December Devotions and Doodles – Day 13 (December 13)
Scripture Reading: Luke 2:1-7
1 In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole empire should be registered. 2 This first registration took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. 3 So everyone went to be registered, each to his own town.
4 Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family line of David, 5 to be registered along with Mary, who was engaged to him and was pregnant. 6 While they were there, the time came for her to give birth. 7 Then she gave birth to her firstborn son, and she wrapped him tightly in cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
December 13 Devotional: O Little Town of Bethlehem
It is amazing to me the number of things that had to happen for the Old Testament prophecy to be fulfilled in Jesus as the Messiah. We have already learned that He had to be born through the house and line of David. But He also had to come from Bethlehem.
Prophecy about the Place of the Messiah
Bethlehem Ephrathah,
you are small among the clans of Judah;
one will come from you
to be ruler over Israel for me.
His origin is from antiquity,
from ancient times. Micah 5:2
The prophet Micah tells us that He will come from Bethlehem. I homeschool my children and in my daughter’s bible curriculum, we were learning about the reasons that the Pharisees refused to believe that Jesus was the Messiah.
Confusion Over Place
Scholars of the Law and the Prophets, the Pharisees were confused because they knew that Joseph, Mary and Jesus resided in Nazareth in Galilee. They did not realize that Jesus was born in Bethlehem and so thought that He could not possibly be the Messiah.
41 Others said, “This is the Messiah.” But some said, “Surely the Messiah doesn’t come from Galilee, does he? 42 Doesn’t the Scripture say that the Messiah comes from David’s offspring and from the town of Bethlehem, where David lived?” 43 So the crowd was divided because of him. John 7:41-43
A Perfect Point in History
At the point of the birth of Jesus, we see a remarkable series of events that bring about not only His fulfillment of prophecy, but also the confusion and rejection that led to His death on our behalf.
Caesar calls for a census of the whole empire. The process for this census wasn’t like it is today. Each family had to go register in the place where their ancestors were from. Joseph and Mary have to go to Bethlehem right at the end of her pregnancy – just in time for the Messiah to be born in Bethlehem.
O Little Town of Bethlehem
Bethlehem will forever be remembered as the place which had no room for Jesus. Where He had to be born in a stable. But it also should be remembered as an affirmation of the identity of Jesus as Messiah.
Bethlehem was part of God’s plan for the humble, unexpected birth of an unlikely Savior. Jesus didn’t come like religious leaders expected Him to, but He came exactly as we needed Him to. To place that was foretold. In a way that would allow him to relate to ordinary people and not just kings and queens.
December 13 – Action Step:
Today (December 13), let us marvel at all that God orchestrated so that the Messiah would be born as He had foretold through the prophets. This incredible story of redemption is woven throughout all the books of the Bible through this little town of Bethlehem.
How will God orchestrate our lives for His glory and His will? Are we okay with Him doing the unexpected and the unlikely so that we can experience the greatness of His plan rather than our own?
Prayer:
Dear God, Fill us with wonder as we reflect on Your incredible plan. Help us to recognize when the unexpected and the unlikely are a part of what You have in mind for our lives. Open our eyes to You greatness this season. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Drawing Tutorial – December 13: How to Draw Bethlehem
This one is a difficult one to write out in steps, but is not so hard in pictures.
- Start with a straight line.
- Sitting on the line, add boxy shapes.
- Rounded domes on the tops of a couple buildings help provide that iconic middle Eastern skyline.
- On the largest dome, add a tower with a turban.
- Add in the shapes of windows and doors.
- Shade in the windows and doors as shown, adding rounding lines on the domes.
Click here to check out other posts in this series: December Devotions and Doodles!