Luke 2:1-5
Verse 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.
That first Christmas took a lot of preparation. Not just earthly preparation but God was doing some preparing of His own. There wasn’t a lot of heavenly preparation required but God knew the time and place that was prophesied and so each of those details needed to be fulfilled to the letter. His preparations entailed making sure the right people were in the right place at the right time.
Part of God’s preparation included the very one that the Jewish people were wanting the Messiah to come and remove from power. The Romans were what the Jewish people thought was wrong with their nation and yet God knew it was their own sinfulness and pride which were causing the issues they were dealing with. If they truly understood the stories of their nation’s history, they would see how not worshiping God as He wants to be worshiped leads to falling into the hands of other nations.
And we can imagine the conversation between Joseph and “near due date” Mary when they found out they needed to head to Bethlehem before the baby was born. They couldn’t just pack for themselves, they would have to take things for the baby too. Maybe they over-packed as many first time parents do. They also had to understand it may end up being a longer stay than anticipated because of the baby.
The young couple may also have had to mentally prepare. They may have already been facing questioning and rejection from family and friends because of the timing of the pregnancy and their marriage. Now they were being forced to possibly travel with those same family members and they were going to be surrounded by many more family members when they got to Bethlehem. News would travel fast around the small town about the young couple. Or maybe there was no room left in the family homes because they had to travel slower than the rest of the family, leaving more time for tongues to wag.
All these preparations were acts of love. God’s love for all His people. He wants a one on one relationship with us and this was the only way. Mary and Joseph’s love of God and this unborn Babe had them doing what they could to obey. All these preparations were setting up the greatest gift of all.
Making It Personal
What final preparations are you making for Christmas? Are they related to your relationship with God? How can you prepare your heart to embrace Him more this Christmas?
Making It Personal Kids
What kinds of things do you do to prepare for Christmas? How can you prepare your heart to know Jesus more? How can you show the love of Jesus to others?
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for all the preparation You did so we can have a relationship with You. Please help us to constantly be preparing our hearts for all You have planned. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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