"There Is Born To You"

            Earlier this week, William and Kate were blessed with a baby boy.  When someone told me about it, I believe that I said something like, “Oh, well, that’s nice.  I didn’t know they were even expecting... Who are William and Kate again?  Did I go to college with them?”  In case you are like me and have been living under a rock for the last “however-long,” we’re talking about Prince William of England and his wife Kate Middleton and their newborn child who will one day be the king of England.  And, considering the lack of monarchs today, this is truly a momentous event and a time of great rejoicing for all nations.

            Since the new prince was born, we have been bombarded with pictures and stories about it on television, in the newspapers, and on the internet.  People feel the need to share this good news.  And, it gives the world a very rare opportunity to rejoice together.

            I imagine that you all are like me and, when you heard that a new king was born, that your minds went straight to Luke 2 and the birth of THE King, Jesus.

            Oh, how His birth was different than the new prince of Cambridge!  While this new prince was born in a reserved hospital room to royal parents and greeted by the whole world, while this new prince doesn’t even have a name yet, Jesus’ birth was very different.  While Jesus was born to two loving parents, His earthly parents had not even “known” each other yet (Matthew 1:18-25).  While born to descendants of King David (Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38), Jesus was not born to royal parents, but to a lowly carpenter (Matthew 13:55) and his young wife.  Jesus was not born in an “important” place, but the sleepy little town of Bethlehem (Luke 2:4-7).  He had no reserved place or hospital bed, but a manger because there was no room for them in the inn.  And, while this new prince doesn’t even have a name yet, Jesus was given His name by God: Immanuel which is “God with us” and Jesus which is “God saves” (Matthew 1:21-23).  And, while the world greeted this new prince, only lowly shepherds came to greet their newborn King (Luke 2:15-16).  Truly, there are some pretty big differences between the births of these two kings.

            With all of these differences, there is one greatest of all differences.  This newborn prince will inherit the throne and he will affect the course of western civilization for the next eighty-or-so years.  But, as is the case with all men, he will pass from this life and another will take his throne.  Jesus took His Throne after defeating humanity’s two greatest foes, Sin and Death (1 Corinthians 6, 15; Hebrews 2, 9-10); He ascended into Heaven to sit at the right hand of the Throne of God (Acts 2:32-36).  And, two thousand years later, Jesus is still sitting on His Throne, ruling over His eternal Kingdom forevermore (Daniel 7:13-14, 26-27)!  His Kingdom will not be passed to another.  Rather, at the appropriate time, it will be delivered to the Father in Heaven where those in it will be with our King and our God in eternity (1 Corinthians 15:23-28). 

            While this newborn prince will be a king of an earthly realm one day, Jesus is the King of all kings, over all mankind (1 Timothy 6:13-16) and, especially, over His eternal Kingdom, His Church (Matthew 16:18-19)!

            So, while we rejoice with the world at the birth of this new prince, let us all always remember the One who is reigning over us today and forevermore.  And, let us all always honor, magnify, and serve our King as long as we have life (Colossians 3:23)!

~Curtis Carwile