Wonder how the innkeeper, who turned away Mary and Joseph, would have felt when he would have realised that he refused room to the ones responsible for birthing the Supernatural.
And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. (Luke 2:7)
Have we reduced Christmas to what is familiar – scenes of nativity, Christmas tree, bells and whistles and the cakes and feasts and the gifts? And often in the midst of all these, the very purpose of the season takes a back seat.
God gave the ultimate gift.
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:23)
God made the ultimate move – moving toward mankind.
And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14).
The Incarnation, the Word becoming flesh and dwelling among us, is the protocol of heaven – God making the first move.
During this time of Christmas, we celebrate the ultimate move of God – God stepping down from Heaven, taking upon Himself frail humanity, and serving as the Saviour. God came from Heaven to earth to live a perfect life as a fully man, die a perfect death, and then rise from the dead, granting humanity access to God.
Often, people are waiting on or praying for a “move of God” when they fail to realise that God has already made the first move.
God makes the move and then we move in response. We can only respond because while we were dead in our sins and trespasses (Ephesians 2:1), God sought us, we didn’t seek Him (Ephesians 2:4). We are incapable of moving without God moving first. He stepped into our darkness and flooded it with His redeeming light. (1 Peter 2:9)
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)
Now all who would receive Jesus’s atoning work on the Cross would become the temple of God, for His Spirit would take up residence within them.
Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God,… (1 Corinthians 6:19)
No more buildings. No more Ark of the Covenant. No more tents or tabernacles. The Spirit of God decided to move out and change His temporary address. Because of the redemptive work on the Cross by the spotless Lamb of God who took upon Himself the sins of the world, your sin and my sin, past sins and the future sins, made it possible for sinful flesh to become a house for the Holy God.
Prior to leaving His disciples, Jesus promised that He would not leave them alone as orphans (John 14:18). He promised to send the Comforter, the Helper, the Holy Spirit. He promised them another Gift who will always be with them and in them.
We may be waiting for an outpouring to come from Heaven and the Heaven is waiting for this outpouring to come out of the temple and flow into the Earth, bringing salvation, healing, deliverance, and transformation to the nations.
Jesus was born into the earth as a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes, He died a criminal’s death on a Roman cross for the sins of the world, He rose from the grave, ascended to Heaven, and prayed that the Father would send another Helper to earth who would be the Spirit of Christ dwelling in our midst. He is not a baby in a manger anymore, nor is He a broken man on a cross. He is now seated on the right hand of the Father, and He is coming soon as a reigning King!
God moved towards mankind, so that we might move towards God.
There are some for whom Jesus is yet another god in a nation of many gods. That is meaningless. He is a jealous God. His name is jealous. (Exodus 34:14)
Then there are others who claim to know about Him, claim to want God, however, live their life on their own terms.
It is one thing to claim to know about God or read about Him but it is another thing to accept all His ways and His instructions in your life on His terms. He often comes in ways that we don’t expect. The way He moves might seem dramatically different from the familiar, the anticipated or the expected, for His ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:9), but those who have intimate relationship with Him will always see His purpose as they trust Him in all His ways. Our mind cannot fathom. He often moves in ways to offend our minds while drawing us into a place of intimate communion with Him.
The challenge is that we try to ‘know’ God with our mind. A natural mind is the biggest obstacle to the supernatural. And God is supernatural. So how do we start to know Him? Only believe.
If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (Romans 10:9-10)
“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God…” (John 1:12)
God made the first move, how shall we respond? Who will make room for the move of God?
Mary and Joseph did. In the lowliest of conditions, they accommodated the prophesied plan of God.
He is waiting at the door of your heart. Do you have room for Him?
Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. (Revelation 3:20)
Trust Him not just with one room but your whole house. Love Him with all that you are and all that you have. Are you willing to love Him with all your heart?
Are you among those who will make room for the Fear of the Lord that God wants to release in this new decade?
Are you the one who will make room for the One upon whose shoulders the governments of the earth rest? (Isaiah 9:6)
Are you the one who will say, “I will follow Him on His terms, and not mine?”