4. The Roman Soldier – Luke 2:1-5

Politics played a part in the first Christmas event much as it does today. The Roman king decided everyone had to be counted for his census. Not only did they need to be counted, but they had to go to their hometown to be counted, wherever that may be. Since Joseph was a descendant of David, he had to go to Bethlehem, where David was born. This was definitely an inconvenience for him since his wife, Mary, was due to deliver their first child and Bethlehem was 70 miles away. They were poor and had only a donkey to carry Mary and their provisions for the trip, but it had to be done. The king declared it.

5. The Donkey – Luke 2:1-5

Joseph was required to go to Bethlehem, 70 miles away, along with his wife, Mary, who was 9 months along in her pregnancy. They were poor. They couldn’t afford a horse to carry them, so he found a donkey that would carry his sweet wife and baby she was carrying. It was better than having her walk all that way. It was going to take days to make the rough trip along dirt roads that went up and down hills.

6. The Town of Bethlehem – Luke 2:4

Bethlehem was the birthplace of David, and Joseph was a descendant of David. Therefore, it was required by the government that Joseph had to go to Bethlehem to complete the papers required for the census. Bethlehem was a little town, only a few miles from the great city of Jerusalem. David had a lot of descendants by this time, and so, the little town was bursting at its seams with travelers who had come to be counted.

7. The Inn – Luke 2:6-7

By the time Mary and Joseph reached Bethlehem, all accommodations were filled. They couldn’t find any place to sleep. Everywhere they went, the innkeepers turned them away since there was no room anywhere.

8. The Stable – Luke 2:6-7

One enterprising innkeeper, seeing their predicament, told them there was no room for them in the regular accommodations, but they could bed down in the stable if they wanted to. At least it would be warm and dry and quiet, away from the traffic. There would be clean hay for a bed for poor Mary who was more tired than she had ever been before in her life.