The Road to Bethlehem

“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.”  Luke 2:4-5

The road to Bethlehem began a long time before Mary and Joseph traveled it a little over 2,000 years ago.  Mary had been chosen by God before the foundation of the world to bear Jesus, God’s Son, who would be born in a manger in the little town of Bethlehem.  Many folks stop the story there and go on about their business after Christmas until the next Christmas rolls around when they pull out their nativity scene from storage along with all the other colorful and bright decorations.  Some seem to forget or ignore the fact that Jesus grew into Manhood, taught the multitudes what God required of them to live circumspectly, healed the blind, lame, and those possessed with demons.  As God planned from the beginning, Jesus would eventually be crucified for the sins of men and women, giving them opportunity to be forgiven of their sins and come into a relationship with Him and into reconciliation with the Father.  His resurrection would prove that God, the Father, was satisfied with Jesus’ willing sacrifice as payment for man’s sin and would provide eternal life for all who would repent and believe.  Thus, there is much, much more to the nativity story than a little Baby away in a manger.

Joseph and Mary were married but had not been intimate with one another prior to Jesus’ birth.  They lived in Nazareth, a city of Galilee which was located in the original land of the tribe of Zebulun.  At the time of Christ, Israel was divided into three provinces–Judea, Samaria, and Galilee.  Nazareth was somewhat of an uncultured area, that is, it was not an affluent city where the elite resided.  I suppose one could say that many of the folks in Nazareth were a little rough around the edges, but not Jesus nor His earthly family.  I would picture them as the model citizens of Nazareth.

Israel, at that time in history, was under the rule of the Roman government, and as all governments like to do, they instituted a census for the purpose of collecting taxes.  It was required that the head of the family had to travel to the land wherein his ancestors originated.  In Joseph’s case, as a descendant of King David, that was the land of Judea and the city of Bethlehem.  Joseph and Mary both traveled together because it was nearly time for Mary to deliver Baby Jesus, and Joseph wouldn’t leave her alone at home.  Besides it was prophesied by the prophet Micah (5:2) that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem.  The distance from Nazareth to Bethlehem was about 70 miles.  That was an extremely long way for a woman who was nine months pregnant to travel on the back of a donkey.  At that point in pregnancy, it is difficult to get up off the sofa.  I can’t imagine the discomfort of riding on a donkey for at least a week in her condition.  They likely had to camp out on the ground at night which also would have been very uncomfortable.

We have no record of their journey, but I suspect that Mary was very quiet and didn’t complain at all.  Most of us, under similar circumstances, might have whined the whole way.  We are so used to our creature comforts, instant gratification, and modern conveniences that we make a mountain out of a molehill at the slightest inconvenience or disruption to our plans.  As illustrated by Mary and Joseph’s obedience and commitment, we see that God always chooses the right person for the task, enabling those who are willing to serve Him with some pretty remarkable abilities for God’s glory and His kingdom.

Just recently I read online that there are many folks who claim to be believers in Christ, yet they don’t believe that He existed prior to His earthly birth.  This statistic shows that there are extremely too many folks who claim to be Christians who have very little knowledge of God’s word.  How else can one know God if they aren’t familiar with His word?

Next time:  A King is Born!