Introduction
The message continues the theme of God’s perfect timing, moving toward the celebration of Christ’s coming. Christians can say “Merry Christmas” with sincerity every day, because the birth of Jesus is not merely a seasonal sentiment but a constant source of worship and hope. As we open the Scriptures, especially Luke 1, we’re invited to see that the Lord was not reacting to history; He was ruling over it, arranging events in a way that fulfilled His purposes at exactly the right time.
Yet, as we look at God’s perfect timing, we must hold together two truths Scripture teaches without flattening either one: God is sovereign over all things, and human beings make real choices. The Lord sets up and removes leaders, guiding the course of nations according to His will, and at the same time He does not treat people as puppets. This is not an abstract debate; it matters for how we read the Christmas story and how we trust God in our own lives.
Module Content
The teaching begins by emphasizing God’s control over history. The Lord governs the rise and fall of rulers, He ordains and deposes kings, so that even political shifts and imperial decrees ultimately serve His plan. But the sermon is careful to add a vital clarification: God’s sovereignty does not cancel human responsibility. People are not forced to become villains against their will. God is omniscient, He knows everything. He knows every possible outcome of every possible decision, because He fully comprehends time, the human heart, and the consequences of every path.
That is why Scripture can describe God using even wicked rulers without making God the author of their wickedness. The sermon points to Pharaoh in the Exodus as an example. The Bible says God “hardened Pharaoh’s heart,” but when you read the wider account, you also see Pharaoh hardening his own heart again and again. The point is not that Pharaoh was innocent and God made him evil, but that Pharaoh’s rebellion was real, and in God’s sovereign judgment the Lord gave Pharaoh over to what he persistently chose.
The same pattern is echoed in Romans 1, where Paul describes people sinking into deeper rebellion, marked by sexual sin and the normalization of what God forbids, and then God “turning them over” to a debased mind (Romans 1). That “turning over” is portrayed as judgment: God giving people what they demand, not because He delights in sin, but because they have chosen it. This helps us understand how the Lord can remain perfectly just while still directing history toward His redemptive ends.
From there, the sermon returns to the prior week’s historical setup: the rise of Caesar Augustus (Octavian) and the Roman Empire’s occupation of Israel. Many events had to unfold for Octavian to be on the throne at precisely the moment Jesus was to be born. In his pride and political calculation, Caesar Augustus issued a census decree throughout the known world. It required men to return to their hometowns for registration in anticipation of taxation. That decree compelled Joseph, whose ancestral hometown was Bethlehem, to travel roughly ninety miles south with Mary, who was very pregnant, on a journey of several days. Humanly, it was imperial arrogance and administrative control. In God’s perfect timing, it was providence moving Joseph and Mary to the place where prophecy would be fulfilled.
The sermon then introduces a second major historical figure who will loom over the birth narratives: Herod. Not only is Herod present “in the days” surrounding Christ’s birth, but he also embodies the kind of ruler God can use even in the midst of wickedness. The message notes that next week will focus more directly on Herod’s brutality; for now, we are shown how he came to power and why his continued rule is historically surprising.
Herod, often called “Herod the Great”, did not receive that title from humble admirers; he essentially gave it to himself, revealing something about his hunger for status. His background also mattered: he was only half-Jewish, coming from Idumea (a region southeast of Judea). Idumeans had been forcibly converted to Judaism, so Herod was raised with Jewish identity, but he was never fully accepted by many in Judea.
The sermon sketches the political complexity leading up to Herod’s throne. Judea had been ruled by the Hasmonean (Maccabean) dynasty for roughly a century, a line tied to the events remembered in Hanukkah, the Feast of Lights, celebrating the rededication of the temple (a feast Jesus Himself observed). But shifting alliances and instability opened the door for Rome’s dominance.
Herod’s father, Antipater, was described as a shrewd political operator who gained influence by navigating power structures effectively. As Rome expanded its control, Antipater received authority within the Roman framework and positioned his son Herod to rule in Galilee while still young.
A decisive turning point came around 40 BC when the Parthians (from the Persian sphere) captured Jerusalem and installed an ethnic local ruler, placing a Hasmonean king over Judea. Herod, allied with Mark Antony and driven by personal ambition, persuaded the Roman Senate and Antony to support him with an army. He promised to retake Jerusalem, drive out the Parthians, and claim the title “king of the Jews.” According to Josephus, Herod was not merely a politician; he was a skilled general, a fierce warrior, and successful in military leadership. Though the campaign took longer than expected, he eventually secured victory, the Parthians were expelled, and Rome installed Herod as ruler in Jerusalem.
Even then, Herod faced a legitimacy crisis. The people’s loyalty remained with the Hasmonean line, and Herod’s partial Jewish identity did not overcome the resentment of being imposed by Rome. Herod sought acceptance through strategy rather than repentance. After Octavian defeated Mark Antony and Cleopatra, Herod’s political fortunes should have collapsed, he had been on the losing side. Yet in bold calculation, he went before Caesar Augustus and essentially argued that his loyalty to Antony proved the kind of steadfastness Rome should want in a regional ruler. Augustus, preferring ethnic leaders to govern difficult outlying regions, kept Herod in power over Judea.
With Rome secured, Herod attempted to win over the Jewish populace by marrying Mariamne, a Hasmonean princess. He hoped that a marriage alliance and sons born from that union would grant him legitimacy. But the sermon underscores the darkness of his character: Herod’s paranoia and hunger for control turned murderous. When rumors of conspiracy surfaced, he killed his wife and the sons born to her. Caesar Augustus is remembered as saying it was better to be Herod’s pig than Herod’s son, capturing the brutality of a ruler who protected his power with blood.
Herod’s household became complicated: multiple wives, many sons, and later multiple “Herods” appearing in the New Testament narrative because of the tangled succession and the ongoing political impact of his family. Yet Herod also used a mixture of public “benevolence” and harsh violence, promising assistance to the needy to gain favor while committing brutal acts to maintain control. It was a strategic combination: generosity as a tool, terror as a safeguard.
Finally, Herod became famous for massive construction projects. He built and expanded impressive sites, ports and fortresses, and most significantly, he undertook the grand expansion of the temple complex and the Temple Mount platform. The project was enormous, lasting decades beyond his lifetime. His stated aim was to elevate the second temple toward the glory the people remembered from Solomon’s temple. Ironically, even after the temple complex was finally completed, it would soon be destroyed in the catastrophe of 70 AD when Rome devastated Jerusalem.
All of this history matters for Luke 1 because, in spite of oppression under Rome and Herod, the temple worship continued. The life of Israel still revolved around the temple’s rhythms, and that is where Luke introduces us to a different kind of person, someone God would use not in spite of wickedness but through faithful obedience.
So, as Luke’s Gospel opens its birth narrative, it deliberately sets the stage: “There was in the days of Herod…” (Luke 1:5). The sermon directs our attention to a faithful priest, Zechariah, a Levite serving in those difficult days, and his wife Elizabeth. In a time when political power was often corrupt and violent, God was quietly preparing the way for Christ through ordinary faithfulness. The Lord’s perfect timing would not only involve emperors and kings; it would also involve a godly couple whose lives were aligned with God’s purposes.
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for Your Word and for the truth that stands through every age. Open our hearts and minds to receive what You are saying. Help us to see Your perfect timing, not only in the great movements of history but also in the quiet faithfulness of those who belong to You. Teach us to trust Your sovereignty without denying our responsibility, and to rest in Your wisdom when we cannot see the whole story. Change us from the inside out as we look to Jesus Christ and Your unfolding plan of redemption. In His name we pray, amen.