Back to Bethlehem
‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you shall come a Ruler who will shepherd My people Israel.’ -Matthew 2:6
Even its pronunciation is musical—“Bethlehem.” The name itself ignites the imagination, as we all experience the symphony of thoughts about this tiny, yet mightily historic site. Bethlehem was destined for significance by the Almighty God Himself. He whispered His intent to the prophets, and in our text we hear Micah quoted more than seven hundred years after he predicted Bethlehem would be the Messiah’s birthplace.
It is a good thing to go there, at least in our imagination, and especially at Christmastime. The fact that God would interest Himself in so tiny a village and ordain its place and purpose in His plan of redemption, tells us something about God and His ways.
He delights to take the ordinary and do the extraordinary. He loves to take people like us and do wonderful things for them, to them, and through them. It is His mind and His pleasure to do great things at simple places with ordinary people!
