Change Of Scenes

Change of Scenes

Luke 2:1-4, NLT

At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire. 2(This was the first census taken when Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census. 4And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home. He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee.

Setting the Scene

Like a true historian, Luke paints in broad strokes the political landscape around the intimate scene in Bethlehem when Jesus was born. The Roman emperor Augustus set into motion a new program of taxation for the nations under his rule and caused a couple from Nazareth to travel to their ancestral home. Mary and Joseph didn’t head for Bethlehem simply to fulfill the widely known prophecy that the Savior would be born in Bethlehem in Judea (Micah 5:2); they went to their family “hometown” because of the emperor’s decree. God demonstrated his power and creativity in using the massive apparatus of the Roman government to move people into the places he wanted them to be for his own arrival on earth. Jerusalem was the great King David’s capital, but his home was Bethlehem, and his descendant Joseph was required to report there.

Some might note all these converging developments and be amazed at the unusual number of coincidences, but those who keep God at the center of things know that the Creator of this world is also its Sustainer and Guide. The universe ship has a Captain, and the journey has a destination. The birth of Jesus was the most planned and prepared-for arrival in history. God’s unfolding promise—first given to the fallen Adam and Eve that God would provide an answer for sin—was about to be fulfilled. As Joseph and Mary wearily approached Bethlehem, the final pieces of a complex plan fell quietly into place.

Getting Personal

Where do you see God working on the world stage in our time in history?

What choices will you make today, depending on God to do his part?

It isn’t all that easy to look at world events and understand how God is fitting them into his plan. But hindsight and continual observation of the flow of our own lives remind us that God is active and in control. The kind of trust we see in Joseph and Mary reveals the importance of obedience even when we can’t see the immediate outcome of our next steps.

Talking to God

Ask God to help you trust in his sovereignty, even over the mundane and inconvenient events in life. Ask God to guide your steps today to glorify him and participate in his plans for the world.