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“In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree…”

I would guess at some point we have heard the opening line to Luke’s Christmas account in Luke 2.

But before we get to the details of Luke 2, consider the opening words of Luke’s Gospel:

Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. 3 Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, 4 so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. (Luke 1:1-4)

I love these opening words of Luke because it seems like Luke was a bit of skeptic.  He was a missionary who traveled with the Apostle Paul and no doubt an avid follower of Jesus.  Here’s the interesting thing about the opening line.  There were MANY who tried or did write an account of Jesus’ life based on the information that was handed down from the Apostles.  But Luke did his own investigation.  Perhaps his background in detail as a doctor is why God chose him to take previous accounts, investigate their authenticity, and then write an orderly account of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Why?

“So that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught.”

Luke wants to affirm and reaffirm the truth of Jesus, the events of his life, the content of his teaching, and the saving mission he was on.

Luke is written to all the skeptics who wish they could investigate everything for themselves.  Luke does and God’s Spirit provides it to us for our certainty as well.

So what does that say of Luke’s record of the birth of Jesus? Accurate, detailed, and written so we may have certainty in our faith as well.

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to his own town to register.

Luke sets the birth of Jesus in the context of the Roman empire.  Perhaps we wish there was a little more detail like “Jesus was born on December 25” (Which he most likely wasn’t.) But the names Luke mentioned are verifiable people of history.  Their mention sets the birth of Jesus in a historical context.  It is real.  It happened.  It is not a fantasy story fabricated by Luke.

4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child.  (Luke 2:1-5)

Joseph was a faithful follower of the Lord.  Certainly the dream which clarified who the child was Mary would be giving birth to helped.  However, to take your pregnant fiancée on a 90 mile journey over rugged terrain to some might seem like an act of craziness, but to us we see a heart of faith that God was working…even through a government mandate which made them leave Nazareth for Bethlehem…and maybe not return for more than a year.  Remember they had to flee to Egypt after his birth due to the evil heart of King Herod.

Luke’s detail give certainty that this baby born in Bethlehem was the one God spoke of.  He was to be a descendent of David…just like Mary and Joseph were.

Details are important.  Imagine if all we had was, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” (John’s Gospel…for Friday!)  While we trust this is the Word of God, it is a bit vague and a lacks concreteness.  In all his detail, Luke gives the historical setting, the specific actions and the reasons why Joseph and Mary did what they did.

Everything a curious mind would want to know…God provides through the inspired pen of Luke!

Apply: What details stand out to you about Luke’s account? (Read Luke 2:1-20 for tomorrow’s devotion.)

Prayer: Lord, thank you for using Luke’s inquiring and detailed mind to record accurately the birth of your Son.  Through his detail we too can have certainty that Jesus was born to be OUR Savior too! AMEN.

The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God. (Mark 1:1)

You would expect Mark to go on with some account of the birth of Jesus…but he doesn’t.  There are no details of the census.  No insight to the “Word becoming flesh.”  No relating of the dreams that calmed Joseph’s fears or any mention of shepherds.

The next verse gets into the work of John the Baptist, then Jesus’ baptism and temptation and Mark’s moving forward with the narrative, teaching and miracles of Jesus’ public ministry.

So why doesn’t Mark begin the “gospel about Jesus” with his birth?  Really why doesn’t Peter begin with the birth of Jesus? (Strong evidence points to the source of Mark’s gospel as the account of the Apostle Peter.)

Perhaps the best explanation is he was focused on the life and ministry of Jesus.  As one blog post wrote in defense of its absence (read it in its entirety here: https://coldcasechristianity.com/writings/why-doesnt-mark-say-anything-about-jesus-birth/):

• Silence doesn’t mean denial
• Brevity doesn’t mean ignorance
• Absence doesn’t mean it’s not assumed

These are all good points, but what about this opening verse assumes the reality of his birth as Matthew and Luke relate it?

1. The message of Mark is the gospel…the GOOD NEWS of Jesus Christ.

Mark uses the same word the angels did in Luke 2:10-11 “10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you GOOD NEWS of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.

What the angels announced the shepherds was fully going to play out in the Gospel of Mark.  He wanted his readers to know that over everything he was going to recount and share about the life of Jesus had one purpose: Share the Good News about Jesus!

2. The person about whom Mark is writing is JESUS CHRIST

Names stick.  Mark doesn’t start another account about another person, but identifies the focus of his message as Jesus Christ.  This was the very name given to the baby born in the manger by Joseph:

Matthew 1:21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” …

24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

The Christ was the “anointed one.”  The whole of the Old Testament narrative and prophecy was to bring “the Christ” into the world.  God hadn’t forgotten.  Mark recognizes God’s faithfulness in the title for Jesus, “the Christ.”  Mary knew that God was using her to fulfill his promises to his people as she sang, “

Luke 1:54             He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful

55           to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers.”

3. Mark identifies Jesus as the SON OF GOD.

The angel said to Joseph:

22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”—which means, “God with us.”

The angel speaking to Mary said:

Luke 1:32 He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

34 “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

35 The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.

While Mark adds no new details to the birth of Jesus, he affirms all that was revealed at the birth of Jesus in his opening words.  He assumes the reality, affirms the truth, and then advances the GOOD NEWS God’s Spirit gave to him regarding the events and teaching of Jesus, the one whose birth we celebrate at Christmas.

Mark doesn’t say much, but he packs a ton of truth about Christmas in his opening verse!

Apply: What insight of Mark’s opening verse stands out to you in light of the truth of Christmas?

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for the continuity between all the authors of the Bible.  While some you gave details and others you allowed authors to omit, through them all you communicated clearly your plan of love to save all of us from the consequence of our sins!

(Reprinted from December 2021)

Good morning devotion reader…

With Christmas Day in our rear view mirror, I’d like to journey with you through the accounts found (or not found) in the four Gospels that relate different details and perspective on the birth of Jesus.  While the image of the baby in a manger is familiar, I invite you to consider the details that are communicated and the importance of them (Also notice what details we assume about the Christmas event that are not found in the Gospels.)

We begin with Matthew.

Matthew is writing to an audience of Jewish people and has as a purpose throughout his Gospel to draw the connection between Jesus and the Old Testament prophesies.  Perhaps ironic as Matthew was a tax-collector called to follow Jesus, and yet many of his Jewish people thought him to be a traitor.  Yet God’s Spirit inspired him to reach the very Jews that called him a “sinner” with the saving message of the Messiah.

Lineage was important for the Messiah.  I invite you to look at chapter 1:1-17 as Matthew begins the book with tracing the lineage of Jesus back to Abraham.  The Messiah must be a descendent of Abraham to be authentic.  Matthew does the research and checks that box for the reader right at the beginning.

With the lineage of Jesus established, Matthew jumps into the first prophecy:  “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”) (Isaiah 7:14).

But for this prophecy to be fulfilled, it created questions, confusion, and finally confidence in Joseph.  Who wouldn’t wonder what happened if the lady you are engaged to is found to be with child.  Assumption is that another man is involved.

So God intervenes to explain to Joseph what was taking place. Mary was not unfaithful.  Mary was the human vessel for the Son of God to take on human flesh.  The miracle of Isaiah’s prophecy was playing out in real time in Joseph’s life.

Joseph does as the angel of the Lord commanded.  He dismissed the idea of divorce and courageously embraced the role of being the earthly father of Jesus.

“And gave him the name Jesus.”  We don’t hear a lot about Joseph’s role in Jesus’ life, but following the word of the Lord through the angel he gave Jesus his human name: Jesus.  Why?  Because Joseph believed he truly would “save his people from their sins.”

Enjoy reflecting on the faithfulness of the Lord spurring the faithfulness of Joseph to be a faithful father to Jesus and husband to Mary:

18 This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 19 Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

20 But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. 21 She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

22 All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: 23 “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

24 When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. 25 But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

Apply: What detail or insight from Matthew’s account enhances your appreciation of the miracle and significance of Jesus’ birth?

Prayer: Father in heaven, thank you for sending Jesus into the world through the miracle of a virgin birth and under the watchful and faithful care of his earthly father Joseph. AMEN

This week’s devotions are based on the Week 3 “A Savior Born for You! (WATCH HERE)

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First, a happy birthday to my mom Carol!  We are blessed by you and you are a blessing to many!  Happy birthday!

 

Special days call for special clothes.  Perhaps some of you have purchased a special Christmas outfit to wear to church on Christmas Eve.  Many couples find the Christmas/New Year time a season to also get married.  A beautiful dress adorns the bride and a fancy tuxedo the groom.  We want to look our best for these special occasions.

What will you wear the day you meet God face to face?

Ever thought of that?

To be honest, it doesn’t really cross my mind when getting up in the morning to ask, “Are these the clothes I want to be wearing if today is my last day on earth?”  It’s kind of a morbid thought and who knows even if our earthly clothes have any transferability to heaven.

In fact our outward appearance is secondary to the inward condition of our heart.  As the Lord told the prophet Samuel, (1 Samuel 16:7) “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”

So what will the Lord see when he looks at your heart?  At first reaction, there are lots of things I would wish he didn’t see.  I wish he didn’t see my pride, my lust, my greed, my anger, my envy, my jealousy, and much more.  I wish these sins didn’t clothe my heart, but rather he would see the opposite.

Here’s where the incredible gift of God’s grace steps in again.  In the same words we considered yesterday from Isaiah 61, the Lord gives us another piece of clothing to wear: garments of salvation.

Isaiah 61:10  I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God.

   For he has clothed me with garments of salvation

      and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness,

      as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,

      and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 

These beautiful clothes pair nicely with the robes of righteousness.  The robes of righteousness convey the perfection of Jesus with which we are covered by his grace.  The garments of salvation are parallel in thought, but convey the right clothes to be wearing as we meet the Lord face to face.  They are the clothes that guarantee our eternal life in heaven.  They are the garments that deliver us from the consequence of our sin and gift us heaven for ever.  They are the garments that were purchased, not with gold or silver, but with the precious blood of Jesus.  They are the garments that are worn in heaven by the saints of God around the throne of God:

Revelation 7:14 And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 

If you receive clothes for Christmas, receive them with thanks…even if they aren’t your favorite gift to receive.  However, let these gifts of clothes remind you of two amazing clothing gifts that the Lord gives to you this Christmas…robes of righteousness and the garments of salvation.  Enjoy wearing them every day…now and forever!

Apply: Enjoy the gifts of grace God gives you this Christmas!

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for the great gift of your Son who brought to me the robes of righteousness and the garments of salvation that I humbly get to wear every day! AMEN.

PS…Merry Christmas to you all!  Devotions next week will be the Scriptures surrounding the birth of Jesus.  Enjoy reflecting on them personally and with your family!

This week’s devotions are based on the Week 3 “A Savior Born for You! (WATCH HERE)

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Isaiah 61:10  I delight greatly in the LORD; my soul rejoices in my God.

   For he has clothed me with garments of salvation

      and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness,

      as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,

      and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 

Are you excited when you get new clothes for Christmas?  I suppose it might depend on what that clothing is.  If it’s a sports jersey of your favorite player, maybe.  But a pair of socks or another Christmas tie…not really.  I remember as a kid getting clothes or socks at times and while grateful for something new, the toys were the more exciting gifts.

So when Isaiah “delights greatly” and “rejoices” for a new set of clothes, one’s curiosity is peaked.

These clothes aren’t just the basic necessities we wear every day or even the finest Christmas dress off the rack, but clothes that God himself has both made and given to us.  They are not clothes that money could by or our effort could earn, but ones that are placed on us by his grace.  

Robes of righteousness.

What comes to mind when you envision “robes of righteousness?”  Flowing, ornate cloth that catches the attention of everyone, yet their eyes are fixed on the robes, not on the person.  These robes are imparted to us by faith as the Apostle Paul wrote:

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile. 17 For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last,[e] just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.”

Righteousness is the “right adherence to the law.”  It is the perfection that God demands from each one of us.  We may try to figure out what good from our wardrobe will be good enough, or we may try to reconcile that our clothes look better than most, but in reality without the gift from God of his robes of righteousness, we stand imperfect before a holy God.  The outcome of this is not the favor of God, but rather the justice of God.

So no wonder that Isaiah rejoices in the LORD God because he, God, had clothed him, Isaiah, in these robes of righteousness.

Who said grace wasn’t in the Old Testament?  What a beautiful picture of God’s grace than he removes or covers our imperfect, stained, torn clothes with the perfect robes of righteousness won for us by the perfect life of the baby born in the manger of Bethlehem.  

And…we get to wear them every day.  Like a child who has a favorite outfit that wants to wear it every day is the Christian that wants to and gets to wear Christ’s righteousness every day.  What does it look like when people see these robes?  Perhaps Paul again gives us an insight of what it looks like when we wear these precious robes out in public:

Colossians 3:12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity. 

Enjoy wearing this wonderful gift from the Lord this Christmas and in the New Year!  Tomorrow…garments of salvation!

 

Apply: Every morning as you are getting dressed, remember that covering your physical clothes are the robes of righteousness Jesus puts on you.  Enjoy wearing them every day!

Prayer: Jesus, thank you for coming to this earth and earning the righteousness I could not and then in your grace putting them on me as robes that I can wear every day! AMEN.