Humble Beginnings
We all love an underdog story. Someone who comes from nothing and accomplishes great things. It could be an athlete who grew up in the projects or a billionaire who started his business with nothing but determination. We cheer for these people because we want to be like him. They started from humble beginnings but made something of themselves. Jesus started the same way. Born to poor parents, in a city that wasn’t his own, there wasn’t any room for his birth when they arrived, he had to be born in a manger. Jesus was born into humble beginnings.
Luke 2:1-7
In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. 3 And all went to be registered, each to his own town. 4 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, 5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. 6 And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. 7 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
Wrapped in Swaddling Clothes
Poor people during Jesus’ time wrapped new-borns in swaddling clothes. This consisted of strips of old pieces of cloth which they wrapped firmly around the baby. This gave the child a sense of being in the womb and kept them warm. He was laid in a manger because Bethlehem had swelled so big due to the census that there was no other place to put him. God intended for it to be this way so that Jesus could relate to the poorest of people. He was born into little means but God was still shining on him.
Remain Humble
Jesus started from humble beginnings and remained humble the rest of his life. Pride and riches are often the stumbling blocks of many people. The savior of the world came down to earth and should’ve been afforded a proper welcome. The king of the universe had just come down to earth. There should’ve been a parade and a great feast. Yet, besides a few shepherds, it went pretty much unnoticed. When the wise men came to Jerusalem no one had a clue the Messiah had been born. Remain humble. Ask God to remove any pride out of your heart. As long as we remain humble, we will walk upright before the Lord.