ルカによる福音書2:1-7 Luke 2:1-7,

At the time of Jesus’ birth into the world, a man called Augustus, Emperor of the Roman Empire, ruled the nations with strong power. Augustus decided to take a survey of the population of all the inhabitants in the territory of the Roman Empire. He then ordered them to go to the town or village where they were born and register themselves.

Mary and Joseph lived in Nazareth in Galilee, but travelled to Bethlehem in Judea, Joseph’s home town. Nazareth to Bethlehem is more than 100 km away, even in a straight line. Of course, this was a long time ago, so there were no cars, and the only vehicles would have been camels or donkeys. However, Joseph and Mary were not rich, so they probably travelled on foot.

Bethlehem was the birthplace of King David, Joseph’s ancestor. King David was a king who ruled the nation of Israel about 1000 years before the time of Mary and Joseph. King David was a man who listened to and followed God’s teachings, and the nation of Israel prospered. Later, the kings descended from King David did not follow God’s teachings, so the country was destroyed by God’s judgement. However, God had promised through the prophets that one day he would give them the ideal king, Messiah, i.e., the Saviour.

According to God’s promise, Jesus, the Saviour of the world and King of the world, was born in Bethlehem. The journey to Bethlehem must have been a painful journey for Mary because she had the baby Jesus in her womb. Moreover, when they arrived in Bethlehem, the inns were full and there was nowhere to stay, so Mary and Joseph had to stay in a cattle shed. And it was while they were staying in the cattle shed that Jesus was born. Jesus was then laid in a manger with grass for the livestock to eat.

The fact that Jesus was born in a cattle shed and laid in a manger, unlike ordinary people, had a good meaning. The manger was a sign that Jesus would suffer on earth and die on the cross to pay for our sins. Therefore, Joseph and Mary’s painful journey had meaning. And it was actually God the Heavenly Father who made the Roman emperor conduct a population survey.

It is a wonderful thing that God’s only Son, Jesus, was born into the world. Why is it wonderful? It is because Jesus died and rose again on behalf of us so that our sins could be forgiven and we could have eternal life. Why is Christmas a time of celebration? It is because Jesus was born into the world and opened the way for those who believe in him to be saved. In this country we live in, there are still very few people who believe in Jesus. Even though we celebrate Christmas, there are many people who do not know the true meaning of the celebration. We want to proclaim the wonder of Jesus’ salvation this Christmas.