Advent Midweek 1
Micah 5:1-6
December 20, 2017
“O Bethlehem”
You, O Bethlehem. Yes, I'm talking to
you. The prophet Micah has got a word about you. Oh you're a sleepy
little town, not worthy of note on your own. Just about the only
claim to fame you have is being the hometown of King David. Sort of
like Springfield, Illinois claims its most famous resident, Abraham
Lincoln – but why else do you know or care about Springfield?
Bethlehem - You don't have the mighty
temple, like Jerusalem. You don't have the seat of governmental
power like, say, Caesarea. You're not a port city or at a major
thoroughfare or crossroads. I mean, what can you say for yourself?
Well then there's that other prophecy
about Rachel weeping for her children, refusing to be comforted. A
prophecy of Jeremiah, the weeping prophet himself, because he lived
to see the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. Before they
carried off the people of Jerusalem into exile, they had a staging
area at Ramah – kind of like a POW camp.
The same Ramah, where Rachel had died
in childbirth, and was buried. But when she died, she was on her way
to Bethlehem. And so Ramah and Bethlehem are connected.
Later on, when King Herod killed the
innocent babes of Bethlehem, Matthew's Gospel quotes Jeremiah. The
comparison is this: Bethlehem and Ramah – these little towns are
associated with weeping and misery – because of the death or
Rachel, because of the deportation of the exiles, and because of the
murder of innocent children by Herod. Any way you
slice it, none of this is really a point of boasting for little
Bethlehem.
But don't worry, O
Bethlehem, for our God has a way of bringing something out of
nothing. He makes the first last and the last first. He raises up
the lowly, and humbles the high and mighty. And you, O Bethlehem,
little town that you are, God has plans for you.
[You] who are too little to be among
the clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in
Israel,
whose coming forth is from of old,
from ancient days.
You once brought
forth a king, O Bethlehem. Though he was the smallest among his
brothers, the youngest of 7. He guarded the sheep – fighting off
bear and lion. He then proved his mettle when he took down the
Philistine giant. But his mettle was not in his strength of sword or
prowess in battle. He was a man after God's own heart. He gave God
the credit for the victory. He knew going in God was with him. And
afterward he kept no glory for himself. David lived by faith, as did
all who lived and trusted God's Word, as do all believers, even
today.
And now again, O
Bethlehem, you are to bring forth the Son of David. The one who
would rule on his Father David's throne. The one who would restore
the fallen house to a mighty dynasty, the shoot from the stump of
Jesse that would grow to a mighty oak. The people of Jerusalem would
shout their Hosannas at his triumphant arrival. Hosanna to the Son
of David! Blessed is he that comes in the name of the Lord!
But what's this –
his origins are from of old? From ancient days? There's a hint, a
glimmer of his true nature – his divine nature. For before there
was, he was. He's the ultimate being, the very Yahweh. This is a
human, but this one born in Bethlehem is also true God. He had his
beginning here, but he also has no beginning and no end. His reign
and rule are forever. His kingdom has no end.
But there's more, O
Bethlehem. He's a Shepherd. Much like his ancestor David was a
shepherd. But more, and better. He is the Good Shepherd who lays
down his life for the sheep. Little shepherd boy David tended his
father's flock in Bethlehem. The Good Shepherd Jesus tends to the
flock his Father gives him – even the whole number of believers,
the church – even to the ends of the earth.
Little shepherd
David fought off the lion and the bear – all to protect his sheep.
The Good Shepherd crushes the head of the Serpent. He stops the
mouth of the roaring lion looking for someone to devour. He defeats
even the dragon who would swallow him up – along with all of us.
Our Good Shepherd is victorious, over sin, over devil, even over
death.
And did you also
know, O Bethlehem, that he brings peace? He is peace. Peace with
God. Peace of conscience. Peace in the raging of all life's bitter
struggles. The Assyrians – well they're just an example, a shadow
of the many enemies we face. Fightings and fears within, without.
Wars and rumors of wars. False teachers. Persecution. Nakedness,
danger, sword. We are as sheep to be slaughtered, yet in all of it –
more than conquerors through him who loved us. Through all of it, a
peace that comes only through the Prince of Peace.
The wise men came
from the east and asked old king Herod where the new king could be
found. They'd seen your star, and it had led them this far. Herod's
own wise men knew this ancient prophecy. The Messiah would be born
in you – little Bethlehem. And so they went, and brought their
gifts. These representatives of the nations laid their tribute
before the king of the Jews and the king of kings. You, O Bethlehem,
got to see it happen.
You are Bethlehem –
which means “house of bread”. Isn't it fitting that the one born
unto you, the one from of old, also called himself the Living Bread
from heaven? The one who would feed the entire world with his own
life. Bread, the staff of life, the most basic of foods, a most
primary need – Yes, O Bethlehem, you are the house of bread, by
bringing forth the one who gives life to the world.
And Ephratha, your
other name, it means “fruitful”. You're the “fruitful house of
bread”. Surely, here in the Babe of Bethlehem comes great
fruitfulness. His fruits – his works – are righteousness. A
fulfillment of the law, through a perfectly lived life. And the
fruits of his cross – body and blood given and shed for you and for
all for the forgiveness of sins. Well. These fruits are far better
than the fruits of sin and death we've been eating since our first
parents ate and died.
You, O Bethlehem.
I guess there's more to say for you than one might think. Though you
are small among the clans of Judah. Though no one's impressed with
your population and pedigree and acreage and history. You have this
one thing. You have the promise of the Messiah. And that's the best
thing of all.
You, O Christian,
have the same. In fact sleepy little Bethlehem, with not that much
to say for itself – is like every humble person the Lord calls to
faith. Little Bethlehem, among all the towns. Little Israel, among
all the nations. Little old you and me, as insignificant as the
world considers us to be. As worthless and despised as our sins have
made us out to be.
Though you don't
have much, and can't say much for yourself, of yourself - you really
have it all. For the child born in Bethlehem is the Son of God born
for you. The prophecy spoken by Micah, was spoken as much to you.
Out of a backwater nowhere, God has brought his salvation to the ends
of the earth, even unto Keller, Texas. Just as he created the world
out of nothing, so has he brought salvation from next to nothing.
For Christ is born for you, for me, for all. The Good Shepherd. The
Bread of Life. Who gives us the fruits of his salvation. A Blessed
Advent, and a Blessed Christmas to you, in him.
O holy Child of
Bethlehem, Descend to us, we pray;
Cast out our sin
and enter in, Be born in us today.
We hear the
Christmas angels The great glad tidings tell;
O come to us, abide
with us, Our Lord Immanuel.
Amen.
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