David Bahn – Reflections

Matthew 2:4-6

When [Herod] had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born. ⁵“In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:
⁶” ‘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.’”

We often relegate great achievements to great and powerful people and places. In Jesus’ day it was no different. Bethlehem was not thought of as a great city, but rather a one-time-wonder from which David had come 1000 years before Jesus was born. But God has a way of making a great impact through small and humble places and people.

An old couple conceives a son who becomes the voice in the wilderness preparing the way for the Messiah of God. A virgin becomes the mother of God. A humble son of a carpenter captures the hearts of the people of His day. A rag-tag group of disciples turn the world upside down by their witness to Jesus of Nazareth: his suffering, death and resurrection.

Sometimes we are privileged to see the resurrection. Sometimes a single flower of God’s grace shines through in an unlikely place. Sometimes a small town home team wins the championship. And when it does, it is a noteworthy and remarkable thing of beauty.

It might be that you and I live our lives in total anonymity; we may never be called on for our 12 minutes of fame and glory. But there may be times when we poke our heads through the fence and speak a word of grace, or give a smile of recognition, or offer a gesture of kindness that will change someone’s eternity. That happens whenever we bloom where we are planted, and when we point beyond ourselves to the vine by which we are sustained, and from which our beauty comes.

Bethlehem was least among the clans of Judah in the minds of many people. But Bethlehem was the place in which the Son of God was born. And at Bethlehem the Son of God first drew his human breath. When we put the emphasis on our own efforts, godliness or beauty we will soon find there is someone else better able to shine: the world is filled with man-made stars. But when God does his work in us we learn to shine like stars in the universe as we hold out the word of life (cf. Philippians 2:15-16).