VICTIMS OF ROMAN OPPRESSION AND TAXATION

Each year around Christmas time, we hear a lot of talk of Joseph and Mary, the first family of the Bible, being either homeless or refugees. The purveyors of this social justice misinformation assume that Christians do not read the Bible and thus, know the Gospel Truth! How can anyone read the following and come to the conclusion that (the then-baby) Jesus and His earthly parents were homeless and/or refugees is sophistry.  The underlying basis of this untruth is the inability of Joseph, the caretaker guardian parent of the yet-unborn Jesus Christ to find lodging in Bethlehem for his very pregnant wife, Mary and himself.

Luke 2:1-7: And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. 2 This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. 3 So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city.

4 Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, 5 to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child. 6 So it was, that while they were there, the days were completed for her to be delivered. 7 And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn……

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The Book of Jude is amazingly chock full of more nuggets than a San Francisco 1849’er could ever find in his gold mine. There is more substance, more power and more truth packed into 25 short verses of this book, than half of the books in your average Christian book store. Before looking closer at these Truths therein, we must marvel at just who Jude really is! He is the other half-brother of the Lord Jesus and full blooded brother of the Apostle James (writer of the book of the same name). Both Jude and James were sons of Mary and Joseph, after Jesus was born of the virgin, as ordained by God. Jesus, James and Jude also had two other brothers and three sisters, but there is no mention of who the sisters were in the rest of the Canon of the Scriptures.

It is noteworthy here that NONE of the Lord’s siblings believed in Him and His Work while He was alive! It was only after the Lord’s Resurrection, when He appeared to 500 followers AND JAMES (1 Corinthians 15:6-8) that James believed and then Jude.  Both of the Lord’s natural brothers (via Mary) were radically saved. James became the head of the founding church in Jerusalem. He became known as “Camel Knees” from praying so much to the Father, in Jesus’ Name and eventually gave his life for the cause of Christ. Matthew gave the names of all four of Jesus’ half-brothers who were born of Mary, after the birth of Christ. There were Joseph (Jr. presumably); Simon; James and Judas (who was called Jude for obvious reasons. Judas was a popular name before the betrayal). James and Jude were the best known evangelists of the family, after their Great Brother, Lord and Savior – Yeshua!  These names are found in Matthew 13:55. The Lord’s three half-sisters are not named….

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