For the Least of TheseSýnishorn

Day Four: When Was Jesus Born?

I know we could probably get into a debate about it being more like September than December 25 but I’m more talking about the era in which Jesus was born, not the actual date.

Paul said in Galatians that at the proper time God sent His Son into the world, to be born of a woman. Born as a Jew under the law. Gal 4:4

Look at this in the Complete Jewish Bible:

“He was born from a woman, born into a culture in which legalistic perversion of the Torah was the norm,” Gal ‭4‬:‭4‬ ‭CJB‬‬

I would have thought the best time for Jesus to be born would be during the reign of King Solomon, when Israel ruled the entire known world and every country was at peace with each other.

But, Jesus was born when Israel was being enslaved by the Roman occupation. It was a brutal time to be alive for everybody. To make it worse, the Jewish system was so corrupt that food and purity laws were being used against people and plunging more Israelites into poverty and vulnerability. These rules even kept people from attending church.

God sent Jesus (at just the right time) to be born when the Romans oppressed the Jews and the Jews oppressed their own poor people. And Jesus was born into a poor family - now that’s a bad start!

We know Mary & Joseph were poor because they only offered turtle doves as a sacrifice at the temple. Something which Leviticus only permits if you are too poor to afford the proper sacrifice of a lamb. (Lev 12:8)

So, when was Jesus born?

Into a poor family of the Jews who were being oppressed by the current world super power.

Jesus arrived, telling everyone that the Kingdom of Heaven was near - it’s here! The good news that God loves you and forgives you is for everyone. It works for every class of citizenship. It works for the rich and wealthy, the poor and vulnerable, and for every minority group.

Jesus entered earth and humanity’s lowest so that we could experience God at His highest.

Q: Who might you know that feels excluded from what God is offering at Church or in the community around you? Is there anyone you could help?