One of my favorite animated movies of all time is the 1959 Disney film, Sleeping Beauty. With its stunning scenery, iconic music, and a princess who dons a pink gown, it’s been a beloved movie of mine since childhood. In the opening scene, royalty, powerful fairies, and other important people in the kingdom are ushered into the palace to celebrate the birth and christening of Princess Aurora. And as we all know, things go awry when an uninvited evil fairy shows up to the celebration.
While Sleeping Beauty is a fictional fairy tale, the pomp and circumstance of this beginning scene is likely what we imagine when a new baby is born to a member of royalty or influence. Sure, we may not necessarily expect waving banners or hailing the new child in song, but we do expect the family to be surrounded by powerful and important friends and allies as they welcome their newborn progeny.
However, when the King of the universe came down to earth and was born in human flesh, there was no pomp and circumstance. Banners weren’t waved, and the newborn Son was not serenaded by a little drummer boy, despite what the song says. The little family was visited by two different groups of people during Jesus’ infanthood, but they were not exactly the types of people you might expect to show up for such an occasion.
Luke 2 tells us about the first group—
“And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.” Luke 2:8, ESV
Nearby the place where Jesus was born, there were shepherds watching over their sheep in a field when an angel suddenly appeared to them, relaying the good news that the Messiah, the Savior of the world, had just been born in Bethlehem (Luke 2:9-11). Now, these shepherds were no one special. They were not wealthy or influential by any means. They were just ordinary men. Some have even argued that they were social outcasts. And yet, these men were the ones who received a heavenly invitation to celebrate the birth of the Christ. Even though they probably didn’t look or smell the greatest after spending so much time outside with livestock, they listened to what the angel told them, went to visit the newborn child with haste, and shared with others all that they had seen and heard (Luke 2:15-17).
The second group visited Jesus much later, and we read about them in Matthew 2—
“Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is he who has been born king of the Jews? For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.’” Matthew 2:1-2
We often think of these wise men as simply members of foreign royalty—kings. However, this is not quite the case. These men (and there were more than three of them) practiced astrology, pursued magic, and interpreted dreams. They were pagans in every sense of the word. Yet, they also studied sacred and ancient writings. So, when they spotted an unusual, seemingly unnatural star in the sky, they must have known that the Messiah of the Jewish scriptures had arrived (Numbers 24:17).
This group initially visited the one place you would think would have knowledge on the newborn King of the Jews: the palace of King Herod. But though he was the king of Judea, Herod was not a God-fearing man, and he was clueless of Jesus’ existence or whereabouts (Matthew 2:3). The wise men did eventually locate Joseph, Mary, and Jesus (it is thought that this took place up to two years after His birth), and though they likely didn’t fear God any more than Herod did, they worshipped the young Messiah and lavished Him and His family with valuable gifts (Matthew 2:9-11).
Jesus, the King of kings, was visited by two very different, very unexpected groups when He came into this world: a group of ordinary or even outcast Jewish men and a group of wealthy and well-read pagans. And these two groups of people did not come upon the young Messiah on accident. As is true with all of God’s work in our world, there was a beautiful purpose to it. Author Rebecca McLaughlin once wrote,
“There’s something very touching about this story of a divine child lying in a manger, heralded by angels and hated by rulers, but worshiped by both rich and poor, by fellow Jews and foreigners, by stargazing scholars and uneducated shepherds.”[1]
The beautiful and touching truth that is hidden within these biblical narratives is that Jesus came for everybody: young and old, rich and poor, Jew and Gentile. The Bible tells us that Jesus came to seek and to save the lost—and that’s all of us (Luke 19:10). He died on the cross for the sins of the whole world with the desire that all would come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9, 1 John 2:2). He is the Savior of both Jews and Gentiles (Romans 1:16, 3:29-30), and when He saves us, our distinctions, whether they be our gender, race, or socioeconomic status, disappear in light of our new identity: united with Christ (Romans 10:12, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:28, Colossians 3:11).
This Christmas season, may we remember that Jesus came into the world for all of us, regardless of who we are, and may we rejoice that we, as Christ followers, are united with Him for eternity.
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Galatians 2:20
[1] Rebecca McLaughlin, Is Christmas Unbelievable?: Four Questions Everyone Should Ask About the World’s Most Famous Story (The Good Book Company, 2021), 20.
