For many people, the happiness we expect at Christmas only magnifies the pain of the challenges. The over-the-top joy in sugary-sweet Christmas movies can make us feel like we’re the only ones who are hurting. But the story of the first Christmas is actually a dark tale that both acknowledges our pain and points to our hope. Consider the harsh realities of the first Christmas described in Luke’s Gospel and what they reveal.

The census stirred financial stress and political resentment

A reading of the Christmas story often begins with a statement about a census (Luke 2:1-2). We usually think about those forms we get in the mail where we’re asked how many people live in our home and what languages we speak. A census in biblical times was usually about taxation. When Joseph and Mary got the news that they would have to register, it would come with both financial burden and political resentment. Rome wanted more money! It’s not what you wanted to hear when you were expecting your first baby in an unplanned pregnancy.

The journey was dangerous and exhausting

We tend to romanticize Joseph and Mary’s journey to Bethlehem (Luke 2:3-4). We picture Mary on a donkey and Joseph leading the animal gently, but nowhere in Scripture does it mention how they travelled. What we do know is that the distance is about 150 kilometres. You can drive that by car today in two to three hours, but it would have taken closer to a week for Joseph and Mary. And since everyone was travelling at the same time, it would have felt like rush hour traffic on a long weekend. We can imagine the discomfort that Mary would have felt.

The stable spelled rejection and disappointment

I’m not sure nativity scenes would have ever become a holiday tradition if Jesus had been born in a hospital. There’s something about those animals and the rustic surroundings that made for a great Christmas decoration. But the lack of a proper room must have felt like the last straw (Luke 2:7). After a long journey, you want to relax. And surely every pregnant mother craves a little comfort. Having to put your newborn in an animal feeding trough must have felt cruel.

Every detail in the chaotic story had a good, but invisible, purpose

The painful realities of the Christmas story can change how we see our own circumstances. Neither Joseph nor Mary could have seen anything good about what was happening to them. And yet as we look back at their story, we can understand God’s purposes. The census ensured that Jesus’ birth would be dated since these events were of interest to historians, religious or otherwise. The journey to Bethlehem fulfilled a 700-year-old prophecy of where the Messiah would be born (Micah 5:2). And the fact that there was no room in the inn foreshadowed the rejection Jesus would face but also His willingness to stand with the poor and the outsiders. Everything was just as God wanted it after all.

As you reflect on how these painful circumstances could fulfill God’s good purposes, it gives you hope as you consider your own disappointments. The Christmas story is not so much about happy endings or perfect circumstances. It’s about light in the darkness. It’s about a Saviour born in the midst of the struggle. It’s about a wise God carrying out a good plan when it must have seemed like everything was out of control. If God did that at the first Christmas, then He’s continuing to do that today. Think about something that makes Christmas hard this year, and choose to trust God’s good purposes by faith, and find hope in His plan for you.

In awe of Him,

Paul