The Word Became Flesh

Previous: The Handmaid of the Lord.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THIS POST AS A PODCAST!

This is Day 31 of my 40 day Lenten Blog.

"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only begotten Son from the Father." (John 1:14).

Caesar Augustus, the emperor of Rome, decided that he wanted a census taken of his empire. Because Joseph was of the lineage of David he was to go to Bethlehem for the census. Joseph took his very pregnant wife with him to be enrolled. But when they got to Bethlehem, which probably took about a week to travel to since they most likely went around Samaria instead of the shorter path through it, the inn was full and they had no place to stay.

Joseph found them shelter in a stable where the animals slept. And Mary gave birth to her baby right there in the stable naming Him Jesus which means God saves, as the angel Gabriel had told her. She wrapped her new baby in swaddling clothes and then laid Him in the manger from which the animals ate. One expects kings to be born in palaces, but God likes to glorify the lowly and humble.

Nearby there were shepherds watching over their sheep and angels appeared to them and told them "Born this day in the City of David a Savior who is Christ the Lord." So the shepherd went to Bethlehem to see the child.

The Jewish law commanded that Jesus be circumcised on the eighth day after He was born and presented in the Temple. So Mary and Joseph took Him to the Temple in Jerusalem and presented Him there.

There was a man named Simeon who had been told by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he saw the Christ. And the Spirit led him into the Temple and he took Jesus in his arms and said "Lord, now let Your servant depart in peace according to Your word for my eyes have seen Your salvation." And Simeon blessed Mary and Joseph and said to Mary, "This child will cause the rise and fall of many in Israel and will be a sign that is spoken against, and a sword will pierce your own soul also."

A prophetess named Anna who never departed from the Temple but spent day and night there worshipping the Lord also saw Jesus and spoke of Him to all who were seeking redemption.

Mary and Joseph were also visited by three wise men while they were in Bethlehem. The wise men brought gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh for the new baby. The gold represented Jesus' kingship. The frankincense represented His priesthood. And the myrrh, an oil used in embalming the dead, represented His death for our sins.

The wise men had told Herod the king of the new king they were going to visit. Herod was worried that Jesus would try and take his throne so he commanded that all children two years old or younger in Bethlehem be killed. An angel warned Joseph to flee and so he took Mary and Jesus and fled into Egypt. After Herod died, the angel told Joseph that it was safe to return and so Joseph brought his wife and child back to Nazareth where Jesus grew up the son of a poor carpenter.

Next: The Temptation of Christ

R.C. VanLandingham is a Catholic homeschool dad just trying to make it through this life and into the next! He has written a Christian children's fantasy series about a boy named Peter Puckett!