Luke 2:1-3

At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. (This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census.

A friend of mine once commented to me that he wasn’t bothered whether the story of Jesus’ birth was historically accurate or not. He was happy to accept it as simply a beautiful story. Dr Luke, who wrote this gospel, would have profoundly disagreed. For Luke, the historical context of Jesus’ birth was of crucial importance, so he supplied us with more information than any of the other gospel writers. It was typical of the Romans to conduct censuses. They liked to have a clear account of what was going on throughout their vast empire. Joseph and Mary made the long and arduous journey from Nazareth, in the north of the country, to the ancestral home of Joseph in Bethlehem, not far from Jerusalem in the south.

The meticulous historical details are of vital importance because they make it clear that Jesus fully entered into human life. God became part of our world, with all its challenges and difficulties. Jesus arrived at a time of humiliation for the Jewish people as they lived under the oppression of Roman occupation. It was a time of struggle and threat, indeed so much so that not long after Jesus’ birth, his parents were obliged to take him to Egypt to avoid the threat of King Herod, who was insanely jealous at the thought of a rival king turning up in his kingdom.

As we celebrate Christmas this year, we do so in a world that is struggling in a vast number of ways. There have never been more displaced people in the world than there are today. There is much violence, fear, brokenness and pain. The wonder of Christmas is that we celebrate that God comes to our world, broken and sad as it is, and offers his gift of new life through Jesus. Just as God didn’t wait for the world to become peaceful and harmonious before he sent his precious son, so too he comes to us amid the present turmoil and offers his gift of peace.

Question

In what way do the circumstances of Jesus’ birth give you encouragement this Christmas?

Prayer

Loving Father, thank you for sending Jesus to our troubled world, and for the peace that he offers us today. Amen