Msg #1950 House of Bread, Ashes to Fruitfulness

What The Bible Says

Good Samaritan's Penny Pulpit by Pastor Ed Rice

A tiny town five miles south of Jerusalem peeks interest this time of the year. It came to be called Bethlehem-Euphratah after Rachel, Jacob's favored wife, died there in childbirth. Bethlehem in the Hebrew tongue means “house of bread” while Euphratah means both “ash-heap” and “place of fruitfulness.” Dying Rachel called her son Benoni (son of my sorrow), but Jacob changed his name to Benjamin (son of the right hand). Four-hundred years later, in sorrow, Naomi brought her daughter-in-law Ruth, the Moabite, to Bethlehem-Euphratah, but Boaz, her kinsman redeemer, turned her sorrow into fruitfulness (Ruth 1-4). Three-hundred years after that Saul stepped across Rachel's sepulchre on his way to the throne, but it took David, the shepherd boy born there, to secure the eternal title, King of Israel. From ashes to fruitfulness was God's theme for the little town of Bethlehem. And who could forget the three mighty men who defied a garrison of Philistines to bring David a drink of cold water from the well of Bethlehem. In the house-of-bread the Bread of Life was born; near the well of cool water living water was wrapped in burial cloth and laid in a manger bed. “But thou, Bethlehem 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.... And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)” (Micah 5:2, Luke 2:4). And so it was that Jesus was born in Bethlehem-Euphratah, the Christ child, a man of sorrows, would bring us fruitfulness. Merry Christmas.

An Essay for week #50 Dec 15, 2019

Msg in audio at www.GSBaptistChurch.com/audio/gs191215.mp3

This msg in ppt slides at www.GSBaptistChurch.com/msgs

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