The Manger

Luke 2:12
And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”


Do you think the shepherds talked about the angels as they headed toward the town of Bethlehem? Yeah, I imagine they were shocked, amazed, they more then likely talked about what the angels looked like, how their wings were so beautiful. .... BUT I imagine the main topic of conversation was what the angels had told them. They asked each other what this all could mean. After talking about this for awhile do you suppose the topic changed. They thought some more about what the angel had told them, and one of them remembered..........."Lying in a MANGER"? Why would He, our Messiah, the Christ Child, being lying in a Manger?"

This last Sunday evening our church had their annual "Candlelight Communion" service. It is always so beautiful, so Christmas feeling. If you still aren't in the Christmas Spirit, after this service there is no hope for you. We sing Christmas Carols, they have special music, 2 or 3 of our church leaders give little talks about what Christmas means to them. Our Pastor then brings a short but always a very special Christmas talk. This short talk, is my subject for today.

Manger, what is a manger? We all know Jesus was born in a Stable, (today we would call it a barn), we all know why, because there was no room for them in the INN> Several weeks ago, Pastor Kermit spoke about how this was a miracle, for that part of the world, in those days, NO ONE turned away anyone, especially a pregnant teenager and her husband. But let's talk about the manger. Think about a barn you may have seen once. There are stalls for the animals, there is hay all over the place, maybe in Mangers in each stall for the specific animal that is housed there. What do horses and cows and different large animals do allot of besides eat hay, yes there was allot of THAT around as well, it was, by the way, a BARN. So the picture we have in our minds of a nice clean Stable, with clean animals, a smiling happy Jesus lying in the Manger wrapped in nice clean blankets, with His mother and earthly father and the Shepherds and the Wise Men, (who really weren't supposed to be there for at least a year or more.) This is more then likely, not at all the way it was. If you have ever been in a barn, then you know how dirty, smelly, awful it can be. The Inn Keeper had not had time to keep the place clean, because he was taking care of his guests he had, there was no room for Mary and Joseph, because the place was full. The Stable I assume, was filthy. It smelled, there were flies swarming around all over the place, the animals were making all kinds of noise, because these people had came into their living quarters. Our "Nativity" scenes we put up all over the place, are not very authentic, because we cannot imagine the Son of God being born in such a place as a filthy barn out back.

Manger? What is a manger for? It is a small stand that they would put hay in to keep it dry for the animals. The animals would come to the manager when they were hungry and eat. This hay that they ate out of the manger gave them life, it was how they survived. It was their Bread of Life, they could not survive without it. This is the thought that my Pastor told us Sunday night. That Jesus Christ, who years later would refer to Himself as the "Bread of Life" became that "Bread of Life" when He was born. Is this why there was no room for them? So that Jesus Christ, God's son would be born in a lowly barn, but also in a place that only had one purpose, to give life? When "Pastor K" got to this point in his talk, I was astonished. What meaning, what love. God uses things like this throughout the scriptures to show us of His purpose. Jesus Christ is mentioned throughout the scriptures, Old and New Testament. His first and second coming is referred to thousands of years ago. It has been prophesied thousands of times what has and is to come in this world, and EVERY SINGLE ONE of these has come to pass so far. No other "Religion" can say that,not even close.

This Jesus, who became our "Bread of Life" so that we might live, gave His all. He could have asked His Father to rescue Him on that cross, He could have asked Him to rescue Him instead of being beaten, or spat upon, or cussed out, or made fun of..............BUT HE did not. Don't you think He was fully human? Don't you think He hurt, suffered terribly physically? He knew that if He failed in His mission, all the work all the prophesies over the last few thousands of years would be wrong. He knew that His Fathers work that had begun in the Garden with Adam and Eve, would be for naught. So He raised His head to Heaven looked into His Fathers Eyes and continued with His mission. He finished what many thought was His worst night, but had no idea the significance of that act.

Why am I talking about Easter things at Christmas time? Because without Easter, Christmas would have no meaning.

I mentioned to my Pastor, after service the other night, how that thought about the manger had "floored" me. He said it did him as well when God put it into his mind, the other day. Jesus became the "Bread of Life" the day He was born, and continued to be our way to live, right up to the day He died on the cross. Aren't you glad?

Thank you Pastor Kermit Bell for your insight, and listening to the Holy Spirit as you studied for this message. God, I believe, gave you an insight that is amazing.