A daily, Bible-based perspective of hope,
encouragement and exhortation.
Wednesday,
December 26, 2018
Daily
prayer:
Father, we thank You
for Jesus who modelled
the supreme example of
humility, when He
chose to be born of a
simple virgin youth,
to be fathered by a
young Jewish
carpenter, and to be
delivered in a smelly
setting among noisy,
dirty and loud
animals. You selected
an angelic host to
declare the good news
of Christ's birth not
to the town mayor or
gate keeper but to the
lowly shepherds, a
despised people at
that time. We want to
humble ourselves in
Your sight, O Lord, so
that You might lift us
up in due season to be
blessed and sanctified
by You, that is our
prayer. Amen.
Live
nativity scene in Willow Street, PA
with the innkeeper extending kindness to Mary.
"Is
There Room In Your Heart?"
Message
summary: Have
you given Jesus room in
your life and invited
Him to live in your
heart?
Listen to our message on your audio player.
Listen to our message on your audio player.
"Because
there was no room for
them in the inn" (Luke
2:7).
On Christmas Eve we went to a living Nativity sponsored by a church in Willow Street, PA. The church is in a rural setting and the nativity setting took place in a barn where we sat on hay bales and witnessed the manger scene played out by live people surrounded by live animals.
On Christmas Eve we went to a living Nativity sponsored by a church in Willow Street, PA. The church is in a rural setting and the nativity setting took place in a barn where we sat on hay bales and witnessed the manger scene played out by live people surrounded by live animals.
As we listened
to the dialogue from the
innkeeper it brought
about a different
understanding than we
have traditionally held
about the Christmas
story. We usually
picture the innkeeper as
a grumpy fellow and
assumed that he must be
that way because he
didn't make room for the
couple in the inn.
But the
innkeeper was played by
Joe Sherer, the pastor
of the church, who has
been a friend for many
years. He brought out
extra blankets and
kindly expressed concern
for the couple and their
newborn baby. Now Joe is
an authentically kind
man in his real life
person, so perhaps he
has helped us to change
our image of the grumpy,
stingy innkeeper of the
Christmas story! I
believe we had a
Christmas play in our
church long ago that
reinforced such an idea,
so the innkeeper
presented at this live
nativity may permanently
reshape our thinking
about his role over 2000
years ago.
Hotel
Bethlehem, Bethlehem, PA
What might the
inn itself have been
like? It's easy to
picture a modern inn and
assume it was like a
nice hotel. Last night
we drove through
Bethlehem, PA and and
passed by the historic
Bethlehem Hotel, a
beautiful property that
is very popular,
especially during the
Christmas season. It
boasts a spectacular
display of over 35,000
Christmas lights, a
multitude of uniquely
decorated Christmas
trees, 36 wreaths, six 7
foot Toy Soldiers, two
life size Nutcrackers
and a gingerbread house
modeled after the hotel.
While we may
assume the ancient
Bethlehem Inn was sort
of a hotel, that
probably was not the
case. The Greek word
translated "inn" could
be translated "guest
room". Some believe that
Jesus may not have been
born in a separate
stable or barn as we
traditionally picture
it, but in a house with
a lower floor serving as
a nighttime shelter for
the families’ animals.
If this was true, it
wouldn’t be surprising
to find a manger located
in that area of the
house. When Luke states
there was no room in the
inn, he could have meant
there was no room on the
upper level, which would
have been full of other
people sleeping due to
the same census that
brought Joseph and Mary
to Bethlehem.
Another
question to ponder is
why was Jesus born in
these conditions? The
gotquestions.org
teaching site makes this
point:
"So, why was
the Savior and King
born in a place where
animals were kept? And
why was He then laid
in the animals’ food
trough? Surely, God’s
Son deserved a
high-profile birth in
the most elegant of
surroundings. But,
instead, God’s own Son
made His appearance on
earth in the lowliest
of circumstances. This
humble birth conveys
an amazing message to
creation: the
transcendent God
condescended to come
to us. Instead of
coming to earth as a
pampered, privileged
ruler, Jesus was born
in meekness, as one of
us. He is
approachable,
accessible,
available—no palace
gates bar the way to
Him; no ring of guards
prevents our approach.
The King of kings came
humbly, and His first
bed was a manger."
We don't know
what the Inn in ancient
Bethlehem was like, a
posh hotel or far more
likely a simple guest
house. We don't know
whether the innkeeper
was a grump or a kind
man. But Luke explains
to his readers why Mary
laid the precious holy
Child in a manger, "Because
there was no room for
them in the inn".
As with most Scripture
this leads us to an
application challenge. Have
you given Jesus room
in your life and
invited Him to live in
your heart?
Be
encouraged today,
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Stephen & Brooksyne Weber
Daily
prayer:
Father, we thank You
for Jesus who modelled
the supreme example of
humility, when He
chose to be born of a
simple virgin youth,
to be fathered by a
young Jewish
carpenter, and to be
delivered in a smelly
setting among noisy,
dirty and loud
animals. You selected
an angelic host to
declare the good news
of Christ's birth not
to the town mayor or
gate keeper but to the
lowly shepherds, a
despised people at
that time. We want to
humble ourselves in
Your sight, O Lord, so
that You might lift us
up in due season to be
blessed and sanctified
by You, that is our
prayer. Amen.Randy
Alcorn writes:
In Christ’s day,
shepherds stood on the
bottom rung of the
Palestinian social
ladder. They shared
the same unenviable
status as tax
collectors and dung
sweepers. During the
time of the
Patriarchs,
shepherding was a
noble occupation. When
the twelve tribes of
Israel migrated to
Egypt, the encountered
a lifestyle foreign to
them. The Egyptians
were agriculturalists.
As farmers, they
despised shepherding
because sheep and
goats meant death to
crops. In the course
of 400 years, the
Egyptians prejudiced
the Israelites’
attitude toward
shepherding.
Some
shepherds earned their
poor reputations, but
others became victims
of a cruel stereotype.
The religious leaders
maligned the
shepherd’s good name;
rabbis banned
pasturing sheep and
goats in Israel,
except on desert
plains. ‘To buy wool,
milk or a kid from a
shepherd was forbidden
on the assumption that
it would be stolen
property’ Shepherds
were officially
labeled ‘sinners’—a
technical term for a
class of despised
people.
Special
Year-end Financial Appeal
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have financially supported our
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for which we are most thankful.
Our ministry labor is comprised of approximately half our time to Daily Encouragement and the other half to our chaplaincy ministry to companies for which we receive compensation. Each of these ministries essentially is the same as a part-time job (20+ hours weekly) for each of us. Our goal for many years is that each would provide half of our ministry expenses and income.
If you would consider making a donation to our ministry see here for more information.
To donate directly online here. This will open to a page that designates the offering to: WEBER,STEPHEN CHAP, Specialized Chaplaincy Ministry ID: 700001-237376
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deductible receipt.
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Thank you
Our ministry labor is comprised of approximately half our time to Daily Encouragement and the other half to our chaplaincy ministry to companies for which we receive compensation. Each of these ministries essentially is the same as a part-time job (20+ hours weekly) for each of us. Our goal for many years is that each would provide half of our ministry expenses and income.
If you would consider making a donation to our ministry see here for more information.
To donate directly online here. This will open to a page that designates the offering to: WEBER,STEPHEN CHAP, Specialized Chaplaincy Ministry ID: 700001-237376
Please Note:
We also provide this easy option due
to the convenience, for
international supporters, and for
those who may not be concerned
regarding receiving an official tax
deductible receipt.
Click here
to send an offering using PayPal.
This will open to a page that states
"Brooksyne Weber"Thank you
Stephen
& Brooksyne
The
angels gave their announcement to
the shepherds from a hay wagon next
to a silo.
The
donkeys were unfazed by the
remarkable presence of a newborn
(though this baby was just a little
hefty for a newborn). Instead the
young donkeys were preoccupied with
playing and seeking the characters
in the play. The audience of young
children in the front row
entertained a miniature donkey by
feeding him straw. It made for a
real live situation where not all in
attendance are having the same
experience or are tuned in as much
as others. The children we brought
were spellbound by the characters
and setting.
The
scene concluded with Pastor Joe, aka
innkeeper, making an appeal to his
audience to make room for Jesus
before we all rode back to the
church in a tractor-pulled hay
wagon.
Heading
back to Strasburg we saw The Red
Caboose Motel lit up for Christmas.
The
Strasburg Railroad on Christmas Eve.
Today's
Suggested
Music and Supplemental Resources
"Make Room"
Video
Casting Crowns
"Christmas in Heaven"
Video
On Christmas Eve, following our
Christmas Eve service, we picked
up the Lapps and attended the Live
Nativity. Afterwards we visited in
their home and had some enjoyable
fellowship and fun into the late
evening. I requested the family to
sing "Christmas in Heaven" and
recorded it as they did so. The
children had learned this song and
presented it for a Christmas
program at their school to honor
their uncle who had passed away
after a battle with cancer. His
three children also attend the
school so it must have been very
touching to sing this song while
their mother was in attendance. We
dedicate this song to our readers
whose loved one may be celebrating
Christmas in heaven.
Why was Jesus
born in a manger? (from
gotquestions.org)
Finally today:
We visited Pat and
Laverne, Stephen's brother and
sister-in-law, in the Lehigh
Valley (near Bethlehem) and
enjoyed a delicious Christmas
meal.
Send a message to Stephen & Brooksyne
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Scripture references are from The Holy Bible: New International Version. © 1984 by International Bible Society; NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, New King James Version (NKJV) Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. and the King James Version.
Personal Mission Statement: "I am created by God to bring Him glory. Through God's Son Jesus Christ I have been redeemed and make it my life's goal to please the Lord. My mission in life is to honor God through my faith and obedience and prepare myself and all whom I may influence for eternity."
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