In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 And all went to be registered, each to his own town. 4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. 6 And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. 7 And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. 8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. 10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
Imagine if you were Mary or Joseph…on your way to a baby shower for the Son of God! The angel Gabriel has told you that the very birth of your child is going to be a miracle…
(Spoken with a deep loud voice from the back): The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be holy—the Son of God. (Luke 1:35) But you’re also going to be the parents of a King!
(Spoken with a deep loud voice from the back): He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to Him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there will be no end. (Luke 1:32-33) Mary: Ah, my own private OBGYN doctor, God will probably provide a tutor for his classes and…well, I am going to need a maid. Joseph: Ah, a limousine to pick us up and take us to the private hospital. I wonder if there will be free snacks….
But instead where do we find our royal parents? On they’re way to wait in line at the Registro Nacional. Joseph: …on a donkey! Mary: …PREGNANT!
Joseph: …to pay more government taxes. Joseph and Mary together: Could this get any worse? Can you imagine the stress Joseph must of felt? Joseph: How am I going to pay for all this? Mary: Where are we going to stay tonight? Can you imagine what was going through Mary’s mind?
Mary: I wish he would just pick a hotel. This donkey is killing me. Joseph: Babe, wait right here, I am going to go try this last hotel…. Mary: But Joe, it looks really expensive…How are we going to pay for it? Joe: Babe, we don’t have a choice. I’ve tried every hotel in town and everything is booked. Joe thinking to himself (voice over the speakers): God, if this is really your Son you’re going to have to help us out here…I don’t have enough money to pay for this place. You’re going let me find a $100 bucks on the ground as I’m walking in…right? Okay, here it goes… Joe: What??? There is no room here either? But mister, you don’t understand…my wife…well, she’s pregnant with…
Hotel Owner: I don’t care if your wife is pregnant with the King of the Universe, I don’t have any more rooms! Joe: Well, actually she… Oh, never mind. And just like that Joseph turns around and walks back to his wife, who looks like she just swallowed a basketball. Hotel Owner: Hey, buddy…I got a garage in back of the hotel. Not only did Joseph not find a $100 bucks on the ground but now he’s not even sure God sees him anymore. Joe: God… Where am I supposed to go? What am I going to do? How am I going to do this all by myself?
And just like that… Mary and Joseph find themselves giving birth to the King of the Universe in the back of an old, smelly barn… Have you ever felt like God doesn’t see you? Have you ever felt like God doesn’t understand what you are going through? Well, you’re not alone! And neither were Mary and Joseph. While all this was happening, God was sending out the most gloriously divine invitations to the baby shower of His Son to a bunch of shepherds.
Imagine if you were the shepherds… Mordecai: Hey, Ephraim, what’s your dream job? Levi: Mordecai, what are you insinuating? Just because I don’t have a masters degree you think I can’t get a real job? Ephraim: Hey Levi, simmer down, we all love taking care of filthy, stinking sheep, I was just trying to kill some time. Mordecai: Soooo, what’s your dream job? Ephraim: Oh, I would love to be in a band…but not just any old band. I would want to be in a band that plays for famous people.
Mordecai: But you don’t even play and instrument!
Ephraim: Hey! You’re the one who asked the crazy question in the first place….
Verse 18 tells us, “All who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them.”
Have you ever wondered why God sent shepherds?
READ Luke 2:8-19 (or play “Charlie Brown Christmas”).
Of all the people in the world that could be invited to the baby shower, are these guys really the only ones who could make it? Just when things couldn’t get any worse…shepherds? Mary: You mean no OB/GYN doctor? No private hospital? Joseph: No free snacks?
And now, shepherds? If anyone had reason to doubt God knew what He was doing, it would have been Mary and Joseph. But they chose to believe… They chose to believe the impossible was possible, if God said it was possible.
Verse 19 simply says, “But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. (20) And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told to them.”
God saw Mary…and she trusted and worshiped God. God saw Joseph…and he trusted and worshiped God. God saw the shepherds…and they trusted and worshiped God. The Son of God was born in the right place, at the right time, to the right family, with the right worship… On that night, nothing made sense from a human perspective… But to God, everything went exactly the way He had planned it… from the beginning of time.
So, when your life does not make sense…what do you do with Jesus?
…who was born in a barn because there was no better place?
What do you do with Jesus, worshiped by shepherds…
Because there was no one better for the job?
What will you do with Jesus, the Son of God…when it appears as though God doesn’t make sense?
The shepherds were a sign to Mary and Joseph that God saw them. The shepherds were a sign that God loved them. And they sang and worshiped God, which was exactly what they were supposed to do. How about you? What will you do with Jesus this Christmas?