In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world.
Come with me to a palace in Rome a bit over two thousand years ago. The most powerful man in the world is on his throne. He’s defeated his enemies; he’s been in charge for over 20 years; he has near-absolute rule over nearly 3.5 million square miles of territory; his face is on the money in nearly 70 million people’s pockets; he’s lord of all he surveys.
He’s Octavian, Caesar Augustus, first emperor of Rome.
He decides he’d like to count his subjects. And so it happens: as Luke tells us, even in far-flung Palestine, everyone went to their own town to register (Luke 2:3). One man’s decree leads to millions travelling, and – presumably – tens of thousands of civil servants doing the counting. That’s real power, isn’t it?
Among those crowds travelling for registration are a couple about to have a baby. His birth, when it comes, is in a room shared with animals, and he’s laid in a cattle feeding trough. He never had riches; he deliberately avoided political involvement; the only crown he wore was one of thorns.
Yet whose birth will we be celebrating this Christmas?
Which of these two kings has had more influence on human rights, learning, and much more of what Glen Scrivener calls The Air We Breathe?
Which of them opened up the way back to God?
Which of these two kings is alive today? Which one is buried in a mausoleum in Rome, and which has a tomb that is empty?
Which of these kings do countless millions gather each Sunday, all over the world, to listen to?
Which of these two kings has a world-wide kingdom today, two thousand years later? Which one has a present claim, as king, on your life and mine?
The back-story to the contrast between these two kings is in the book of Daniel, in which we hear the interpretation of a dream which the then-king Nebuchadnezzar had. It points forward to a kingdom which seems almost certainly, in context, to be that of Rome: In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure for ever. (Daniel 2:44)
Worship Him!
As I wish you a happy Christmas, a note of thanks to my colleague Shelley Rae, who has posted this blog with an eye-catching picture each week. She and her husband Ben are due shortly to return to their native Australia. We thank God for them, and plan to resume the blog in the new year.
