room for Jesus

We read in Luke 2:7 of the Christmas story that there was not any room at the inns of Bethlehem when Mary and Joseph got to town.  It was busy because of the business that everyone came to town to take care of.  If only someone would have known who they were or who Jesus was or the future plan that God was about to open up.

There just wasn’t room.  Jesus was born in an out of the way, tiny town.  He was born in a place where animals were taken care of, and Jesus’ first resting place other than near his mother was in a feeding trough.  Not much of a beginning for the King of kings.

But that is what God provided.  Out of humility came humanity that would change human kind.  Out of insignificance would come world impact that would touch every corner of the world and create miracle after miracle as well as igniting faith in millions of people.  Jesus came with a plan that we must have room for.  But do we have room for Jesus?

John 3:17
 NLT

God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.

John 10:10
 NLT

The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.

The purpose of Jesus’ arrival and life was set before Mary gave birth to Jesus.  Mary and Joseph were changed by this event and by the time they would spend raising and sharing their son with the world.  They had room for Jesus but not until God rearranged their lives, their thoughts and even their faith.  Do we have room for Jesus?

Have You Any Room For Jesus?

(Words adapted by Daniel W. Whittle)

Have you any room for Jesus,

He who bore your load of sin?

As He knocks and asks admission,

Sinners, will you let Him in?

Chorus:

Room for Jesus, King of Glory!

Hasten now His Word obey;

Swing the heart's door widely open,

Bid Him enter while you may.

Room for pleasure, room for business,

But for Christ the Crucified,

Not a place that He can enter,

In the heart for which He died?

Have you any room for Jesus,

As in grace He calls again?

O today is time accepted,

Tomorrow you may call in vain.

Room and time now give to Jesus,

Soon will pass God's day of grace;

Soon thy heart left cold and silent,

And thy Savior's pleading cease.

Written December 16th, 2004 by Jerry Bouey

Those are powerful words that penetrate my heart as I think about all Jesus did for me.  If Jesus can come to earth, leaving the glory of heaven, and if God would give us His son, then I surely can give my life for His purpose as well.  That doesn’t mean I have to pack up my family and move to Africa.  It does mean that I must seek Him and do that daily.

Honestly, do I have room for Jesus?  There are places and times when I have not had room.  I have pushed him away and left where I would have been blessed for what I wanted or for what seemed more comfortable.  God’s desire for us, like for His son, is greatness.  The catch is we must have room in our lives for Jesus.

Matthew 1:21
 NLT

And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.

Micah 5:5
 NLT

And he will be the source of peace…

His plan for us is perfect.  The life He has for us is full of abundance.  That means that God will take us further than we can go on our own and make us able to do the impossible.  But we first have to have room for Jesus.  We have to have room for our faith to grow and to believe that God can and God will and that God is able.

Jeremiah 29:11
 NASB

For I know the plans that I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.

Jesus still changes lives.  That is the lives of the people who make room for Him.  The truth is still the truth, and lives are being changed. 

Colossians 1:6
 NLT

This same Good News that came to you is going out all over the world. It is bearing fruit everywhere by changing lives, just as it changed your lives from the day you first heard and understood the truth about God’s wonderful grace.

May our Christmas and our days be full of Jesus.  Make room for Jesus.  Encourage others to make room for Jesus.  Tell your story of how you have room for Jesus and how life has different and full ever sense.

NOTE: this devotion was first shared in December of 2012.