12-28-23-ENG.

"She gave birth to her first-born son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid him in a manger. "

Luke 2:7 
IRS TIME

Read It: Luke 2:1-7 '
Now I'm not an artist, but I want to paint a word picture for you today, because I think it will help you appreciate even more the miracle we call Christmas. The first-century world into which Jesus was born was a chaotic place. It was a world of political turmoil, an environment of endless intrigues and plots and revolutions. The Jews had their own super-patriots, called Zealots, who were dedicated to overthrowing Rome. One of Jesus' disciples ples was "Simon who was called the Zealot" (Luke 6:15). The bully of the world into which Jesus was born was, of course, mighty Rome. Rome crushed nation after nation to expand its rule across the known world. It taxed its subjects until they were bled dry. Israel was under Roman rule and basically helpless to do anything about it. The king on the throne in Judea was a crazy man named Herod the Great, whom we'll meet again later this week. He was legendary for his cruelty, putting members of his own family to death when he suspected they might be plotting against him. He held Judea in his iron grip.

As an occupied people, the Jews had little choice but to submit to Rome's rule. But the tensions were always high. Religiously, Israel hadn't heard from God for nearly four hundred years. There were no prophets, no miracles, little true worship of and reverence for the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Nobody seemed to be really looking for or expecting Messiah to come. All in all, things were ina mess. What's my point? Just this. You can take all of that mess and all of that intrigue and all of that fighting for power and position and set it aside when God gets ready to move! When He says it's time for His Son to come, He moves men and nations to accomplish His plan. Case in point: Mary and Joseph had to get to Bethlehem so Jesus would be born there and fulfill Scripture. No problem. God just says, "It's IRS time," and the job is done. When God gets ready to move, don't worry about the mess around you! Think About It If God hasn't answered yet, don't stop praying. When He gets ready to act, obstacles are irrelevant.