The Seed Of Christmas

I find it ironic that those words were spoken between a daughter-in-law and a mother-in-law: and most of the time, we use them at weddings. And what happened in Ruth's life? She came to Bethlehem a nobody. No covenant, no place to sacrifice, no altar where she could pray, no voice to be heard in heavenly places, not represented because she had no priest that she could go to. But there on the threshing floor at Boaz's wheat fields, she encounters a kinsman redeemer. And in one act of grace, he grafts her into the covenant of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In one act of grace, she goes from being an outsider to an insider, from being barren to being blessed, from being a woman without to being someone who is now in the lineage of Jesus Christ. Why did Micah say, "And you, Bethlehem Ephrathah"?

"Ephrathah" is a word that recognizes this is a place where outsiders become insiders. Why did God choose Bethlehem? Because His purpose was not to bless a group of people. His purpose was to bless all of the people in every nation on every place on the face of the earth. He wanted you. He sought after you. And He sent His only begotten Son to die for you. Now tell me God doesn't care about you. After all that He has done to pursue you and provide a means of escape and salvation from sin, most people to this day believe God doesn't care about them. He wanted you who are in Indonesia. He wanted you who in Africa. He wanted you who are in Asia. He wanted you who are in Europe. He wanted you who are in South America.

He not only wants all of you, but He wants each and every person throughout the world whether you're from China, Japan, Russia, Africa or America. He wants you to be grafted into the promises of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He wants you to become sons and daughters of the Most High God. He wants you to have every promise and every covenant that is written in His Word and that is yes, and amen, through Jesus Christ our Lord. He wants you to go from darkness into light. He wants you to walk from shackles into liberty. He wants you to know what it's like to be a son and a daughter of the Most High God! Thank God for Bethlehem! He chose Bethlehem before He made Eden, because He knew exactly what you would need, exactly when you would need it.

And the message that brings us hope today is the same God Who created heaven and earth is the same God Who still knows exactly what you need, exactly when you need it. All He asks us to do is trust in Him. He knows exactly where you are today, physically, financially, emotionally. He knows exactly where you need to be blessed today. And He has chosen the exact place and the exact time for you to receive exactly what your heart's desire is. Just as He waited for all things to come to pass in order for every detail to be placed before He put His Son in that manger, He is patiently waiting for every detail in your life, for you to become who you need to be to receive the power of God that He has stored up for you.