3 Things - Come To Bethlehem

In the Bible, we can find three occasions where a significant journey was made to Bethlehem. Two of these journeys occurred because there was death. The third journey, of course, is memorialized because of the birth of our Savior.

In the chart below, you can see the states of heart that brought each one to the city, and in the next column you can see that over time, the central figure of the Bethlehem story was first a man - Boaz; then a Boy - David; and finally a baby - Jesus.

In the final column, I am suggesting how we can bring our hearts to the Lord as a fresh offering of myrrh, frankincense and gold. This is what Christmas is all about - receive the Savior - He is our Emmanuel - the One who is with us through all things; and offer more of yourself to Him in this Christmas season:

Come To Bethlehem

Matt. 2:11

And when they were come into the house,
they saw the young child

with Mary his mother, and fell down, and worshipped him:

and when they had opened their treasures, 
they presented unto him gifts;

gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.

Three Trips To Bethlehem How Far They Travelled	Why They Came	How They Came	Who They Found	Bring to Him
Ruth & Naomi Ruth 1:22 (About 30 miles)	They came because of the death of their husbands	Empty, bitter & broken because of the past	A Man A Redeemer Boaz	Myrrh – lay all your bitterness, losses, Disappointments and frustrations before Him
Samuel 1Samuel. 16 (About 10 miles from Ramah)	He came because there was going to be a death (Saul's)	Fearful because of the future	A Boy A King David	Frankincense – Lift up all your hopes and dreams for this coming year. He is your priest who is interceding on your behalf (Rom. 8:27; 34; Heb. 7:25)
Mary/Joseph/ Magi/Shepherds Luke 2:2-6 (Mary/Joseph - 80 miles over 5-7days; The Magi - approx. 1000 miles over a couple of months)	They came because there was going to be a birth	Obedient because of God’s promised Emmanuel (God is with us in our past present and future) The Shepherds came with haste: Lu. 2:16	A Baby A Savior Jesus - Emmanuel	Gold – Give Him your heart. Jesus gave us His all. Take time on this Bethlehem journey to give all of yourself to Him.

More on Bethlehem: Here

...and a series on Gold, Frankincense and Myrrh: Here