(Read Text) I want to encourage you to turn to hymn number 143, "O Little Town Of Bethlehem."
The words of this beloved Christmas carol were written by Phillip Brooks. Brooks was pastor of the Holy Trinity Episcopal church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania from 1869 to 1891. He was recognized as one of America’s outstanding preachers, and many volumes of his sermons have been published. In fact, his messages are required reading for many studying for the ministry today in our seminaries. Brooks wrote this hymn in 1868 for the children of the Sunday School at his church, after his visit to Bethlehem in 1865. The tune was written by Lewis Dedner, the organist at Holy Trinity Episcopal church at Brook’s request.
This hymn echoes the truth of Scripture concerning the birth of Christ. Specifically, it speaks of two great things concerning the birth of Jesus.
1. Christ’s Birth Was According to a Divine Plan - vs. 1- 3a
We are told two things about how God carried out His plan in bringing the Savior into the world.
A. The Savior would be born in an unassuming way - vs. l-2a; "O Little Town Of Bethlehem" - v. 1
Jesus was born in Bethlehem (Matthew 2:1-6). In verse 2, the town is referred to as "small" in the NIV, and "little" in the KJV. Bethlehem was a little town.
In verse 1, we read a call to arms. The city of Jerusalem (city of troops) was being called on the muster armies to meet the enemies of Israel.
Bethlehem, however, was too little to be called on to muster an army of any kind. Hence, the name of Brooks’ hymn, "O Little Town Of Bethlehem." The point is, however, that though Bethlehem was small in the eyes of men, by power of God and within the plan of God, Bethlehem was going to be part of something very big - the coming of the Messiah into the world! That is the essence of this great Christmas song -the big event which God brought about through a small, seemingly insignificant town - Bethlehem.
A series of pictures in a popular magazine portrays the story of a one-note musician. ... He takes his seat in the orchestra with the other musicians, arranges his score, and tunes his instru¬ment. On the arrival of the conductor, the music begins with the leader skill¬fully bringing in first one group of mu¬sicians and then another. After a long time the crucial moment arrives — it is the time when the one note is played. The conductor turns to him and his one note sounds forth. Once more the or¬chestra plays and the one-note man sits quietly throughout the rest of the con¬cert. . . . One note only! It may be that our part in life’s work may be very small . . . but even that is important.
Bethlehem had only one note to play in the orchestration of God’s redemptive plan, but it was an important one! God still works this way today. In many unassuming ways, often through unassuming people, God is at work to carry out His work in this world. As Theodore Cuyler once put it, "Often the most useful Christians are those who serve their Master in little things. He never despises the day of small things, or else He would not hide His oaks in the acorns, or the wealth of a wheat field in bags of little seeds."
The problem with too many of us, as Vance Havner observed, is "So many of us are not big enough to become little enough to be used of God." Are you guilty, as the prophet Zechariah put it, of "despising the day of small things?" Do you think yourself above doing certain things within the work of God’s kingdom?
Are you making the mistake of bypassing "little" opportunities, because you’re looking for some "big" responsibility to fall into your lap? We would do well to pay heed to the advise of F.B. Meyer, who said, "Do not wait to do a great thing. The opportunity may never come. But since little things are constantly claiming your attention, do them for a great motive - for the glory of God."
For the want of a nail, a shoe was lost;
For the want of a shoe, a horse was
lost; For the want of a horse, a rider was
lost; For the want of a rider, a message was
lost; For the want of a message, a battle
was lost; For the want of a battle, a kingdom
was lost; All for the want of a nail!
How much of God’s work goes undone today, because we fail to recognize what great purposes God wants to carry out through the small things He calls us to do?
B. The Savior would be born in an unusual way - v. 2b-3b, "O Little Town Of Bethlehem" - verse 2
The prophet speaks about the fact that the coming Messiah would be one whose "origins are from of old, from ancient times." In other words, he would be one who was before men; yet he would be a man, for he would be brought into this world as are all men (v. 3a). Certainly Jesus fulfilled this prophecy (John 1:1; 14). Many scholars point out the similarity between Micah’s prophecy here about the Messiah’s birth and that of Isaiah (Isaiah 7:14). Indeed, the Savior was born in an unusual way - He was born of a virgin. And he was born as a man. The divine put on humanity. The enormity of what took place that night in Bethlehem escaped the notice of many on earth, but it was something of which the entire population of heaven was well aware (verse 2 of "O Little Town Of Bethlehem).
When did the sacrifice of Christ for our sins begin? Did it begin at Calvary? No, you must go back further than that. Did it begin in Gethsemene? No, further back still. Did it begin in the upper room with the last supper? No. Did it begin when Jesus determined to journey to Jerusalem, knowing He would lose His life there? No. When did the sacrifice of Christ for our sins begin? In eternity past, when He decided to leave His throne in heaven and come to earth as a man to pay the penalty for our sins (Revelation 13:8b; 2 Corinthians 8:9)!
Dogs are man’s best friends, so let’s assume that the dogs in your town have developed a problem that has them in deep distress and that only you can provide the help they need.
If it would help all the dogs to become more like men, would you be willing to become a dog? Would you put down your human nature, family, job, hobbies, and all else and choose—instead of intimate com¬munion with your beloved—the poor substitute of looking into the beloved’s face and wagging your tail, unable to smile or speak?
When Christ became a man through the incarnation, he voluntarily limited what to him was the most precious thing in the world: unham¬pered, unhindered communion with the Father.
2. Christ’s Birth Makes Possible A New Person - vs. 3-5a
There are two ways in which the birth of Christ makes possible a new person.
A. We can become a new person individually - vs. 4-5a; "O Little Town Of Bethlehem" - v. 3
As verse 3 of "O Little Town Of Bethlehem" so wonderfully puts it, just as Christ was born in Bethlehem, He can be born into our hearts today. And by virtue of Christ being in us, God declares our standing before Him to be that of being in Christ, which means we are seen by God to be a new person (2 Corinthians 5:17)!
The prophet speaks of the benefits that come to the life of one who has received Christ into their life:
1) He will benefit from God’s guidance - v. 4a (Psalm 23)
2) He will benefit from God’s greatness - v. 4b (Romans 8:35; 37-39)
3) He will benefit from God’s goodness - v. 5a
He enjoys peace with God - Romans 5:1; He enjoys the peace of God - Philippians 4:6-7; He enjoys the God of peace - v. 5a!
In a certain European town there was a cathedral which was chiefly notable for a large and rather beautiful stained-glass window behind its altar. One winter day a great tempest shattered the window, into a thousand pieces. These were put into a large box, which was placed in the basement.
Some time later a stranger asked if he might have the fragments. Since there appeared to be no use for them, the custodians of the cathedral gave him permission to take them. About two years later these same custodians were invited by a famed artisan to come to a showing of his work in a nearby viiiage. They accepted and when the artist unveiled his work in their presence, it was a stained-glass window created from the very pieces of the splintered glass that had composed the original window, but of far greater beauty.
The minister who told this story made a rather obvious and very good application. If your plans and dreams have been destroyed by some outward circumstance, trust in God. Perhaps the very best place for those dreams was the rubbish pile, for God may have better plans for you after all. He will bring them to pass through His own Son, who gives you, in your entirely new life, dreams and plans fashioned in a much better way than you could do for yourself.
A group of atheists were criticizing the Bible. One of them spoke about creation. He said, "What man with any common sense could believe that several thousand years ago, God stooped down and picked up a piece of mud, breathed on it, and changed it into a human being?" A Christian man standing by overheard the conversation and responded by saying: "I cannot answer all the questions about creation, but this I know: One night God stooped down and picked up the dirtiest piece of mud in this city, breathed upon it by His Spirit, and changed a gambling, drinking, thieving wretch into a peace- loving man of God. I was that man." And just so, my friend, whoever you may be, what God has
done for others, He will do for you!
A. We can become a new person collectively - vs. 3-5a; "O Little Town Of Bethlehem" - v. 4
The prophet speaks beyond what the Messiah’s birth will make possible for the individual to speak of what His coming will mean for all who come to faith in Him. He will make them, collectively, a new person. Under the reign of the Messiah, there will be no distinction between Jew or Gentile, but we are all one in Him.
Paul spoke of this in Ephesians 2:10-18. Note how Paul went from speaking about the new person we can be through Christ individually (verse 1O), to how we can be a new person in Christ collectively (verses 11-18).
Micah makes it clear, that this experience of unity among God’s people will not be fully realized until the Lord returns, however, it is something God calls us to endeavor to experience in our relationships with one another today (Ephesians 4:1-3).
Two porcupines found themselves in a blizzard and tried to huddle together to keep warm. But because they were pricked by each other’s quills, they moved apart. Soon they were shivering again and had to lie side by side once more for their own survival. They needed each other, even though they needled each other!
There are many "porcupine" Christians running around. They have their good points, but you can’t get near them because the bad points prick too hard.
In Matthew 18:20, Jesus promises to be in the midst oi those who determine to gather in His name. I believe that is what is being spoken of in verse 4 of "O Little Town OJ Bethlehem." May the words of this verse echo in our hearts as members of this congregation.
Lord, help us to so love one another in Christ, that we might readily know your presence among us!
A visitor to a mental hospital was astonished to note that there were only three guards watching over a hundred dangerous inmates. He asked his guide, "Don’t you fear that these people will overpower the guards and escape?"
"No," was the reply. "Lunatics never unite."
The devil never fears a congregation that is not seeking to become the new person collectively that God calls them to be, because they are no threat to his operation! Let’s put the fear of God into the devil, by committing today to growing in unity and love as the people of God!
Conclusion:
The final draft of the Emancipation Proclamation was taken to Abraham Lincoln at noon on January 1, 1863. Twice the president picked up his pen to sign it, and twice he laid it down. Turning to Secretary of State William Seward, he said, "I have been shaking hands since 9:00 this morning, and my right arm is almost paralyzed. If my name ever goes into history, it will be for this act, and my whole soul is in it. If my hand trembles when I sign the proclamation, all who examine the docu¬ment hereafter will say, ’He hesitated.’ " The president then took up the pen again and slowly but firmly wrote, "Abraham Lincoln." That historic act endeared Lincoln to the world as the Great Emancipator.
One greater than Lincoln and with even surer resolve brought freedom to the human race. Jesus signed our liberty with His own blood by dying on the cross to release us from the awful slavery of sin. Oswald Chambers wrote, "Never tolerate the idea of martyrdom about the cross of Jesus Christ. The cross was a superb triumph in which the foundations of hell were shaken. [Jesus Christ] . . . made the redemption the basis of human life, that is, He made a way for every son of man to get into commun¬ion with God."
Having trusted the Savior, we have been set free from sin’s awful condemnation. Now by His Spirit we have the power to turn from sin and live for Him. That’s the only way to honor Christ — our Great Emancipator.
I’m glad my Savior didn’t hesitate to leave His throne in glory! Christ did not hesitate to die for me; may I not hesitate to live for Him!
