December 26, 2023 • 19 mins
Discover the wonder and humanity that cradled the very first Christmas as we strip away the centuries and breathe new life into the story of Jesus's birth. Envision the crowded streets of Bethlehem, where Mary and Joseph, likely accompanied by a caravan, sought shelter in a relative's home. The 'inn' we've heard about was no hotel, but a 'kataluma', a guest room, and it's in the humble setting of a stable that the Messiah arrives. Wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger, Jesus's entrance into the world was anything but silent, surrounded by family and the bustle of a house alive with childbirth.
Feel the pulse of anticipation and joy as the shepherds in the fields receive an angelic proclamation and race to witness the prophecy's fulfillment. Their awe-struck testimonies ripple through the community, touching hearts and affirming ancient covenants. We draw connections between Jesus's birth in the 'house of bread' and his later role as the 'bread of life,' while exploring the significance of his swaddling in Levitical cloth. Join us on this profound journey as we revisit the timeless narrative that continues to inspire and unite us as children of a divine heritage.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:08):
Welcome to our ancient future story, navigating
Scripture through the Eyes ofFamily, where I share with you
biblical stories like a familymember would share a story
around a dinner table.
As children of God, we are apart of God's family and His
family story has a lot ofhistory.
Each week we will take onestory and talk about it the
cultural, historical,geographical and sociological
(00:31):
impacts.
We will be looking at thesestories through the perspective
of our ancestors, through thelens of ancient times, in hopes
of learning more about ourfamily.
This is our ancient futurestory.
Welcome back to our ancientfuture story.
(01:00):
I'm Vic and I am so excited toshare with you part 3 of the
true Christmas story.
Last time we talked about Maryand Joseph.
They once looked like anyordinary couple, but they would
become the parents of thepromised Messiah.
Today we are going to tell thestory of Jesus' birth and the
shepherds who proclaimed thegood news in a not-so-silent
night.
(01:20):
So sit back, grab a cup ofcoffee or something to drink and
get ready to dive into part 3of the story of Christmas.
Our story opens with CaesarAugustus making it a creed that
(01:41):
all of his kingdoms should becounted in text and to be
properly counted.
Everyone must go to theirhometown of their ancestors.
So Joseph packs up himself andMary and they start making their
way toward Bethlehem.
Historical fun fact.
We often think about Mary andJoseph going alone on this
journey from Nazareth toBethlehem, but that's not really
(02:04):
the picture of what would havehappened.
To travel alone was to be likea sitting duck.
You would be robbed or killedon this journey.
So families would traveltogether in caravans and since
the census was across the entireempire, families from the
northern Galilee would travel toBethlehem or to the surrounding
(02:27):
cities would travel together onthis journey.
While they were in Bethlehem itcame time for Mary to deliver
the baby, so she gave birth toher firstborn son, wrapped him
in swaddling clothes and laidhim in a manger because there
was no room for them in the inn.
Historical fun fact the wordinn has often been translated in
(02:49):
as we would think of today,like a motel somewhere in the
middle of nowhere.
But this is not the word thatLuke uses.
Luke uses a word calledkatamala, which is more like a
guest room.
So katamala would have been thesmaller room off of the main
family room where the owners ofthe home would sleep and then
(03:13):
they would have a guest room orkatamala for when they had
company over.
So for us to say there was noroom in the inn is to say there
was no room in the katamala orin the guest room of the house
for them to stay.
So instead they offered themthe barn.
The Mary Joseph went to the barnand Mary gave birth to her
(03:35):
firstborn son and wrapped him inswaddling clothes and laid him
in a manger.
In the same region there wereshepherds keeping watch over
their flock by night and anangel of the Lord appeared to
them saying Fear not, for Ibring you good tidings of great
joy which shall be for allpeople, for unto you is born
this day, in the city of David,a Savior who is Christ, the Lord
(03:56):
, and you shall find the babewrapped in swaddling clothes and
lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was, withthe angel, a multitude of the
heavenly host praising God,saying glory to God in the
highest and on earth, peace,goodwill and toward men.
When the angels went away, theshepherds said one to another
Let us go at once to Bethlehemto see this miraculous child who
(04:17):
the Lord has made known to us.
And they went with haste andthey found Mary and Joseph and
the baby lying in a manger, andwhen they saw it, the shepherds
told everyone about the angels,what they had said in the child
that were told to come see.
All who heard them speakwondered if this was true.
Could this child be the Messiah, the one they had been looking
(04:38):
for?
But Mary treasured all of thesethings in her heart and as the
shepherds left to go back totheir fields, they were
glorifying and praising God forall they had seen and heard.
It was truly not a silent night, and on the eighth day, mary
and Joseph took the baby thetemple to be circumcised, and
they named him Jesus or Yeshua,just as the angel Gabriel had
(05:02):
told them, because he would savehis people from their sins.
And that is where our storyends, for today Jesus has
arrived.
Yahweh has written himself intothe story of humanity.
But our Christmas story doesn'tstop there.
Come back for part four, whenwe will discuss the wise men who
came to worship this baby king.
(05:32):
If you have grew up in church,you probably have heard this
story many, many times.
And even if you didn't grow upin church, you have heard this
story a few times, at leastaround Christmas time.
But there are a few things Ithink are very interesting and
help shape the context of thestory.
1.
Our story takes place on theroad to Bethlehem.
(05:52):
Nazareth is about 90 miles fromBethlehem, which means it would
have taken roughly four days toget there.
When they arrive in Bethlehem,the city is crowded because of
the senses.
Before we get too much furtherinto this story, let's take a
step back and think aboutBethlehem.
At this point in history, weshould be thinking about
(06:14):
Bethlehem more like a villagethan a town or even a city.
The people that lived here.
There's about 200 to 300 peoplethat live in this village.
Every single person, or almostevery single person, is family.
They are all from the line ofDavid.
They have lived in Bethlehemtheir entire lives.
(06:35):
They have gotten married here,they have had kids here.
They are deeply, deeply rootedin Bethlehem and this is common
practice in this time becausethey are a very communal society
.
They're a very communal culture.
They do everything as a group.
So when Joseph takes Mary, theygo to his hometown of Bethlehem
(06:59):
and his entire family.
Everybody is there His cousins,his extended family, his aunts,
his uncles.
Everybody is in this town.
Everybody is there in thisvillage.
So, knowing what we know aboutthe Katamala being inside the
house, as another room of thehouse is a guest room, it makes
(07:20):
sense for Joseph to go to hisfamily and be like, hey, can I
stay in your house?
The Bible doesn't tell us hewas turned away, but it's
possible because of the sensesthat all of the rooms were full
with people who got there first,or possibly the more the higher
status people like the eldersand the older brothers and
(07:43):
fathers stayed in these rooms inthe Katamala in the house.
Now the barn is somethingdifferent and I want to give us
a few minutes to talk about it.
In Bethlehem, many homes werebuilt on top of caves and they
did this so that they could usethe cave as a way to protect
their livestock.
In this culture they don'tcreate generational wealth the
(08:06):
same way we do with assets and401ks.
Instead, they have land,livestock and property and that
is what they pass down to theirkids to make this generational
wealth.
So they carved into the cavesunder the house where they could
put the livestock at night thesheep, the goats they would keep
(08:29):
them there.
There would be a manger therefor them to eat and drink.
Inside this cave.
They would be protected frompredators or from wandering off.
That would harm the animals,and so this is the place it's
underneath the house where Maryand Josephly stay in while they
are in Bethlehem.
(08:50):
Another thing I think isinteresting is the census.
The Roman census issued byCaesar Augustus is believed to
have taken place between 9 BCand 3 BC.
This was a huge undertaking.
Remember, the Roman Empirespanned continents, so in order
to get a census of everyone wholived in the empire would have
(09:11):
taken years to complete.
Luke tells us about the censusoccurred during Cornarius.
While Cornarius was governor inSyria, he became governor
around 8 BC.
So it is believed that Mary andJoseph made their trip by
between 8 or 6 BC, putting thebirth of Christ around 7 BC.
Okay, we have seen when Jesuswas born.
(09:35):
Now let's talk about where hewas born, specifically the barn.
So, as I mentioned earlier, thecatamala, or the guest room,
was full, so they gave Mary andJoseph the barn.
This was under the house withthe animal.
It is dark, musty and the leastsanitary place to give birth.
It was not ideal by any means,but it was in this place, in the
(09:59):
middle of the mess, in themiddle of the darkness, in the
middle of the worst casescenario, that Yahweh enters the
world.
Another one of the things Ithink is interesting, and one of
my favorite things about thisstory, is the swaddling clothes.
When the angel came to theshepherds and said you will find
the babe wrapped in swaddlingclothes, why did the angels tell
(10:21):
the shepherds this?
It wasn't just about swaddlingan infant.
The shepherds in Bethlehem werecalled Levitical shepherds.
Their job was to raise thesheep for sacrifice.
But they couldn't just use anysheep or lamb for sacrifice.
It had to be a spotless lamb,meaning the lamb had no injuries
(10:42):
or wounds.
So a good Levitical shepherd,when a lamb was born, would take
the lamb, wrap it in Leviticalcloth and lay it in a manger to
protect it from becomingblemished.
And this is exactly what Marydid with Jesus.
She wraps him in Leviticalcloth, aka swaddling clothes,
and laid him in a manger.
(11:03):
Now you may be asking where Marygot Levitical cloth from.
She's married to a carpenter,not a priest.
Well, some scholars havesuggested that when she went to
visit Elizabeth, zechariah gaveher the Levitical cloth to wrap
the Messiah after birth.
So when the angel appeared tothe shepherds saying born to you
this day is a Savior who isChrist the Lord.
(11:25):
This will be a sign unto you.
You will find the babe wrappedin what Wrapped in swaddling
clothes and lying in a manger.
The angel came to the shepherdsbecause God knew that they would
be the ones who understood themeaning of a baby wrapped in
Levitical cloths and lying in amanger.
The shepherds were among thefirst to know that this baby was
(11:47):
the promised Messiah.
But more than that, they knewthat this baby was God's
sacrificial lamb, and I justlove that.
God told the shepherds.
First, the lowest of the low onthe social status, those
outcasted from society, wereamong the first to know that God
had sent his lamb to save theworld.
And lastly, we have saidmultiple times, this was not
(12:10):
such a silent night after all.
So let's picture this scene notwith our 2023 lens, but with
the lens of about seven BC.
What did this sweet nativitywe've come to love really look
and sound like?
We have a virgin in labor painswith an echoey cave, shepherds
(12:31):
coming, singing and shouting.
Did anyone get any sleep thatnight?
I guess the song Silent Nightwas way off.
This was not a quiet, peaceful,restful night for anyone in
that cave.
Go with me here.
Mary and Joseph arrive at thecave.
Let's give them the benefit ofthe doubt and say that they got
(12:53):
there before sundown becausethey had to make several stops
before they finally foundsomeone who would allow them to
stay, even though it was justthe barn.
Mary is likely havingcontractions now.
This is her first pregnancy.
She is probably between 10 and12 years old and she is probably
(13:14):
extremely frightened and in alot of pain.
She goes through labor withoutan epidural and Mary's painful
screams are echoing off the cavewalls.
This is not a silent night.
Also, I don't know about you,but I have always pictured this
moment as Mary and Joseph alone,isolated from everyone, until
(13:34):
the shepherds arrive.
But again, this is not thepicture of the Bible.
We must remember Israel is ahyper-communal culture, meaning
if one person is going throughsomething, then the entire
community is also going throughit.
So when Mary starts havingcontractions and eventually
labor, mary is not alone in thismoment.
(13:54):
Her family, or rather Joseph'sfamily, is surrounding them.
They are in the house ofJoseph's relatives and the women
that are in the house both theowner of the home as well as
likely those in the Katsumala orthe surrounding community comes
(14:14):
to help Mary deliver the baby.
This is a joyous communalmoment.
Yes, it is in the cave, yes, itis less than ideal, but it is
still filled with great joy.
And if you're like me and you'reasking well, what about Joseph?
Where was he in all of this?
And we have to consider thatJoseph was an upstanding Jewish
(14:38):
man who cannot come into contactwith bodily fluids that would
leave him unclean.
So it's likely that he stoodaway from Mary while the other
woman helped her deliver thebaby and, as Mary screams, give
way to a baby's cry, an angelappears two miles away to
shepherds keeping watch by night.
The shepherds leave their fieldand race to the cave to see
(15:02):
Jesus, wrapped in Leviticalcloth and laying in a manger,
just as the angel had said, andthey started shouting and
praising God because the Messiahhas come.
Now the Bible doesn't tell usif anybody in that cave knew
that this baby was Jesus, theSavior of the world, but it is
kind of nice to think about thisgroup of people being among the
(15:23):
first to know that Yahweh hadbecome man, emmanuel, to live
among them.
So, as we have discussedthroughout this whole series,
jesus is the fulfillment of theOld Testament through covenants,
prophecies and the law.
So each time we meet togetherwe'll discuss how this story
points to Jesus.
So our story today obviously isthe origin of the story of
(15:44):
Jesus human existence on earth.
But there are a few pieces ofthe story that show us who Jesus
really is.
Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
Bethlehem, or bet-la-chem inHebrew, means house of bread.
Jesus will later call himselfthe bread of life.
The Levitical cloth, as we havetalked about, wrapped Jesus's
(16:05):
body in swaddle and clothes, wasused only for sacrificial lambs
.
Jesus is the sacrificial lamb.
Literally, he was born to diefor the sins of the world.
And lastly, jesus wascircumcised on the eighth day,
beginning his journey offulfilling the broken Abrahamic
covenant.
Jesus has entered the world,but not into a palace, like many
(16:28):
thought the Messiah would enterthe world.
Instead, jesus entered as ababy into a messy, smelly, dark
cave among the animals, wrappedin swaddle and clothes, showing
the world he was the sacrificiallamb.
He entered the world with thepurpose to die for the sins of
all people.
So before we go, I want us toclose our time together by
(16:49):
reading the scriptures fromwhich our story comes from today
, in Luke 2.
I hope that as we read andlisten to this chapter and all
that's being read, that we willembrace all that we have learned
and that this passage will beilluminated for you.
Let's read In those days,caesar Augustus issued a decree
that a census should be taken ofthe entire Roman world.
(17:13):
This was the first census thattook place while Quinerius was
governor of Syria and everyonewent in their own town to
register.
So Joseph also went up from thetown of Nazareth to Galilee, to
Judea, to the Bethlehem, to thetown of David, because he
belonged to the house and lineof David.
He went there to register withMary, who was pledged to be
(17:34):
married to him and was expectinga child.
While they were there, the timecame for the baby to be born
and she gave birth to herfirstborn son.
She wrapped him in cloths andplaced him in a manger, because
there was no room available forthem and there were shepherds
living in the fields nearbykeeping watch over their flocks.
By night, an angel of the Lordappeared to them and the glory
(17:55):
of the Lord shone around them,and they were terrified.
But the angel said to them Donot be afraid, I bring you good
news that will cause great joyfor all people.
Today, in the town of David, aSavior has been born to you.
He is the Messiah, the Lord.
This will be a sign to you.
You will find the baby wrappedin cloths and lying in a manger.
(18:17):
Suddenly, a great company ofheavenly hosts appeared, with
the angel praising God, sayingGlory to God in the highest and,
on earth, peace to those onwhom his favor rests.
When the angel had left themand gone into heaven, the
shepherd said to one anotherlet's go to Bethlehem and see
this thing that has happened,which the Lord has told us about
.
So they hurried off and foundMary and Joseph and the baby,
(18:40):
who were lying in a manger.
When they had seen him, theyspread the word concerning what
had been told to them about thechild.
In all who heard it were amazed.
So what the shepherd said tothem.
But Mary treasured up all thesethings and pondered them in her
heart.
The shepherds returnedglorifying and praising God for
all these things they had heardand seen, which were just as
(19:00):
they had been told.
On the eighth day, when it wastime to circumcise the child, he
was named Jesus, the name theangel had given him before he
was conceived.
Thank you for listening totoday's episode of our ancient
future story.
I hope that you really enjoyedit.
This episode was written andproduced by me.
(19:23):
Vic Harmon Music is embarkingon an adventure by Evan
MacDonald.
Please support the show bysubscribing and rating us, and
if you want more info or want todive deeper, check out our
website at ourancientfuturestorycom.
See you next time.
Bye.
Welcome to our ancient future story, navigating
Scripture through the Eyes ofFamily, where I share with you
biblical stories like a familymember would share a story
around a dinner table.
As children of God, we are apart of God's family and His
family story has a lot ofhistory.
Each week we will take onestory and talk about it the
cultural, historical,geographical and sociological
(00:31):
impacts.
We will be looking at thesestories through the perspective
of our ancestors, through thelens of ancient times, in hopes
of learning more about ourfamily.
This is our ancient futurestory.
Welcome back to our ancientfuture story.
(01:00):
I'm Vic and I am so excited toshare with you part 3 of the
true Christmas story.
Last time we talked about Maryand Joseph.
They once looked like anyordinary couple, but they would
become the parents of thepromised Messiah.
Today we are going to tell thestory of Jesus' birth and the
shepherds who proclaimed thegood news in a not-so-silent
night.
(01:20):
So sit back, grab a cup ofcoffee or something to drink and
get ready to dive into part 3of the story of Christmas.
Our story opens with CaesarAugustus making it a creed that
(01:41):
all of his kingdoms should becounted in text and to be
properly counted.
Everyone must go to theirhometown of their ancestors.
So Joseph packs up himself andMary and they start making their
way toward Bethlehem.
Historical fun fact.
We often think about Mary andJoseph going alone on this
journey from Nazareth toBethlehem, but that's not really
(02:04):
the picture of what would havehappened.
To travel alone was to be likea sitting duck.
You would be robbed or killedon this journey.
So families would traveltogether in caravans and since
the census was across the entireempire, families from the
northern Galilee would travel toBethlehem or to the surrounding
(02:27):
cities would travel together onthis journey.
While they were in Bethlehem itcame time for Mary to deliver
the baby, so she gave birth toher firstborn son, wrapped him
in swaddling clothes and laidhim in a manger because there
was no room for them in the inn.
Historical fun fact the wordinn has often been translated in
(02:49):
as we would think of today,like a motel somewhere in the
middle of nowhere.
But this is not the word thatLuke uses.
Luke uses a word calledkatamala, which is more like a
guest room.
So katamala would have been thesmaller room off of the main
family room where the owners ofthe home would sleep and then
(03:13):
they would have a guest room orkatamala for when they had
company over.
So for us to say there was noroom in the inn is to say there
was no room in the katamala orin the guest room of the house
for them to stay.
So instead they offered themthe barn.
The Mary Joseph went to the barnand Mary gave birth to her
(03:35):
firstborn son and wrapped him inswaddling clothes and laid him
in a manger.
In the same region there wereshepherds keeping watch over
their flock by night and anangel of the Lord appeared to
them saying Fear not, for Ibring you good tidings of great
joy which shall be for allpeople, for unto you is born
this day, in the city of David,a Savior who is Christ, the Lord
(03:56):
, and you shall find the babewrapped in swaddling clothes and
lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was, withthe angel, a multitude of the
heavenly host praising God,saying glory to God in the
highest and on earth, peace,goodwill and toward men.
When the angels went away, theshepherds said one to another
Let us go at once to Bethlehemto see this miraculous child who
(04:17):
the Lord has made known to us.
And they went with haste andthey found Mary and Joseph and
the baby lying in a manger, andwhen they saw it, the shepherds
told everyone about the angels,what they had said in the child
that were told to come see.
All who heard them speakwondered if this was true.
Could this child be the Messiah, the one they had been looking
(04:38):
for?
But Mary treasured all of thesethings in her heart and as the
shepherds left to go back totheir fields, they were
glorifying and praising God forall they had seen and heard.
It was truly not a silent night, and on the eighth day, mary
and Joseph took the baby thetemple to be circumcised, and
they named him Jesus or Yeshua,just as the angel Gabriel had
(05:02):
told them, because he would savehis people from their sins.
And that is where our storyends, for today Jesus has
arrived.
Yahweh has written himself intothe story of humanity.
But our Christmas story doesn'tstop there.
Come back for part four, whenwe will discuss the wise men who
came to worship this baby king.
(05:32):
If you have grew up in church,you probably have heard this
story many, many times.
And even if you didn't grow upin church, you have heard this
story a few times, at leastaround Christmas time.
But there are a few things Ithink are very interesting and
help shape the context of thestory.
1.
Our story takes place on theroad to Bethlehem.
(05:52):
Nazareth is about 90 miles fromBethlehem, which means it would
have taken roughly four days toget there.
When they arrive in Bethlehem,the city is crowded because of
the senses.
Before we get too much furtherinto this story, let's take a
step back and think aboutBethlehem.
At this point in history, weshould be thinking about
(06:14):
Bethlehem more like a villagethan a town or even a city.
The people that lived here.
There's about 200 to 300 peoplethat live in this village.
Every single person, or almostevery single person, is family.
They are all from the line ofDavid.
They have lived in Bethlehemtheir entire lives.
(06:35):
They have gotten married here,they have had kids here.
They are deeply, deeply rootedin Bethlehem and this is common
practice in this time becausethey are a very communal society
.
They're a very communal culture.
They do everything as a group.
So when Joseph takes Mary, theygo to his hometown of Bethlehem
(06:59):
and his entire family.
Everybody is there His cousins,his extended family, his aunts,
his uncles.
Everybody is in this town.
Everybody is there in thisvillage.
So, knowing what we know aboutthe Katamala being inside the
house, as another room of thehouse is a guest room, it makes
(07:20):
sense for Joseph to go to hisfamily and be like, hey, can I
stay in your house?
The Bible doesn't tell us hewas turned away, but it's
possible because of the sensesthat all of the rooms were full
with people who got there first,or possibly the more the higher
status people like the eldersand the older brothers and
(07:43):
fathers stayed in these rooms inthe Katamala in the house.
Now the barn is somethingdifferent and I want to give us
a few minutes to talk about it.
In Bethlehem, many homes werebuilt on top of caves and they
did this so that they could usethe cave as a way to protect
their livestock.
In this culture they don'tcreate generational wealth the
(08:06):
same way we do with assets and401ks.
Instead, they have land,livestock and property and that
is what they pass down to theirkids to make this generational
wealth.
So they carved into the cavesunder the house where they could
put the livestock at night thesheep, the goats they would keep
(08:29):
them there.
There would be a manger therefor them to eat and drink.
Inside this cave.
They would be protected frompredators or from wandering off.
That would harm the animals,and so this is the place it's
underneath the house where Maryand Josephly stay in while they
are in Bethlehem.
(08:50):
Another thing I think isinteresting is the census.
The Roman census issued byCaesar Augustus is believed to
have taken place between 9 BCand 3 BC.
This was a huge undertaking.
Remember, the Roman Empirespanned continents, so in order
to get a census of everyone wholived in the empire would have
(09:11):
taken years to complete.
Luke tells us about the censusoccurred during Cornarius.
While Cornarius was governor inSyria, he became governor
around 8 BC.
So it is believed that Mary andJoseph made their trip by
between 8 or 6 BC, putting thebirth of Christ around 7 BC.
Okay, we have seen when Jesuswas born.
(09:35):
Now let's talk about where hewas born, specifically the barn.
So, as I mentioned earlier, thecatamala, or the guest room,
was full, so they gave Mary andJoseph the barn.
This was under the house withthe animal.
It is dark, musty and the leastsanitary place to give birth.
It was not ideal by any means,but it was in this place, in the
(09:59):
middle of the mess, in themiddle of the darkness, in the
middle of the worst casescenario, that Yahweh enters the
world.
Another one of the things Ithink is interesting, and one of
my favorite things about thisstory, is the swaddling clothes.
When the angel came to theshepherds and said you will find
the babe wrapped in swaddlingclothes, why did the angels tell
(10:21):
the shepherds this?
It wasn't just about swaddlingan infant.
The shepherds in Bethlehem werecalled Levitical shepherds.
Their job was to raise thesheep for sacrifice.
But they couldn't just use anysheep or lamb for sacrifice.
It had to be a spotless lamb,meaning the lamb had no injuries
(10:42):
or wounds.
So a good Levitical shepherd,when a lamb was born, would take
the lamb, wrap it in Leviticalcloth and lay it in a manger to
protect it from becomingblemished.
And this is exactly what Marydid with Jesus.
She wraps him in Leviticalcloth, aka swaddling clothes,
and laid him in a manger.
(11:03):
Now you may be asking where Marygot Levitical cloth from.
She's married to a carpenter,not a priest.
Well, some scholars havesuggested that when she went to
visit Elizabeth, zechariah gaveher the Levitical cloth to wrap
the Messiah after birth.
So when the angel appeared tothe shepherds saying born to you
this day is a Savior who isChrist the Lord.
(11:25):
This will be a sign unto you.
You will find the babe wrappedin what Wrapped in swaddling
clothes and lying in a manger.
The angel came to the shepherdsbecause God knew that they would
be the ones who understood themeaning of a baby wrapped in
Levitical cloths and lying in amanger.
The shepherds were among thefirst to know that this baby was
(11:47):
the promised Messiah.
But more than that, they knewthat this baby was God's
sacrificial lamb, and I justlove that.
God told the shepherds.
First, the lowest of the low onthe social status, those
outcasted from society, wereamong the first to know that God
had sent his lamb to save theworld.
And lastly, we have saidmultiple times, this was not
(12:10):
such a silent night after all.
So let's picture this scene notwith our 2023 lens, but with
the lens of about seven BC.
What did this sweet nativitywe've come to love really look
and sound like?
We have a virgin in labor painswith an echoey cave, shepherds
(12:31):
coming, singing and shouting.
Did anyone get any sleep thatnight?
I guess the song Silent Nightwas way off.
This was not a quiet, peaceful,restful night for anyone in
that cave.
Go with me here.
Mary and Joseph arrive at thecave.
Let's give them the benefit ofthe doubt and say that they got
(12:53):
there before sundown becausethey had to make several stops
before they finally foundsomeone who would allow them to
stay, even though it was justthe barn.
Mary is likely havingcontractions now.
This is her first pregnancy.
She is probably between 10 and12 years old and she is probably
(13:14):
extremely frightened and in alot of pain.
She goes through labor withoutan epidural and Mary's painful
screams are echoing off the cavewalls.
This is not a silent night.
Also, I don't know about you,but I have always pictured this
moment as Mary and Joseph alone,isolated from everyone, until
(13:34):
the shepherds arrive.
But again, this is not thepicture of the Bible.
We must remember Israel is ahyper-communal culture, meaning
if one person is going throughsomething, then the entire
community is also going throughit.
So when Mary starts havingcontractions and eventually
labor, mary is not alone in thismoment.
(13:54):
Her family, or rather Joseph'sfamily, is surrounding them.
They are in the house ofJoseph's relatives and the women
that are in the house both theowner of the home as well as
likely those in the Katsumala orthe surrounding community comes
(14:14):
to help Mary deliver the baby.
This is a joyous communalmoment.
Yes, it is in the cave, yes, itis less than ideal, but it is
still filled with great joy.
And if you're like me and you'reasking well, what about Joseph?
Where was he in all of this?
And we have to consider thatJoseph was an upstanding Jewish
(14:38):
man who cannot come into contactwith bodily fluids that would
leave him unclean.
So it's likely that he stoodaway from Mary while the other
woman helped her deliver thebaby and, as Mary screams, give
way to a baby's cry, an angelappears two miles away to
shepherds keeping watch by night.
The shepherds leave their fieldand race to the cave to see
(15:02):
Jesus, wrapped in Leviticalcloth and laying in a manger,
just as the angel had said, andthey started shouting and
praising God because the Messiahhas come.
Now the Bible doesn't tell usif anybody in that cave knew
that this baby was Jesus, theSavior of the world, but it is
kind of nice to think about thisgroup of people being among the
(15:23):
first to know that Yahweh hadbecome man, emmanuel, to live
among them.
So, as we have discussedthroughout this whole series,
jesus is the fulfillment of theOld Testament through covenants,
prophecies and the law.
So each time we meet togetherwe'll discuss how this story
points to Jesus.
So our story today obviously isthe origin of the story of
(15:44):
Jesus human existence on earth.
But there are a few pieces ofthe story that show us who Jesus
really is.
Jesus was born in Bethlehem.
Bethlehem, or bet-la-chem inHebrew, means house of bread.
Jesus will later call himselfthe bread of life.
The Levitical cloth, as we havetalked about, wrapped Jesus's
(16:05):
body in swaddle and clothes, wasused only for sacrificial lambs
.
Jesus is the sacrificial lamb.
Literally, he was born to diefor the sins of the world.
And lastly, jesus wascircumcised on the eighth day,
beginning his journey offulfilling the broken Abrahamic
covenant.
Jesus has entered the world,but not into a palace, like many
(16:28):
thought the Messiah would enterthe world.
Instead, jesus entered as ababy into a messy, smelly, dark
cave among the animals, wrappedin swaddle and clothes, showing
the world he was the sacrificiallamb.
He entered the world with thepurpose to die for the sins of
all people.
So before we go, I want us toclose our time together by
(16:49):
reading the scriptures fromwhich our story comes from today
, in Luke 2.
I hope that as we read andlisten to this chapter and all
that's being read, that we willembrace all that we have learned
and that this passage will beilluminated for you.
Let's read In those days,caesar Augustus issued a decree
that a census should be taken ofthe entire Roman world.
(17:13):
This was the first census thattook place while Quinerius was
governor of Syria and everyonewent in their own town to
register.
So Joseph also went up from thetown of Nazareth to Galilee, to
Judea, to the Bethlehem, to thetown of David, because he
belonged to the house and lineof David.
He went there to register withMary, who was pledged to be
(17:34):
married to him and was expectinga child.
While they were there, the timecame for the baby to be born
and she gave birth to herfirstborn son.
She wrapped him in cloths andplaced him in a manger, because
there was no room available forthem and there were shepherds
living in the fields nearbykeeping watch over their flocks.
By night, an angel of the Lordappeared to them and the glory
(17:55):
of the Lord shone around them,and they were terrified.
But the angel said to them Donot be afraid, I bring you good
news that will cause great joyfor all people.
Today, in the town of David, aSavior has been born to you.
He is the Messiah, the Lord.
This will be a sign to you.
You will find the baby wrappedin cloths and lying in a manger.
(18:17):
Suddenly, a great company ofheavenly hosts appeared, with
the angel praising God, sayingGlory to God in the highest and,
on earth, peace to those onwhom his favor rests.
When the angel had left themand gone into heaven, the
shepherd said to one anotherlet's go to Bethlehem and see
this thing that has happened,which the Lord has told us about
.
So they hurried off and foundMary and Joseph and the baby,
(18:40):
who were lying in a manger.
When they had seen him, theyspread the word concerning what
had been told to them about thechild.
In all who heard it were amazed.
So what the shepherd said tothem.
But Mary treasured up all thesethings and pondered them in her
heart.
The shepherds returnedglorifying and praising God for
all these things they had heardand seen, which were just as
(19:00):
they had been told.
On the eighth day, when it wastime to circumcise the child, he
was named Jesus, the name theangel had given him before he
was conceived.
Thank you for listening totoday's episode of our ancient
future story.
I hope that you really enjoyedit.
This episode was written andproduced by me.
(19:23):
Vic Harmon Music is embarkingon an adventure by Evan
MacDonald.
Please support the show bysubscribing and rating us, and
if you want more info or want todive deeper, check out our
website at ourancientfuturestorycom.
See you next time.
Bye.
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