The head of the body of Christ is already glorified, but the body itself is yet to be fully born.
Text for Today – Luke 2:7 – And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.
While it is certainly not the Christmas season, here is a story with which I am sure you are already familiar. We see Jesus, the Son of the living God being born in a stable and laid in a manger. But please note, dear reader, that this did NOT occur because Mary and Joseph were poor. In fact, they had come to Bethlehem to be counted and pay taxes. Jesus was born in the stable because “there was no room from them in the inn.”
Imagine for a moment with me, if you will. Joseph has brought Mary a long distance and is seeking a room for their night’s lodging. We don’t know if Mary was already in labor, but Joseph loved her and diligently sought for a room for them for the night, but could find none.
I am sure that Mary, too, would really liked to have had a room with walls, floor, and roof over here head in which to give birth to her first-born son, Whom she well knew, as did Joseph, was the Son of the living God; the promised Messiah.
Still, no room was found for them in the inn, and so it was, as the Scriptures declare, there is a Bethlehem stable, she brought forth her first-born son, wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.
Now consider this. Jesus is the head of the body of Christ. That body is still being formed daily as new babes in Christ are born into the kingdom of God. While sons and daughters of God are still being brought into the world today, the Father God, represented by Holy Spirit, and the true church, which today serves as the womb from which babes in Christ are birthed in travail, are still seeking for places for those new babes to be born. Every time we encounter an unbeliever, a lost person, we have just found a potential place for a new birth. For you see, your body is the temple of Holy Ghost, and every unbeliever is a potential temple for Holy Ghost as well. But before a person can become the temple of Holy Ghost, they must first be the residence of the Lord Jesus Christ. Let us say like David of old, I will not rest, or give sleep to my eyes, until I have found a dwelling place for my Lord (Psalm 132:2-5). Let us make the time remaining in this year a time of soul winning (house hunting) for Jesus.
Manna for Today – Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15-20; Matthew 1-2; Luke 1; Psalm 132:2-5
My Second Miler by Dr. Beechard Moorefield 