The Unseen Elements in the Journey to Bethlehem

Some words are just immutable; like these words taken from a scene in the Christmas story, The Polar Express.

Seeing is believing, but sometimes the most real things in the world are the things we can’t see (Chris Van Allsburg, The Polar Express).

The Route St. Joseph Took

I would like for you to bear in mind these words as you reflect on the almost 145 km (≈ 90 miles) journey which St. Joseph embarked on with his 8 plus month’s pregnant wife (Luke 2:1-5). For a healthy adult man, this would take like 8 – 10 days to complete; now picture a young pregnant girl……even if she were to ride a donkey….the anxiety, discomfort, or uncertainty that they must endure! The road taken follows the same general route as the is well-known Way of the Patriarchs. It is currently represented by Highway 60, which is a dual carriageway with at-grade intersections. Imagine from the days of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, how many people walked this route back and forth.

This is the route that Abraham took when God promised to give the land to Abraham and his descendants forever (Genesis 17:8). Somewhere along this route is the place where Jacob dreamed of angels ascending and descending a ladder to Heaven (Genesis 28:12). Somewhere on this route is the well that Jacob dug over one thousand years before Mary and Joseph stop to drink from it (cf. John 4:12). Along this route, you will pass the place where Joseph was buried (Joshua 24:32) and the place where Joshua fought the battle of Jericho (Joshua 6:1–27). It is this same route that Daniel traveled when he was led away into Babylonian captivity (Daniel 1). It is the route that God’s chosen people traveled on the return to their homeland to rebuild the Temple (Ezra 1:1 – 6:22).

Journey with Mary and Joseph

This time, think of yourself taking this route with St. Joseph, Blessed Virgin Mary, and the unborn Lord Jesus. Your journey begins in a lovely little town called Nazareth. It sits snuggled in the hills of Galilee overlooking the broad and fertile plain of Esdraelon. This town has a low population. It consists primarily of some small white stone houses (most of which were sculpted by St. Joseph), a synagogue built on its highest hillock, and a marketplace located at the entrance to the village. The people here are mostly farmers, but you are likely to find skilled craftsmen in the marketplace. Perhaps a potter, a weaver, a dyer, a blacksmith, and all the others who came to be associated with the humble carpenter shop in Nazareth. You will be traveling with the robust carpenter and his young pregnant wife to a City in Judea called Bethlehem. The good news is that you will be graced with the privilege to see the seemingly invisible love of God manifested on this 145 km journey.

St. Joseph has chosen a safer and more comfortable route that will take them southeast through the Jezreel Valley and further east to the Jordan Valley. They will continue south to Jericho, and proceed up through the Judean Desert to Jerusalem and onward to Bethlehem. Many people are plodding along this route and certainly bemoaning the oppressive Roman government which has demanded a census and more taxes. They pass Mary and Joseph oblivious to the fact that they are walking past the unborn Saviour of the world (1 John 4:14). They have no idea that God is doing His greatest work behind the scenes of an oppressive situation. There is no indication that the Kingdom of God is in this very moment being established on earth.

Walk By Faith

As for you, you will have to walk by faith, and not by sight ( 2 Corinthians 5:7 ). In order to envision this, you certainly will need eyes of faith; because,

Now faith is the certainty of things hoped for, a proof of things not seen. For by it the people of old gained approval. By faith, we understand that the world has been created by the word of God so that what is seen has not been made out of things that are visible (Hebrews 11:1-3).

This quote from the letter to the Hebrews assumes that there are things you are expecting, things that you will be convicted about, and things about which you will obtain a good testimony. You are going to move from living faith looking forward to growing in faith looking backward, in the past. In other words, that which you see and experience of the Lord God is supposed to inspire trusting confidence in the future. The point of this pilgrimage is not about inventing our beliefs. No, it is about putting our trust in the Lord God based on that what we can see, with the intention of relying on Him in areas where we cannot see.

This must be the way that the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Joseph walked that road; by faith, not by sight. They were able to see far beyond the dusty road. They knew that the Lord God was at work behind the scenes. They looked forward to the fulfillment of the prophecy of Micah,

But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, Too little to be among the clans of Judah,
From you, One will come forth for Me to be ruler in Israel. His times of coming forth are from long ago, From the days of eternity (Micah 5:2).

Most people see a worn-out couple trudging along the dusty road. Your enhanced vision sees a girl upon whom God has bestowed much grace and a man who has been made master of the Lord’s household and ruler over all His possessions (Psalm 105:21). You see that although she was born of a sinner like the rest of us, as frankly admitted by herself to be of low estate and in need for God’s gracious salvation (Luke 1:47 – 48), yet she is the favoured one, and is Immaculately conceived (Luke 1:28). But having responded enthusiastically to His offer of forgiveness, she is the first to be saved. God has been daily appropriating His limitless grace to her for growth and godliness. She is greatly graced by God and has lived with a sense of God’s presence in her entire life. The Lord is truly with her (Luke 1:28), being literally in her womb. With every step that she takes on that route, she enjoys a beautiful moment-by-moment fellowship with God.

Look Deeper Than Appearances

Many people see a tired, very pregnant girl. You see the bearer of the Word that became flesh and dwelt among us. You see His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, glory that is full of grace and truth (John 1:14). You see that God has truly come down from Heaven, and is walking amongst His people in this unborn baby. The group eventually reaches Jericho, the lowest city on planet earth, lying at 258 meters below sea level. Both Jerusalem and destination Bethlehem are situated atop the hills. You think how this will be the toughest hike on this journey – from the desert of Jericho to the breadbasket of Bethlehem is about a 1 km uphill hike.

You learn that every year people from all over the world travel to visit the Jerusalem Temple because it is believed to be the dwelling place of God on earth. Anyone who wants to connect with God, to give thanks to God, or to receive forgiveness from God has to travel to the Temple. The Jerusalem Temple is situated on the top of Mt. Zion. Many of those taking this route look into the far distance to catch a glimpse at the beautiful Jerusalem Temple. They see a magnificent, white structure representing the presence of God on earth. What they do not see is the future of this magnificence that will lie completely demolished by the Roman army in just 70 years to come.

Revelations

But you are lucky today. It is revealed to you that the baby Mary carries will make that magnificent Temple obsolete. You see that God’s presence has already moved from the Jerusalem Temple to the body of the yet unborn baby. You see the Ark of the Covenant is now present in the person of the Blessed Virgin Mary (cf. Revelation 11:19). You see how Mary bears in Jesus the Tabernacle of the Most High (Ephesians 2:22). You see St. Joseph as the guardian of this Mystery of God’s will – that all will come to have access to the Father through the Word made flesh Ephesians 2:18 & 2 Peter 1:4). On this route, St. Joseph will defend, protect, and take care of both mother and unborn child.

Recall what the Lord Jesus later said to His disciples,

Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father (John 14:9).

and

The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you (John 14:17).

While Jesus is physically living on earth, God’s presence will reside in Him. After His death and resurrection, the Lord God will take up residence not in a Temple, but in every believer. As St. Paul teaches us,

Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? (1 Corinthians 6:19).

You see that people no longer have to travel to Jerusalem in order to connect with God. Because that yet unborn Jesus is Immanuel, which translated means, “God with us” ( Matthew 1:23). It means that God has come to dwell with us and in us. You see that the Kingdom of God has come to earth. You see the whole of Heaven present here on earth in this very moment. There is salvation and freedom to anyone who believes in Him. Many see travelers along the route; but, you see a Heavenly procession of Christ the King, being carried in flight by cherubim and seraphim.

You finally reach Bethlehem. The people see the exhausted young couple frantically looking for a place to stay. The only inn is filled to capacity and only a barn is made available to them if they want it. The time comes for the baby to be born. The people see a Jewish baby boy, wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger. You see the Creator of the Universe enter the time and space of His creation. You see that the baby born in Bethlehem is the eternal King of God’s Kingdom and the fulfillment of the promise that David’s kingdom would never end ( Luke 1:31-33).

Things Eternal Are Unseen

You, too, are physically exhausted but the trip to Bethlehem has been spiritually enriching. You go to sleep this night, with the realization that what we see with our eyes is not the end of the story. You appreciate that what we can see is not as important as what is unseen. You understand that even when you cannot see it, you need to remember that the Lord God is always working behind the scenes. From now onwards, you will fix your eyes not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For you now know that the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal (2 Corinthians 4:18).