A CALL TO REGISTER

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

In those days, Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.)

And everyone went to their own town to register.

Luke 2:1-3

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

As we read the scriptures and the story of Jesus’ conception and birth, we quickly discover that it’s an incredible script that only God could write. For no mere human would ever dream that the predicted Messiah, the King of kings and Lord of lords, would be conceived by the Holy Spirit inside a Nazarene girl who couldn’t have been further away from royalty, although her husband was in the line of David.

Further, this divine, regal baby Jesus would need to be born in Bethlehem as the prophet Micah prophesied which meant that Joseph and Mary would need to somehow get there from Nazareth, a daunting journey of approximately 90 miles and not something a woman in her final days of pregnancy would choose to do unless absolutely necessary.

Enter a call to register from Caesar Augustus, the ruler of the Roman Empire, an order that made it absolutely necessary for Joseph and Mary to make the long trip south.

You see, the scriptures tell us the Emperor “issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world” and this included Galilee, the region where Nazareth was located, and Judea, the province containing the town of Bethlehem. We further learn that “this was the first census” called by Caesar Augustus while “Quirinius was governor of Syria”. In regard to the latter, it’s believed that Quirinius served two terms as governor of Syria, his first being during the time of Jesus’ birth and then again later in AD 6 and 7.

In regard to the census, “everyone went to their own town to register”. This means that every person who lived in the Roman world was required to go to the place of their ancestral origin in order to be counted. And since Joseph was in the line of David, he had to travel south to Bethlehem, also known as the city of David.

Through these words in the scriptures, we see the impetus initiated by God to ensure Jesus was born in Bethlehem just as He promised through Micah, and we learn that the plans of our Lord can be unpredictable and yet always perfectly purposed to fulfill His will and way. As we draw ever nearer to Christmas and the birth of our Savior Jesus, let us be reminded that although we might not always understand how our lives are scripted by our Lord, we have to trust the Divine Author, even when things don’t play out as we imagined they would. We have to maintain faith in our God, the One who reigns over mankind and dictates all matters in creation, the One who brings salvation and eternal life for anyone who places their belief in His Son Jesus, no matter what happens during this life here on earth.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.