“And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child.” – Luke 2:4-5 

Scripture reading: Micah 5:1-5a

We get frustrated when the decisions of others inconvenience us and complicate our lives. We can only imagine how Caesar’s decree, implemented by Herod, upended the lives of Joseph and Mary

This could not have happened at a worse time! Joseph’s fiancée is about to give birth. Joseph will have to shut down his business or place it in the hands of others to make this unplanned ninety-mile trip to Bethlehem at his own expense. But Caesar has spoken. To Bethlehem they must go.

Joseph and Mary set out on their ninety-mile, four-day trip from Nazareth to Bethlehem. It included a steep climb from Jericho to Jerusalem. Pictures often show Mary riding a donkey. We don’t know if that’s true. Joseph and Mary were poor. Mary, nine months pregnant, may have walked the whole way! How do you think Joseph and Mary felt about Caesar and his decree as they traveled? Were they tempted to believe Caesar, not God, was sovereign over their lives?

Caesar’s decree, it seems, sent them to Bethlehem. Perhaps only later did they realize that God’s decree in Micah 5, which predated Caesar’s decree by 700 years, sent them to Bethlehem!

Today we attend worship to get reoriented to the sovereign, life-giving decrees of God, revealed in His word, which govern our lives. We desperately need this weekly reorientation because we get disoriented so quickly in a world where everything and everyone else seems to be calling the shots in our lives.

Suggestions for prayer

Thank God for the opportunity to get reoriented to God’s sovereign and gracious presence. Pray that He will meet you in his word to equip you for the week ahead.

Rev. Richard Zekveld is the pastor of Covenant Fellowship Church (PCA) in South Holland, Illinois, a Chicagoland suburb. Rev. Zekveld, his wife Nancy, and their five children have lived in the community of South Holland for seventeen years. Get this devotional delivered directly to your phone each day via our RP App. This devotional is made available by the Nearer To God Devotional team, who also make available in print, for purchase, at NTGDevotional.com.