Who is the Babe of Bethlehem?

by Rev. David Beling

Christmas is a birthday celebration. It marks the birth of a very special person, who entered human history twenty-one centuries ago. Sadly, many caught up in the swirl of festive revelry, feasting and the exchange of gifts and greetings, have lost sight of the original event they celebrate. Many even think that Santa Claus is the focal point of the celebration! But what of the Babe of Bethlehem?

The Bible tells us that “when the time had fully come, God sent his son, born of a woman,...... (Galatians 4:4). His arrival was not on sudden impulse, it was a plan forged from the beginning of creation. The Apostle John says,”...... God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

The Babe of Bethlehem was prophetically anticipated

The Bible gives us interesting details on this unique birth, which though anticipated for centuries by prophecy, took the people at that time by surprise. The prophecies had progressively filled in the details of who he would be. As early as at the Garden of Eden, God said to the tempter who had enticed the first human pair to sin, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.” (Genesis 3:15). Many years later Moses said, “The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him”. (Deuteronomy 18:15) - the Apostle John in his gospel later asserts the fulfilment: “After the people saw the miraculous sign that Jesus did, they began to say, ‘Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world’ (John 6:14). The Psalmist quotes the Lord God, saying, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father......”. Writing 700 years before the birth of Jesus, the Prophet Isaiah says “...... the Lord himself will give you a sign: The Virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). Immanuel means ‘God with us.’ The Prophet Micah, writing six centuries before the event, gives his birthplace as Bethlehem, an insignificant village in Judea, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times” (Micah 5:2).

Again, the prophet Isaiah said, “...... to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Almighty will accomplish this” (Isaiah 9:6,7). There are over a hundred prophetic references to this remarkable person who arrived humbly and touched the lives of the people of his day remarkably; there are also many more prophesies still to be fulfilled regarding him.

In significant words, John referring to him as the Logos (word) says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of men.

The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.... He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognise him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God - children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:1-5, 11-14).

Supernaturally born

The writers of the Gospels record the circumstances of this wonderful event which may be summarized as follows. Mary and Joseph were engaged to be married, but one day an angel visited her with a message from God, informing her that she had been divinely chosen to bring a baby into the world, whom she was to call Jesus, (meaning Saviour). He would be conceived without an earthly father, by a supernatural work of God, be great and be called the son of God. She accepted her role humbly, but how could Joseph he convinced about this? While Joseph grappled with the possible scandal, and was considering breaking his engagement, an angel visited him too, in a dream, and assured him that what was happening was the unique work of God. He should not be afraid to take Mary as his wife; she would bring into the world a son whom he should name Jesus, ‘because he will save his people from their sins.’

At the time of his birth, a Roman census had been declared. Mary and Joseph, though of poor circumstances, were of royal lineage and had to go to their ancestral city, Bethlehem. The city was crowded and with no accommodation available, they had to make do in a cattle stall.

Mary gave birth to the holy child in those rustic circumstances, wrapping him in cloths and placing him in a feeding trough - a manger. Here indeed was Irony - God entering humanity, not in a palace but in a cattle stall. He did so below the religious radar of his time. The announcement of his birth was made not in the royal palace of King Herod, but out on a grazing field, to a group of motley shepherds, by angels singing the good news and giving glory to God. The shepherds immediately responded positively, being the first visitors to grace the occasion.

The message did get to the palace later, when the Magi from the east, informed by a star indicating the birth of a king, inquired at the palace of Herod in Jerusalem. This alarmed the ruler, who sought for information from the religious teachers. They went back to the prophetic scriptures and confirmed that the birth was to be in Bethlehem. Herod tried to use the Magi to discover the baby and destroy him, pretending he too wanted to worship him, but the Magi having found Jesus, were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, and used a different route for their return.

Mary, Joseph and the baby were then led by God to safety in Egypt, away from the danger of an incensed king seeking by all means to rid himself of a threat to his throne. Later they returned to Judea, to live at Nazareth, after King Herod had died.

Jesus was born by supernatural conception, into a normal human family, and lived and grew as any boy of his time. His nature was divine, so he did not inherit Adam’s sinfulness; his flesh was totally human, enabling him to identify with all the pain and pressures we face. The Bible says, “...... he had to be made like his brothers in every way, in order that he might become a merciful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” and “...we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin” (Hebrews 2:17, 18, 4:15).

Saviour

The mission of Jesus as Saviour was fulfilled in his prime, when he gave himself to die sacrificially on behalf of all humanity. He was falsely accused by the religious establishment of his day, as a blasphemer, and in a travesty of justice, the Roman governor sought to appease an incited mob demanding his death, by executing him together with criminals, on the cross. The Bible says God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21). His bodily resurrection validated his work on our behalf on the cross.

At his ascension into heaven after his resurrection, Jesus’ disciples were given a special message, “...why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11)

King

The Magi sought him as king, and worshipped him. The arrogant religious leaders of his time rejected his claim to be the promised King they challenged him in unbelief. He asserted, “My kingdom is not of this world”. When Pilate, the governor asked if he was a king, he said “You are right in saying I am a king.

“In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth (John 18:36,37)”. When he subjected himself to crucifixion the sneering notice fixed to the cross was “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews”. But those who have challenged his right to be King will see him in his eternal glory- not as a helpless baby, or a suffering victim on the cross, but in his majesty.

The Apostle John, who had been a very close disciple of Jesus, had a glimpse of this in his vision: “and among the lampstands was someone ‘like a son of man’, dressed in a robe reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire. His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all its brilliance”.

Three Wise Men follow the star

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades” (Revelation 1:12-18). When he comes back to the earth, he will do so to establish his kingdom. “At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory” (Matthew 24:30).

The Apostle Paul summaries who the Babe of Bethlehem was. Jesus

being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:6-11)

As we celebrate Christmas, let us give the Babe of Bethlehem his due place, recognising who he really is. The angels proclaiming his birth declared, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favour rests. (Luke 2:14)

(The writer is an Associate Pastor of the People’s Church, Assembly of God. All Bible passages are quoted from the New International Version of the Holy Bible)