During Advent, I have been preaching through a series of messages on the Lord’s family — Joseph first, then Mary, and then His brothers and sisters. The outline for the sermon yesterday had been done since Wednesday, and in that message I was pointing out how the Lord’s brothers did not believe in Him until after the resurrection.
As I was doing my Sunday morning reading beforehand, unrelated to the sermon, or so I thought, it so happened that I was in the minor prophets. It was a Christmas message, and I happened to read this:
“But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, Though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, Yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; Whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting” (Micah 5:2).
Now I won’t say anything like “what the odds?” because that doesn’t seem all that remarkable to me. We all know about that passage, and if you are reading through the Bible regularly, then you will sometimes read Christmas passages at Christmastime. What threw me was the verse right after that, which I don’t recall ever seeing before, even though I have read it multiple times.
“Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: Then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel” (Micah 5:3).
The Lord’s brothers shall return. And they did (1 Cor. 15:7).