Rehoboam went to Shechem, for all Israel had gone there to make him king. – 1 Kings 12:1

Today's Scripture Reading (December 22, 2022): 1 Kings 12

It is hard to believe that Christmas is almost here. In just a few days, we will celebrate the baby born in a manger among the animals, whose arrival was announced by angels and who was visited by lowly shepherds and foreign astrologers who had been watching for a message in the stars. But maybe the best verse that sums up that night in Bethlehem belongs to Jesus as he taught Nicodemus, a Jewish Pharisee, at night. It is also one of the most memorized verses in the Bible.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God's one and only Son (John 3:16-18).

We know several things about the incarnation, God becoming flesh and walking among us. First, it was expected. The prophets had been speaking in hushed voices about the coming Messiah for centuries. Israel was waiting for him to arrive, hoping that today might be the day. Second, the Messiah would be born of a woman. This was the earliest of the prophecies concerning the coming Messiah, and It comes from the third chapter of Genesis.

And I will put enmity
    between you and the woman,
    and between your offspring and hers;
he will crush your head,
    and you will strike his heel" (Genesis 3:15).

The Messiah would leave his throne in heaven to step into the middle of our world and territory. He went from heaven, where it was safe, to be with us, where it was dangerous. This is the heart of our Christmas celebration: God loves us so much that he came to be with us regardless of that danger. This is Christmas.

Solomon died, and Rehoboam was the next expected King. And there are some parallels with the birth of Jesus. First, Rehoboam becoming King was expected. The author of the book of Kings says that all of Israel went to Shechem to make him King. This was the expected result that would happen as soon as Solomon died. Rehoboam was born of a woman. I know, kind of obvious. Every single life that exists on the planet can make the same claim. But what is unusual with Rehoboam is that he is the only son of Solomon of which we know a name. With a thousand wives and concubines, Solomon must have had other sons, but none of them are named. It seems that just as Jesus was the one and only son of God, it is as if Rehoboam was the one and only son of Solomon.

And finally, Rehoboam went to Shechem to become King. Shechem was a city that had a long and prosperous history. Abraham had worshipped there, Jacob built an altar, and after Israel finally returned from their exile in Egypt, they brought Joseph's bones with them and buried them at Shechem. Shechem was in the geographical center of the northern territory. Rehoboam left his home and the city built by his father and grandfather, Jerusalem, and stepped into enemy territory. Unfortunately for the nation's history, Rehoboam was not a wise King. Instead of unifying the country, his actions further divided Israel between north and south, and that was something that Jesus would come to undo.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: 1 Kings 13