Bethlehem

"So Jacob called the name of the place where God had spoken with him, Bethel."

Genesis 35:15

So Rachel died, and she was buried on the way to Ephrath (that is, Bethlehem), and Jacob set up a pillar upon her grave; it is the pillar of Rachel's tomb, which is there to this day.

Genesis 35:19-20

And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem; and he said to the reapers, "The Lord be with you!" And they answered, "The Lord bless you."

Ruth 2:4

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days. Micah 5:2

And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David,

Luke 2:4

Has not the scripture said that the Christ is descended from David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?" John 7:42

What separates the Judea-Christian religion from the mysticism of so many other of the world's religions is its historical claims of real people who lived in history. I find it fascinating that the story of the Bible is intertwined with geography and the stories of people who lived during the times of the rise and fall of historical nations. There are certain locations that seemed especially important to the Bible story. One of those places is Bethlehem.

Located about 6 miles south of Jerusalem, the modern day Bethlehem has a population of only about 30,000 people. And, to this day, it is one of the locations of the highest number of Palestinians who are of the Christian faith. The first time it is mentioned in the book of Genesis, it is the location where God delivers Jacob and reveals to him that his name is to be henceforth forever changed. He is no longer "Jacob" but "Israel" of whom God promises to make a king of his descendants. A little later his wife, Rachel, dies in childbirth there while delivering her son Benjamin. Jacob marks the spot with a pillar. Interestingly, the location is there today. See: Rachel's tomb.

Later, in the book of Ruth we discover that Bethlehem is the hometown of Boaz, who marries Ruth, a Moabitess, who becomes the linage of the Israel's second King, David. The book of Ruth is a powerful story about how a kinsmen-redeemer through his love reconciles a foreigner into the community of faith. The messianic prophesy that Bethlehem was to be the birthplace of the Messiah made by the prophet Micah was so well known in the days of King Herod that the Magi were instructed to go there by the priests of Herod's court. And, the fact that Joseph had to travel for the census to Bethlehem to his father's hometown made this one spot on the planet the location of where God entered the world in human form.

The Christmas story is a world phenomenon. It is extremely unusual, highly remarkable and extraordinary. Even though there are those who would eliminate any thought of God in the world, the Christmas story refuses to be snuffed out from the firesides of the faithful to the halls of commerce. How is it that the story of an obscure Jewish boy, born in a manger twenty centuries ago, who only lived to the age of 33 and who was in the public eye for a mere 3 years of his life before being executed as a criminal on a Roman cross in the backwater of a Roman province, becomes the person by whom we measure the length of human history? He never wrote a book, and he only left eleven confused men to tell his story. How is it that his teachings have become the standard of the world's morality that has led to the ennobling factor of human beings....the abolishment of slavery...the acceptance of the emancipation of women...and the only real power for good in the world ever since his death?

Trying to explain this phenomenon by human reason leaves the historian, as well as the philosopher and scientists at a loss. No other human being in the history of the world has ever had the kind of impact upon humanity as the claim of Jesus as Messiah. The Christmas story defies human reason and grips society with a power of its claim that God came down from heaven and entered the world in human form so that he could reconcile and save humankind through faith. The signs of the revelation at Bethel are no mere coincident. It was part of a grand design from the very beginning. The paradox of how God, who is rich in mercy, would save us all through the birth of his son is the greatest testimony of all time. The angels proclaimed it at Bethlehem. Yet, his son entered the world when there was no room for him in the inn. He was born on a cold night to a homeless teenage mother and an earthly father in a stable amidst the steaming dung of animals. A manger was his crib. Even the gifts brought by the Magi, the non-Jewish wise me from afar, of gold, incense and myrrh were symbolic of gifts given to the families of the deceased.

Bethlehem is a crossroads. It is the place of great joy and a place of lament. The prophet Jeremiah was quoted by Matthew as a fulfillment of his prophecy in Chapter 31 verse 15: Thus says the LORD, "A voice is heard in Ramah, Lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; She refuses to be comforted for her children, Because they are no more."

The City of God

¹³ These all died in faith, not having received what was promised, but having seen it and greeted it from afar, and having acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. ¹⁴ For people who speak thus make it clear that they are seeking a homeland. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking of that land from which they had gone out, they would have had opportunity to return. ¹⁶ But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared for them a city.

Hebrews 11: 13-16.

As one listens to the news and looks about this world, we are reminded daily that we live in a fallen world where the systems of law and order are broken down by sin and evil. We live each day in the midst of a cosmic battle that rages unseen between the forces of good and evil. Every human being gets to decide on a daily basis whether he or she will choose between the ways of the Lord or the pursuit of one's own selfish desires to fulfill one's lust of self. For those who choose the path of the narrow way, we are often left to feel like strangers and exiles on this planet. What each of us wants more than anything else is to find a homeland. A place of peace and sanctuary from the assaults upon one's life and security. A refuge from death and a purpose for living.

There is Good News! The place for which we long and for which we were made actually exists! But, it is not of this earth. Only by faith in the one who made us and created us may we come to understand that there exists a City which is the fulfillment of every desire of one's heart. When we are beaten up, knocked down and standing in the shadow of the valley of death, there is still this hope that transcends human understanding. It is a hope that there is a place that we can call home for all eternity. It is the City of God.