Dr.Barclay with Something to Think About - THE TIME

 

THE TIME

Have you ever wondered why Christ was born when He was rather than a century or two before or after the time of His arrival? In Luke we read “…it came to pass in those days” (Luke 2:1); what made those days so special?

The Bible has many prophecies concerning the birth of Christ.  In fact, the Old Testament contains over three hundred passages that refer to the first coming of the Messiah* and conditions had to be such that these prophecies could all come to fruition. So history had to be compatible with these conditions.

In Daniel, it is stated that: “…in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed” (Daniel 2:44). This was in reference to the Roman Empire, the forth kingdom of Daniel’s prophecy, and under Caesar Augustus the Roman Empire had extended its influence further than ever before and controlled all of the known civilized world at that time. So when Augustus decreed that “…all the world should be taxed” (Luke 2:1, KJV) this essentially meant all the known world.

Judea had also become a province of the empire by this time. This meant that Joseph and Mary, along with all the rest of the people of Judea, were now subject to Roman taxation and had to return to their ancestral home to be registered. Without this, there would be no reason for a girl from Nazareth to be in Bethlehem to give birth. This was needed to fulfill the prophecy of Micah “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of you shall come forth to Me the One to be Ruler in Israel…” (Micah 5:2).

This was also the time of one of the longest periods of peace known through out the world. The Pax Romana extended about 200 years and was a period of relative prosperity and stability. It also made travel somewhat more safe than it otherwise would be, and this also made it somewhat easier to travel than if war and rebellion were all about. Nevertheless, the 90 or so miles between Nazareth and Bethlehem, that Mary and Joseph had travel to make it back to their ancestral home, still would have been an arduous journey.

The Roman Empire had at last encompassed Judea, therefore, Rome could remove from Judea the authority that it had as an independent country. This is also what Jacob prophesied when he said: “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh comes; and to him shall be the obedience of the people” (Genesis 49:10). 

  And what place could be more fitting than Bethlehem for the birth of the Messiah? The name Bethlehem means the ‘House of Bread’ and what could be more appropriate for a saviour known as the ‘Bread of Life’.

One more thing, because Christ was born under the circumstances of the time, he was born “under the law” of Rome and therefore subject to the law and obedience to the Emperor. But about Him, Isaiah said “…to Him whom man despises, to Him whom the nation abhors, to the Servant of rulers…” shall be “…the Redeemer of Israel…” and “…a light to the Gentiles, that You should be My salvation to the ends of the earth…” (Isaiah 49:7,6). 

A humble beginning, which began with His parent’s arduous journey because of the new taxation laws and resulted in a manger birth, Christ was born as a subject of the most powerful empire on earth. The ‘Bread of Life’ born in the ‘House of bread’ and as the servant of rulers but destined to bring salvation to the ends of the earth. Such was the birth of Christ, it is something we should think about.