No Room

O the joy of Christmas!

Christmas trees, making a list and checking it twice, giving gifts to those near and dear, eggnog (for those who like it), fruitcake (ummm…no!), family, Nativity scenes, caroling, ringing of bells, cards in the mail, crowded stores with endless Christmas music, Santa, elves, Rudolf and the sleigh, snow...

Charlie Brown’s one-bulb tree (I have one and love it!), lights and tinsel, frosted sugar cookies (no sprinkles for me, thanks), the smell of evergreen, Christmas themed movies replayed again and again, hearing Nat Cole’s The Christmas Song (Chestnuts roasting…), Bing Crosby crooning White Christmas, the smell of honey baked ham (and the taste, too!)…

It all signals one thing…Christmastime is here!

But of all of the things listed above that ring of Christmas, I would dare say, the most overlooked display of the season is the Nativity. It is possible to look at it, and think, How sweet and precious that Nativity scene is! But in our excitement of Christmas, perhaps we miss how it really was.

Charles Dickens wrote in A Tale Of Two Cities, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” and it was no different on that night in Bethlehem.

Without question, it was the best of times because it was the birth of our Lord. To think that the God of all creation would prepare Himself and body and dwell among us…marvelous is He!

But it was also the worst of times…

To begin with, it was not the silent night we so fondly sing about, for the village of Bethlehem was far from quiet on that holy night.

There was the crush of people weary of travel, as the decree came that all the known world should return to their place of birth to be taxed and counted in the census…

Perhaps many unable to find accommodations ended up sleeping on the streets with the camels and donkeys…

The cry of merchants surely could be heard well into the wee hours of the morning, hoping to make an extra dollar with the need of the hungry masses…

Little children were crying out in the night for their parents attention…

And into this overcrowded and noisy situation we find a man and his very young wife, great with child.

Luke writes that there was “no room for them in the inn,” and we have always assumed he was speaking of a hotel of some sort. Certainly not a Ramada type inn of bed, bath, and cable television, but a simple place of respite from travel. Probably a bed, wash basin, and not much else.

However, the Greek word for inn used in Luke’s telling of the birth of Christ is not the same Greek word he used in relating the story of the Samaritan taking the injured man to an inn (Luke 10:34).

Luke’s actual words were, She wrapped Him in cloth and laid Him in a corn crib, as there was no room in the guest room (Luke 2:7).

In other words, it leaves us to wonder if perhaps Luke wasn't referring to an inn at all, and merely that Joseph and Mary were hoping to stay with family or friends...for whatever reason, the guest room was already taken, so there was no room.

We will never know the real reason there was no room, but let us ‘reason’ it out…

Perhaps family members were already booked to the max and simply could not find even a corner for another boarder.

This idea is so foreign to me. Coming from a large family, I know that there are times family come to town, and if there is no room, we make room. Not so in Bethlehem, or so it seems.

Another possibility is that just maybe they were shunning them because Mary was not married to Joseph at the time she found she was pregnant. And though married when they arrived in Bethlehem, that Joseph would not publicly humiliate or judge her certainly would not sit well with those who closely followed the letter of the Law.

Yet not wishing to leave Mary to deliver her child by the side of the road, someone offered their stable…

It was not a barn with a semi-clean loft or the quaint open-air corral that we see depicted, but was a dark, damp cave where animals were kept. Can you imagine the smell of such an enclosed place?

I am the question girl...

Did they even have a candle or lantern? Did they have their own blankets or were they offered one from their family? Did someone bring them a basin and clean linen or did Joseph have to ‘make do’ with the water he carried with him on the journey? Did anyone assist him or was Joseph left alone to help Mary bring the Savior into the world?

Though her soul had magnified the Lord with the knowledge of what had happened to her, Mary was just a young girl. So, even though she and Joseph had heard the word of the Lord from the angel, one wonders what thoughts were going through their minds? Where was her mother? Why did no one come to their aid? I cannot imagine how they felt…perhaps Mary thought, At least it is a covered and private place.

And into this place of most unsatisfactory conditions, the King of Kings was born!

Mary wrapped her baby in strips of cloth, as was the custom, in order to keep the infant’s limbs straight. She then laid Him in a manger…a corn crib…a feeding trough for animals. Not quite what the man had in mind when he built it, and certainly not an appropriate resting place for a newborn, not to mention our Lord.

But so it was that a babe was born, and they called His Name Jesus…

His only visitors that night were men of a most lowly position in society. They were humble shepherds, keeping watch over their flock. Historians believe that by reason of being yet in the field with the sheep, it had to have been between April and September when the angels of the Lord appeared unto them bringing glad tidings that the Savior was born.

The Scriptures do not say that they followed a star, so one has to wonder if the star was merely a sign for the Magi to follow two years later, when they found the young child and his parents in their home (Matthew 2:11 ).

What is known is that somehow they found Mary, Joseph and the babe in the stable. When the shepherds saw all that was told by the angels, they told it to all around, but the reaction of the people was one of wonder and not worship. It was one continuous display of no room on that wonderful night…

As someone said long ago, “And so it is today…no room!”

There is room for “houses, land, and pleasure.” We make room for gadgets and entertainment…room for people and distractions of every sort…room for chatter and nonsense…room for working and relaxation…room for grief and regret…room for family and friends…room for bitterness and strife…room for loving and being loved…room for personal agenda and programmed performance…room for wasted moments.

“But for the One who reigns forever, there’s no room today…”

People's lives and hearts can become so overcrowded with the clutter of this present world that there is no room left for Jesus.

And for some, it is not so much the general clutter, as it is the circumstances of life. As I was reminded in Sunday School recently, not everyone is full of the joy of the season. The hustle and bustle, not to mention the expense, is not so joyous for those without a job.

Others dread this time because of memories of Christmases past. Perhaps they have gone through a divorce, or have suffered the emptiness the death of a loved one can bring. Even in a crowded mall or a festive dining room, the pangs of loneliness can be a terrible thing.

All of this, and more, can crowd our hearts so that there is no room for the One who knows us best and loves us most.

But please allow me today to encourage your heart. Let us turn everything over into the loving hands of the Master. He is asking us to lay it all down at His feet, and simply let Him reign.

He who sees and knows all recognizes our pain and disappointment. He is there in the midst of our financial woes. He feels our grief and despair. He is here!

Please make room for Jesus today, not just in this time of celebration of His birth, but for always. May the Peace and Joy of Christmas dwell in you, and may you rejoice with exceeding great joy!!

No room
No room for Him
No room to let Him in
No room for Jesus
In the heart He made
Just for Him

No room for the King of Kings
Room for others and for other things
But no room for Jesus
In the heart He made
No room

Room for houses, land, and pleasures
Room for things that pass away
But for One who lives forever
There's no room today

No room for the King of Kings
Room for others and for other things
He just keeps knocking
But He hears you say
"No room!"

--Lanny Wolfe