Incarnation of Christ

No Vacancy

Those words, "There was no room for them in the inn," remind me of an experience my family had several years ago. We had been traveling all day, and I was trying to find a motel where we could spend the night. It was getting late, and the children were tired and fidgety. As we drove along the highway, our hopes were dashed time and again by the sight of NO VACANCY signs. As a father, responsible for the well-being of my family, I was frustrated and discouraged. But when I though of Mary and Joseph, how much worse it must have been when they arrived in Bethlehem and found no rooms available! I can imagine Joseph pleading with he manager of this inn, telling him of Mary's condition and their desperate need for a suitable place where she could give birth to her child. Luke tells us that "there was no room for them in the inn," and that when Mary gave birth to Jesus she "wrapped Him in swaddling clothes, and laid Him in a manger."

Today, nearly 20 centuries later, millions of people have no room for Jesus. Although they participate enthusiastically in the festivities of the Christmas season, they keep Him out of their lives. The "NO VACANCY" sign is there.

-Sermons Illustrated November/December 1988