Please feel free to use this however you would like. I have no copyrights. You can put songs in different spots to break it up if you want.
The Innkeeper
based on Matthew 2 & Luke 2
My name is Tobiah. I was an innkeeper in Bethlehem in Judea almost two thousand years ago, a time when the most unusual and important thing happened.
Do you have taxes today? We had lots of taxes in our day. We had taxes we paid to Emperor Caesar Augustus, to King Herod and to Governor Quirinius. It took a lot of taxes to pay for all those Emperors, Kings and Governors. There were a lot of taxes. And every 14 years all the people needed to be counted. All the people who were going to pay taxes every year were counted. The story I’m going to tell you took place during the first 14 year count that took place when Quirinius was Governor of Syria.
Rachel, my wife, and I always looked forward to the 14 year counting. It was good for business. Everyone had to go home to their town of family birth. We lived in Bethlehem in Judea. That was the town of King David. Many people came there to have their name written for taxes. So it was a busy time for us in the Inn. We had so many people come that we were full! I had to turn people away. Some families stayed two or three families to a room! It was a good time for business, very busy! Very much money for us!
One day during this time there came a man who wanted to stay in our Inn. His name was Joseph. And his wife looked like a very young girl and she was VERY pregnant, very pregnant. She was going to have a baby very soon. I was going to send them away. For you remember I had no room. As I started to explain things to them an idea came to me. I don’t know where the idea came from, but I said they could stay in the stable. There were lots of animals there, cows, chickens, goats and many donkeys of all the people staying in the Inn. It was noisy and it smelled. I said there was hay. It was so dusty in there. Joseph looked to Mary and she nodded her head. I took them there. I moved donkeys and gave them a stall. They were so tired. I put some new and extra straw there for them and said, “Maybe tomorrow someone will leave and you can come into our inn.” I felt good that they could have a place for the night. But I felt bad that they were going to live and sleep in the barn. But there was no room in the inn. I had no vacancy.
That night when it was very dark, when Rachel and I were asleep I heard some noise in the stable. The animals were noisier, but I also heard many voices of men, I remembered that the man and women were there and so I got up and went out there. And there were shepherds talking real loud, some shouting, some singing and praising God. They were all around the stall where I had put Joseph and Mary. I went over there and what did I see? I saw Joseph and Mary and a little new born baby, all wrapped up in swaddling cloth. Strips of cloth all wrapped around the baby except the face! There was this little face. What a face! What a beautiful baby! They had wrapped the baby in strips of cloth and laid him down in the manger, the place where I put the straw for the donkeys and cows to eat! There he lay. Joseph looked worried and Mary looked so tired.
I said to the shepherds, “What are you doing here, leave these poor people alone.” They told stories of angels in the sky, bright lights, and how this child was to be the Savior of Israel! I told them, “fine, now the innkeeper tells you to go back to your sheep!” They left. And as they did, Rachel came out of the house/inn to see what was going on.
She saw the baby. She looked at me with a questioning look. I explained to her that I put them here because the inn was full. She looked at me and took her hand and hit me on the chest and said, “Tobi, you dumb ox! Go make a room ready for them in the inn! Right Now!” I tried to explain. She wouldn’t hear of it. She knew the inn was full. She didn’t care. She told me to move somebody quickly! I walked back to the inn. I tried to think. Maybe the couple from Capernaum could move with the family from Alexandria. NO, no. Maybe I could ask the family from Caeserea to leave. No.
Then an idea came to me, I don’t know from where. I went into the inn, into our room and picked up my 2 year old, Zedekiah, in one arm and Matthan, our 6 month old in the other and carried them out to the barn. I met Rachel, Joseph, Mary and the baby going into the inn. Rachel said nothing. I knew she was pleased with what I had done. I could see her tender smile in the light and I think I saw a tear in her eye. She was pleased that I made room in our inn now for the baby’s family.
We didn’t sleep much that night in the stable. Too smelly and cold, and noisy. Plus, Rachel and I talked about the birth, the shepherds and about tomorrow. The next day we moved back into the inn. The couple from Caesarea left, complaining about all the noise and what a terrible inn I ran and how he was going to tell everyone to go elsewhere. It was just as well. We took their room and Joseph and his family stayed in our room. They lived with us for a while.
And one night not so long after that, a group of Magi came to our door. They didn’t want a place to stay. They had their tents with them.. They had servants and camels and packages. There was a bright star up in the night sky. They came and said they came to worship the King of Israel born in my house. They saw Mary and Joseph and the baby. They bowed down and worshipped him like this. There they were in their big turbans, rich robes and jewelry, on the floor, before the baby. They had their servants bring gold, frankincense and myrrh as gifts. They gave them to the baby. And then they left. I’ll never forget it!
And then one night, in the middle of the night! Joseph woke me up and said he was leaving right then. I tried to get him to stay until the morning at least. But he said he must go to Egypt because King Herod was coming to find his baby. I asked him how he knew this. He said he had a dream and the three of them left. Rachel and I were sad. We didn’t find a place for them in the inn right away. But they were in our hearts. We said goodbye and they left in the dark on the night.
The next day king Herod’s soldiers came to Bethlehem. They took all the boys 2 years old and one year old and new born boys. They took our Zedekiah and Matthan. They took them and…and….I cannot say it. The Bible tells what happened.
“A voice is heard in Rama
weeping and great crying.
Rachel weeping for her children
and refusing to be comforted
because they are no more.”
We heard that Joseph, Mary and Jesus stayed in Egypt until King Herod died. We heard they moved to Nazareth Galilee. Rachel and I had many more sons and daughters. We heard much about Jesus. He never came back to Bethlehem. We heard wonderful things about the baby who was born in our stable and lived in our house for a short time. We heard he said, “The son of man has no place to rest his head.” It was always the same with Jesus. There was no room for him in our inn. And in his life, there seem to be no room for him wherever he went. The only place there was room for him was on the cross. We heard and were sad that Jesus was crucified. The beautiful little baby, a man, crucified.
But we made room for him in our hearts. Many people made room for him in their hearts. Even the world didn’t have room for him except on the cross, There is room for him in our hearts.
Will you make room for him in your hearts this Christmas?
Will you make room for him in your heart always?
At first we didn’t have room in our inn, but we made room in our hearts for Jesus. I’m so glad I did. I’m so glad I did.
I hope you will make room in your heart for Jesus always.
You’ll be glad you did!
You will be so glad you did!
