Insignificant?
“But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.” Matthew 2:6
As a child, I grew older but not much taller. Even my baby brother passed me in height. I was called “the runt of the litter” or “Shorty” and other nicknames that made me feel insignificant in comparison to the taller members of my family.
In the Old Testament, God sent a prophet named Samuel to Bethlehem to anoint a king from among Jesse’s sons. Samuel was impressed by each of the seven sons who passed before him, but God had not chosen any of them. “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7 ESV). When the youngest came, God said, “David is the one.”
Centuries later, a census required a young virgin named Mary and her espoused husband to go to Bethlehem because both were of the lineage of David. They arrived just as she was about to give birth. Angels silently gathered and kept “their watch of wondering love.” They knew that months earlier God had sent the angel Gabriel to tell Mary she would conceive by the Holy Spirit and give birth to the Messiah, the Christ.
When Jesus was born, the angels’ voices filled the night and “everlasting light” shone in the dark streets. That night’s events in Bethlehem would be sung for centuries to come. The word little suggests that Bethlehem was an insignificant village. But God chose Bethlehem from among thousands of towns in Judah.
We may feel small and unimportant too. But God values each of us and chose to send His Son to redeem us. In meekness, we can ask Christ to “Cast out our sin and enter in, Be born in us, Our Lord Emmanuel.”
DIG DEEPER
According to 1 Corinthians 1:27, who does God choose and why does He choose them?
Read Micah 5:2, a verse that Matthew referred to in his story of Jesus’s birthplace. What other information is given? Note: the words sometimes translated “ancient times” may be translated “from days of eternity.”
The carol “O Little Town of Bethlehem” by Phillips Brooks may be found at http://cyberhymnal.org/htm/o/l/olittle.htm
Nancy J. Baker