Dr. J. Vernon McGee :: Beginning at Bethlehem

Beginning at Bethlehem

Bethlehem marked a mighty transition for the Lord Jesus Christ as well as for this earth. Something of eternal significance transpired there. Not only was the calendar of the world changed, but heaven itself and eternity were affected. It had been predicted,

…When he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me. (Hebrews 10:5)

John stated the mystery of the incarnation — “The Word became flesh…” (John 1:14). That statement is the simplest and the shortest concerning the virgin birth.

In his first epistle, John marked off the entrance of Christ into the world as one of the three beginnings in Scripture. They are:

(1) The beginning of creation.

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)

(2) The beginning before all beginnings.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1)

(3) The beginning of the Christian era.

That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life. (1 John 1:1)

In the new era which began with the coming of Christ, God was made “available” for humanity. John said, “We have heard Him; we have seen Him; we have looked upon Him; and we have handled Him.” This had its beginning with the virgin birth and was so stated by Dr. Luke:

…That holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:35)

Christ came for a two-fold purpose. The first was to reveal God. The angel also said in Matthew, “... Thou shalt call his name Jesus: for he shall save his people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). The second purpose was to redeem man. This Baby was born to die! Bethlehem was linked to Calvary by a blood tie!

Calvary led to the empty tomb. The empty tomb was filled with the power of the resurrection. The empty tomb led to the ascension. It spoke of His glorification. The ascension led to the place of intercession where He is today — this very moment. This is what John meant in Revelation 1:19:

Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter.

The things that John saw in the first chapter of Revelation pertain to the glorified Christ:

(1) He sits at God’s right hand with all power committed to Him in heaven and in earth.

(2) He is the head of the church.

(3) His piercing eyes search out every heart and life.

(4) His tender heart pleads for each that is His own.

(5) His nail-pierced hands hold His sheep.

When John saw Him in all of His glory, the reaction on John was profound:

And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last. (Revelation 1:17)

John’s reaction is amazing in light of the fact that he had reclined upon the Lord’s bosom in the Upper Room; now he lies as dead at the feet which are as “burnished brass.” The Lord Jesus Christ is no longer the lowly Nazarene, the carpenter of Nazareth, or the man of Galilee. He is the man of glory — glorified.

All of these truths had their inception at Bethlehem. There He took upon Himself humanity; there He became the God-man:

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man. For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. (Hebrews 2:9, 10)

Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham. Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people. For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted. (Hebrews 2:14-18)

As man, Christ was humiliated — He tasted death for every man. As a man, He was glorified — “But we see Jesus…crowned with glory and honor.” The story did not begin at Bethlehem, and the story does not end there. Bethlehem leads on; the star of Bethlehem points on to “the Bright and Morning Star.”