The Absolute Authority of the Lord

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn (Luke 2:1-7).

Surely the God who arranged the perfect lineage of Christ through the generations from David and arranged the perfect location for the birth of Christ could easily arrange accommodations for Christ’s family on the night of the nativity. When we hear the words… “There was no place for them in the inn” we are impressed by the humility of Joseph and Mary as they appear to make the best of their circumstances in a world that has no place for their child. But the Spirit of Truth shows us here that Christ was in complete control of every detail of His birth and He inspired Luke to record for us a wonderful illustration of the absolute authority of the Lord.

There is great encouragement here for truth seekers to trust in the sovereignty of Christ over the people and circumstances of life. There is no crisis too big or detail too small for Jesus to be unaware or unconcerned about. The Dutch reformer Abraham Kuyper described the sovereignty of Christ with the words… “There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine”. As we reflect on the three truths about Christ’s sovereignty presented in Luke’s report of the birth of Christ, let’s ask the Spirit to help us apply them to areas of our lives that need to be surrendered to the absolute authority of the Lord.

God aligned the ancestry of Christ’s family. God promised that Christ would be a descendant of David… “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The LORD is our righteousness’” (Jeremiah 23:5-6). God was active throughout the ages ensuring that His Son would come through the line of David… “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David” (Luke 1:32). We cannot choose our family, but when we are born again Christ claims us as His children and adopts us into His family… “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13).

God administered the activity of government. God promised that Christ would be born in Bethlehem… “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days” (Micah 5:2). Christ came in the midst of a government decree that compelled His family to travel to Bethlehem, the City of His ancestor David, to be born at just the right place and time… “For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11-12).

God adapted the availability of Christ’s community. God promised that Christ would be marked by humility… “Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey” (Zechariah 9:9). It was not the insensitivity of the innkeeper or the overcrowded inn that forced the holy family into the barn. It was Christ’s choice to transform the lowly manger into the crib of the King… “And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12).

As we grow up into Christ we become more effective disciples as we learn to surrender all of life to…

The Absolute Authority of the Lord.