No Room Then. No Room Now.

Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you.” ― Matthew7:7. 

The story of no room in the inn is well-known. It surely must have been obvious that Mary was with child and it seems to me that the innkeeper should have felt bad for Mary and found some space for her. But that wasn’t the case. If Joseph and Mary were high ranking officials or Roman dignitaries, I am sure the innkeeper would have found them a room. 

But there weren’t, so the innkeeper did not consider Joseph and Mary’s need a priority, so no room. But we aren’t given any details. We don’t know what the innkeeper was thinking, or what his situation was. All we know is that “there was no room for them in the inn” for the baby who is the Savior of the world. This baby is God in human flesh.

Things have not changed since that day. People still don’t make room for Jesus because He is not high on their priority list. Our nation has become secularized and so materialistic that wherever you look there doesn’t seem to be room for Jesus. There is a story of a woman who was frantically trying to complete her last-minute shopping, Complicating things were the crowds of people trying to get their last-minute shopping done and her young son trying to keep up with her. The woman was dragging the young boy from store to store looking for particular items on her list. Suddenly she realized the boy was not at her side. Turning around she saw him staring into a store window. She walked back and in her irritated maternal voice said, “What are you doing, we don’t have time to stop. Let’s go.” In the store window was a nativity scene. The little boy excitedly pointed at the display and said, “Mom, look, there’s baby Jesus.” She said, “Come on. We don’t have time for that right now, we have to get ready for Christmas.”

That may be an extreme case, but I think it accurately describes how the reason for the season is often missed. Perhaps most people wouldn’t express it as that woman did, but now more than ever, it seems we’ve run out of room for Jesus at Christmas. Though the Christmas season bears His name and its purpose is to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, it’s becoming rare to hear His name in public. Fewer families read the story of the birth of Jesus or attend church at Christmas. But December doesn’t bring just another holiday or just another break from the grind of work. It brings a celebration of the advent of hope and joy—the birth of the Savior of the world. 

This Christmas season, let the wonder of Christ’s love stir you to make room for Him. Is there room in your heart for the crucified, risen Christ? Let’s not just open a room for the Messiah—let’s open our hearts as we focus on Him, not just at Christmas, but throughout the year.

 Discussion Questions:

1. How do we make room for Jesus this week? 
2. How do we make room for Jesus in the new year?