Every Longing HeartSample

An Inconvenient Decree that Fulfilled Prophecy

With a stroke of his pen, Caesar Augustus issued a census decree that required his subjects to return to their ancestral hometowns to be counted. With the knowledge of how far and wide the empire extended, Rome could exact more taxes and build a bigger and better military. The census was an inconvenience to Augustus’ subjects, but he didn’t care about that. He was only concerned about building and securing his kingdom.

Little did he know that God was using his census decree to usher forth a different kingdom that would have no end, the Kingdom of God.

When news of the decree reached Mary and Joseph, they were living in Nazareth, 90 miles away from the town of Bethlehem, and Mary was near her delivery time. Joseph and Mary left for the arduous journey to Bethlehem without time to waste. While this must’ve seemed inconvenient and uncomfortable, more was happening than met the eye.

Seven hundred years before, the prophet Micah foretold that the birthplace of the long-awaited Messiah would be Bethlehem. If Jesus was born in Nazareth and not Bethlehem, Scripture would not have been fulfilled, and he could not have been the Savior. But this problem was not too big for God. He used a pagan ruler and an inconvenient decree to move the holy family into place to fulfill Micah's prophecy.

As Mary made her way into Bethlehem and her labor pains increased, we can only wonder if she found comfort in the fact that God would not let her deliver on the way. Perhaps she remembered the prophetic words of Micah and that this birth would not occur until they reached Bethlehem.

So often, we don’t understand God’s timing and the events that transpire in our lives. Our perspectives limit us, but God sees all of our lives' macro and micro details and works through them to accomplish his will. Take heart the next time an inconvenient decree is issued or your plans take a sudden or unexpected turn. Caesar Augustus’ census decree reminds us that God is always at work in the affairs of mankind, and nothing can stop his will.

• How is God calling me to think differently about global events?
• How is God calling me to think differently about my plans when interruptions happen?
• How can I be more unshakeable the next time things don’t go according to my plan?