A Different Kind of King

It was a cold winter’s night in the early days of the Roman Empire and a king was about to be born.  But as this night and the next thirty years or so would show, this king would prove to be very different than what the world had come to expect.   

Unlike the Caesars who ruled the Empire, this king would not be born in an ornate palace or manor.  This king would come into the world in the basement cave of a crowded inn located in a small backwater village in a backwater province of the Roman Empire.   His cries would be mingled with the sounds and smells of sheep or goats. 

Just as it would be expected for the birth of a future Caesar, this king would also have heralds to announce his arrival into the world.  However, the similarities would end there.  The heralds were not sent to the Roman Senate, or to the wealthy patricians of the district, or even to the religious leaders of the Sanhedrin.  This king’s heralds were sent to the lowly.  They appeared before lonely shepherds huddling around a fire for warmth in the Judean countryside. 

This king would not be raised in opulence in Roman palaces.  This king would likely grow up in a one or two room hovel, sharing space with his parents, four brothers, and sisters.  He knew the hunger pangs of famine and malnutrition.  It is likely that at least one of his siblings died before reaching maturity due to childhood illness or other disease.  He probably trained with his father as a semi-skilled laborer, working with his hands to eke out a marginal existence.  In due season, he and the other members of his family probably hired themselves out as day laborers in the fields of rich landowners, breaking their backs from sunrise to sunset to sow crops in the spring and reap them in the fall. 

This king didn’t surround himself with men of influence and power.  This king would spread his message to the outsiders, those living on the margins.  He would attract fishermen and tax collectors rather than princes and religious elites.  He would appeal to those who were rejected as sinners and call them to repentance and communion with the rest of the community.  He would touch the lame, the blind, and even those suffering from highly infectious disease, those that no one else would dare to touch.  He gave a message of hope to those who had none and saw themselves as too broken to be worthy of hope. 

This king didn’t demonstrate his power through shows of riches and power.  Rather he lowered himself to the status of a slave, even washing the dust off his followers’ feet.  His followers would distinguish themselves through acts of love and humility. 

The kings in Rome would use symbols such as the cross to intimidate, humiliate, and oppress.  This king would subject himself to this humiliation and turn it into a sign of redemption, hope, and power over death. 

The Roman Empire would advance itself through military conquest, domination, and trade.  This kingdom would thrive under unbelievable persecution, spreading across the world through a message of unconditional love and humility. 

This time of year, it is so easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the season, to forget how radical that first Christmas was and how it changed our world.  This season my hope is that we take a moment to remember. 

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