
Job 37:5 GW
(5) God's voice thunders in miraculous ways. It does great things that we cannot understand.
So, Jesus was born in Bethlehem just as it was prophesied by Micah many years prior to Jesus’ Birth.
Meaning of the Word
I want us to delve a little deeper to see if we can get to the reason why Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
Bethlehem derives from the Hebrew Word:
Beth-Lechem, which means “House of Bread”
We read in John 6:35, where Jesus said:
John 6:35 GW
… "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never become hungry, and whoever believes in me will never become thirsty.
Jesus are born in the “House of Bread”, Bethlehem, and He becomes the “Bread of Life” for all that hungers and who believes in Him.
He becomes the source of our Spiritual nutrition.
Without Him we would starve.
Without Him we would become malnourished.
In order for us to be truly alive, we need to feed on Him and His word.
Too many people today look to other sources to feed them.
They look at drugs, alcohol, sex, false religion, sport, real food, their jobs, you name it.
They are looking to the wrong source of nourishment.
And it shows.
It shows in their physical lives, their social lives, their family lives.
When you are not eating correctly, it will eventually show.
It will have physical manifestations.
The same is true when you do not get spiritually fed.
It will show.
When we do not eat from the Bread of Life, it will show.
When a country does not eat from the Bread of Life, it will show.
Jesus was born in Bethlehem as a token to us that He is the Bread of Life.
He came from God’s own bakery to nourish all people.
The Manger
Now, Bethlehem was called the House of Bread.
What about the Manger?
To answer that question, we have to first deduce what the purpose of the manger was.
The manger was a feeding box for animals, usually sheep.
And here Jesus is born in an object that is meant to feed sheep.
And now I know you know where I am going with this.
Jesus called us sheep.
In Him being born in a manger we can place some symbolism with this.
Jesus, symbolically, became the food from which His sheep could eat.
Previously there was no permanent food that could sustain God’s people.
Now, with the birth of Jesus in a manger, He is telling us that permanent nourishment has come.
No longer do you have to live on food that never really nourishes you.
The food of the nations have arrived.
But it is each and every one of our jobs to ensure that the people gets this feeding.
You might think this morning that it is only the job of Pastors and evangelists to feed God’s people.
And you would be mistaken in your thinking.
God wants us all to go out and feed His sheep.
We are all sheep, but we are also all shepherds.
Parents, you have a responsibility to feed your children.
Husbands, you have a responsibility to feed your wife and family.
Young people, you have a responsibility to feed other young people.
Jesus spoke to Peter in John 21:17, and He said the following:
John 21:17 GW
(17) … "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" Peter felt sad because Jesus had asked him a third time, "Do you love me?" So Peter said to him, "Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you." Jesus told him, "Feed my sheep.
If you love Jesus you will make an effort to feed His sheep.
You have been given a responsibility to look after God’s sheep.
Have you been giving them food?
Have you been giving them nourishment from God’s Word?
Or do you just look on as they deteriorate day by day?
Jesus was born in Bethlehem, the House of Bread, and He was born in a manger, becoming food for His sheep.
2. HE ENTERS TROUGH THE LEAST EXPECTED DOOR
Jesus was born in Bethlehem, and not in Jerusalem, because God does not enter our lives through the well-developed parts of ourselves, i.e. our ego, but through the back door, our unconscious (Dr. C.G. Jung's).
Jesus is not going to get to a sinner by entering through his ego.
He is not going to get to a sinner by targeting the walled up areas.
He is going to find another way.
He is going to get to a sinner through the least expected part of his or her life.
Let me ask you a question:
When do sinners usually really become aware of God’s presents?
When they are surrounded by personal darkness.
When they hear a personal testimony.
That is what brings light and clarity to a part of our lives that previously was filled with fog.
That is when Spiritual awakenings happens
Bethlehem is symbolic of this altered state.
Where Jerusalem symbolises the well-developed part of our lives so Bethlehem symbolises our altered state.
Jesus could have been born in Jerusalem, but He was born in a place least expected.
How did Jesus enter your life?
Did He enter through the well-developed part of your life, or did He find some other back door to get to you?
The same is true for the manger.
Jesus was not born in some elaborate setting, with the best linen and the nicest room and servants looking after hi every need.
That would have been the expectation seeing that the King of the Jews was being born.
But, again, God does not always do things in the way we expect them to be done.
He does it His way.
Just as Jesus was not born in the expected manner and just as many of you were not saved in the manner you would have thought, in that same way we must approach sinners.
You cannot think of breaching the well-structured, strong and high walls that sinners have built around them.
They will have all the excuses and the reasons to not be saved.
But God knows the way in.
He knows the place they do not expect.
God knows each and everyone’s Bethlehem.
Don’t try to enter through Jerusalem.
Try to enter through Bethlehem.
How do you know their Bethlehem?
You usually don’t, but God knows.
Trust that He will show you.
Pray and wait for Him to show you.
Read the Word and find an answer.
God will reveal that person’s Bethlehem and He will give you, if it is in His will that you lead that person to Christ, the ability to enter the sinner’s life through Bethlehem.
This is also true for each of us
You need to find your own Bethlehem.
The place that is dark and remote and undeveloped.
You need to find the part of your life that is restless.
That part that won’t leave you alone and that disturbs you.
Have you ever had that feeling of restlessness, as if there is something stirring inside of you that you cannot explain?
You looked at all the usual places in your life.
You looked at all the familiar places, but you cannot find the source.
This morning I want you to look at the unexpected places in your life.
I want you to find your Bethlehem this morning.
It is the Holy Spirit that is stirring something in you.
And when you find your Bethlehem, you will see that this is the part of your life where God is really moving.
This is the part of your life that God is truly alive in.
Paul was persecuting the Christians.
He was riding the wave of success.
He was a very important man.
He thought he was doing God’s will.
He was operating from a place of ego.
He was operating from Jerusalem.
But when he met Jesus on the road to Damascus, he realised that he needed to operate from Bethlehem.
Jesus targeted his Bethlehem and Paul became the most famous advocate of Christianity.
3. HE SOMETIMES USES THE LEAST PROBABLE PEOPLE
1 Corinthians 1:25-26 GW
(25) God's nonsense is wiser than human wisdom, and God's weakness is stronger than human strength.
(26) Brothers and sisters, consider what you were when God called you to be Christians. Not many of you were wise from a human point of view. You were not in powerful positions or in the upper social classes.
God often work through the least likely people.
When Jesus was born in Bethlehem the people were caught off-guard.
Bethlehem was a very unimportant town.
It was no Jerusalem or Rome.
It was a place where shepherds lived.
It was a place where people were not seen as important.
This town, Bethlehem, had no significant attraction.
Today we would say it had no tourist attractions.
And that was true.
But then, in this little obscure town of Bethlehem, the greatest event in history occurs.
God comes to earth in human form to save us all from sin.
The great creator of the universe becomes a helpless infant.
The God almighty comes to earth to be killed on a cross.
But because of that event, because of the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem, it became one of the most important towns in the world.
So why did God choose Bethlehem?
Yes, it has historical significance – Bethlehem was David’s home town and the Messiah it was said would come from the linage of David.
The one who will be reigning on David’s throne was also going to be born in David’s hometown.
But, despite the historical significance, I believe that God chose Bethlehem for its humility and low profile.
Micah also stated that fact when he prophesied about it in our scripture this morning:
You, Bethlehem Ephrathah, are too small to be included among Judah's cities
Jesus was born in an unexpected place.
Not only was he born in Bethlehem, he was also born in a manger, amongst animals.
This was not an ideal situation for a King, you would think.
But in this we also see that God does not always use the expected.
He uses people who you would never expected to do His bidding.
He uses people you would never expected to go and do His work.
Maybe you are sitting here this morning and you cannot comprehend that God could ever use you.
Let me tell you something, He can and He will and He wants to use you.
• He used Paul, who murdered Christians.
• He used Matthew, a Tax collector.
• He used Peter, a fisher.
• He used me, a sinner.
He wants to use you.
The question is: Will you let Him?
4. HE IS IN CONTROL
It doesn’t matter who you are.
You did not choose where you wanted to be born.
Jesus was the only person who ever chose Hi time of Birth, His Place of Birth, His parents and family born into.
You did not choose those circumstances for yourself.
God chose it for you.
Just as He chose the exact time and place of His birth, so He chose the exact time and place of your birth.
You were chosen to be at a specific time and at a specific place by means of Divine Intervention.
The fat that Jesus chose to be born in Bethlehem shows us that there was divine intervention at play.
It was prophesied how he would be born.
It was prophesied where He would be born.
God chose His place of Birth and it wasn’t the place that we thought it should be.
He chose a very insignificant place.
And that place became a very important place because of that.
You might not understand why you were born at the place you were born at.
But believe me when I tell you that God has a purpose with that.
You might not enjoy your job, but God placed you there, because He has a purpose with you being there.
You might not like your family, but God placed you in that family for a reason.
He wants to use you for His purpose.
Jesus was placed on earth for a reason.
He needed to die an awful death in our place.
He had a reason to fulfil.
And it all started when God intervened in the place where He was to be born.
It was a chosen place of birth not random.
God is in control, whether you want to believe it or not.
And He has a plan for you.
He has something you need to do.
He placed you here in South Africa, In Gauteng, in Johannesburg, at your job, at your social club, at your sport venue, in your family, for a reason.
He wants to use you in the circumstances you are in now.
Won’t you just let go and except it.
God does not work by chance…
5. HE WILL DO ANYTHING TO SEE US SAVED
We read in
Isaiah 9:6-7 GW
(6) A child will be born for us. A son will be given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. He will be named: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
His government and peace will have unlimited growth. He will establish David's throne and kingdom. He will uphold it with justice and righteousness now and forever. The LORD of Armies is determined to do this!
The coming of the King is prophesied in Isaiah and you would expect this King to come and glory and power and authority from a human point of view.
But then we find Jesus being born in a place of unimportance, in a manger surrounded by animals.
How is this possible?
What is going on here?
What is God showing us here?
He is showing us His unparalleled display of grace.
He, God Himself, came down to earth to serve us.
He did it for your salvation.
In being born in such a place God is showing us how far He would go to save us.
He shows His unlimited, unfailing love for us.
He sends His son to come to earth.
Jesus does not get the welcoming He deserves.
He does not receive the acknowledgement He should get.
His glory is not immediately revealed.
He is, instead, undervalued and relegated.
He experienced deficiency for you.
That is how far God will go to save you.
That is how far He will go to serve you.
Shouldn’t we follow that example?
We are so pre-occupied with ourselves that we sometimes forget other people.
We forget that there are people in need.
There are people out there who are suffering, who are lonely, and who are in need of some companionship, some love, and some gifts.
Not just physical gifts, but spiritual gifts.
Sometimes we are so preoccupied with our own lives that we forget the plight of others.
God never did.
He never forgot His people.
He never forgot them and therefore He send His son as an offering to earth.
That is why He wasn’t born in glamour or majesty.
He was born in a humble town in a humble manger.
He came to serve us.
We should do the same to others.
We should let our egos, our own self, go and say to God:
Here I am, show me what to do.
Show me who I should serve.
And if, in the process, I have to humble myself;
If, in the process, I have to be the lesser one;
If, in the process, I have to deprive myself, then so be it.
I want to follow Jesus’ example.
I want to be like Him.
CONCLUSION
The birth of Jesus in Bethlehem in a manger was no coincidence.
It was divinely planned.
It was done for a reason.
He wants to show us that He is our nourishment.
He is the bread of life.
Without Him we will die.
He wants to show us that He sometimes enters through he least expected door.
Sinners builds walls around themselves, but God always finds a way to enter.
He enters through the place least expected, least guarded by lies and excuses.
We should let Him show us those places in others and in our own lives.
He wants to show us that He sometimes uses the least probable people to do His work.
To fulfil His purpose.
It does not matter who you are and what you have doen.
If you come to Him for salvation, He will save you and you will be a new person.
And He will use you.
He shows us that He is in control.
Just as God was in control of the place of Jesus’ birth, so He is in control of your life.
He chose the place where you needed to be born.
He chose your family.
He chose your job.
He needs you to be where you are at.
Only when you let Him control your life can he start to fully use you in His purpose.
He shows us that He will do anything to see us saved.
Jesus could have come to earth in all His splendour and majesty, but He did not.
He had humble beginnings, being born in Bethlehem in a stall and laid in a manger.
But by being born, not as a King, He showed us grace.
He showed us humility.
He showed us Servanthood.
It is during this time of the year that we should really think about these things.
But especially, we should think of how we can help others.
How we can show others that God loves them.
How we can show others that we are God’s children and that we care.
On the 25th of December, Christmas day, we will have a service at 08:00.
Thereafter we will be visiting the children in the Hospitals.
We will be giving them gifts and praying with them.
Won’t you please soften your heart to them this morning and join us on that day.
It should not take up more than 1 and a half hours of your time, but it can have an impact on those children that can last a lifetime.
We really need all of your cooperation.
And I want to urge you to consider helping us that day.
How hope to see you there.
Lets Pray.
