Let's look together at Micah chapter number five. I'd like us to read verse one to verse number six. Now, muster your troops, O daughter of troops; siege is laid against us; with a rod they strike the judge of Israel on the cheek. But you, O Bethlehem Ephratah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for Me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. Therefore, He shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth. Then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel. And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace. When the Assyrian comes into our land and treads in our places, then we will raise against him seven shepherds and eight princes of men. They shall shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod at its entrances. And he shall deliver us from the Assyrian when he comes into our land and treads within our border. Father, we come to You now, asking that You would send Your Holy Spirit to open the eyes of our understanding, to cause us to rejoice and to respond to Your word. Father, we pray that we would see Jesus this morning, and that we would behold Him who was born in Bethlehem, in a manger, Christ the Lord, the Savior of the world. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, where do you ordinarily expect to find the greatest students? Surely, in the most prestigious schools and universities. Or where do you suppose you might find the greatest musicians? But at the most studious academic institutes of music. What about royal prospects that would be perhaps the next king or queen? But in kings' palaces and among those who are respectable. And we say, why is that the case? Well, it's really simply plain logic and wisdom. The best schools pour out the most time and effort and money and energy into the students, hoping that that would secure the better outcomes. And so it is in all these sectors. Yet, what is ordinarily the case is not invariably the case. And so what may be true in the general sense because of all the resources that are available to some, it is not always the case. Even in the kingdom of this world, we see that the sovereign Lord God disrupts the conventional. He turns the tables around on the expected to demonstrate to us what Ecclesiastes chapter nine verse 11 says, that under the sun, the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to the intelligent, nor favor to those with knowledge, but as this man perceives it, time and chance happen to them all. And so God has so ordered things in the world so that things that are unexpected happen and cause us to wonder what is really going on. Cause us to stop and make us contemplate that not everything is simple mathematics. There is a divine Ruler who turns things around, and things that seem one way don't end up being the way that they seem. And this is what we find here in Micah chapter number five verse two. Here we see a ruler that will restore and bless Israel, and will fulfill God's promises coming from a very unlikely place. The situation here in Micah chapter five is one where Israel is in distress. They are having to muster up their troops and to stand against their enemies, Babylon and Assyria. And this is not looking very positive with regards to the outcome of this warfare. In chapter number five verse number one, we see that they are threatened. You can look at the previous chapter and what was, and understand the context of the times. They were threatened by Babylon and Assyria. And they rouse up their troops, but there's an embarrassing result found in the last phrase of verse number five chapter five verse one. It says, “with a rod, they,” that is their enemies, “strike the judge of Israel on the cheek.” Nothing could really be more shameful. To strike someone on the cheek is, signifies humiliation, signifies a kind of defenselessness on the part of the person that's being struck on the face, that you cannot even defend this most vulnerable place, even which your hands are right there ready apparently to defend. It's figurative, but it's pointing to the fact that there is humiliation that would come upon the prince, or the ruler, or the judge of Israel. Now, who is this judge of Israel? Well, I don't think Micah has particularly any one person in mind here. Because he's talking about Babylon and Assyria both attacking the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom, and he prophesies to both these. But the point is this, what Micah is trying to simply say is that this is representative of your ruler. It was true of Zedekiah, it was true of Hoshea. The point is when their enemies came in, they left them utterly humiliated. And this distress that was coming to Israel during the time of the prophecy of Micah and following would lead to this utter humiliation of God's people. But not all is lost. The passage tells us of a signal of hope. Verse one describes this distress that leads to humiliation. Verse two begins with the word but. A kind of contrast that speaks to the fact that not all is lost. Humiliation shall not be of all your days. But God will do something. God references another ruler, one who will be a ruler in Israel, none other than the Lord Jesus Christ, whose shepherding work will result in the restoration of Israel, the peace of Israel, the protection of the people of God, and the security of the people of God. His rule shall be to the ends of the earth and He shall be one who is mighty. So not all is lost because of this word “but” that introduces this manner of hope that God wants the people of Israel to understand in light of their present distress. But where will this hope come from? He says, "But you," and He addresses a town. "But you, Bethlehem Ephratah." Now, what would we expect to follow with this sense of distress and humiliation, talking about this great ruler who will come and restore all that has been lost and more, and "but you." What would we expect to follow? But you, Jerusalem, shall come the mighty king. From you, O Jerusalem, the city of God. We might expect perhaps, "Oh you, from you, Caesarea, the place of great political power and economics." Or from you, Tiberias, or from you, Jericho, the wealthy city. No. What we find is, "But you, Bethlehem Ephratah." Now, let me give a modern comparative perspective to help you think about this a little bit more. New South Wales is humiliated. Our enemies are come upon us. All is grim, hope seems lost. Where do we expect our hope to come from? "But oh you, United States of America." No. That's what one might expect. In fact, you might expect, "But oh you, Sydney, that mighty city." No. What we hear is something equivalent to the following: "But are you, O Bourke?" The back of Bourke. "But are you, O Moree?" Or in case you don't know much about regional New South Wales, let me apply it to Sydney. Sydney's in trouble. "But oh you, Mount Druitt." "But oh you, Claymore." Oh, Airds. No, not La Perouse or Double Bay shall the hope of the people come. But Bethlehem Ephratah, one of the humblest towns in all of Israel. Estimated to only contain about 1,000 people, 1,000 to 3,000 people. A place 10 kilometers out of the city, which means that it's overshadowed by the city of Jerusalem. A place where there is no military power, there is no major trade, not even any royal significance with regards to the common kings that would come out of Israel, for Israel. Bethlehem Ephratah, the little place that is little among the clans of Judah. Some people say it was so little to be regarded among the clans of Israel, sorry, or the clans of Jerusalem and Judah. Tiny town, small city, little place, that little town of Bethlehem. From it, from the place most unexpected shall come God's greatest saving power to that place, in that place, and from that place, which is regarded as the humblest town in Israel. The humble town of Bethlehem, that little town will become the focal point and climax of God's redemptive work in the entirety of history. All eyes that are waiting to see this coming king, this glorious one that will rescue His people and will save them and fulfill the promises that were made, He will come from the place least expected. They may look to Jerusalem, but their eyes should behold Bethlehem, for that is the place where God will bring His Son, the Savior. Christ the ruler will come from this humble town. And more than Him coming from this humble town, He will come from a humble vessel and He will have a humble birth. He comes from this humble place called Bethlehem. He is born of the Virgin Mary, a woman of humble lineage, a woman who was not among the richest. A woman who regards herself as a servant of the Lord, who herself says that He has looked on the humble estate of His servant. He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate. She was so humble and in fact so poor that when they offered up a sacrifice for the dedication of Jesus in the temple, they offered two turtle doves because they didn't have the resources to pay for a more glorious sacrifice. That was what was God allowed for the most poor. Here is this humble town, here is this humble vessel, and then here is this humble birth in that humble town, through that humble vessel. The birth in Bethlehem. They were told that she would give birth to a firstborn son in Luke chapter two verse seven, and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, that is an animal trough, because there was no place for them in the inn. Here is the Savior of the world, the King, the Ruler of my people Israel, from which all the prophets prophesied and the hope of the people hung on to and looked toward. And He would be born in Bethlehem Ephratah, visited by shepherds and Gentiles. The only king that wanted to come and see Him was one who wanted to kill Him. King Herod. Now, this is not the first time that God honors that lowly little town. 300 years before Micah's prophecy, God chose unlikely Bethlehem, and God chose an unlikely king from Bethlehem. God sought a king who brought, who would bring temporary protection to the children of Israel, peace and security to Israel out of Bethlehem. He would be the one who would replace this tall, proud, powerful Saul who was humiliated because of his rebellion against God. And so God sends prophet Samuel and says to him, "I'm going to replace this man." But even Samuel struggles to identify who the replacement will be. And so he sends Samuel there, and in 1 Samuel chapter 16 verse 6 to 7, Eliab is brought before him, Jesse's eldest, and Samuel says, "Surely the Lord's anointed is before me." But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him, for the Lord sees not as man sees. Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart." And so Jesse brings out his, you know, Samuel says, "Any more sons?" Jesse brings out all seven of his sons to pass by him, and Samuel understands that the Lord has not chosen these. Samuel says, "Surely, you've got to have another son. God doesn't make mistakes. He sent me to this place. The next king is coming from this place. Yes, it's a lowly town. Yes, Jesse and your sons, but there's got to be more." "Oh, yes, by the way, there's one more son. He's the youngest of them. And guess what? He's a keeper of the sheep." And his name is David. And so they call over David to come and to see Samuel, the prophet. And when he sees him, the Lord immediately speaks to Samuel and says to him, "Arise, anoint him, for this is he." The youngest son, a shepherd, the anointed one who would rule over Israel and bring peace to Israel in a temporary way, King David, from Bethlehem, an unlikely king. And God was about to do the same thing in fulfillment of that, more fully, more glorious, not temporarily, but eternally, through the appointment of His Son, Jesus Christ, to be born out of Bethlehem, that lowly town, who would rule and shepherd the people Israel. God's anointed shepherd, God's anointed ruler. Who would be the answer to the abject failure of Israel, who would be the one who would come from Bethlehem, that little town, that lowly place, and will rule forevermore. Here we learn in this passage of scripture, the mind of God and the kingdom of God. And this is the lesson that we need to take away from this truth regarding God's eyes looking upon Bethlehem Ephratah. That God resists the proud, but He gives grace to the humble. It is true of God's saving purposes also in the gospel, that He saves those that are lowly in spirit. Hear it from the words of Paul, who says in 1 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 26, "For consider your calling, brothers, not many of you were wise according to worldly standards. Not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth, but God has chosen what is foolish in the world to shame the wise. God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong. God chose what is low and despised in the world, even the things that are not, to bring to nothing the things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of Him, are you in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that as it is written, let the one who boasts boast in the Lord." What is Paul saying here? That what God did in Bethlehem Ephratah is what He does in the salvation of sinners every day. Not many mighty, not many of noble birth. Not any, thank God. Some nobleman said I was saved by the letter M. Many, any. So thank God he didn't say not any. Say by the letter M. Not many. But not many. Why? Because it is true of God and His saving purposes, that no man will glory in His presence, so He raises up those that are least likely inheritors of the kingdom of God. God has chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom. And so we learn about God's saving purposes in the gospel. This is even what Mary said when she saw this. Take it from her, she said, "He has shown strength with His arm. He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted of those of humble estate. He has shown strength with His arm. He has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the mighty from their thrones and exalted those of humble estate." Here is Mary saying this is how God works. This is how God works. He exalts the humble and He destroys the proud. Hear it from the words of Jesus Himself who said, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." You see, God's salvation comes to and God's salvation comes from lowly places. And that's the lesson that we must learn from Bethlehem Ephratah. The little among the clans of Judah, from that little place will come God's great savior, God's great ruler, who will rule and reign over the nations, king forever. And He won't come from the places where the people expect. He will come from the most lowly places, the humble places. And so it is with God's salvation. That Christ comes to and Christ comes from lowly places. The application to us is then quite straightforward, isn't it? Is our heart a lowly place? Jesus said, "Truly I say to you, unless you become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. And whoever humbles himself shall be exalted. They shall be greatest in the kingdom of heaven." What is Jesus's message? The way up is down. In the kingdom of God, things are reversed to how they ordinarily seem in the kingdom of man. And what happens in the kingdom of man only from time to time, so it seems, God demonstrating to man that He works outside of the ordinary, so this is ordinary in the kingdom of God. Let us learn the lesson of Bethlehem Ephratah as we sing in that song. Though no ear may hear his coming, but in this world of sin, where meek souls will receive Him still, the dear Christ enters in. There you have it. He comes to places that are lowly, places that are broken. He humbles the proud, He breaks us down, He smashes our pride, He exposes our sin, so that we see ourselves as little and are not like King Saul who was lifted up in pride. But rather we are like those that are humbled and broken in need of God's saving mercy. This is what God does, and Christ enters into those places. He comes with that rod to crush the pride and to bring us in to the hope and salvation that He alone can offer. Is your heart a lowly place? Is your heart a place where Christ as it were may come and descend and make His dwelling there? Or are you the king of your own heart? Are you ruling in your own life? Are you defending your own power and your own glory and your own name? Or are you bowing before Him who is King and Ruler and Shepherd of His people? You see, it is those that are proud that will never enter the kingdom of heaven. They are proud to think that their salvation comes by their own might and from their own hands. They see themselves as it were as a place of great produce and great need. God needs me. The world needs me. People need me. No one needed Bethlehem Ephratah. But when Jesus came there, the world recognized their need of Him. You see, the way it works in the kingdom of God is that we must be those that are lowly and that are humble before Him. We must be those that humble ourselves in the sight of the Lord, knowing that He will exalt us in due course. The two men that go into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and one a publican. The Pharisee stands there and he stands there glorifying his own goodness and his own works, as if he's as if God is privileged to have him in the temple. But the publican, the sinner, the tax collector, cannot even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beats upon his breast and says, "God, be merciful to me a sinner." That's a man who is like that little town of Bethlehem as it were, a lowly place where Christ comes and condescends. Where Christ saves, where Christ has mercy, where Christ restores, where Christ brings peace, where Christ cleanses, where He forgives. Have you come to that place of brokenness and humility before God and repented of your sins this morning and trusted in Jesus Christ the Lord? Take the lesson from Bethlehem Ephratah. Be little in your own sight and see that you need a great Savior. But also we have to ask ourselves, is our church that lowly place? You see, Christ comes to and goes forth from lowly places. We can say that Christ has come to us in salvation. We can glory in the fact that He is among us, as Head of the church. We can rejoice in the fact that He has come to us, but Christ came to Bethlehem and from Bethlehem as a Savior and Ruler and King. And so we learn the lesson that the effectiveness of our proclamation of the gospel of Christ going to the nations, the gospel saving sinners, God using the body of Christ for the advancement of His gospel is dependent on the humility of His people. The success of Camden Valley Baptist Church will never lie in our effective strategizing. It will never lie in our public strong presence. It will never lie in a fancy building or the pomp and pride of an establishment. Mark it down and understand that God works through the lowly. The success of his church and the success of his people in their advancement of the kingdom, Christ will go forth from a place where He is honored and exalted because His people are low and humble. And the further we bow, the more Christ is exalted, and the more Christ will seek to pour His power upon us to carry out His work. But the minute that we become great in our sights, like Saul of Tarsus, God will take away the blessing of the kingdom of God and the ministry of king as it were to Saul of Tarsus and will give it to a lowly shepherd boy who reflect Jesus Christ the Lord. This is how God works in His kingdom. Never be mistaken. He looks upon the contrite ones, the broken ones, the weak ones. And therefore, we this morning must heed the call to humility as we look at the Christmas story. Most of the carols we sang today spoke of that humble incarnation of the Son of God. And it calls us not only to humble ourselves in regard to salvation, but to live a life of humility. As Peter says, to clothe yourself with humility. We need to learn the art as the people of God of forgetting about ourselves. The kingdom of God is not about us, it's about the glory of our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. And the more that we forget about ourselves, the more that He is exalted. His is the kingdom, the glory, and the honor, and the power. Let us cry with the psalmist, "Not unto us, O God, not unto us, but unto Your name give glory for Your mercy and for Your truth's sake." We must forget about our opinions more and more. We must forget about our own glory, we must forget about our own honor, and we must find ourselves like the Lord Jesus Christ, bearing the towel on our knees, washing disciples' feet. We must have the attitude of John that he must increase and I must decrease. And that must be true not only in our church, but in the world in which we live. Christ must increase, I must decrease in my workplace. That they might know that all the effectiveness that comes from my intellect and my powers comes from a God who loved me and made me and saved me. Not because I'm just the cleverest person in my business. Where does that intelligence come from? But the Lord. Where does the power to get wealth come from? But the Lord. It should be the same in our school or in our university. It should be the same in our home and in our relationships with one another. Husbands, loving your wives as Christ loves the church looks like Jesus Christ, lowly in Bethlehem, fulfilling the work and purposes of God. Ruler, yes. King, yes. But a loving servant of those whom He served. Wives, loving your husbands also and submitting to them looks like that humble submission. It looks like that little town of Bethlehem. Say, "Oh, I'll never be heard if I do not make the loud noise." God looks upon little towns like Bethlehem. "I'll never get my way if I don't exert my power." God resists the proud and gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord and He will exalt you in due time. Casting all your care upon Him for He cares for you. You say, "Surely there's another way to the top." The only way to the top is to humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord. So that He might raise you up with Christ to sit with Him in heavenly places. You see, because it is with Christ that we rule and reign. It is with Christ that we have our identity. With Christ we are kings and priests unto God. It is through Christ that we can do all things and it is through Christ that we are who we are. And when you doubt the wisdom of Bethlehem Ephratah as the place where God would choose to bestow His saving power and mercy, you need to stop and come and see what happened there that day. There was one who had emptied Himself, who made Himself of no reputation, who took upon Himself the form of a servant, who was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted Him and given Him a name above every name. Struggling with humility? Come to Bethlehem and see. The Son of God, God's choicest man, prophet, priest and king in a manger, in a stable, because there is no room for him in the inn. But nevertheless, God's great Ruler and King and Savior of the world. Will you humble yourself before this King today? Let us pray.